Community Comments : Don’t Blame City Dogs for Being Bad--It’s the Owners Who Are Brutes

JANE WALBERG

Venice

Barking: People who swear their animals are quiet ought to leave a tape recorder on.

Eight years ago, my husband and I moved to a nice little street in Venice where the houses are packed so close together that you can hear your neighbors spit when they brush their teeth. Fortunately, the neighbors with whom we have shared such close quarters over the years are decent people. We settled in, planted our pansies and discovered the joys of an ocean breeze that mixes very nicely with the smell of barbecuing hamburgers.

Like any place, this neighborhood of people-in-close-proximity has had its frustrations. Cars screech too fast down our street, leaving dead animals, like our cat Mike, in their wake. A revolving door of college co-eds renting the house across from us occasionally parties until 3 a.m. A newborn wails with colic, and another kid rides his “whizzy whirl” tricycle up and down the block for 13 hours at a stretch, or so it seems. Gardeners with weed whackers, as early as 6:45 a.m., slap you awake with a pull of their starter cords.

But none of these ricocheting aural inconveniences has brought anywhere near the frustration and insanity of this neighborhood’s most recent decibel debacle--Fido, the famous barking dog.

Within the last year, nearly every house on our block has gotten a big, loud dog--a dog who is left alone all day in a tiny yard, crying out for some companionship and diligently warning an empty house of a stranger walking past.

There are even dogs who are left to oversee houses that are vacant and for sale. One such dog got caught up in a lawn hose the other night. His cries brought my husband and another neighbor out to free the pup.

We’ve asked ourselves: Why all the dogs suddenly? Our guess is that some of the dog owners bought their animals for protection, others as pets. Good enough reasons for me. But whether you get a dog for protection or as a member of the family--or both--what many owners seem to be forgetting is that dogs deserve the same thing they give their owners: attention!

When we approached one neighbor about his constantly barking dog, we were told flat out, “My dog doesn’t bark.”

Well, buddy, that’s because when you’re home, your dog has a companion. When you’re away, neighbor, your dog does bark.