by Jo Campbell

"It is cruel to keep a dog penned up," I heard a neighbor say. "My dog likes to be free."
Well, "Freedom!" for the pet dog can mean being remembered forever as a scarlet smear down the middle of Main Street. Given a choice, the sensible dog might decline the honor. It is not cruel to keep a dog alive.
Does a dog really need "freedom?" For what? To die under the wheels of a car or to cause an accident as a driver swerves to avoid him? To perish in poisoned agony from garbage-pail contents? To be picked up and... don't even dwell on that.
Not only does the companion dog not need freedom; today there is simply no place for it.
The role of the dog has changed, but the human partner is still hanging on to some long-gone ideas. The sweeping countryside with the wide horizon has contracted into crowded, dangerous - and largely vertical - territory. Gone are the flocks in need of guarding, the estate to be patrolled. The companion dog has, supposedly, moved indoors with the family.
Humans thinking about getting a dog should focus on the new roles: the companion, the ego-booster, the four-legged security blanket. And what use is a dog in these roles if she's lally-gagging around the streets? Who is going to belong to whom, after all?
The kids want to play ball with Flash, or tell him their troubles. What do they do, make an appointment?
The average intelligent dog allowed to roam soon becomes bored, if he lives long enough. Idleness and the Devil are ready for the canine as well as the human. Footloose dogs soon get together and into trouble. They pile up grief and expense for their owners in ruined neighborhood shrubs, torn neighbors' clothing and damaged pet dogs and cats along the way. This downhill path often ends with a bite and a bullet. This is "freedom"? Who needs it?
Communities have leash laws these days, and it usually costs money to disregard them. Compliance is not so hard.
A fenced yard is a good safety measure, but may not give the pet enough protection. Some dogs wear trails along the side of the fence bordering on the sidewalk, following passersby - human and animal. It should go without saying that no dog should be left in a fenced yard when the family is away from the house. Dog theft is too prevalent, and a chance release is a dire possibility.
Owners who want to confine their pet when the family is at work and school, for instance, do not all have swank chain link around the runs. One-by-two inch turkey wire with Sears Roebuck posts works fine. Cement flooring cleans best and wears down the nails, but pea gravel is not bad and is cheap. A tight, weatherproof, baffle-entry house bedded with cedar chips makes doggy B.O a thing of the past. Local stipulations differ about the locations and distances from property lines, etc. for such quarters.
Dogs should not be staked out on tie-down chains unless the family is at home and on the alert. This is a visitor or vacation recourse only. In an unfenced expanse, the dog is the pilloried victim of every canine bully or mean, teasing child. And a loop of chain is a most uncomfortable way to snap a leg.
Some folks think only of the money when considering any outlay, "just for the dog." Do they realize how much they already have at stake in their dog's safety and well being?
They might stop and think. Did they buy the dog - no matter how small the price? Has he had shots against distemper, letospirosis, parvovirus? Regular checkup for heartworms, and the year-round tablets? (I don't want to hear all those voices ringing: "NO!") Has the pet a lead and a collar? A dog tag? Sure he does. How about dishes for food and water? Yes.
How long has the dog been around? Two years? Been eating pretty well all that time, too? Sure. He was patiently taught not to puddle in the house. And he barks when strangers come in the driveway; goes berserk if they advance to the front porch? But calms right down when you let the guests in? Right.
The kids love him and play with him? They'd cry themselves sick if anything happened to him? Naturally. There would be no peace until there was another dog.
So leave "Freedom" to the wild dogs of India and Africa, the coyotes and the few remaining wolves. Urban and suburban life are our reality. Take care of your own canine investment. Replacements are never quite the same. Besides, admit it, you'd miss him too.
(Jo Campbell and her family raised, bred and showed in conformation and obedience, Collies, Schipperkes and a Rottweiler when the kids were growing up. Active in local and national clubs, she edited a national Collie magazine, served as sports department stringer for the New York Times covering the East Coast shows, wrote news feature stories for the Washington papers. She now judges for the annual competition held by the Dog Writers Association of America...competition in which her work has won from time to time.)