Speaking up for the dogs
I love dogs. Not as much as I love cats, but I do love dogs. One of the worst things I’ve ever done was hit and kill a dog with my car. I know that I couldn’t have done anything different – the dog ran into the street about four feet in front of my car. There was no time to brake or swerve. I stopped my car and had to tell the woman trying to catch up with the dog that her friend was dead. The thing is, it wouldn’t have happened if the dog had been fenced in or leashed.
I was at Vons once and visited with an unleashed dog sitting just outside the sliding doors, patiently waiting for her people to come back out. What a well trained dog! But Vons is a very busy store and bad things can happen. That dog could have been startled by someone coming through the door or if a car honked its horn and she could have run into the street. Her guardians might have come out to find an injured or dead dog and a person with a lot of guilt.
A few months ago, I was behind the arcade by the matilija poppy fountain when two dogs came tearing by at break-neck speed. They ran through the parking lot by Noah’s Apothecary and Ojai Video, across Matilija Street and into the parking lot where the Ojai Certified Farmer’s Market is held. They never slowed down. What if someone was distracted looking for a parking place and didn’t see them? The pain the dogs, their guardians and that unlucky driver would suffer is not worth the joy of seeing dogs in their “natural” unleashed state.
Please: Take your dog into the mountains and let him or her off the leash. Take your dog to the beach and let him or her run free. Take your dog to a school field on the weekend (but be sure to clean up after him or her) and play ball. But in Ojai, please keep your dog on a leash or behind a fence. Protect yourself, drivers and most of all, the most loyal and loving friend you have.
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Comments (2)
I'm surprised when people don't know their own dogs - if your dog has a predilection to take off with no discipline, then why would you let him off leash in a trafficked area? It only takes one incident, unfortunately.
Comment #1 Posted by: Tyler | March 5, 2006 10:51 PM
I love dogs, too, and feel the same way. My Lab is 12 and I never take her anywhere unleashed - I love her too much to risk losing her!
Comment #2 Posted by: Lisa Snider | March 6, 2006 07:15 AM