Our Observation

In February, an American bulldog mauled a 3-year-old Ocala girl to death after she wandered into its pen.

The girl’s mother, who owns a bulldog ranch and is a National Kennel Club judge, was cleaning the dogs’ pen but went inside briefly, leaving the toddler alone, according to a police report. In addition to being in a pen, the bulldog was chained to a tree.

It’s hard not to wonder if the events would have played out differently had the dog not been tethered to a tree, a practice that makes an animal territorial and aggressive. When it can’t run away, it fights.

Every year in the U.S., about 4 million people are bitten by dogs and 80,000 of those bites require medical attention. More than half of dog bite victims are children, making it the No. 1 public health concern for those younger than 12, according to the Center for Disease Control.

Orange County Animal Services investigated 1,814 bite cases in 2008. Seminole County had 504 bite cases from October 2008 to September 2009.

Orange County took a step to decrease dog bites by passing an animal rights ordinance in 2005. The Myles Leakes Animal Chaining Ordinance is named after the 4-year-old Orlando boy who was mauled to death in 2004 by two of his uncle's chained dogs — dogs who know him but had spent a majority of their lives on a chain.

The ordinance prohibits the chaining of dogs between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. and during “periods of extreme weather.” It also defines the length of the chain and range of movement and water and food access, as well as other conditions. But is that enough?

There are 16 hours left in the day when it is perfectly legal to keep a dog chained up, increasing the chances that it will become ill-tempered and hurt someone. It also is hard to regulate chaining conditions if neighbors or passersby cannot easily see the chained dog to report violations.

Seminole County has an ordinance modeled after Orange County’s in the works. But it still has a ways to go before it comes in front of the County Commission. Why not model it after more comprehensive laws?

Both counties should take a look at legislation passed by other districts that ban tethering outright. The city of Miami passed an ordinance in 2008 that prohibits dog chaining unless the owner is outside with the dog. The preamble to the ordinance states, “improper tethering and care of dogs is atrocious and made worse by the extreme heat in South Florida.” It gets just as hot here.

Dogs shouldn’t be separated from their humans in the first place. Dogs are animals that thrive on interaction with people and other animals, so an owner that’s not willing to give them that shouldn’t own a dog in the first place. By chaining a dog, the owner is putting people — especially children — in danger.

Organizations such as Dogs Deserve Better and UnchainYourDog.org exist to raise awareness and lobby for dogs’ rights as well as rescue and recuperate chained dogs, who often suffer from both psychological and physical wounds. Dogs Deserve Better will build a fence for an owner. They will even buy the neglected dog in order to stop the abuse.

Orange County Animal Services offers a Bite Prevention Program, taught in schools. It teaches children how to recognize dangerous situations and what to do if a dog approaches them. Animal Services officials say tougher laws and education programs are decreasing the number of dog bite incidences in the county.

But there’s more to be done to protect our children and man’s best friend. It’s time to broaden Orange County’s anti-tethering laws.

To report a chained dog, dial 311.