|
The
suburbs may be the best of Labrador
Retriever worlds, but its environment
poses its own special set of problems.
While suburban Labrador Retrievers are
usually not as restricted, regulated,
isolated, and controlled as those in the
cities, the very lifting of these
restrictions provides a set of pressures
for the suburban dog owner.
When suburbs do have leash laws,
residents do not always obey them. In
general, enforcement of leash laws is
lax in the suburbs. The law may include
a stipulation that the dog must be
leashed or "under the owner's direct
control." Having a Labrador Retriever
under one's "direct control" is, of
course, an ambiguous phrase. What it
means in practice is that the Labrador
Retriever is allowed to run free but
eventually returns home. This is enough
"control" for some owners.
Free-roving dogs often form packs or
bite, a growing problem in many suburbs
and villages. This is forcing suburbs to
adopt city-type leash laws and implement
zoning restrictions that penalize all
dog owners. At least in cities, most
stray Labrador Retrievers are picked up
promptly and impounded. As a result,
city dog owners tend to keep their dogs
supervised, since they stand a very real
chance of losing them if they don't.
Regardless of the environment, the only
complete solution to free-roving is
somehow to contain the Labrador
Retriever on one's own property when it
is not on a leash. The best and most
humane way is to bring the dog into the
house where it belongs regardless of the
owner's interpretations to the contrary.
Assuming the dog is indoors at least
fifty percent of the time and is
obedience-trained to come when called,
there will be little or no problem of
its going off its own property. When
there is a problem, secondary backup
solutions are to fence in the yard or to
chain the Labrador Retriever, an unhappy
alternative.
Some suburbanites persist in believing
the myth that their environment is
"country" enough to allow their pet to
go where it pleases. (Unfortunately,
even a country environment does not
allow that.) The suburbs are not the
country, and even if they were, that is
no excuse for letting a dog run wild.
Many a suburban dog owner experiencing
house-soiling, chewing, digging, or
free-roving has considered actually
moving out to the country, in order to
have their dogs “roam free”. However,
that would not help. Labrador Retriever
owners cannot do without having complete
control over their dog. A dog will come
when it is kept close by, oriented to
the inside of the house, and formally
practiced in coming when called. Most
dogs who are running free in the open
become less and less inclined to listen
when called and become too relaxed when
it comes to obedience. Instead, keep
your Labrador Retriever inside, and
either accompany it under supervision or
leash it for defecation and exercise. If
you want it to run free, take it to a
park or large field and personally watch
the dog.
Back
Home
|
