Electric Shock Therapist, nah.....

From the Dog House of Tarma Shena

The "human condition" is one of those things that I really like to poke around at. Humans have some fascinating motivations and behaviors if you pay attention. I might have been a psychiatrist in another life but they phased out electric shock therapy so I went with dog training instead.

(.... waiting for the ECollar fanatics to comment...... ok moving on)

One of the things I find incredible is the ability to place the blame for a situation on anyone or anything but ourselves. In this day and age the avoidance of personal accountability has been so refined it is practically an art form.

I'm waiting for the first college to offer a bachelor's degree: "Learn how to effectively place blame for your own short comings on inanimate objects in your everyday life."

One of the things I find particularly amusing is the concept of tethering a dog. "Chaining up Dogs" is how animal rights people word it, sounds so much more dramatic, like our dogs are shuffling around shackled or something. This get's a little long, and none of it's as funny as what I normally try to write.

So let's talk about "The Risks of Chaining Up Dogs" as put forth by today's society. #2 That causes the situation in #3.

- Physical Ailments: Abrasions, strangulation, overheating, freezing, and insect bites. - While I'll admit I didn't realize that insect bites were that serious. I get them all summer long and haven't died yet. Maybe I'm made of sterner stuff than most dogs. The rest of these items are directly caused by the humans tethering a dog in an unsuitable location or with unsuitable equipment.

This is not the chain's fault.

- Psychological Distress: Neurosis, anxiety, and aggression. - Again, these behavioral states are caused by the human tethering a dog in an unsuitable manner. The same problems can be caused by poor crate training, no training, genetics and certain medical conditions.

This is not the chain's fault.

-Neglect: Irregular feeding, lack of veterinary care, and exposure to the extreme elements. - This one is just wild to me, you are giving your tethers a lot of responsibility where as mine just lay in the dirt.

This is not the chain's fault.

-Attacks: 2.8 times more likely to bite, and may attack children. - Why are we and the children approaching a tethered dog? Seems like we could knock this one down to zero just by minding our own Ps & Qs.. Oh wait. Ya. Nevermind.

This is not the chain's fault.

-Unsanitary Conditions: Forced to eat and sleep in their own waste. - Pooper scoopers are a thing, so let's pin this on the lazy human where it belongs.

This is not the chain's fault.

-Socialization Issues: Can become unsocialized and territorial. - Ok first, you don't "become unsocialized", you might get a little rusty at it but this is a developmental period in a dogs life and it doesn't just get erased. Think I'm wrong, try adopting an adult feral street dog who never had this development, go ahead I'll wait. Regardless, both of these are a human problem.

This is not the chain's fault.

-Limited Escape: No way to escape during a confrontation. - Ok, I'll ask. Why are dogs on tether involved in a "confrontation" in the first place? A human who can't mind its business? A loose dog that maybe should have been safely contained in some way? Maybe a wild animal because we know they just love getting in random confrontations where they might be injured or die.

This is not the chain's fault.

Every one of these examples, behaviors, and situations are the direct fault of the humans involved.

They outlawed guns in the UK and now there are over 50k "knifings" as well as "episodes due to sharp objects". Let's stop blaming inanimate objects for human short comings.

So let's look at figure #1

This is a stable young dog, who is learning to tether for multiple reasons.

He can be made safe during situations where fences may be damaged or gates may need to be left open.

He can observe and learn during an activity where his owner may need both hand and not have a dog involved until his verbal commands are solid enough to take it's place.

He learns to observe the mannerisms of stock, the quirks of poultry, and the schedule of the trash truck without the risk of failing until such time as his training reaches a point where he can emotionally regulate himself in these same situations.

If you do a quick Google search on Crates and Neglect, you get almost EXACTLY the same list of problems but we are not running around banning crates, and I have to ask myself why that is?

"While crates can be a useful tool for training and providing a safe space for a dog, they should not be used as a replacement for proper care and attention." The EXACT same thing can be said for chains.

Everyday I see cases where dogs are neglected, injured, and even killed. None of the dogs involved were chained up, but they all had humans. Reprehensible humans who did could not be responsible pet owners.

So instead of making laws about equipment, let's get out there and focus on the real culprits, because those dogs didn't chain up themselves and there is a human involved in this somewhere who should be held responsible.