"If we can't have the dogs chained to the tree, what's the point of having them?"

I'm sorry but I don't see anything wrong with this law at all.  It's been said to be unfair but I honestly cant see anyone reporting someone that tied thier dog to a tree if the dogs needs are otherwise met.  For instance, if the owner, walks his dog for an hour twice a day, plays out there with it for a few hours everyday, it has proper shelter, food and water.  Gets all of its medical issues attended to promptly, is well groomed and nourished.  Has proper obedience training and is well socialized.  I would believe that if all this is done and at the end of it the dog prefers to spend its time sleeping outside, tied to a tree, then it would not be hard to prove this.  You would have several witnesses, the vet, neighbors, other dog owners, friends and family.  And if you were charged, the charges would be relatively easy to get out of.  So if the people on here that  are concerned about it not being fair, are taking care of thier dogs properly it shouldn't be a problem.  Just my [sm=2cents.gif]

My Mother grew up in a time when no decent woman would allow a dog in her house.  SHE never allowed a dog in her house until she was probably in her late 40's early 50's and my sister left her poodle pup, who became DADS dog at our house.  That is the first and only dog who ever lived in my Mother's house.  Now Mother, additionally, is afraid of dogs.  She was biten in the lip when she was a young child.  Today she spent the day in MY house, where 6 german shepherds live.  I put everyone outside to keep the noise level down.  Never heard a peep out of my crew...they played in the yard and in the 3+ car garage and in their wading pool, etc.  Mother, who is afraid of dogs, kept going to the window to look in the garage or out the back of the house to watch the dogs...and couldn't quit commenting on how good they were being.
 
When we were getting ready to take her home, before we brought the dogs in to go to their crates I suggested that she might want to hide in the bathroom....she asked if they were going to try to eat her.  Told her no, but they WOULD bark, scare the crap out of her and then I'd have to clean up the mess.  []  We actually crated everyone but Tyler and then had her come out and she fed him liver treats and they became good friends really quickly.  I might add, this woman who doesn't like and is afraid of dogs repeatedly asked if they had enough shade outside and enough water in their pool.  So, yep, even folks in their 80's can change their thinking about where dogs belong.

I see that a few people are being very defensive about how well cared for their chained dogs are...... I do understand because when I was growing up I loved dogs, but my mom was NOT a dog person. My Golden Retriever grew up living outside and I trained her, took her for walks, played with her etc. If anyone were to confront me about her living outside I'm sure I would have been very defensive about how happy she was.

BUT, the truth is that was not the best life for her. On days when it was snowing, raining, etc. it was a huge pain to be outside and on those days she was only fed and maybe walked once. Even on the best days I'd say she had 4 hours of company..... that leaves 20 hours to be alone. She seemed happy enough, no temperament problems or anything like that, but was it the ideal situation for her? NO. When she was 6 years old my parents found her another home, she went to live indoors at a nursing home. That was the absolute perfect situation for her, she loved people and was with them all the time, not to mention the comforts living of indoors....

For everyone defending the fact that their dogs live outside, but they still love them, etc. etc. Sure, the dogs are loved, but can you honestly say that it's BETTER for them to live outside 24/7 than to live indoors with the family? Regardless of the belief some people have about dogs "belonging" outdoors, is it better for the DOG to live that way? Otherwise keeping them is just selfish. Period. Just because a dog was rescued from a bad situation where it wasn't chained and now is chained but well cared for, does NOT mean it's even close to the ideal situation.... It's totally understandable in a temporary situation, but for the dog's entire life, I don't think it would be fair to it at all.
 

I am so glad this law came in     [sm=dance.gif]

To be blunt,i think people who chain dogs up outside or even make their dogs live outside 24/7 should not have dogs in the first place.Obviously they dont have much respect or care for their dogs if they arent even good enough to live inside their homes with them [&:]

Here's an idea! Lets tie every owner up to the tree thats good enough for their dog to be tied up on and leave them out there,throw them some food a couple times a day and be done with them,maybe then,and only then will they realise the torment they are putting their dogs through.Would they tie their children up to a tree,probably not??Then why do it to their dog?

People dont have fences,so they HAVE to tie their dogs up.Who said they HAD to have a dog when they are living in a home obviously not suited for a dog,i wouldnt have dogs if i didnt have a securely fenced yard,and if fencing wasnt possible i would wait until that time i could find a home suitable and then i would get a dog.Cant bring my dogs inside due to the owners not allowing it.WHY live there? WHY accept someones arcaic idea of how YOUR animals should be kept? If they said you can live inside but your children must live out in the barn,would you accept this,or would you find alternative accomodation??

I honestly hope each and every owner who ties their dogs up as lawn ornaments get punished to the full extent of the law.A prison sentence would be more applicable then a petty fine,at least the owner would have some inkling of how their dog feels when they themselves have their freedom taken from them.

