Unchain the dogs of New York State!

My feelings on chaining or kenneling outside.... My main concern is how safe is the dog. I have heard countless stories of dogs being stolen or injured while chained up or kenneled outside. I would never leave my dog out side unsupervised...never ever.

I have always wondered why people have dogs if they can't share their home with them. I know some people have dogs for tools not companions but in a environment were dogs are companions, why have one if you aren't going to share you life with them.

Putting a two DA APBT's beside each other in kennels will very likely end up in injuries. Has anyone else here ever seen the results of 2 dogs fence fighting? It happened at the SPCA occasionally, among many different breeds, in their outdoor runs. Not very pretty.

I'd like to point out that not having connectors/latches on a chain set-up does not mean the dog is permanently chained....Collars DO undo!

Our collars always stay attached to our tieouts. When not in use they are put inside the doghouse to keep them clean and dry. We have many different collars for our dogs so to take out a leash with a collar attached to move the dog is common for us.

Same here. I used to leave my dogs outside while I was gone to work (in a fenced yard). Not anymore. I would never take that risk. I can't imagine what could happen to a dog that has no chance of escape if need be. A chained dog is like a sitting duck. Anything can happen at any time. People are too mean these days, there are to many other people that let their dogs run loose.

I have also noticed that most people that I see that have chained dogs are more prone to neglect them, not sure why. After seeing dogs day in and day out that are abused there is no denying what I see with my own eyes. Sure, any type of containment can be abused. But when you see abused dogs every single day most are chained rather than fenced.

That's awesome!! :hail:

We're up to 372 petitions this morning. Let's keep spreading the word!

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summitview, you are also ignoring all of the other great points that have been brought up in this thread in a way that is very AR like ~

http://www.pet-law.com/future/ar_laws.html

I'm so taken aback at the deliberate blindness towards logic that I don't even know what to say...of COURSE that dog was taken off it's chain and often! Look through more pictures, you'll see plenty of JD in the house, curled up on the sofa WITHOUT A CHAIN on...that dog was also a hunting dog, you think he could hunt with a chain on? Have you never had a dog get dirty?

Ok, so I guess I did know something to say.

24/7 chaining is cruel and inhumane. But properly containing your dog is the responsible thing to do, so I don't see where a couple hours here and there is a big deal. I've met just as many crazy and neglected dogs living 24/7 in a 6x6 chainlink box, where the only contact they got was when someone remembered to feed them. Abuse is abuse, no matter what form it takes.

Um. My dog gets grey marks on her neck from wearing a choke chain at a show. That doesn't mean she wears a choke chain all the time.

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Let's keep this thread about the petition and not about personal dogs and their owners and our lack of full comprehension regarding their care. Just like any debate, it can get heated, but the personal digs are completely unnecessary.

To me a chained dog is an outside dog ..... a tethered dog is for temporary safety . I had a cable around a tree in front for Chip when
I was working in the unfenced front yard . He was happy on it and would watch me . When I got Ollie I hooked him up and he went nuts !!! Who knows what his past was !! He's never been on it since .....

Sometimes those cables just aren't reliable, even for temporary useage. I've seen dogs chew through them and pull the bolt snaps out of their swivels.

To me, the bottom line is this...

Laws and Legislations such as BSL, Mandatory Spay and Neuter, Anti-tethering etc, do absolutely NOTHING to solve problems.

The people who neglect/abuse animals are the same people who disregard laws to begin with, so the only people who are actually affected by the aforementioned legislation....

are the people who abide by the laws and are responsible owners

whether the dogs are crated, kenneled or chained!

It's sad that this forum excuses neglect just because of who inflicted it.

This thread now has over 1,000 views, and I've received a number of e-mails over the days in support of unchaining dogs - some from members who dare not speak out on the forums. Let's keep spreading the word! And bless those dogs, like Doogie, who are now freed from life on a chain and resting at peace.

Let me say up front: I do not chain my dog. I do not need to. I have a high fence and she makes no attempt to escape it. I do not approve of chaining dogs all day and all night. I do not approve of dogs left in yards on a chain without shelter or water or food. I rather think the laws saying you can't chain them after 10 or before 5 are not an especially bad idea. But banning chaining altogether? Or are we talking about tethering . . . same thing, different object? What's next, fences?


A chain does not equal neglect any more than it equals starvation. That's what we have been trying to tell you. You keep using that word, perhaps you are unclear on what it means:

ne·glect (n -gl kt )
tr.v. ne·glect·ed, ne·glect·ing, ne·glects 1. To pay little or no attention to; fail to heed; disregard: neglected their warnings.
2. To fail to care for or attend to properly: neglects her appearance.
3. To fail to do or carry out, as through carelessness or oversight: neglected to return the call.

n. 1. The act or an instance of neglecting something.
2. The state of being neglected.
3. Habitual lack of care

If you care properly for your dog, it doesn't matter if he or she wears a chain or tether for a few hours a day vs. stays in the yard for a few hours a day vs. stays in a crate for a few hours a day. Since we can't be with our dogs all the time (as much as we might like to) and not all of us have dogs that are totally trustworthy (alas) our dogs must be confined.

