Donât pet strangersâ dogs without asking
By Jessica Berget, Opinions Editor
Dogs are wonderful creatures. Theyâre cute, sweet, and loyal which makes them excellent companions. To those who donât own a dog, meeting one on the street can be an exciting and rewarding experience. However, I think more people need to get into the habit of asking owners whether or not they can pet their dog before touching them.
I notice a lot of people gleefully scream and run up to random dogs to pet them, but never say a word to or even make eye contact with the owner. Dogs are cute, yes, but that is no excuse to feel entitled to touch someone elseâs pet without consulting them or even saying hello first. Itâs rude, and Iâm sure you were raised better than to touch things that donât belong to youâespecially other living creatures.
Petting dogs without the ownerâs permission is not a habit that we should be tolerating. You may think Iâm overexaggerating, but there are many valid reasons not to pet strangersâ dogs without asking. For one, they may be anxious or shy and act aggressively in the presence of strangers coming up to them and getting into their personal space. Or perhaps a dogâs owner trained it to be defensive in the presence of strangers. Dogs are protective creatures, so if they feel threatened, they may try to protect themselves and their owners and you could get bitten as a result. If you ask the owner first if petting is okay, they might tell you that their pet is shy or that it doesnât like being petted by strangers and you can avoid potentially being bitten.
Whatâs worse is that if you were to unintentionally spook the dog by petting it and it bites you out of self-defence, it might be considered the dog or the ownerâs fault and they could get in a lot of trouble. According to a 2016 article by animal law lawyer Rebeka Breder, a proposed piece of legislationâBill M212 or the Animal Liability Act (ALA)âwould hold owners and their animals liable for all bites. This act âessentially creates a legal scheme of absolute liability,â she said. So, say you were to pet a strangerâs dog and happened to get bittenâthe owner would automatically be held responsible and the dog might also be dubbed aggressive and even be seized by animal control, all because a stranger approached it and it was acting out its most basic instinct to protect itself and its owner. This bill hasnât been passed into law yet, but its implications are nonetheless worrying for pet owners. Still think petting dogs without asking is okay?
Finally, people shouldnât be petting strangersâ dogs because it sets a bad example of what is okay to other people and especially young kids. Think of what chaos could ensue if a small child saw others petting strangersâ dogs, went to pet a dog without asking, and was bitten.
Unless that dog comes up to you first and the owner gives permission, donât assume itâs all right to pet it. Petting a strangerâs dog without asking could have negative consequences for yourself or the animal, so for everyoneâs safety and peace of mind, just ask before you pet.
