Obey the leash law

童家鑫

導讀：美國任何一個城市都有狗鏈令（the leash law），以防止狗突然攻擊人類或者其它動物。

When I walk Bandit， hes usually on a long training leash. That gives him enough room to wander around when were alone， but I still constantly watch for other people and animals. When we see someone in the distance or when a car passes us， I call Bandit to my side and make him sit nicely until the people or car have passed. Its something we started working on when he was doing his dog training and Ive just kept it up. It keeps him from jumping on strangers， from wandering in front of a car， and also from having a surprise fight with another dog. In fact， several times during a walk， Ill call him back to me for a treat， just to make sure were communicating.

There is a nature park near where I live. In this park there are several signs reminding people that all dogs must be on a leash. There is a $75 fine for those who dont obey it. The problem is some dog owners refuse to obey the leash law because they want to let their dog run in the woods.

It was about noon on a Tuesday when Bandit and I were exploring in the woods. In just an hour， we met two people with dogs（leashed） and two other people just walking. Then there was a lady with the German Shepherd. She was walking slowly and her dog was at her side. Bandit was a little bit ahead of me， peeing on every tree on the path without seeing the dog. I called Bandit and he came to me right away and sat. As I reached into my bag to get him treat， the womans German Shepherd ran towards us with full speed.

I shouted to the woman， “GET YOUR DOG！” She lazily walked to us as her dog was completely placing himself into Bandits space and was uncomfortably close to me as well. When the woman finally got to us， I told her to put her dog on a leash.

“Oh， my dog is friendly.” she said.

“Well， maybe mines not.” I wasnt happy.

Bandit is actually a really friendly dog and has never had a problem with other dogs. At that moment though， he was very nervous， licking his lips and trying to look away from the other dog and was showing other signs that he was feeling anxious.

I am generally not rude to strangers， but as a responsible dog owner， I know that theres a reason why youre required to keep your dog on a leash. Her complete disregard for the law and arrogant attitude that everyone must love her dog as much as she does will make for dangerous situations.

Vocabulary

German Shepherd n. 德國牧羊犬

pee v. 撒尿

arrogant adj. 傲慢的

（What do you think of putting a leash on a dog？）