Most dogs are loving, intelligent, and loyal. They want nothing more than to be members

“benign neglect” can happen:

around – he was very much a part of the family.

 Slowly, however, things began to change. As Cowboy grew into anadult dog, he started losing his puppy charm. The family startedfeeling that he required too much attention. He had never hadtraining, and the antics that were cute when he was a puppy werenow annoying. He had never been taught the difference betweenappropriate and rough play, so the boys avoided playing with him.His uncontrolled exuberance in the house caused him to breakthings. When he scratched a visiting child, he was exiled to the backyard from that day on. 

The family bought Cowboy a nice doghouse and new, bigger bowls for food and water.The boys were assigned the job of feeding Cowboy and keeping his water bowl filled. Asthe days passed, however, the boys stopped giving Cowboy daily meals. They just filled his big bowl every two days; his water was often dirty and warm.

hugged him and walked him home.

 But then, after a few days, Cowboy escaped again. This time, the family decided that forCowboy’s safety, they should tie him on a chain so that he could not dig out again. Asthe weeks passed, Cowboy waited in vain for the boys to come out and play with him.He started barking, sometimes for hours, trying to relieve his boredom and loneliness.When the boys came out to feed and water him, Cowboy naturally became very excited.He would leap and jump at the end of his chain. The boys didn’t let him off his chain very much, since he was hard to catch when it was time to put the chain back on. 

Unfortunately, this story is true for many dogs. In most communities, there are dogsliving through each day alone in a backyard, some on chains. Now, all people wouldagree that intentional physical abuse of animals is a terrible thing. Yet, the isolation and neglect that Cowboy suffered, however unintentionally, is also a form of abuse.

nature, and that’s too much to ask of a dog.

with him, the dog is unruly and overexcited, so they avoid him even more.

 Chaining a dog as a form of long-term containment is often damaging to his health anddisposition. Out of sheer frustration, many dogs run for hours every day in the circleallowed by the chain. They run through their own waste, and flies are attracted by thesmell and may begin to eat away at the dog’s ear tips until they are raw and sore.If a chained dog is released by his family for exercise, he often will refuse to comewhen called, since he’s so reluctant to be chained up again. The family may see thisas disobedience, so the dog is put back on the chain and is let off less and less. Somechained dogs will begin to exhibit aggression, and some lose the ability to interact with other dogs. 

What happened to Cowboy?

Cowboy was one of the fortunate ones. He came here toBest Friends because his family thought he was too much of a nuisance. At first, he onlywalked and ran in circles – he had been on his chain for almost a year. He loved peoplebut could not focus. He would stop for a toy or treat and then begin to circle again. Asthe months passed, however, his circles became bigger and bigger. Eventually, he wasadopted into a good new home. We have kept in touch with his new family and they say,

“He is the world’s greatest dog!”