Dog neglect?

[InjaTheGolden]

I find it especially sad that people are able to buy dogs as easily as you can buy furniture. It's sad that so many people get a dog with no goals (I want a dog to train/to do fun things with/to be my companion/to teach fun tricks to/...) and instead get a dog just "to have a dog", then don't even do anything with the dog. Both Kalou and Clem play no role in their owner's lives, it's like they barely exist for them.

I've attached a picture I took last time I dog-sat her of Kalou tied to the tree near her kennel. You can't see that she's tied up, but she's tied to a thin blue plastic cord that's slung around the foot of the tree. I've been doing a lot of research regarding the laws of animal welfare here in Belgium and I found that these people aren't even respecting the law.

These are the various rules they're not following.

1. It is illegal to chain a dog that has not reached full adulthood: Kalou has been chained since she was six months-old

2. The kennel must be properly insulated and must be provided with a warm bed during winter: This picture was taken during winter, no bed or insulation whatsoever. I suppose they always could justify this by saying she sleeps in the house, but even there it's not much better. She sleeps in an empty crate and the plastic at the bottom of the crate is broken, and she has no bedding, AND is locked away in the garage.

3. In front of the kennel, there must be a concreted or tiled surface of at least 4 m squared to insure that when it rains, the animal is not standing in mud.: Umm no.

4. This surface must be sufficiently sloped to allow the evacuation of urine and excrements. Kalou is actually in a dip, so no evacuation whatsoever. You can smell her kennel area from the other end of the garden and she's constantly walking around in her own dirt, it's even caked in her paws so when she jumps up at you she leaves smears on your clothes.

I really shouldn't hate these people but I do hate the way they're treating their dog. And they still tell me that she's lovely, if "a little feisty" and they do love having her. -_-

[Karen]

Maybe you can talk to animal welfare people so at least they can assure she has a proper kennel to stay warm when she is outside - this is Belgium, not Bermuda! And tell them the other things you have discovered, as well.