abused dog?

That's very sad. I am also concerned. But are we jumping the gun by assuming that the dog has been abused? As someone who does not know a lot about dogs' health, I wonder: are there any medical conditions that this dog could be suffering from?

This is a very sad situation. I always notice when people take their dogs out in this cold weather and the dog is not wearing a coat. Sure the larger breeds that have full coats can deal with these temperatures but toy breeds and short haired dogs need a covering in cold weather.

This has been discussed before but that thing of leaving a dog tied up infront of a store when you go in to shop never sits well with me either. I just don't do it with my dogs and never have. I find the time to walk them where my full attention is on them, even if it needs to be a shorter walk.

Before people start yelling at people with dogs without coats...
every dog I've had in the last ten years has refused to move when we try to dress them for weather. They turn to stone.
I never never leave a dog tied up (as previously discusssed) but especially not recommended in this freezing weather...duh. People do stuff that just doesn't make sense.

There is a guy in that part of PS who is not in such great shape himself. He has a dog that he leaves tied outside for short spells, and the dog and he pretty much make their way together, imperfectly.
I'm not sure that's the beast the OP is referring to, but it sounds the same except a bit shaggier. I went back to 5th Ave to check back on them more than once...
If that dog ever went to the pound, it would be euthanized.

i have a short-haired dog and she's fine in the cold.

i also wouldnt jump to conclusions about the dog. maybe the owner recently got it from the pound and it hasn't gained weight yet.

Blech... Reminder to myself to say nothing that can possibly create the need to express an opinion on this site.

I am not telling anyone what to do as far as putting a coat on their dog or leaving them tied up infront of a store.

sorry, it just seemed that way when you said "short haired dogs need a covering in cold weather."

Subject: dog

sgbk, it's really wonderful that you took the time to check into this dog's situation. It really is too cold to leave a short coated out for a long period except to relieve itself. If a dog is shivering, then it's cold. End of story.

It could be that the dog is very old. When they age the spine and hips become more pronounced and the coat tends to be dull. But I would err on the side that you are in getting to find out what the deal is with this poor dog. Even if it's an old dog....it's still too cold to tie outside.
AND what an easy target for dog thiefs. The awful part is, many times, the dogs aren't stolen to be companaions, but as bate in dog fighting.

So this owner needs to be educated on several points.
You're a great neighborhood to care for the animals. Good luck.

sgbk wrote: Look, just to be clear, I am not talking about whether dogs should wear coats or trying to tell people whether to tie their dogs outside businesses or not. I have never been compelled to post on a blog and I have never called the ASPCA. All, I am saying is that this particular dog looked so bad that it was truly shocking. I just wanted people to keep their eyes open for it and possibly help what was obviously a dog suffering (as anyone could see from the shivering). I just want to reiterate that I am only speaking about this dog.

I will tell all dog owners,"DO NOT leave your dogs tied up in front of stores!"

sgbk, your first post was fine. It is good for the community to be aware and try to help animals that might be in need. After reading your post, sgbk, I made a note to myself to keep my eyes out for the dog you described.

I'll be getting a dog soon and it will be my first time to have a dog in a city. I'm curious to know what people think about tying a dog outside of stores and why you think that.

Until reading the comments in this thread, I assumed I would tie my boy outside for quick trips (not a browsing trip). Now I'm reconsidering this.

OpossumQueen wrote: I'll be getting a dog soon and it will be my first time to have a dog in a city. I'm curious to know what people think about tying a dog outside of stores and why you think that.

Until reading the comments in this thread, I assumed I would tie my boy outside for quick trips (not a browsing trip). Now I'm reconsidering this.

It is probably time for the moderators to break this thread off from here.. There have been threads about leaving dogs tied up outside . Bottom line... there are evil people out there who will abscond with your pooch and certainly not give it a better life than you can... read that...."Make sure they have no life at all."

I am one of the older posters here and though I have told this story before I wil tell it again... I live close to the post office on 9th street and my first grandson, who is now 7 was in my care since he was born. The poor kid was fated to live the first few years on Long Island but since his mom (my daughter) worked in Ps he got delivered to my house 4 times a week for baby sitting duty.

So this kid grew up in a house where there are 2 beloved dogs who were never, never tied up . Most of the time they went on walks with he and me... an easy thing to do so since the guys are toy breed dogs. When they got tired on their walks one rode on grandkid's lap and one under the stroller. So this was the kid's experience with dogs.

Everytime we saw a dog tied outside the post office office I would point out to him that it was not a good thing to tie a dog up and leave it., The poor dogs would often be visbly agitated or crying. I wasn't preaching but this is a smart kid and got the life lesson.

When he was around 2 1/2 and still a passenger and very verbal we passed the PO and there is a dog tied up infront ...howling... Somehow the kid catches the right moment when the owner comes out and he says to her (loudly).. "You shouldn't tie your dog up in front of the PO!"

I won't go on and tell you what that "nice" lady said to me in detail.. but basically she told me my "typical" PS kid shouldn't say that to her.

I ramble..

Hey don't tie your dog up outside stores in Brooklyn.. It isn't a good idea.

I was looking for specific reasons not to do it. What happens? After a bit of looking (I miss the old search!) I found this thread:
http://www.brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=352348&sid=229c58547448da6b5dbf1c8e64590150

I come from (and so does the dog we're getting) a place where dogs run free. It sounds crazy, but when I was a kid we had a dog that walked herself. As a puppy she walked with my mom every day and when she got older we would let her out and she would follow the same route, stopping and looking to cross the (basically deserted) streets. Those walks were on top of lots of time with us in an expansive fenced yard.

Also, dogs stayed home unless you were going to the vet or on a woodsy trip--fishing, hiking, hunting. Obviously this wouldn't work here, but it makes it hard for me to wrap my head around things like putting a dog in a purse (I call our soon to be dog, who is 50lbs a small breed!) or dogs being allowed in stores. I tend to walk everywhere and would feel much safer running my errands with a pooch, especially since I'm usually stuck doing errands at night due to a full work schedule.

all this and I don't even have the dog yet!

if i tied my dog up outside a store id be scared that:

1. she'd freak out and try to escape to find me
2. stupid kids would tease/hit her
3. she would get stolen

Dogs have been stolen and ransomed back to the owners, stolen to use as bait in dogfights, and stolen by crazy people. A Score's stripper's dogs were stolen while tied up last year, she was lucky that she got them back.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/11/06/2007-11-06_untitled__dog06m.html

Then there was Lady Day, stolen by a woman who ended up leaving her at a vet 4 days later.

http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/30/11/30_11founddog.html

http://www.brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=33681&highlight=&sid=2d15c7319ba300f10817b9e2c8d0b797

I've seen dogs tied to a meter or sign post that walk into the street behind parked cars. I've had to call them back onto the sidewalk when a car is getting out of the spot. Another thing I noticed are dogs tied up that bark constantly. While these dogs may only be tied up outside for a few minutes, think of how many people tie dogs up in the same spot throughout the day. I used to live on 5th Ave near the bagel store on 4th St, people constantly tied their dogs up on that corner. A lot of the dogs would bark the whole time which got annoying after 5-6 dogs, plus they would make my dogs bark.

I used to tie my dogs up when I went into a store, only where I could see them the whole time but I stopped. My older dog was abandoned and would freak out and bark the whole time. I didn't like putting him through that and there are too many things that can happen in a few minutes.