Offleash Dog Rules

Subject: Re: Offleash Dog Rules

quijibo wrote: Good article about offleash dog rules in today's AM New York
Link with photos and video:
http://www.amny.com/news/local/am-leash0805,0,725323.story?coll=am-homepage-swapbox

I've nearly tripped over dogs countless time while running in the park. But I'm OK with offleash times. Dogs should have somewhere to run free too.

All I want is for dog owners to abide by the rules that are already on the books: keep your dog on a leash where you're required to, ditch the illegal and dangerous telescoping leashes, and realize that you are responsible for your dog's actions even if it is not on the leash.

Oh, and pick up your dog's crap (including in the park, which does not have a Shit Fairy that happily picks up turds and leaves shiny quarters behind).

Flexichick wrote: what's a telescoping leash?

One of those leashes that starts at 6 feet, or whatever, but is on a reel like a fishing line, so when Fido wants a bit more freedom, the owner presses a button and -- ZIP! -- extends a 20-foot fall-on-your-ass zone across the sidewalk.

Nothing wrong with them per se; they're just no good in a city, hence the law.

Livetotravel wrote: Here's the exact wording of NYC's leash law - the operable point being that the leash cannot exceed 6 feet in length - it can be retractable as long as you lock it at 6 feet. It can also be made out of any material you choose to buy. Like alcohol in the park laws, this has to be one of the least enforced laws around.

"A person who owns, possesses or controls a dog shall not permit it to be in any public place or in any open or unfenced area abutting on a public place unless the dog is effectively restrained by a leash or chain not more than six feet long."

I never understood why they don't at least have those leashes come with a sticker that says something to the effect of WARNING! THIS LEASH IS ILLEGAL IN NEW YORK CITY. I'm sure most dog owners who buy them have no idea they're breaking the law when they let Fido run out the whole length of the thing.

There should also be a limit to the number of dogs you're allowed to own in the city. You see so many people with tons of dogs who use their tiny backyards as dog runs and never walk them.

I also don't get why people are allowed to keep pitbulls. It's like walking around armed.

Subject: Re: Offleash Dog Rules

linusvanpelt wrote:

Oh, and pick up your dog's crap (including in the park, which does not have a Shit Fairy that happily picks up turds and leaves shiny quarters behind).

if people pay someone to do it, i'm sure there would be a shit fairy .

If I owned a gun and decided to use it as a hammer, it would still be a gun and if was loaded it could still kill someone.

These dogs are bred to be killers. With all the strays and friendly mutts in need of owners, I don't see any need to own a pitbull. I have met some friendly pitbulls with responsible owners, but the majority that I've come across have been aggressive, animals whose owners allow them to wander without leashes and don't bother to have them neutered.

linusvanpelt wrote: [quote=Flexichick]what's a telescoping leash?

One of those leashes that starts at 6 feet, or whatever, but is on a reel like a fishing line, so when Fido wants a bit more freedom, the owner presses a button and -- ZIP! -- extends a 20-foot fall-on-your-ass zone across the sidewalk.

Nothing wrong with them per se; they're just no good in a city, hence the law.

I hate those fucking things, and I think they're dangerous anywhere -- not just in a city. I was at a music festival back in Kansas a few years ago and this jerk had his German Shepherd on a retractable leash, fully extended. The guy was on my left and the dog took off barrelling after something on my right, and I got clotheslined in the middle. It left a hideous friction burn that hurt like you wouldn't believe and took two months to heal; I have a three-inch-long scar on my forearm now. I like to tell people I got it in a knife fight.

I think retractable leashes should be illegal, or at least for larger dogs; you can never be fully sure that any dog isn't going to run after something. They're DOGS, after all. I wasn't mad at the dog, but I was pissed as all hell at his idiot owner (who stopped to ask if I was okay -- I was so stunned and my arm was so numb that I said I was -- but of course was long gone a few minutes later when it started stinging like crazy and oozing blood and I realized I needed to have a doctor look at it).

I *really* hate those fucking things.

I'd hate to think about an out-of-control evil-souled pit bull, with an asshole for an owner who's using a retractable lease fully extended, happening upon a group of runners and/or concert-goers who are being accompanied by Jack Russel Terriers.

Subject: The courtesy offleash hours have ruined Prospect Park!!!

For twenty years I have endured the infestation of unleashed dogs in Prospect Park. Now, finally, somebody is trying to do something about the travesty of allowing unleashed dogs to take over entire city parks during the nicest times of day, early morning and late evening. I hope the judge rules in favour of Juniper Park Civic Association on August 29!

The problem has gotten WORSE with each passing year. I live one block from Prospect Park. Time was, I visited daily. Not now! Dog owners have garnered a sense of entitlement from the parks department winking at them and encouraging them to break the law. The dogs are running loose all the time, all over the park, regardless of rules and courtesy hours. And it's not just a neighbourhood thing. Carloads of dogs are trucked in from all over and unloaded onto the lawns to take advantage of the "lenient" offleash policy at Prospect Park. This is ridiculous! The tail is wagging the dog!

Get the facts! Responsible dog owners do not allow their dogs to run off leash in public places. Perioid. AKC, HSUS, ASPCA all support the leash law!

http://brooklynparks.blogspot.com/

On my block, I have seen unleashed dogs run into the street and cause near accidents with screeching cars and panicked owners. The unleashed dog is the hallmark of the irresponsible, careless, selfish owner. Dog waste left by an unleashed dog is less likely to be picked up. Every sign in Prospect Park bemoaning a "lost dog" began with a dog that got off leash, intentionally or otherwise. Many people are afraid of dogs, wary of dogs, uncomfortable around strange dogs, and don't want to be approached and sniffed by your "friendly" dog! And that is their right! Leash laws were enacted for a REASON.

