This morning, my one desire was a simple thing; a quiet walk through a beautiful setting without the need to fend off an attack. So today I took my dog for a morning walk in the park. My dog was on leash and we delighted in the crisp air and newly fallen leaves. Suddenly two large dogs appear out of nowhere and rush towards us like freight trains. As the two unleashed dogs jump at and bare teeth at my dog I look around for an “owner” while trying to untangle a growing brawl. Off in the distance I hear, “Come on (dog’s names)…”. Her dogs do not readily respond. I ask her if she could put her dogs on a leash and she responds, “Oh, they’re good dogs.” She finally manages to disengage her (good) dogs and continues to allow them to rampage far from her side. Now although the ordinance is clearly posted, and widely known by all dog owners, (good or otherwise), I see this woman every day – I literally see her every day from my backyard – letting her dogs run as though she owns the entire park.
Psst! Your secret is out: just because you allow your dogs to run so far out of your sight that you don’t see them leaving their stinky, does not mean you are not responsible to clean it up. Hmm, let’s see; the library is a public place. Is it ok for me to leave a pile in the aisle and sneak away hoping no one notices?
Imagine if we all got to pick and choose which laws we’d like to adhere to. ‘That law doesn’t apply to me; that’s only for bad dogs and although it affects everyone, I’m a good dog, so I’m exempt.’ (I am pleased to know that in Bend we have both on- and off-leash options available by choice for both good and bad dog owners.) I wondered what the criteria were that defined ‘good’ dogs, beyond the interpretation of the owner’s love for their pet. Of course one could then quickly digress to believing there are “right dogs” and “wrong dogs.” Correlations abound.
I consider myself a “good person.” However, does that judgment exempt me from laws of my own choosing? I believe there are laws that are “unfair” and/or unjust. I don’t always feel like following all the laws all the time. But that doesn’t give me carte blanche to pick how and when I will follow them. If you don’t agree with the law you’re breaking, work to change it, rather than allowing yourself special exemption, all the while claiming piety. Good dogs. Bad citizen.
It’s not really about leashing or not leashing your dog. It’s symbolic of how you choose to exemplify your citizenship in your own community and beyond.
Loraine Albertson
This article appears in Nov 6-12, 2008.
MAKE LOCAL JOURNALISM HAPPEN
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
This is one of the kind of things that leads to breed specific laws that would help band certain breeds of dogs. Like Pit Bulls, Rottweilers, Dobermans, and so on. I have a Doberman that is helping to change peoples minds about Dobermans being “mean dogs”. I have groomed dogs for 15 years, and have had a lot of experience with all kinds of differant breeds of dogs. I believe that NO DOG SHOULD BE OFF LEASH UNLESS IN A FENCED DOG PARK. I don’t care how nice the dog is with its owner. Dog or no dog I could be walking down the street or in a park and your so called nice dog may attack me for no reason at all. I have had this happen to my with a Collie. Does this mean all Collie are bad dogs? No. It means that we as owners need to be responceable for our dogs actions. Both on leash and off leash. This is for the protection of not just dogs. But us humans expecelly kids and infants. I do not believe in breed specific laws. The only thing that this will really do is cause a lot of heart ache for the families that have that kind of dog as a part of their family. So lets all be not good but great dog owners and keep our dogs on leashes, take them to obedience school, and carry baggies with us. So that when our dogs POOP. WE CAN CLEAN IT UP. If we do this maybe someone will walk up to you and say “thank you for cleaning up your dog poop”. I know that if they don’t say it to your face. That at least one if not more people will be thinking about how nice it was that you did clean up the poop.
Sally Fisher
The State animal control law does not require that dogs be on leash.
The County Animal Control ordinance does not require that dogs be on leash. Two of the Bend Metro parks, Big Sky, and Shevlin are in the county.
The federal and state law protecting service animals and service animals in training do not require that dogs be on leash.
The model dog and cat control ordinance endorsed by all of the national humane societies and the American Veterinary Medical Association do not require that dogs be in leash.
The City of Salem, the state capital of Oregon do not require dogs to be on leash.
The Bend City Ordinance concerning animal control can only be described as vague and ambiguous, the enforcement of this ordinance by the Bend Police can best be described as arbitary and capricious. Andy Jordon, Chief of Police has stated publicly that the leash law is the most difficult law that his department has to enforce.
The facts of this incident clearly do not fit the legal definition of attack.
Model legislation for the identification and regulation of รข dangerousรข ย dogs
B. Definitions
1.
a. รข Dangerous dogรข ย means any dog which without justification attacks a person or domestic animal causing physical injury or death, or behaves in a manner that a reasonable person would believe poses
an unjustified imminent threat of serious injury or death to one or more persons or domestic animals. A dogรข โขs breed shall not be considered in determining whether or not it is รข dangerous.รข ย Further,
b. No dog may be declared รข dangerousรข ย
i. If the dog was protecting or defending a person within the immediate vicinity of the dog from an attack or assault;
ii. If at the time the person was committing a crime or offense upon the property of the owner, or custodian, of the dog;
iii. If the person was teasing, tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog, or in the past had teased, tormented, abused or assaulted the dog;
iv. If the dog was attacked or menaced by the domestic animal, or the domestic animal was on the property of the owner, or custodian, of the dog;
v. If the dog was responding to pain or injury, or protecting itself, its kennels or its offspring;
vi. If the person or domestic animal was disturbing the dogรข โขs natural functions such as sleeping or eating.
vii. Neither growling nor barking, nor both, shall alone constitute grounds upon which to find a dog to be รข dangerous.รข ย
2. รข Attackรข ย means aggressive physical contact initiated by the dog.
