Indoor cats, leashed dogs & the flames from hell my opinion will stir.

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“I could only watch in horror as he ran from me and into the middle of the road.”

“There was nothing we could do, she slipped through a hole in the fence and by the time we realized it, the neighbors dog had already gotten to her.”

“We found pieces of him strewn about the lawn.”

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My opinion on leashes and the tragedies that could be prevented happens to be as road-rash intensive as several of my other opinions on pet treatment and care.

I am not entirely bitchface McGee about some things. I have all sorts of sympathy for those who have lost a pet due to tragedy, I am not unfamiliar with it. I have all sorts of understanding for those who have lost a pet due to their own mistake as several years ago I did something incredibly stupid that cost me my first pet cockatiel.

She was sitting on my shoulder so perfectly quiet that I had forgotten she was there. I stepped  onto the screened in porch for a moment to talk to Shawn. She was on my shoulder when I opened the back door and stepped outside.

I can tell you that the slow-motion impending horror often shown in movies is exactly what happened to me that split second as I watched her fly higher and higher away from me.  I imagine it is what might happen to those unfortunate pet owners who have witnessed their usually well behaved dogs suddenly veer from the curb into the road, or their cat, or those whom have watched in horror kitty climb over the fence to the neighbors yard who just happened to own a dog that’s been known to mangle. I have been there –but I don’t blame anyone. I know beyond a doubt that it was nobody’s fault but my own.

And I’m going to tell those of you who lose unleashed pets into traffic, backwoods and other places the same thing. You could have prevented tragedy with the smallest investment. You and I both know deep down in the cockles of our little hearts it could have been circumvented with a little time and thought. I could have kept that bird had I not been so righteously idiotic and you could have kept that puppy had you leashed her for her morning walk. You could have kept that cat had you kept him indoors to the best of your ability.

Anger is far, far easier than taking the blame for screwing up. It sucks having to sit down and realize that you’re at fault–I think it would suck far worse however, if we ignored the painful first lesson and repeated our mistake simply for the fact that we don’t want to take responsibility.

Don’t be angry … be responsible. Go out and buy a leash for Muffy McBarkersons right now.  Go out and bring Sir Meowsalot your non-feral cat inside, no matter how much he protests and do your best to keep the little dash-for-the-door at light speed idiot inside. Google dog training, clicker training. You can even Google how to teach your cat to not only learn to wear a harness and leash but take him or her for a walk while wearing it.

I don’t want to hear about how perfectly trained Snagglegrowls is and how he would never dare disobey a heel order–that’s like saying you never expect a kid or another living being to do anything unpredictable ever–animals do shit, shit that doesn’t always make sense. They spook at noises they never used to, they freak out at bikes, they dislike the sound of something or they run off to chase a plastic bag. There’s no fail proof training and no way to be 100% sure your animal will always heed you.

To me the argument about it’s only natural! These animals used to live in the wild all the time is senseless as well as bull.  Sure they did–and we used to eat raw bear entrails and throw crap. Several thousands years of adaptation and civilization has (mostly, we still fling crap but in so many more creative ways) changed us and we’ve taken domesticated animals right along with us. What was right and natural for these animals to do a thousand years ago no longer count. We have tamed them, bred them and created them to be wholly dependent on us, so it’s high time we made sure we take care of them properly. Instinct only goes so far faced with an endless city scape or an endless wooded backyard after months of being fed, pet, and sheltered inside by you.

So stop with the excuses. Stop with the angry noises. Stop with the blame, blaming some one or something else or yourself and stop something horrific from happening by doing such a menial little task as to be almost ridiculous.

Buy a damned leash.  Keep your cat indoors.