In Prospect Park, I have been threatened personally by TWO off leash large mix breed shepherd dogs that cornered me with growling teeth and raised hackles. The owner didn't give a damn, the police didn't care, the parks department shrugged me off, but I felt as if I had been mugged and threatened. And, I am no cynophobe. I grew up with people who kept kennels of St Bernards for breeding! Dog owners these days don't believe in training and regard their pets as their "children". Then they let them run off leash in the parks! This is insane!

I own a pit bull. Everyone who meets her (cynophobes excluded) say my dog is the happiest, most joyful dog they have ever met. She literally dances with joy. She is also well trained, an appropriate dog breed for an apartment, and has never run off leash to play in her life. She's living proof that dogs do not need "off leash play time" for their "happiness" ! Responsible owners make happy dogs. Humans need to stop projecting their own emotions and values onto their pets. A dog is an animal, first and foremost. Can you really know what is going on inside that lemon-sized brain?

Enforce the leash law, please!

i have never actually met a mean pitbull. all of the "pitbulls" i have met have been of the most docile and mellow demeanor. the attitude of ANY breed of dog is a direct representation of the people who own it.

do you know that the dog with the most harmful/dangerous bite is the dalmation? a dog we all associate with rescue and helpfulness?

i have a mini-schnauzer, and he is the friendliest, most placid and happy dog i have ever seen. if people in prospect park are afraid of dogs like mine, i suggest they seek professional help.

i have met many dogs and dog owners in prospect park/park slope, and i can *NOT* think of a single dog (that i can recall) that was not very well trained and obediant.

People who think they are in danger of dogs off-leash, during off-leash hours, are either dog-haters, severely paranoid, or schizophrenic.

seriously... a good dog-owner = a good dog. 99.9% of the prospect park/park slope dogs/dog-owners i have met have been amazing.

stop being scared of household pets. they're dogs, not velociraptors.

Subject: to all wild dingo owners

I've had several dogs bark at me viciously as I walked through the park and a few have bitten me (although playfully) as I was jogging. For someone like me who doesn't own dogs or understand dog behavior, it scares me terribly when I see these salivating creatures approach me. In most cases the owner doesn't care and just allows the dog to do it. If I start freaking out they will respond as though I'M some crazy out of control disturbed chick who is overreacting and say "Oooooh common, he's just playing". I can't read dog minds and feel very threatened. To me, they're all like wild dingos; I can't tell the difference between a friendly bark and any other bark. I'm also sooo tired of the sense of entitlement people with dogs think they have. We don't all love your dogs. (I've seen dogs treated better than human beings in this society but that's for another time). I actually find it cruel to own dogs and keep them trapped in small apartments. No wonder they go wild in the park. So dog owners, try to be more conscientious. And continue picking up your dog poop. I'm tired too of taking it home on my shoe. Next time, someone should leave it at your doorstep when you forget.

I've started publicly scolding people for littering, particularly kids in front of their friends. It seems to work, and I enjoy using the line "Is that how your parents raised you?" to no end. Littering is my big issue.

Captain Salty wrote:
People who think they are in danger of dogs off-leash, during off-leash hours, are either dog-haters, severely paranoid, or schizophrenic.

stop being scared of household pets. they're dogs, not velociraptors.

This response typifies the attitude of dog owners who are totally oblivious to the negative impact imposed by the presence of unleashed dogs on other people's enjoyment of any given public space.

I own a dog, so I am not a dog hater. I am not paranoid or schizophrenic but I do know people who have been diagnosed. I mean, Wow. Isn't that a harsh way to characterize someone who is not familiar with dogs and has no desire to become familiar with yours? Why are avowed animal lovers so heartless towards other people?

quijibo wrote: [quote=apollonia666]I *really* hate those fucking things.

i *really* hate those fucking things more!
got a rope burn on my ankles yesterday from a clueless owner with a retractable leash
who thought it was cute that her small dog kept winding itself around people's feet
as she flew around oblivious of the harm that vinyl fucking leash was inflicting

i'm not opposed to the leashes themselves
i'm opposed to the owners of these leashes not being aware of how dangerous they are
and not learning how to use the leash properly
these leashes should come with a training video

small dogs have an instinctive propensity for winding themselves around people's feet for protection
and too often small dog owners don't feel that they should train their dogs obedience
A guy's gotta carry a small pair o' scissors with him on a trip to the park, eh?! :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

Subject: Re: The courtesy offleash hours have ruined Prospect Park!!!

Rose wrote: I know when I ask my dogs, "Do you want to go to the park?" they go into a frenzy of wild excitement. I know they love off-leash time in the park. After living with my dogs for 8 or 9 years now, yes, I do have some idea of what is going on in their brains.

I've lived with my dog for 8 or 9 years as well. She is very happy to go to the park as well (or was, before I got tired of all the unleashed dogs running up to us to say hi whenever we enter the park) My dog dances and leaps for joy, all this, for a long walk on a leash!

Has it ever occurred to you that your dogs are happy just to go out? To spend time with you? The "freedom" of "off leash hours" are a human concept, that is irrelevant to the dog mind.

A lot of different things make a lot of people and dogs happy, maybe we should start allowing human and dog sex orgy hours in the park (separate slots of course- sorry Peter Singer fans) Now this might make plenty of people and dogs happy but would not necessariy be a good idea would it?

Personally I would rather watch out for the bike riders on the road than have an unfamiliar animal come running up to me for God only knows what reason. Animals belong on a leash, stop anthropomorphizing them!!!