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Beware – my dog doesn’t bite

Life & Style
It’s a wonderful summer day, the birds are singing, the dogs are barking, as they should be, because there is a feeling of excitement all around. Speaking of dogs, they are supposed to be man’s best friend, but they are also used as guard dogs, sniffers and other such duties as prescribed by management, in […]

It’s a wonderful summer day, the birds are singing, the dogs are barking, as they should be, because there is a feeling of excitement all around.

Speaking of dogs, they are supposed to be man’s best friend, but they are also used as guard dogs, sniffers and other such duties as prescribed by management, in this case their owners.

While I am not a dog-owner, over the past years, I have had the mis-pleasure of seeing dogs being abused. While everyone would like to keep pets, there seems to be some laxity on how they should be treated.

In addition, dogs owners really should spare a thought for the community. How many times have we seen dogs walking unleashed on the street.

Not stray dogs by the way, but dogs with names and owners?

How many times have we seen dogs searching for food in bins or drinking water from puddles? And how many times have we heard dogs howling or barking madly at odd hours, probably from boredom?

I know for a fact that dogs are meant to be well-exercised, taken to the vet for their vaccinations and de-flea’d (by the way I have creative right to invent words as I go along, so work with me!)

It seems that a lot of dog owners want to treat their dogs as they would an adult child, ie they expect it to bath and groom itself, look for food when hungry and clean up after itself, even though they would not have taught the dog to go “potty”.

Amazingly this dog is also supposed to be able to open the gate and close it when it decides to go for a walk. Let me expound this point.

After the dog has been grounded for months on end (ie no walks, no entertainment around the house), one day the gate is opened and sensing freedom it bolts out of the gate faster than Usain Bolt and runs amok.

The owner, instead of calling the dog back into the yard, leaves it outside, perhaps as punishment, until their return or until someone inside the house opens the gate for it.

The crazy thing about this is that when the dog does go out, it scares the living daylights out of all passersby.

On one occasion, a neighbour of mine, instead of calling their dog back, called out to passersby, “It’s OK, my dog doesn’t bite.”

Sadly, because the poor people saw this vicious-looking animal jumping about, they tried to run and one subsequently got bitten. So much for “my dog doesn’t bite”.

Imagine the trauma they underwent, in addition, the expenses incurred getting treatment, especially if the dog hadn’t been vaccinated.

Dogs, like any other living creature need training, nourishment, entertainment and love.

You could say I am off my rocker on this one, entertainment for dogs. I don’t mean you take your dog out for concerts, but you could play with it in the garden, take it for walks and if you have a car, take it for a drive. This balances the dog’s behaviour and its propensity to be easily agitated.

Futhermore, it saves us the neighbours from hearing a dog “concerto” as the poor creature tries to sing itself happy.

So as usual, my questions begin. What is the purpose of owning a dog if you will not take full responsibility for it?

Are dogs really there for people, or are people there for dogs? I don’t know, but if you do, or have any comments e-mail: [email protected]