The Child on the Chain

WARNING: This post will be disturbing on many levels.  I wrestled with whether to write it at all, but I feel it is important to drive the point home.  Here is a link to read after the post for more information on chaining.
http://www.unchainyourdog.org/FactsPhotos.htm

Billy was once very loved.  When he was small, young, and "cute".  His parents were, in the beginning, loving and kind. Then Billy got a little older.  When he reached the age of three, he was not as "controllable" anymore.  He ran around the house, knocked over tables with precious antiques, and got into cabinets he wasn't supposed to.  His parents were not patient, nor did they attempt to educate him in basic skills of behavior and manners.  They became more and more frustrated, but instead of trying to teach Billy, they decided to replace him.

One day, Billy's parents came home with a lovely puppy with long floppy ears and a long waggly tail.  Billy was fascinated with the puppy, but his parents would not let him near it as they were afraid that "uncontrollable Billy" would hurt it.  They didn't bother to try to teach Billy how to interact with the new puppy.  The puppy soon received all the attention.  Billy was left alone most of the time, except for meals.  Billy did everything he could think of to get his parents attention- he cried, jumped up and down on the beds, hid their shoes, and ran around and around the house thinking, "surely they will notice me now!"  They DID notice, but it did not have the effect Billy wanted- instead he got hit with switches and rolled up newspapers as punishment for his behavior.

Then one fatal day, Billy was left alone with the puppy.  Having never been taught how to interact with the puppy, Billy pulled one of her big floppy ears.  HARD.  The dog screamed in pain.  Billy's parents came running into the room, saw Billy pulling the puppy's ear, and immediately grabbed Billy.  "How dare you hurt the baby!" his parents screamed. One parent kicked him in the ribs and he fell to the ground in pain. Then they threw Billy out into the backyard and locked him out of the house.  Billy wandered the yard, watching his parents play with and comfort the baby.  Tears rolled down his face as he remembered that once HE was the baby.  He beat on the door, screamed and cried, but there was no response to his pleas. 

Billy looked at the fence then noticed the gate.  He had never opened a gate before, but he was sure that this was the way out of captivity.  Since he could not dig under the fence, that gate held the key to his freedom.  After hours of working on the latch, it popped.  He was FREE!  Billy wandered through the neighborhood, looking for a home with people who would love him.  After several hours, he was seen by a well-meaning but uninformed neighbor who knew him and was returned to his parents.  Since Billy was young and could not communicate well, he could not make the neighbor understand what was happening to him.

His parents were furious that Billy had dared to escape.  They locked Billy in the laundry room, and he could only hear activity in the back yard that went on for several hours.  Billy sat in the corner, clinging to himself in fear with tears running down his cheeks.  "What did I do to make them stop loving me?"  He had no idea how he had been THAT bad.

Then he heard stomping through the house.  The parents burst into the room with fury in their eyes.  Billy cowered against the wall.  One of them held him down while the other wrapped a thick, heavy chain around his neck- tightly.  The 12 foot chain weighed almost as much as Billy did.  He wailed and cried, but all that earned him was another kick in the ribs.  Billy doubled over in pain as his parents drug him with the chain into the backyard and affixed it to a tree.  When Billy was able to breathe again, he sat up and noticed a shack beside the tree with three or four of his old baby blankets carelessly tossed into it.

That night, he was brought some table scraps and water in metal bowls. He crawled into his shack with the hated chain tightly around his neck.  He made himself as comfortable as possible in the pile of thin baby blankets that had been tossed into the shack.  He curled himself into a fetal position as insects bit him and the heavy chain hindered his ability to move.  The next day, he ventured out of the shack and curled up in the grass under the tree, crying miserably and wondering what he had done to deserve such a fate.  This became Billy's life day in and day out.  He howled, cried, and yelled but to no avail.  No savior came for him. His parents still ignored him except to tell him he was "bad" and to toss him scraps of food and change his water every few days. Billy became filthy, his clothing torn and smelly.  His thin blankets became infested with fleas and lice.  Billy was miserable and wondered when his punishment would end.  He soon learned it was only to worsen.

Neighborhood bullies noticed that Billy was chained to a tree.  They gathered outside the fence and threw stones and sticks at him.  He tried to dodge the best he could, but the ponderous chain held him back.  With many bruises and cuts, Billy slinked into his shack, curling up in fear.  Being eaten by parasites and full of worms was bad enough, but now he was battered and bruised from the attack.  He curled up into a fetal position and cried for hours.  Slowly he ventured back out.  The bullies were gone for the day, but they returned every so often to torment Billy. His parents did nothing to stop them.  One day after Billy had been dodging stones, his chain cut deep into his neck and blood ran down his body.  He had been growing, despite the mal-treatment, but no one had bothered to adjust the chain. Despite the blood, no one noticed or cared. The pain was excruciating, but still Billy survived.

Through the winter, Billy managed to survive as infection set in and freezing temperatures almost took his life.  He could not eat much any more, and his water often froze, but he drank as he could and tried to use the tattered baby blankets to keep warm.

Summer came. It was miserably hot that year.  Billy could still see through the windows his parents playing with the cute young dog while he languished on the chain.  He was unable to eat, barely able to drink, and becoming more and more ematiated by the day. The parasites, worms, dehydration, lack of food, and infection was taking it's toll on Billy. He realized he would never be loved again.  The heat was causing the infection from the embedded chain to spread through his poor body.  Billy began going into septic shock.  Using his last bit of energy, Billy retrieved his favorite baby blanket from the shack, laid down under the tree, and put the blanket under his head.  He closed his eyes for the last time, desperately trying to remember and to dream of a time when he once was loved.  Billy's spirit left his tortured body that day and crossed over the rainbow bridge.  He had not even reached his 5th birthday.  Billy was now free of the tortuous chain and could run, jump, and play with the spirits who had gone before.  He never got the answer to what he had done wrong, but now he was free.

Would someone actually do this to their child? Unlikely, but it is done to dogs all the time. So, because it is a dog and not a child, does this make it any more acceptable?  My answer is a resounding "HELL NO".

Dogs are social animals- they are smart, loving, loyal, and learn quickly.  However, they must be taught how to assimilate into their new pack- YOUR family. They are pack animals and cannot and should never be kept in isolation.  It breaks their spirits, bodies, and can make them aggressive since they never learn socialization. Dogs are perfect family pets, but they require humane training, patience, love and supervision to learn the ways of their new pack.

Remember these things:

• Dogs are sentient beings.  This means that they feel pain and emotion just the way we do.
• Dogs are social animals.  When you commit to a dog, you must commit to bringing them into your home and family and making them an active and loved member of the "pack"
• Dogs are loyal to a fault.  If they are shown kindness and love, they will stick with you through thick and thin and become the family protector- yes, even of the baby!
• Treating a dog poorly is abuse- pure and simple. Neglect is abuse, putting a dog at risk is abuse.  If you are doing these things.  YOU are an ABUSER.
• Dogs kept on chains or tied up in the backyard are not socialized properly.  Don't blame the dog if it digs, barks, jumps, bites, has no manners, or howls.  It isn't the dog's fault.  It is YOUR FAULT.
• Chained or tied dogs are vulnerable to the elements, parasites, and predators- both human and animal.
• If you think it is OK to chain or tie up a dog in your backyard, DON'T GET A DOG.  You don't deserve the privilege of owning one of these magnificent creatures.

You wouldn't do it to a child, don't to it to a dog!!!!