I love my dog Victory, and that's why I put her on a leash when we go outside. I want her to run around without a leash in a backyard someday. Until then, for as long as I live in this house, she's on a leash whenever we go for a walk or need a potty break.
Frustratingly, a lot of people in my neighborhood let their dogs roam free. Thinking a stern vocal warning will deter their dogs from doing bad things, a leash is presumably not needed. To which I laugh.
My upstairs neighbors have a very small dog and a big dog and they are rarely leashed. Luckily, both have been rigorously trained and are very obedient. Unfortunately, there are not many other owners like them around here.
Victory is not aware of cars and the possible damage one can do to her. The few times she's run out, she paid no mind to the cars nearby. That worries me, so the leash is always on her, and I am very strict with her when she even considers running out the front door.
Thankfully, we've never been attacked by a big dog, but we did have a run-in with a puppy beagle last week. Matter of fact, this puppy had the same color scheme as Victory's. It was a cute sight until the dog jumped on Victory's back and tried to bite. The pup's owners stepped in and we walked on.
Almost always, when walking away from a situation like that, I hear a limp apology. Given my uppity nature on this, I storm off without acknowledging. The damage and potential damage has been done, and no apology can really fix it.
Maybe I love my dog too much or maybe I'm too uptight, but for as long as I'm a dog owner, I'll have a leash around.
Frustratingly, a lot of people in my neighborhood let their dogs roam free. Thinking a stern vocal warning will deter their dogs from doing bad things, a leash is presumably not needed. To which I laugh.
My upstairs neighbors have a very small dog and a big dog and they are rarely leashed. Luckily, both have been rigorously trained and are very obedient. Unfortunately, there are not many other owners like them around here.
Victory is not aware of cars and the possible damage one can do to her. The few times she's run out, she paid no mind to the cars nearby. That worries me, so the leash is always on her, and I am very strict with her when she even considers running out the front door.
Thankfully, we've never been attacked by a big dog, but we did have a run-in with a puppy beagle last week. Matter of fact, this puppy had the same color scheme as Victory's. It was a cute sight until the dog jumped on Victory's back and tried to bite. The pup's owners stepped in and we walked on.
Almost always, when walking away from a situation like that, I hear a limp apology. Given my uppity nature on this, I storm off without acknowledging. The damage and potential damage has been done, and no apology can really fix it.
Maybe I love my dog too much or maybe I'm too uptight, but for as long as I'm a dog owner, I'll have a leash around.
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