Thursday, December 10, 2009

The Dog in Winter

Now that it's snowing outside it is really time to address a matter of concern. For whatever reason as soon as it gets cold outside a greater number of people decide that it is acceptable to not pick up their dog poop and leave it on the sidewalk. I would like to stress two things:
1) It is not acceptable.
2) These people suck.

Owning a dog means accepting responsibilities. The owner has responsibilities to the dog of course to care for it and ensure that it does not die. However equally important are the responsibilities that the dog owner has to everyone else in society. There are only two of these:
1) Ensure that your dog does not harm others.
2) Clean up after it.

This is the social contract we have created for dog owners. It is the only two things you have to do in order to be allowed to own a dog and keep it in the city. These two simple things are requirements and failure to complete these means you are abandoning the privilege of owning an animal and are not a decent human being.

You will see it more and more as the winter sets in. I am not sure why the cold weather triggers this in some people. There are others that don't clean up after their dogs year round. They are still prigs but at least they're consistent.

++++++++++++++++++++

We need someone to dogsit for us next Friday (Dec. 18). If you are available to come over to our apartment and make sure they don't bark while you rifle through our things then please let us know. There may be something in it for you.