The Dallas Morning News reported yesterday that the Irving City Council approved an ordinance that bans the tethering of a dog, while unattended. The law seems to emphasize unattended tethering, suggesting that attended tethering is ok.

According to the Dallas Morning News...

Irving's ordinance goes beyond a state law that went into effect in September that limits the time dog owners can tether their pets to between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.

The report goes on to say that this law is "aligned with a growing national movement of dog lovers and lawmakers who believe tethering dogs can make them more aggressive".

I've stated before on this blog, that tethering alone, is not what makes dogs more aggressive. It's the lack of socialization.

That is, dogs that are tethered and left alone for several hours, or even days, will become defensive and dangerous if approached. But if the owner socialized the dog, the dog would remain calm, even while tethered. A tethered dog can be a calm dog if socialized.

This is ideology turning into law. There is a perception that tethering a dog is tantamount to suffering. Tethering alone hasn't caused any form suffering. It was the lack of food and water, lack of dry bedding, a collar too tight, lack of veterinary care, that created the suffering.

Source: Dallas Morning News

Labels: Dog Tethering, Texas Dog Laws