Comments on: Doggy Etiquette, Midwest Style

By: jenna

jenna — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:35:07 +0000

Julie – You are absolutely right. In the city, walks are a necessity! Jenn lives in the middle of nowhere though. Her yard is probably humongous, like the one I have here in Indiana now, so walks aren’t necessary for lots of exercise and interaction.

Yesterday, I took Snickers to downtown Indianapolis and went on a long walk along the canal. Neither of us had been on a leash walk for a long while and we enjoyed it very much.

By: Julie

Julie — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:30:22 +0000

I agree with Jenn, except for her referring to walks as a “luxury”. In the city, unless your dog is a working dog, walks should be considered a necessity, even if you DO have an enclosed yard. Walking is not just for potty breaks; it is exercise and reinforcement as to “who is the boss”. Two long walks a day helps keep your dog more obedient AND contented – that is – less likely to engage in unwanted behavior form boredom, such as chewing your Jimmy Choos! Of course, if your dog walks YOU or is otherwise not in your control, well, then, this is all a mute point!

By: jenn

jenn — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 20:34:16 +0000

I have the option of both…allowing my dogs in the backyard and walking them…and I choose to do both. My belief is actually that ALL dog owners should be responsible and mind their pups either on or off leash. It is the owners responsibility to teach their pups doggie etiquette and how to approach another dog because you never know how the other dog will react no matter where you are. My dogs are always under my control and look to me for direction. I would never place my pups in a situation where they would cause harm or get harmed. All dogs love a walk, its a shame to not allow them that luxary just because they are snarky.

By: jenna

jenna — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 21:50:09 +0000

Michelle, that makes a lot of sense. I’m sort of comparing apples and oranges. The dogs that we’ve met on leash here must be a small subset of the dog population. The dogs we met on leash in NYC were a more broad representation of the whole, because almost all the dogs in NYC have to be walked… it’s the only way they get outside.

By: Michelle Keener

Michelle Keener — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:19:03 +0000

I have an opinion about this. You must have noticed by now that walking your dog is not very popular in the midwest. I think that those with dogs who are not friendly to other dogs on leash just stay home. If everyone understood that not all dogs are friendly on leash and just kept a little distance it would be fine. But so many times people can’t imagine that you’d walk a snarky dog and they just let Fido have all the liberties he wants, dancing around at the end of the leash, dragging the owner over to check out your dog. It’s very interesting to me to hear that in the city people control their dogs. Not surprising now that I hear it, just very different. And of course, this is just my perspective on the whole thing. Not everyone is like that, but so many times dogs actually out and about on leash are walking their owners.

By: Rae

Rae — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 20:30:13 +0000

this is intriguing. I can’t wait for follow-ups. Notice the shapes of the dog bodies, and how they get more curvy the friendlier they are. This is a good clue to watch, now with all the space to move. I’m sure Snickers will catch on to the new ‘rules” of D.E. in a more rural setting, but it might be equally as fascinating to see whether the people as well have different actions?? Oh what fun!

By: Molly

Molly — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:49:59 +0000

That’s so interesting Jenna! I never knew about that doggie etiquette in the city. Out here in the country (NJ) most owners just let their dogs do whatever, so leash confidence is a big training issue. Snick is a smart dog and I am sure will figure out the culture curve quite quickly.