What Makes A Responsible Owner?

[daisygirl]

I have a friend with three dogs that are the same breed as ours. He lives on his own and absolutely loves them to bits and thinks he is always doing the right thing.

My question. If one of his elderly (11yrs) old dog is grossly overweight and he knows it and admits it after several people have pointed it out BUT he does nothing ie doesnt change the diet or walk more often, is he still a responsible dog owner?

To me it is just as criminal having a grossly overweight dog as a grossly underweight dog, especially in old age when it can affect arthritis and heart problems.

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

With all that I see at the pound, I'd have to add that a responsible owner would keep a dog clean and groomed, utilise flea, heartworm and full worm prevention apart from what others have already written. I guess this comes under animal husbandry but I think for many, it really needs to be spelt out.

I fell out with a friend who insisted on looking after one of my dogs for a couple of weeks rather than my other alternative (kennels). The dog had a very sensitive skin and required special diet and medication. Due to her dementia, I told my friend she could not go to the offleash park but just needed to walk down the road for 5 mins.

I got her back INFESTED with fleas. She had a skin infection that required antibiotics to clear it up and she'd been taken to the dog park.

I was very upset indeed with this particular person who considers herself to be a responsible owner but is far from it in some ways.

[Muttaburra]

Well twice in one week, in 2 different parts of my street, whilst walking my dogs on lead, I have been rushed by a dog, double/triple the size of my dogs, because the 2 lots of dog owners have not ensured that their dogs are kept securely.

So I would say keeping a dog securely from roaming to be right up there with criteria for Responsible Ownership.

And this becomes even more important it they are the kinds of dogs that tend to rush at other dogs while barking with hackles up, clearly not socialised or even DA as well.

The other issue of course is the dog being injured by traffic.

So now I am afraid to walk at either end of my own street

[Pointees]

I guess, basically saying, its common sense.. Not that you can say that t the average joe.

[Casima]

I admit I haven't read everyones replies, but wanted to put my 2 cents in here as well

I feel a responsible owner has a responsibility to the dog(s) in their care and a responsibility to the greater community regarding their dogs behaviour.

I feel an owners responsibility to their dog(s) can be summed up with this.

To ensure the dog has a good life. to me this umbrella statement covers all these things as appropirate to the dog/breed in question: Feeding, Excercising, Vet care, Grooming, Living conditions, Social interaction, Training, Working (if applicable), Safety, Responsible breeding (or not breeding) of dogs in your care. etc

I feel an owners responsibility to the greater community regarding their dogs can be summed up with this.

To ensure the dog does not negatively impact on others or the environment. and this to me covers: Noise, Waste, Roaming, Chasing/Killing of livestock/ other pets/wild animals, Effective control in public, Obeying leash laws or no dog zones. etc

I'm sure I've missed some things but to me that covers pretty much everything while allowing for all sorts of dogs, owners and situations.

[Steve]

A couple of weeks ago I was at a local pub which has facilities for families with kids to enjoy a beer garden type thing and have a counter meal.

Lots of people - half a dozen kids. All of a sudden a couple of kids started screaming and someone had walked through with what appeared to be a fairly well trained staffy - off leash.It stayed within a couple of feet of its owner but she allowed it to mingle among the people who were there for a couple of minutes while she spoke to one of the patrons.Mothers were soothing their kids and keeping them closer so they werent approached by the dog and even though I think the owner had no idea many people who were there were pretty ticked off about the dog being there and especially about it being there with the owner holding a leash which wasnt attached to the dog.

A couple of people fed it small pieces off their plates and clearly werent bothered by it being there but most were obviously worried about it asking for their food and others asked her to get it out of there. Someone from the management came over and asked her to take the dog out explaining health regs etc but she defended what she was doing as the dog was harmless and in control.I watched her after she left the pub until she got out of sight. She slowly left and continued to walk up the main drag with the dog a few feet ahead of her -every now and then the dog stopped to sniff something and she kept walking and the dog caught up. People coming toward her crossed the street as she approached.One couple not only crossed the street but they carried their small dog as she drew near and after she passed.

No doubt she loved the dog and was well bonded with it, she had trained it and was confident it wouldnt move out onto the road or not respond when needed and she wouldnt be able to understand why anyone would have a problem with what she had done but there werent that many people there that day who felt her actions were responsible.

Sometimes bonding with a dog makes you blind to how it may impact on other people and their dogs.

You may feed it better food, give it better health care and accommodations but thats only part of the story.

Same thing here with a guy who allows a pair of boxers race around off leash in a public park .he's happy , the dog act lik ethey are happy but not many families want bouncing strange dogs stomping all over their picnic blanket or chasing after their kids playing cricket.The owner thinks its cute and his poor dogs need somewhere to run free.Tell him people dont like it and its the people who have a problem because his dogs wouldnt hurt anyone and I doubt they would.Trying to explain is like talking to a brick wall because he feels that he is being a responsible dog owner.

[Nannas]

Being a responsible dog owner doesn't just include your responsibilites to the dog.

People seem to think as long as they feed, shelter and train that is all that is needed but it isn't.

Being responsible means you are responsible for your dogs reactions/interactions with animals/people in society.

Letting your friendly dog annoy and harrass other people/animals (who don't want to interact with your dog) is NOT being responsible.

I hate it when people say "but my dog is freindly" etc. ....Who cares??

My pit is freindly but would I be a responsible owner if I let her run up to anyone/everyone and annoy them??

NO!! Everyone would be going on and on about how irresponsible and stupid I was.

I think taking precautions (re:dog behaviour) is also part of being responsible.

If you have a dog showing aggression,,labelling it as fear/anxiety aggression and not taking precautions is NOT being responsible.

It's not just about your responsibilities to the dog but also your responsibilities to society.

[rose of tralee]

I am afraid the common sense and knowledge-by-osmosis that used to be commonplace has largely disappeared and when will that be coming back?

[Kissindra]

since some have brought up "prior to owning" points such as selecting the right breed or individual dog, should buying a dog from ethical sources bare a mention?

You can get a dog from any source and still be a truly great owner - plenty of examples of that here on DOL - but if we are looking at things to promote to the public at large as "responsible" perhaps "where puppies come from" should get a mention in order to educate people further?

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

Whilst sitting in traffic the other day, I watched a woman strolling down the road with an off leash Border COllie, it went ahead of her around a bend.

I could see what was on the other side - a man walking up the road with a large black staffy. The border collie went up to the staffy and the man was shouting and hanging on to his dog, he got his dog into an armlock around it's head so my guess was it wasn't friendly with other dogs.

As much as I dislike staffies, the BC owner was completely at fault.

It just shouldn't happen, no dogs should be offleash along a busy road, no matter what.