Area Soldier Killed In Fort Hood Rampage
Stroger Makes Hollywood Play
Put Down Your Nanowrimo And Leave The House
Sox Shuffle Continues
And we don't mean the kind with the tomatoes and the onions and the mustard. The drooling, lick your face, Sammy kind of dog is what we're talking.
DogFriendly.com, a site for people who travel with their dogs, has ranked Chicago #1 most dog friendly major city in the US & Canada. We'd assume #1 in North America, but who knows if there's some super dog-friendly cities in Mexico - they weren't included in the survey.
Last year Chicago was in 3rd, this year Vancouver ranked #2 and Boston ranked 3rd. Chicago earned this honor for having so many things to do for visitors who bring their dogs here. You know, sightseeing, tours, boat and horse and carriage rides. We've got hotels, outdoor cafes and even bars that welcome dogs. Also it helped that the White Sox have an annual Dog Day baseball game and that Navy Pier welcomes leashed dogs. In addition, Grant Park and the 18-mile Lakefront Trail provide great outdoor areas to bring your leashed dogs. Not mentioned - all the dog runs we have in our parks.
The site says that the only drawback to Chicago is that the city doesn't permit dogs on leashes to be brought on the CTA or MTA.. but for that we are thankful. Can you imagine? The el already reeks of piss and shit.. and that's just from us people!
The cute doggy featured in this post is Sammy, who is somehow Chicagoist's official pooch even though he didn't appreciate our drunk, slobbery kisses the last time we saw him!
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
As someone who doesn't own a car and is considering getting a dog, I would really like to see dogs allowed on the CTA. Obviously, there would need to be some regulations in place, such as no dogs on the CTA during rush hour, and no more than two dogs to a car, or even better, make one train car dedicated to people with dogs. I'll bet the majority of these dogs would be more house-broken than many of the bums and weekend drunks that currently ride the CTA...
When I see no more dog shit left on sidewalks and lawns by lazy owners then I'll get onboard with dogs on the CTA.
Actually, no. I won't. I love dogs but there are already enough irritations in my daily commute that I don't need barking dogs added to it.
Now if we could just get that ranking up to a higher level of PEOPLE friendly, that'd be something.
Does that dog always look like it's going to cry?
he has social anxiety, leave him alone!
he does, sam... ever since that time you came over...
The city may love dogs but the county sure doesn't. The Cook County Park District is changing the rules on dog parks located in Cook County. Soon, you will have to get a special permit to access any of the dog parks. That includes the Montrose Beach Dog Beach and many other areas in the city of Chicago. If you're caught without your permit you face a hefty fine.
Thank god we've got John Stroger watching out for us huh.
For more info see Mondog.com
So now you might have to pay($35) to the city to be able to let your dog play outside w/o a leash? That's insanity. Let's make more laws & give the gov't more control over our lives so we don't have to think about it.
I think we should start charging parents to let their kids play in the parks or to go to park district swimming pool if that's the case. Maybe even a law to have kids on a leash so they don't get hurt or hurt anyone else. Or maybe we should require a permit for anything where someone MIGHT get hurt.*sarcasm intended*
I'm sure this has something to do with the backlash from dog leash fiasco in Washington Park. It's a good way to keep tabs on you. All your info ona nice permit...for your safety. Gimme a break.
Oh & mondog.com is in support of this law...except when it comes to montrose beach. There it's a different story...
I realize you guys like to use slippery slopes and hasty generalizations as a basis for argument, so to get to through to those I wish to address - those who can argue intelligently I will use a red herring. Hey, look at the pretty red herring! Now then, Dogs on the CTA wouldn't be a bad idea. Regulations such as a crating or muzzling the animal and having clean up stations in certain dog-friendly cars. Dogs that are muzzled or caged cannot bite anyone, and for as many of the idiots that don't pick up after their dogs there are those of us who pick up after ourselves and others dogs, so we and others don't have to step in dog shit.
Also, I ride the CTA frequently and the only time I smell piss, I've yet to smell shit, is when the piss smell is emanating from a bum.
As far as paying to have your dog off-leash, I'm sort of for it. As long as the payment is for some type of certification that your dog is under your control and will not go off and bite someone if it happens to have too much energy or is feeling anxious that day. I happen to own an Akita, great dog, very people friendly, but if some unsuspecting kid backed him to a wall and grabbed his ears, who knows. They're all dogs, they have teeth, and just as you might hit someone, they might bight someone. The difference is 90% of the time your noodle arm won't draw blood, and most of the time their bite will. Then people want the dog dead because we're all stupid assholes who can only form rudimentary thought, like all people suck or all dogs will shit on the el. =) Like what I did there? Never mind . . .