I'm not sure what I think about Bloomington's new requirements for dog-tethering. They can't be tied up for more than 10 hours in a row or more than 12 hours in any 24-hour period. I have cats, who bascially just roam around the house when they're not eating or sleeping. But it seems reasonable. What's the point of having a pet if you're just going to tie it up in the back yard and ignore it half the time? For what it's worth, here's what the Fort Wayne city code has to say:
On Property - When restraining an animal on your property, it is unlawful to use a rope, chain, or cord fastened directly to the animal's neck, nor may a choker chain be used for tethering an animal. Animals that must be tied must have a collar or harness made of nylon or leather. The tying device shall be at least six feet in length and attached to the collar or harness with a swivel device on the anchor and collar end to prevent tangling. The animal must not be able to leave the owner's property while restrained.
Shelter Must Be Available - An animal, while tethered outside, must have access to proper shelter at all times. The person responsible for the animal must keep the area in a sanitary condition to prevent odor and health problems. In addition, the animal and its shelter must be located on dry ground that is mud free. The shelter must be designed to specifically shelter an animal, with a roof and three sides free of leaks and openings to the wind and rain, and a forth side allowing access that is protected from the elements.
Comments
Unlike many cats (many of which never need tethering anyhow), dogs are very social creatures that NEED to interact with people or other animals to have any quality of life.
Tethering outdoors for 10-12 hours a day, sometimes in zero temperatures, certainly means the dog is living an isolated life, restrained from any daytime stimulation except barking and watching the world pass by and asleep all night, then another day of chained daylight, ad infinitum. Any dog that is spending its life alone, restrained to a small muddy circle of dirt deserves another home while there's still some happy life left to be lived.
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By the way, my 60-lb. dog just suffered extensive injuries inside a local pet hospital. I got my dog back looking like she'd be struck head on by a car.
The vet says she panicked when two techs tried to muzzle her by force, then crashed herself into a wall in the dog run. But the notes mention the techs failed to get the muzzle on her. Apparently they tried pretty hard before they got tired.
The physical struggle between dog and two techs inflamed and lacerated the dog's muzzle, gouged an eyelid and an ear and a couple holes on her head -- and the choker was held with such force that it deeply cut and bloodied a three-inch by half-inch ditch across the back of her neck.
That's not nearly all. A front leg was bloodied on the front AND back sides, the left hind leg has four wound areas: a 6-inch area of abrasions and lacerations on the "knee" and three bloodied areas on the haunch, while the right hind leg has a bloodied knee and, after the meds wore off, I found she isn't able to carry her whole weight on that leg without limping. "Yet," I pray.
The doc first insisted "The dog did it all to herself!" by freaking, rolling like a crocodile, and running head first into a chain-link-lined wall while they stepped back.
What about the obvious muzzle and choker wounds? Finally the doc admitted the neck wound DID look like a choker wound, but still found no fault with their methods or policies or their staff.
I had given the doc and several techs plenty of heads-ups about the dog's past fear of vet clinics, but still they refused the harness I offered, and the doc ignored the fact that I had to slip the muzzle on the dog myself during her exam.
Of course, after the disaster, doc did say "next time" they'd have me stay and put on the muzzle, and leave my harness for their use. She also said, "If you'd put on the muzzle, none of this would have happened." So the muzzle business DID start the riot after all...
Instead of a dog in above-average health getting a simple snip of a small tumor under her tail, they gave her back to me looking like she'd been hit by a car, and having psychological scars in the form of clearly increased separation anxiety. And there's that limp.
So much for experience, understanding and expertise among the kind of vet staff who will physically injure a defensive dog rather than think and change approaches.
Slightly off-topic, and wordy at that, but I had to air this somewhere that locals might find it.
Steve,
Jesus, sorry about your dog's nightmare vet appointment. Inquiring minds want to know (so we can steer the hell clear of that vet), what's the name of the (ir)responsible clinic?
If we named the specific business here they'd just have to delete it. Let's just say it's somewhere in New Haven. (Nothing against the city of N.H. either; it's where I grew up.)