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Show ByFelicia Ames A Pet Expert Says: For Your Sake and Your Dogs: Don't Let Him RunFree! You often hear dog ownerssaythatthe kindestthing they candois to give their pets their freedom. is it that,oris it that these people are just too lazy and inconsiderate to give their dogs the on-leash exercise they need? Hodge, the Beagle down the street, has just strolled through my garden, leaving his trademark on the parkway and digging up a few begonias en route. Butch, a German Shepherd who has learned how to unlatch a gate, knocked over mygarbage can during the “The public outcry against dogs on the loose has — more shrill...lf permissive owners onlyrealized it, they are endangering not only themselves but their beloved pets as well.” night; I know because I caught himin the flashlight at 2 o'clock. Susie, a toddler who loves all animals, especially family car. (Dogs in the strecls endanger motorists as well as themselves. Who of us has not dogs, was bitten by a nomadic had to jam on the brakes or terrier of uncestain description andis currently undergoingrabies treatment because the dog cannot be found. None of these incidents swerve suddenlyto avoid a pup off his leash and out for an evening stroll?) Even well- trained dogsare vulnerable to the almighty automobile. A favorite Toy Poodle of my should have happened. acquaintance, Binkie, ended Althoughit is true that the dog populationis increasing at a muchfaster rate than the human, the current rash of herlife last summer when she stepped daintily across the street just as a taxi turned the corner. The greatest threat to free- citizen complaints against man’s best friend is not due to roaming Rovers, of course, is the dog so much as .o his master. If pets are turning into pests—and some are—it’s a peo- that they often don’t come home at all, Wanderlust can getinto the blood. If your dog is wearinghisidentificationtag, ple problem, not a doggy one. Too many dog owners seem or has been tattooed, he may be returned; but if not, your to feel that the kindest thing they can dois to give their pets chances (and his) are slim, their freedom. “I hate to see > most natural wav to relieve constipation. Duke shut up all day in the back yard,” wails a neighbor. The troubie with Duke's own- Dogshave been found wandering the streets miles from their homes. Tags have become torn off; the dogs are often badly ers is that they bought much too big a dog for the size of frightened, hungry, eager to welcome any port-in-the-storm the property. And theyare too lazyor preoccupied to exercise him onaleash every day. The as homg, Or, if dog nappers don’t get themfirst, they may be picked up by humane so- result is that he has become cieties to wait for repossession. the neighborhood delinquent, More often than you may despised by all who have to think, they wait in vain. If you don't want to lose clean up after him In the last few years, the your dog or have him end up public outcry against dogs on che loose has grown more shrill. Dogs are not the only ones barking more these days; citizens are barking at each other. Residents of city and suburban communities have hadto learn to walk looking down, or run the risk of soil- ing their shoes in excrement, Felicia Ames, a leader in hu manecauses for animals, is a consultant for the Friskies Research Center and author of “The Dog You Care For.” A If permissive owners only or nipped by roaming dogs whomay just be outfor a lark realizedit, they are endanger- ing not only themselves but neighborhood dug his way under a fence in search of a between-meals snack, and or a hand-out but whoinvari- their beloved endedup with an acute mal regulationofficer is called. Their favorite Fidos are not only likely to loiter andlitter, Children are being intimidated ably disappear whenthe ani- In more rural areas, dogs are killing chickens and deer, probably as muchoutof boredomas hunger. pets as well but to pick upindigestion or worse from neighbors’ trash cans andyards. Only the other y, a prize Dalmatian in our case of food poisoning. He pulled through, but onlyjust. The statistics on dogs and automobiles grow more grim everyyear. The biggest killer of pets is not disease but the at the bottom ofthe neigborhood popularity poll, rememberthat yourfirst responsibility to the dog andto yourfellow citizensis to keep him confined or on leash, Leash laws are for your protection, not harass- ment. Give Fido plenty of supervised exercise and play. Love him lot. Discipline him when he needs it. No dog leaves homeif he is well cared for and given his own protected play area. Dogs don't need freedom; but they can die ofit. O Family Weekty, October 8, 1971 at |