Is this pet abuse?

[gjat]

Getting hold of animal control is not easy - shall need to try again later.

I went home at lunch time just to have a second look. The pup was sitting quietly in the cage, no sound. But he did look up at me, so he's okay. The water bowl still has water, but I could not see another bowl for food. The shade is good.

I will look for an opportunity to broach this with them, and hold off on the animal control call for a day or two more. I agree, this may not cross the law, but I'd be happier if I could ensure he has his food, water and reasonable living space.

rags, i'm just the guy on the spot; thanks are due to everybody here who's concerned enough to take the time try and help a small creature out.

I'm a strictly 'inside the house' dog owner, but I do know lot's of people who keep dogs outside. I would doubt the 2' square crate is illegal. Lot's of people crate train their dogs. Providing shade and water are mandatory. A dog does not (and probably should not) have food available all day. I would be very careful about accusing your neighbor of animal cruelty. Some people have different philosophies and techniques regarding pet ownership. People generaly don't take kindly to criticism on raising children or pets. I'd wait until you talked to the SPCA or Humane Society and ask their opinion if you can't get in touch with Animal Control.

[Uncle Cracker]

Another angle that has not been brought up is that many areas have stiff penalties for owners whose dogs run loose. It seems that the conflict caused by this type of regulation might actually serve to encourage an owner to confine his animals when he's not at home, if they cannot be kept inside (and some indeed cannot be). Then the question becomes the morality of caging a dog, or one of whether the cage is of adequate size.

Also, it should be pointed out that feeding a dog can be done once a day. It is not necessary to have food always present, as it can attract ants, birds, rats, and other things. Water, on the other hand, should always be available, and changed regularly.

With regard to reporting questionable conditions, do that and leave the enforcement to the authorities. If, in their opinion, there is no wrongdoing, then accept it. Attempting to imprint your own standards on others can lead to... unfortunate... consequences.

[cgallery]

Probably for the same reason people with overwhelming health, mental or financial problems have children...

SWI (Sex While Intoxicated)?

[radhak]

Guys, allow me to re-iterate that I am not even sure this is abuse, hence i asked here. I definitely did not accuse them of it, not directly, or even here.

Even if I end up calling some authority, I am gonna ask them if they think this needs investigation; beyond that, it will definitely be their call.

I may not manage my pets this way, but that does not make my way the right way; they may have legitimate reasons and motivations not obvious to me.

If I had seen actual abuse, I would not have been talking about it - I'd have been all over them; as it is, if anything, this might be more a case of a nosy neighbour (myself) than an irresponsible owner . That said, I want somebody more competent to make that judgement.

[cabinetman]

I say we assemble an "A" team, and charter a chopper, and extract the little guy outta there.
.

[Gator95]

As long as the pet has access to shade and water, then this is not likely to be considered abusive. You might want to chat nicely with the neighbor about the puppy yapping and ask why he's not inside the house in the cage- but other than that I'd stay out of it. Caging a small puppy in a 2x2x2 crate is not horrible- as long as puppy had water and shade. Personally, when crate training I always have animal indoors but I suppose YMMV.

My criteria for calling animal control is this: is the situation so bad that the pet would be better off in the pound awaiting the questionable chance of adoption or being put out of its misery? Is the animal such a threat or annoyance to me that I'd be ok with the pet being taken to the pound?

BTW, I'm a total dog lover and have a dog adopted from the pound now, as will all my future dogs. My dog is part of my family and sleeps on the bed. I love my dog, but I realize that there is a huge gap between what I think is right and correct, what is legal and enforcible, and the goodness of the outcome if I chose to intervene in a neighbors situation.

[MilDoc]

I live in Texas. I love Samoyeds - long haired dogs. But they LOVE to dig and chew. Had one that chewed through the air conditioned garage wall into the house. He is now kept outside. With food, with ready access to fresh water. With freedom to run (not chained). With shelter from the rain etc. And from the hot sun (covered patio). AND he gets a major trim in the summer, and his hair is allowed to grow in the winter.

Is that abuse?

[radhak]

I say we assemble an "A" team, and charter a chopper, and extract the little guy outta there.
.

NOW you're talking! Let's get some action here!

Today I managed to talk to somebody who used to work in an animal rescue center. She heard me out, and declared (a) she does not think the pup is in immediate danger or in need to be rescued (b) if the pup is yelping daily, there definitely something bothering him, so somebody should take a look at him. If he's new to the house, it might just be that - newness, which will just go away.

So I have decided to wait a couple of days and observe if the pup gets quieter (he was not quiet today).

[Hellrazor]

Calling big brother on the neighbor is not going to go over well at all. If they are in a protected yard, have water, shade, etc. There is very little the SPCA or anyone else is going to do. Other then showup, snoop around and try to invent a problem.

Food for Thought #1: Do you appreciate when someone decides to make your business their problem for no apparent reason?

Food for Thought #2: Dogs are outside creatures, WE make them couch potatoes. A dog isn't stupid, if there is shade in the yard it will find it IF it wants to. My neighbors dog perfers to lay in the sun during the summer for no obvious reason. When she feels like it, she walks over and lays in the shade. Is that cruelty?

[Ed62]

Being in a 2X2X2 cage isn't the best thing. Animals need exercise. Is it abuse? Probably not in the eyes of the law. Is it morally right? Not in my opinion, but others might have different moral standards.

My advice would be to get to know the new neighbors, but not bring the dogs up in the initial conversations. After you get to know them a little better, you could probably bring up animals in a conversation, without making them think you're the nosy neighbor, trying to create a problem. If you use your head, you can get your point across without hurt feelings.

Good neighbors can be the best part of living where you are. Neighbors who are p*ssed at each other make life miserable, no matter where you live. If the animals were in danger or obviously abused, they probably wouldn't make good neighbors anyway. But that doesn't appear to be the case.

Ed