Is Your Dog Chained...Ever?    

 Information gathered from the Animal Legal Defense Fund's

 newsletter, Animals' Advocate.

Additional comments by The Tracker.

Someone sent in a question to Ask Joyce, the Joyce being Joyce Tischler, Director of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, about a neighbor's dog who was contained by being chained/tethered in the backyard 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  This concerned someone also said the dog was miserable and barked consistently.  She asked what she could do. 

 

Ms. Tischler answered her question with the following:

 

"The American Veterinary Medical Association has stated that guardians should 'never tether or chain a dog because this can contribute to aggressive behaviour.'"

 

"The United States of Department of Agriculture adds: 'Continuous confinement of dogs by a tether is inhumane.'  Numerous animal experts agree."

 

"Dogs are pack animals and their human family is often their 'pack.'  A chained dog, kept away from the pack, is bound to be lonely and frustrated and may become aggressive."

 

"Physical injuries can result from chaining as well.  The necks of chained dogs are sometimes found raw and covered in sores because of improperly fitted collars and the dog's constant straining and pulling to escape the chain."

 

What can you do?

 

"Start by approaching your neighbor in a friendly, nonjudgmental way.  Ask if you can go with the owner to meet the dog and offer to walk the dog or bring the dog some treats.  Try to find out why the dog is chained."

 

"Offer advice to help your neighbor solve the problem without chaining.

 If the dog escapes from the yard, suggest suitable fencing or fencing alternatives.

 If the guardian doesn't want the dog to mate, offer resources about low-cost spay-neuter clinics. 

 If the dog is chained because he nips or digs, explain that chaining often makes the behavior worse.

 Suggest obedience training.

 The best solution for the dog is to encourage your neighbor to unchain him and bring him inside to be with his family.

 If the guardian doesn't really want the dog, offer to try and find him a loving, new home."

 

"If you are unable to help the dog by dealing directly with your neighbor and you suspect cruelty, notify the local authorities.  Most state anti-cruelty laws make it a crime to consistently deny food, water, shelter and/or veterinary care to an animal.  If you witness those conditions in addition to the chaining, contact your local humane society, animal control or police/sheriff to investigate.  However, chaining without those other factors is not considered a crime in most states."

 

"For information on whether or not your community has chaining laws, check www.MuniCode.com, or call your local animal control or humane society."

 

"If the dog is barking for long periods of time, a nuisance or breach of the peace action may be appropriate and may get the dog some relief.  For more information on what you can do to help chained dogs, please visit www.UnchainYourDog.com and www.aldf.org ."

 

Personally, as The Tracker, chaining anything for any period of time is in itself an action of cruelty.  Perhaps the best way to understand this is to simply experience it.

 

I can also suggest that this concerned someone gift their neighbor with a good book on understanding the behavior of dogs and how to humanely break them of bad habits.  They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, however, in this case, any knowledge would be helpful. 

 

IT'S THE LAW:

NEWS RELEASE

FIRST BIG MUNICIPALITY/CITY TO BAN TETHERING

LA City Council passed a vote today that bans tethering in the City of Los Angeles. LA Animal Services has made this a top priority and worked on presenting this to Council for more than two years. We have seen an accumulation of complaints on dogs that have been tethered inhumanely, and a dog that is tethered is three times more likely to bite than a dog that is not. "These were unacceptable conditions and bad odds," states General Manager Guerdon Stuckey. "So LA Animal Services set out to pass an ordinance that would ban tethering, and we did."

BACKGROUND

Such complaints that the Department received for tethering were entanglement, dog hanging itself, no access to food, water and shelter and dogs that had the collars imbedded in their necks that were in need of medical treatment, therefore the ban on tethering. The municipal code that was passed today clearly defines that a dog must not be tethered. It does have caging requirements if needed. The law also has a provision, that you can tether your dog if you are completing a temporary task, like repairing your fence, a party, the gardener, etc. but also is very clear on how to tether your dog. For example, length must be three times the length of the dog and it must be with a body harness free from entanglement with access to food, water and shelter at all times. "This is a great accomplishment for LA Animal Services," states Commander David Diliberto.

Penalties for noncompliance. A violation of this Section may be punishable as either an infraction or a misdemeanor at the sole discretion of the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office.

The maximum penalty for a conviction of this Section as an infraction is a fine of $250.00. The maximum penalty for a conviction of this Section as a misdemeanor is a fine of $1,000.00, imprisonment in the County Jail for a period not more than six months, or by both a fine and imprisonment.