People who dont allow their dogs inside just boggle me.WHY on earth do these people have dogs in the first place??????????????? As a guard dog perhaps? Well,if i was a burglar it would sure make my life alot easier if the guard dog was tied up,it would also make it easier to break into a home when the dog is locked outside,an outside guard dog is not going to be able to do anything to a burglar inside,are they![8|]

It's time these kinds of pet owners stepped into the 21st century and started treating their pets with the love,respect and companionship they all deserve.Dogs are not some filthy animal that deserves nothing more than to be tied to a tree for his entire life,they deserve far better than that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so blindingly angry right now,just thinking about this.It's been a long time since something has stirred up such passion within me.I will cut this short before i burst a blood vessel.[:@]

Go Edie! Go Edie! Go Edie!

i'm so glad there's a law like this; i wish there was one like it in my country.
 
although as i was reading this thread, there were some people who still kept their dogs outside 24/7. aside from the "guard dog" reason, how come? i don't understand it. could someone explain why some people choose to have their dogs live outside? someone said because "it's the dog place" or something. what does that mean exactly? just curious... 

I know a lot of people who do not allow dogs in their house, BUT they don't own a dog. Those are the best sort of people. I can't believe how mad this is making me, trying to get a point accross. 
 
For all those who believe it is ok for a dog to live it's life outside please stare into the picture below and have someone read the following words to you.
 
WARNING MAY CAUSE YOU TO BE A BETTER PET OWNER.
 
You will change your way of thinking. You will not allow your dog to live it's life outside. You will treat your pet as a member of the family. (Possibly better)  Dogs should never be left outside 24/7.

The local city recently enacted a law stating that dogs could not be tied outside for more than 10 hours at a time.  I think it's great.  They also enacted a law that states dogs in the country had to be tied up or contained in some way, not allowed to run free.  I HATED picking up the nasty runny stuff left over from my neighbor's dogs.  Especially since he seemed to think my agility field was his personal pooping ground.  grrr...   But the tied up, seems kind of weird to have a law in the city saying don't tie up for more than 10 hours, but in the county, you have to tie up your dog.  

Edie - I agree a 1000% of what you said above.!!  []

this is great, finally lawmakers starting to think about MENTAL abuse of dogs instead of just paying attention to physical abuse. Dogs are pack animals. Being kept isolated is torture for a dog. Doesn't matter how he is confined-- on a chain, in a kennel, or locked in the basement by himself 24/7, it's abuse. If you have one dog and let him inside, that means he spends on average 8 hours a day alone, while you are at work. If you have one dog and keep him outside all the time, well, unless you spend your evenings outside in the yard regardless of weather, that means on average he probably spends 22 hours per day alone. Torture.

I don't know why the OP is having such a hard time getting this new idea, treating animals more humanely, oh wait didn't the Southern states have a problem with another big idea OH yeah, the Emancipation Proclamation !!

You guys, after reading my above post about my mom and dogs, should enjoy this.....
 
After taking my Mom home last nite, we came home and I got online.  Now I'm reduced to the dark ages of dialup again and because my second line is connected but NOT in the house, I have line two, which is SUPPOSED to be the computer line, running in through the kitchen window and a phone sitting on the counter just in case.  Sis was SUPPOSED to have given that number to my mom.
 
Despite the fact that I'm 50+ Mother still seems to think I need to call her and let her know I got home.  When we left I said "I'll talk to you tommorow"....but when I didn't call, she kept trying to call ME and was getting no answer (ummm, if I'm not here the answering machine picks up....) she was getting all worried about us but even more so about the dogs NOT HAVING BEEN FED!!!
 
She figured she'd come out here this morning...she doesn't drive after dark.....find a way to get into the house, find the food, the bowls and somehow feed 6 dogs that she is terrified of and get them outside to potty.  Again, so much for people not being able to change what they grew up believing.

Awww, that's totally sweet, Glenda[]

You know, Ive read quite a few "southern" comments and have chosen not to say anything.  Not only that, but the way we are portrayed in moveis and so on.   Ok, there ARE people in the south whos ideas are still the same as long ago or whatever any of your points may be... yeah, Im sure there are people here that are that way... just as if I made "northern" comments there would be people who it applied to there.  BUT the southern states are actually NOT that different from the rest of the world.
 
I live in New Orleans and no I dont eat alligator and rat and snake, no I dont speak cajun-french (although its pretty neat to hear), I dont have two teeth and fish in the bayou for dinner every night... lol... its just funny to me how I think the "southern" things will never go away, no matter what the south is currently like. []

You are right Amy and I truly appologize to all southerners for the statement I made. I should have worded it differently to the OP only because she was the person  who referred to it as being a cultural thing. I am very sorry. I know it's not true and I shouldn't have said it.