Not all of us have idea circumstances: we may work long hours, or not be able to afford a fence (they are expensive to build), or have local laws that won't let us build a fence. We may have an escape artist. Neither us, nor our dogs, are perfect. Sometimes we have to settle for solutions that are less than ideal. Those solutions are, if properly used, far better than our dogs ending up dead, whether from being struck by a car or euthanized at a shelter. A less than ideal situation (the dog with us all the time, loose in the house) does not equal neglect . .. and it is certainly better than being dead.

What matters is that they are are cared for. That they are not confined 24/7. That they are loved and petted and played with and excercised. Many chained dogs are neglected . . . but they are not neglected because they are chained . . . they are chained because they are neglected. The neglect came before the chain, and it is the problem, not the chain.

A chain is a tool. Like a collar, a leash, a fence or a crate. I have seen dogs abused with a collar and lead. I have seen dogs neglected with a fence. I am sure there are dogs neglected with a crate, but because that would be in someone else's house, I can't see it.

You are making a logical error . . . you are confusing an inanimate object with a human state of mind. The two may often go together, but they are not the same thing. By assuming they are, you are taking away a legitimate choice that dog owners have on how to confine their dog. That will land dogs in shelters, where they will die.

Try banning neglect. How about having animal control officers actually show up when concerned neighbors call and check the situation out. That would be nice. Then it can be determined if the dog is neglected . . . or if its out on a chain for the afternoon to enjoy the sun.

Is the dog always dirty? Skinny? Is there water? Is its collar embedded in its neck? Is its chain so heavy its can't lift its head? Is it chained without a shelter is a roaring blizard? That is what should matter, not a few links of metal.

I am quite clear on the definition of neglect. I was a New York State Cruelty Investigator / Animal Control Officer (holding three state certifications) for two years. I stand by my statement,

Let me give you an example of another misused tool:

Sarama has a prong collar.

Its a wicked looking thing. I refused to get one for months, for that reason.

Finally, the trainer at our obediance class talked me into it. She is a pure +R trainer, but she's also practical. Sarama won't tolerate a head collar. A no pull harness works, but its hard to use in a training class situation. She actually doesn't pull or misbehave with a buckle collar . . . but not in a class situation where there are lots of other dogs, or under very exciting circumstances. So I bought one. I put in on myself, on my fiance, and then finally on her when I was sure that properly used, it wouldn't do more than a mosquito bite worth of pain, and only then if it was pulled very tight. Mostly, its annoying. And it works. Beautifully. In the situations where it is needed.

But then I see people who use one all the time . . . and never try to wean their dog off one . . .worse, I see people jerking their dog around on the end of one . . . and I think . . . those things should be banned . . . and then I remember Sarama is wearing one.

The problem is not the collar, its the person jerking it. They are misusing their tool. It is dangerous and cruel to jerk on a prong collar. It is safe and helpful to use one correctly. In fact, one of the things I like about prong collars is that it is not necesisary to jerk on one. But there are some people who will jerk their dog around no matter what kind of collar their dog is wearing . . . they don't care if they hurt their dog . . . don't care if they use force rather than restrain and love. THEY are the problem, not the collar.

The problem is not the chain . . its the person who chains their dog and then ignores them.

You may be clear on it, but you don't see, and you don't think. You have forgotten the definition. You think neglect=chain.

You see a chain.

I see a healthy happy dog, who is wearing a chain. Does that picture look rather bad? Yes, its a pit bull on a heavy chain in a barren yard.

But I've also seen the pictures of him outside in a field, on a regular collar and in the house. I see the smile on his face. I see the shiny coat. I don't see ribs, I don't see chafe marks. I see bright and mischevious eyes. I've read the owners posts. I know how a screw carabiner works (and looked at one last night in the hardware store . . . I also handled a chain and got dark marks on my hands). I have looked at the totality of the evidence, and, in the absence of any other evidence, am satisfied that the animal in question lived a happy and loved life, if not one that was ideal in all ways. If the solution was the chain or surrender, then in the same circumstances, I would do the same thing.

You look at the chain, and you see a chain.

I see a dog, a life, a relationship between a loving owner and a dog. I see the complexities of having a dog, the problems that arise, the fact that not everyone is rolling in money. I see a dog that lived a full and happy life, chain or no chain. I see an animal that was better off alive than dead.

You see a chain.

Perhaps being an animal control officer has made you bitter. You have seen too many neglected dogs on chains. You have seen too much neglect, too much abuse. So now you see chains. I see dogs, I see people, I see life as the imperfect and beuatiful thing that it is.

You only see chains.

Its a shame when law-abiding dog owners with happy, healthy dogs are called neglectful. Don't you think that undermines the true depth of cruelty?

On the flipside, I have seen too many animal control officers that don't want to do their job. Like the one who was out here and refused to take a bitch who was wandering the street in heat and drawing male dogs to the area. Then he told me about his nephew who used to match dogs, and that Pit Bulls were required to have a tow chain in this non-BSL state. I think we should ban those guys because of the stupidity inflicted by a few.

FWIW, I have sent letters to my NY reps stating my opposition to anti-tethering.

So a happy, healthy, well-fed, socialized dog is considered neglected because of a chain?

If this is what an ACO defines as neglect, it frightens me.