Homeless people and their "pets"

Today I saw a homeless man on the side of a busy street lose hold of the long rope attached to his puppy. It bolted into the busy intersection and he ran after it. Cars had to screech to a halt to avoid hitting both of them. When he finally caught it in the median, he got very angry, yanked the leash and swung the puppy around in the air. On a similar note, there was a story in the paper about a local man who confiscated a homeless man's dog because he had watched for over a week and saw that it was starving and never had any water to drink on the hot street corner. The homeless man said he would sell it to him for a hundred dollars or a pound of marijuana and that he didn't have to feed or water the dog because he was punishing it for bad behavior. It makes me beyond mad to see helpless animals being treated this way by their humans so I guess this is just a vent.

Well, it isnt The Homeless just.

In the theoretical it could be a pretty sweet deal for dogs of size to go trekking with their human, beng out and about in daily adventures, not stuck inside a McMansion 12 hours a day while the people of the house work ungodly hours to pay for GoldenDoodle Dog and their BMWs and etc.

I mean, theoretically.

In real life I expect that being a street dog belonging to a street person is pretty harrowing.

A lot of the homeless are mentally ill. That and not their lack of dwelling is what I suspect is the root cause of the animal abuse.

I will say that a fair number of homed people I encounter don't exactly treat their pets with loving kindness...

Yeah I realize what goes on behind closed doors we'll never know. It's upsetting to see it on the streets though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by iris lily

Well, it isnt The Homeless just.

In the theoretical it could be a pretty sweet deal for dogs of size to go trekking with their human, beng out and about in daily adventures, not stuck inside a McMansion 12 hours a day while the people of the house work ungodly hours to pay for GoldenDoodle Dog and their BMWs and etc.

I mean, theoretically.

In real life I expect that being a street dog belonging to a street person is pretty harrowing.

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I agree with you on the quality of dog life issue--on the street vs stuck in a house. As you said, though, theoretical. My BIL got his dog through me, through my son, through my son's friend who lived in a nearby city, who saw a min pin being chased by someone who didn't look exactly normal. So the friend rescued it, gave it to my son, who gave it to us, who gave it to my BIL for Christmas. BIL was the world's best pet owner. If I were a dog, I want my BIL to own me. The dog died last year, and had a better, more expensive funeral than my mother.

Any abuse is sad. I will day mine would rather be on the couch or bed then trekking the street however. Knowing that feeding time is an exact time each day as are the treats.

I don't see this as a homeless issue at all. We have a lot of street people in my town and many of them have dogs. Those people live with their dogs 24/7, and I have seen them training their young dogs. The last thing a street person needs is more trouble, and their dogs have some of the best manners I've seen (among dogs.)

I have worked as a social worker for 30 years, and it's been my experience that homeless folks tend to treat their dogs well. The folks I worked with made sacrifices for their animals, and any neglect was usually due to financial issues. Animals provide a level of companionship, comfort, and protection that is necessary to survive on the streets.

Yes Grendel I was a SW at one point and will agree with you. WE also have a group here that is specifically to help homeless people pay for vet care for their pets. My experience has been that they will feed their pets before themselves.