DDB Chain OFF 2008: Unchain our World!

Sharah Burton, Deedee Dillingham, Justin Kouterick,
Matthew Anderson, Watertown Against Chains

Chained in Watertown N.Y., June 29, 10am-6pm

Activists protest for rights of the 'forgotten dogs'

By JULIA FOY

TIMES INTERN

MONDAY, JUNE 30, 2008

"If it isn't OK for a human, why is it OK for a dog?" asks Sharah E. Burton, an organizer and activist for an animal rights protest held Sunday in Watertown.

Advocates of Dogs Deserve Better, a national nonprofit organization, spent the day in the doghouse, or at least tied to it. Four participants volunteered to remain tied up for eight hours, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. They hoped to raise awareness for what Tammy S. Grimes calls "forgotten dogs."

Ms. Grimes, Tipton, Pa., the founder and executive director of Dogs Deserve Better, always has harbored sympathy for the "forgotten," the dogs that owners bring home, tie up and then pretty much forget about.

"It totally goes against the nature of the dog," she said. "Dogs are the most social animal on the planet and they need to be with their pack."

Domesticated dogs, said Ms. Grimes, see their human families as their pack. Ostracizing them from that social structure can result in aggressive and even untrainable pets.

Dogs who are chained all the time are almost three times more likely to bite humans and can be especially dangerous to neighborhood children should the dogs get loose or should children approach them, animal advocates say.

In New York, Ms. Burton said, full-time chaining or penning of dogs is legal as long as the owner provides their pets with adequate shelter. But, she said, "dogs aren't objects. They need more than food, water and shelter. It's also part of their well-being to have the pack structure."

Dogs Deserve Better's Chain Off protest, held locally at The Mustard Seed on Arsenal Street, is an annual event held throughout the nation. It is scheduled near the Independence Day holiday so the organization can spread the message that even though the people of America are free, their dogs aren't, Ms. Grimes said.

Last year, 108 people chained themselves to doghouses in 36 states and Canada. This year, the Chain Off is occurring from Friday to July 7. The main event venue is in Chicago, where activists spent 24 hours chained over the weekend.

The annual Chain Off began in 2003, when Ms. Grimes spent 33 hours chained to a doghouse.

"It was really amazing. I truly felt like I knew what these dogs feel," said Ms. Grimes. "You try to go somewhere and you get jerked back by your chain."

In addition to the Chain Off, Dogs Deserve Better offers numerous programs and services to help man's best friend. The organization works to educate caretakers, promotes legislation efforts that would ban full-time tethering of dogs and works to rescue dogs and provide them with rehabilitation.

On the other hand, said Todd L. Cummings, Jefferson County supervising dog control officer, keeping dogs chained or penned is necessary in many cases.

"There's pros and cons to that," he said. "Some people think it's cruel to chain up dogs, some people think it's cruel not to."

Some dogs are difficult to keep in houses or take on walks, and letting them loose can be just as dangerous as keeping them chained. Furthermore, some dog owners — more than 100 in Jefferson County, said Mr. Cummings — have court orders not to release their dogs. These dogs have at one point been declared dangerous and, should they be found unsecured, courts can order that they be put down.

For owners with jobs, the only way to ensure that their dog doesn't leave their yard or make a mess of the house is to chain or pen them.

"When duty calls, you have to tie the dog up," he said.

Mr. Cummings, a dog owner himself, suggests that other owners not go overboard in either direction — dogs should neither be tied up their entire lives, nor should they be let loose.

"It all stems down to being a responsible dog owner," he said.

In order to prevent negative effects of chaining on a dog's health, especially during the summer, owners should ensure that their canine friends have enough shelter to provide adequate shade. Keeping the pen or chained area clean also is essential for keeping dogs in optimum health. Most important, dogs need a large supply of clean, fresh water during the warm summer months. Dogs, as much as humans, are susceptible to heat exhaustion, heat stroke and skin cancer.

Photobucket my pictures from the day http://s317.photobucket.com/albums/mm391/Watertown_Chain_Off_2008/

I want to THANK everyone involved, even if you could nott make it. Knowing I had your support made the whole day possible. AND A HUGE THANK YOU TO THE WONDERFUL PEOPLE THAT SHOWED UP AND CHAINED UP WITH US!!!!!! All and all there were 12 of us throughout the day. GREAT JOB EVERYONE! Maybe next year we can double that....? Dont forget about Scott's dogpark too, the council meeting is this monday at 7pm.....

