Chained Dogs get Activists' Hackles Up
GreenvilleOnline.com
February 22, 2004, GREENVILLE-- Activists who call themselves Speak for
Animals spent Saturday knocking on doors to try to persuade some dog lovers
not to leave their pets chained to poles and trees all day. "This is a
serious thing," activist Susan Bufano said. "We want the community to know
how big the problem is." Speak for Animals members say they will focus on
dogs who are mistreated in the Greenville area.
Two groups of women armed with goodies for dogs and people visited about 25
homes Saturday. They found six pit bulls tied up on Garrett Road, and four
other mixed-breed dogs on Keith Drive. "Hi, babies," Bufano cooed to one
group of dogs on Keith Drive. As she cooed, the dogs barked, but not
aggressively. The visitors threw treats to the dogs, which seemed to settle
them.
Keeping dogs tethered for hours, days or months is inhumane and cruel, Speak
for Animals says. Regardless of breed, it makes dogs neurotic and aggressive
and can do psychological damage, the women said.
The women banded together three months ago to address some of these issues,
which they say stem from ignorance. While some of the dogs they encountered
had access to water, others didn't. They also noted that one of the dogs was
tethered to a tree and had gotten tangled up in the chain.
A dog that gets tangled up also can't get out of the heat or rain, they
point out. "It's still illegal to attach a dog to a tree," said Bufano, who
edits a monthly newsletter about animal awareness called Critter.
Bufano and fellow activists Tasha Shirley and Elizabeth Rohde couldn't get
anyone to answer the door, so they left pamphlets, a balloon and dog treats
at the home's doorstep. All in all, they were somewhat pleased with the
condition of the four dogs and took down the address to do a follow-up.
"We're going to do it in a very compassionate manner," Bufano said
beforehand. "We're going with the attitude: 'What can we do to help you?'
We're not an in-your-face type of group at all."
At the third stop on Keith Drive, one man owned a female dog with about
eight pups yapping; all were maintained in a clean, fenced yard. The
unidentified man said he had just awakened and asked the women, who were
armed with a balloon, to come back at 2 p.m.
Rohde, who has worked with the Humane Society in Tennessee, said she was
concerned about the dog's low weight. "She can be skinny because she's
nursing, but she's way too skinny," Rohde said.
Bufano said they eventually gave food to the man and his wife and will
probably help finance getting the dog spayed. The group hopes to help owners
get doghouses or put up fences.
At another stop, a dog owner let them adopt a dog who "had a bad back leg,"
said Bufano, who already has five dogs. She said she would have a vet look
at the dog and then find it a home.
Judy Outlaw, executive director of the Greenville Humane Society, said
groups like Speak for Animals walk a fine line when they approach dog
owners. "I think we have to balance what is OK by law with what you think is
right," she said. "There are some bad situations (dogs being chained) in the
city and county that I don't think are right."
Speak for Animals' next scheduled meeting is 6 p.m. March 6 at the public
library on Pelham Road.
E. Richard Walton can be reached at 298-4317.