3. รข Serious injuryรข ย means any physical injury consisting of broken bones or a permanently disfiguring laceration requiring either multiple stitches or cosmetic surgery.
4. รข Domestic animalรข ย means any animal commonly kept as a pet in family households in the United States, including, but not limited to dogs, cats,guinea pigs, rabbits and hamsters; and any animals commonly kept for companion or commercial purposes.
The Source in the past has given the Boot to the Bend Police Dept.on several occasions regarding their enforcement of the leash law.
We DO all get to pick which laws to adhere to and when. It’s called free will. And the authorities get to pick which laws to enforce. Apparently dog leash laws have not been a priority.
Bend has a lot of people who’ve moved here very recently from a bunch of different places that have different attitudes towards the law than Oregonians. For example, down in L.A. you’re considered an idiot if you obey all the little laws even when no-one is enforcing them and they cause you inconvenience.
Just know that if their dogs would have killed your dog, the leash ordinance would mean that you’d have a good chance of winning a lawsuit against the dog owner.
I agree completely. I have a very large dog (mastiff/pit mix) and I ALWAYS walk him on his leash. He completed obendience school with flying colors, adores kids, and has never harmed another animal. While on walks in the neighborood with him I am constantly fending off smaller dogs left to run ahead/away from their owners or dogs that are not fenced in their yards. I hear the same excuses from the owners. I have also had owners YELL at me to get my *insert foul name of choice* pitbull away from their dog! My dog usually just ignores theirs, but if an altercation were to occur I would be heartbroken. I don’t want to see another animal hurt, as I am sure my dog could inflict serious injuries, but I also know that the same owner of the “good” dog would be more than quick to blame my dog because theirs is “good”. Letting your dog run around without a leash is not only foolish, but you might end up wishing you had received a citation instead of your dog getting injured, lost, struck by a vehicle or some other mishap.
if you want your dog off leash take them to the woods not a park
There are reasons for the leash, and this article is a good one. What if those dogs headed for a dog that a little boy or girl was walking, those dogs don’t know what belongs to the dog vs. boy/girl. If there is a leash law, please adhere to it for all people and animals! And why you are at it, clean up there poo. I hate walking out of my house, open the fence, get to the grass on the other side of the pavement, and “OH S@#$” Please be respectful!
I have been reading the other comments on this article. I think it would be a great idea if there was a survey on the leashes. Simple or you in for a leash law or not. I thought that Oregon had a leash law. Also a survey on how cleans up there dogs poop when out walking their dog.
Sally Fisher
Amazing that with everything else of importance happening around us that this kind of crap could result in so much interest and comment. Only in Bend!!
If a dog, of any breed, attacks my child for no reason, it won’t live long enough to even be considered “dangerous”. Just train your dogs, people.
This morning in Shevlin Park (which falls under the park district’s leash rules AND the state law that protects wildlife sanctuaries from abuse of wildlife by domestic pets), the owner of an off-leash and out-of-control dog named Duncan told me “he’s harmless.” This, a dog that ignored its owner’s calls, barked and growled at me and lunged toward me repeatedly. My first response is always a quiet voice, which usually works — but in this case I had to speak sternly, then clap my hands loudly, kick dirt at the dog and finally when it refused to relent fling a rock at it. Duncan retreated and the owner chased the poor animal down and put it on a leash.
This afternoon I will purchase pepper spray in anticipation of this once-every-few-months occurrence. By rights I should use it on irresponsible dog owners, as they’re the ones who should take the hit for the assault, but if it happens again Duncan will get it in the eyes. It’s really quite sad, but we victims of these irresponsible owners have little choice.
i try to follow all the dog laws but the city makes it so hard by giving us so few decent options. if the laws were more reasonable, then we would have fewer violations. i keep my dog on leash even when it makes no sense and always, ALWAYS, clean up after him. i have never seen or heard of the police enforcing the clean-up law even though the evidence of violation is all over the place. this really angers me.
i agree that there should be no breed specific laws but i do think that there must be stricter laws regarding dogs that are not neutered. such dogs are almost always more aggressive than neutered dogs. unneutered dogs should never be allowed off leash in public (including in off-leash areas) and, perhaps, should be required to be muzzled. this might have the added bonus of getting more irresponsible people to neuter their dogs.
I actually saw a dog off leash today, no owner in sight, running PAST City Hall!
Sigh. People can be so careless.
Sigh. Yesterday I picked up a big pile from somebody elses dog in the Juniper Elementary School playfield, where kids are supposed to play, worry-free.
Come on, people!
I’m sure it’s the same @#$%@#%$-people that litter out their car windows (yes, cigarettes count!), don’t bus their own tables, and generally @$%@$% where they eat.
The use of pepper spray on a dog would clearly constitute criminal animal abuse. Citronella spray or a squirt gun with water are extremely effective and recommended by all of the humane organizations.
Re: “I think it would be a great idea if there was a survey on the leashes.”
In the hopes that we could find a style that would work on the denizens of Wall Street? Talk about dogs leaving messes everywhere. Ay, carumba! Oh, and how about a survey on muzzles for the lame-brained, bared-teeth, rabid paranoids who want to take Chinese bond money in order to turn it into an attack dog assault on the innocent citizens of Iran simultaneously forever enslaving every coming generation of American youth? Now that kind of thing needs to be put on a leash, for sure, doggonit! Speaking of which, wouldn’t it be wild if the charismatic Governor of Alaska decided to run for the Senate should Ted Stevens, a seven times over federal felon be re-elected to the Congress? Talk about needing a leash law update, and pronto!
When the dogs of war meet the dregs of society, we have… Congress. When leashes and muzzles are properly applied we have… Congress in bondage. And wouldn’t that be a good idea?