Sincerely,
-Sharah-

Taking a Stand for Dogs -- Woman chains herself to tree to highlight the plight of chained dogs

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Editorial assistant Brenda Duncan interviewed Deedee Dillingham, of Liverpool, an animal advocate and member of Dogs Deserve Better. She participated in the group's annual "Chain Off" event to protest the cruelty of chaining dogs to fixed items for extended periods of time.

Name: Deedee Dillingham

Age: 46

Where do you live? The Hickory Hollow neighborhood in Liverpool, and luckily we do not have any dogs on chains here.

Do you have a family? My mom and dad are in Cortland and my immediate family are me and my two greyhounds, Roman, 10, and Caesar, 13. They are senior retired ex-racing greyhounds.

Occupation: I am a healthcare marketing consultant and editor.

How long have you been an animal advocate? Going on nine years. I first started when I got the greyhounds and I realized what their plight was on the track and how many needed to be adopted afterwards. . . . I just became involved with issues for dogs and any other animals that exist on the planet.

Who sponsored the "Chain Off" event? The group is Dogs Deserve Better and their Web site is www.dogsdeservebetter.com. There is a slew of information on this Web site. It has rescue stories and laws and how people can act if they want to help these dogs.

Why did you decide to chain yourself to a tree? The national "Chain Off" event is in Chicago, and we wanted to create awareness locally about chained dogs to show the compassion we have for them and also the danger chained dogs are to the public.

What kind of a response did you receive? It was terrific. Out of the people we saw during the day from 9:30 to 6, I would say that about 70 percent of the people we saw were very friendly and supportive, about 20 percent were indifferent and probably 10 percent were hecklers. A lot of people came up to us and said that they know of a dog that is chained and they don't have proper food, shelter or water. In New York state, the dog has to have insulated proper shelter. It has to be able to sit up, stand and lie down comfortably. The dog also has to have food and water and vet care if something is wrong with the dog.

We also wanted to let them know that there is a bill right now in New York state that is an anti-tethering law. It would prohibit people to chain or tether their dogs for more than six hours a day. It's very important for public safety because chained dogs are 2.8 times more likely to bite. Typically, the dogs at the end of a chain are not treated right. They have embedded collars, parasites, mange, they get sunburned, they are dehydrated or frozen in the winter. They are the mercy of the people who are doing this to them.

What kinds of positive reactions did you receive? People were going by in their cars yelling "yeah" out the windows and clapping, tooting their horn and giving the thumbs up. Mainly people said things like, "Thanks so much for what you're doing, this is great and it's very important."

Were the hecklers trying to be funny or were they angry? One person said, "Dogs are just animals," but there were only negative comments about three times out of the whole entire day.

How many people chained themselves? When the event started in 2003, it was one woman chaining herself to a doghouse. Last year, it was 108 people in 36 states and Canada. This year, I don't have the numbers yet the goal was 200 people. There were 10 of us at the local event. One guy who showed up said, "I saw a flyer, so I thought I'd come out here and help."

What other kind of animal advocacy work have you done? In my own personal time, I work on abuse cases trying to get people to write in to the prosecuting attorney to ask them to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law. I also do meet-and-greets for the Greyhound Rescues in Upstate New York. I'm involved with probably 50 other organizations. It would take an hour to list them all.

What is the most important thing you want to tell people? Chained dogs live a horrible life of loneliness and boredom. Even if they are friendly, they will likely turn aggressive because of their solitary confinement. So for compassion and increased safety, I will keep fighting to get the dogs off chains and out of pens.

Dogs are highly intelligent and highly social pack animals. They need to be with humans and dogs, so bring them inside the house. We're not talking about letting the dogs roam free, or a short-term tie out or short-term crate training. We're talking about dogs who have a life of solitary confinement and it's not right.

If you'd like to donate via regular USPS mail, send to P.O. Box 23, Tipton, PA 16684

Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit education/legislation/rescue organization. Your donations are tax-deductible according to IRS guidelines.