We all love our dogs and they love us, and isn't it wonderful for us and them - a mutually beneficial society.
They love us, guard our homes and possessions, protect and guard our children and help and encourage us to get our daily exercise. Walking without a dog lacks oomph and enjoyment.
The family pet Dalmatian, our mother's dog, was an enormous presence in our lives. Crescent Lady Candida - Lady for short, used to take me for walks and, off the lead and running free on the nearest recreation ground or park, made me hoot with laughter; just watching her tear across the ground; so obviously enjoying the freedom sensation and loving every minute.
The grooming, feeding and clearing up after a walk was Lady being with us, and wanting to eat whatever we ate but never at the table, and sharing our days. She didn't like the grapes we ate but the oranges were a great favourite of hers. She would have eaten all the chocolate possible, if we had allowed her to do so, but chocolate is poison to dogs, as I'm sure we all know.
Yes, dogs are wonderful and friendly, loving and protective, and it's great fun being able to take them out for their daily walkies!
However, the one aspect of dog owning, and an awful chore which some dog owners taken no account of, yet which must be taken seriously by everyone, is the question of the owners' responsibility in the matter of clearing up after his or her dog when they defecate on a public highway,byway, pavement or green space - or anywhere really. Unfortunately, accidents will happen anywhere.
Local governing bodies provide bins for the collection of such material. Dog wardens patrol public areas where dogs are walked. Notices about such happenings and preventative measures are to be found in relevant places, and we all agree that dog owners and walkers should be watchful and responsible for the dogs in their care, when out exercising their pets or charges.
Yet dog faeces are still to be encountered when out walking, and seen littering the areas where people live and work and play. I have even seen poo left adjacent to the relevant waste bin.
It is an unpleasant thing to clear up such matter but, it only takes a moment to stoop down and retrieve what has been left, and dispose of it in a handy receptacle. Your dog cannot deal with such matter. It is the owner-walker's responsibility to do so.
Why, oh why, is it impossible for some dog owners or dog walkers to be responsible for the animals in their care?
How they are able to ignore their responsibility towards their pets and to their fellow dog-owners, and to all mankind, is utterly beyond me.
We need more bins and a great many more dog wardens, somebody please.
And more education and dog poop..!
Daisy
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