Kathy Wiegand On The Radio: Free The Dogs!
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- September
- 27
Dogs rule—especially in the burbs.
Today’s “High Noon” guest is Kathy Wiegand, one of the leaders in a campaign to overturn a New Rochelle restricting the hours dog owners can let their pets run free and unleased at Ward Acres Park, a pastoral retreat in the city’s affluent north end.
The dog ordinance has becom a hot political issue. So tune in at 12 noon to listen. That’s “High Noon” on WVOX, 1460 AM. The show also streams live at www.wvox.com.
UPDATE: Here’s today’s podcast:
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on Thursday, September 27th, 2007 at 11:32 am by Phil Reisman.
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Phil Reisman is a veteran journalist and native of Westchester County. He began his career in 1977 as the head copy boy of a startup New York City newspaper that quickly went belly up. Reisman was not to blame for the newspaper's failure, or so he claims.
I commend the Wiegands for their dedicated championing of Ward Acres.
Although he is a dog owner, Howards comments about dogs “running wild” seem to reflect the general lack of understanding of dog behaviour and socialization. Dog owners as well as non owners seem to see dogs as dangerous creatures that may harm people or other pets. This is a complete misconception. A “safe” dog is a socialized dog. Dogs have a natural and instictive process of socialization that is best accomplished off leash. Any animal trainer will tell you that a dogs, while on leashes are suject to their masters commands, training and control. Only off-leash, do dogs rely on their instictive, “built-in” and natural process of socializing with others.
Aggression in dogs is learned and taught, as in dogs trained for law enforcement or for dog fighting. Unsocialized dogs, who have not had regular contact with a variety of humans and dogs, react out of fear NOT aggression.
Again, I must mention that statistics show that 2 out of 3 single family homeowners own at least one pet. What has been taken away at Ward is not only a venue that enhances the life of ones dog, but the human socialization that has existed among so many neighbors, friends and families who have been walking their dogs there for 30 years.
Here is link to information on dog socialization and the importance of maintaining socialization provided by The Partnership for Animal Welfare:
http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_SocializationAdultDog.php
Gene Heubel
Scarsdale, NY
ERA Atlantic Realty and Sierra Natural Pet Foods