This week, German Minister of Food and Agriculture
Julia Klöckner proposed an animal welfare ordinance that has some pet owners
barking mad: a mandate to exercise one's dog twice a day for a total of at
least one hour.
"Pets are not toys — their needs must be taken
into account," Klöckner said. The ministry suggested the exercise might
take the form of a walk, or letting the dog run around outside.
The ordinance has stirred much discussion in the German press. "Two hours of walking will soon be mandatory?". "Is the paternalism going too far?"
"I don't believe in regulation!" golden retriever owner Helge Melzer told the tabloid Bild. "Every dog is different, has a different age, different diseases. The owner should decide."
Bärbel Kleid owns a Yorkshire terrier in Berlin. "I find it patronizing to be told how long I should take my dog out for. And who is going to check up on me? Will the neighbor call the police if they suspect me of not taking Sam for long enough walks?"
But Julia Duden, who owns a 6-year-old Labrador, supported the law. "Going for a walk should definitely be a must! It is absolutely correct and important that you go out with your dog for at least an hour every day."
There's one question on everyone's mind, in a nation
with 9 million dogs: How will such a rule be enforced? Germany's states will
have to figure that out.
It's not clear whether the proposed rules are aimed at
pushing ordinary dog owners to give their pets more exercise, or if the
measures are really aimed at commercial dog breeders.
Udo Kopernik, spokesman for VDH the German dog breeders' association, said that a rule requiring specific amounts of time for dog walking doesn't hit the mark.
"A rule for all dogs is probably well meant, but unrealistic. Just like us humans, dogs are very different. There are dogs that need a lot more and some dogs that even get by with less," Kopernik said in an interview with Bild. "With very old dogs, it is enough to just lead them around the block twice a day."
The German animal welfare association called the proposed regulations a step in the right direction — but said the new rule doesn't go far enough. The group's president, Thomas Schröder, said prospective dog owners should be required to prove expertise on dog care and training before purchase.
"A dog needs daily exercise in the open air and social contacts according to its needs. We welcome the fact that there are now more specific requirements," Schröder said.
And he had a suggestion to aid enforcement of any dog
exercise laws: "If you want to protect dogs, you should also require
owners to identify and register their four-legged friends."
From NPR (edited)
