I found this sign in a small park-like area in Glenview, Illinois:
I’m amused by the little figurines of the dog and its owner with the pooper-scooper. I’m also fascinated with the kind of thinking that must have gone into deciding on a maximum leash length. Were there incidents with long-leashed dogs? Was 8 feet the compromise value after a debate?
But what really gets me is the last line:
Dial 911 to Report Violations
You just know Glenview is a safe place to live if dog poop is cause for a 911 emergency.
I guess they have to report dog poop to the emergency dispatcher because time is of the essence. If people reported illegal pooping on the non-emergency lines, by the time a patrol unit got there the perp would be gone. Then where would we be?
If any police officer reads this, let me ask you something…Do you guys handle a lot of dog-poop calls?
Mark: That area looks pretty rustic, it should be able to handle some dog poop.
John,
Glenview’s dog-leash law safeguards public safety, especially in parks. Dog-poop on a soccer or football field, a playground, or a walkway contaminates them with Escherichia coli, bacteria found in the intestines of mammals, with hundreds of strains causing illness in humans, identified by the US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Requiring dog owners to scoop their dog’s poop safeguards the public from illness.
Walking dogs on-leash safeguards the public from dog attacks. Dogs, domesticated descendants of wolves, are naturally aggressive. Large or small dogs can-and-do inflict damaging bites to humans, and maulings are common in communities without leash-laws.
A leash gives the dog-owner or dog-walker increased control of the animal, and restricting the length to 8 feet limits the distance the animal is from the owner-walker and the time it takes to reign the animal in if it becomes aggressive near another person.
Dog-owners are responsible to exercise their dogs and have a right to public access, and safeguarding the public from illness and dog attacks is socially responsible. With regard to public hygiene and safety, City Ordinance 345 Section, 20.1 accommodates the rights of dog-owners and other community members–elderly, professionals, students, athletes, women and children–who use the parks for sport and recreation, who have a right to a clean, safe park.
Shaun Hoffmeyer