Germany is about to enact a law that will make it compulsory to walk dogs twice a day for a total of at least one hour, at least. “Dogs are not stuffed animals and they have their own needs and requirements,” said Julia Klöckner, the Teutonic Minister of Agriculture. The draft of this new regulation, which will soon be presented to the federal parliament, also includes other rules, including the absolute prohibition of tying dogs by chains or leashes for long periods and the prohibition of leaving a dog alone in the house all the time. day. It will be necessary to have a person present to take care of it. According to Minister Klöckner, the law becomes necessary following the new ethological discoveries, according to which dogs need physical activity and to be in contact with nature every day. That there are many dogs sacrificed to osteoarthritis and obesity due to the couch potato habits of owners who spend their free time on a sofa eating popcorn and watching football games and soap operas is a fact. And if these dogs belong to certain breeds (I am thinking of the poor Beagles) that need to run for miles every day and turn off their inexhaustible vitality, one would think that the minister’s reflections are more than appropriate.
But there is also the downside, which has caused quite a few stomach ache in the political wing of Klöckner. Going out for an hour or two a day for a walk when the day is hot and the humidity blocks their breath is extremely dangerous for brachycephalic dogs (the “buffered” ones like Bulldogs and Pugs) and can be painful for older ones with arthrosis. Christian Democratic Union MP Saskia Ludwig tweeted: “I will not take my Rhodesian Ridgeback for two laps of 32-degree walks, rather we will jump into the river to cool off.” If I then think of our country made up of ancient houses without a lift and with stone stairs and the elderly on the second floor who enjoy their little affection accustomed to making it in the litter box, like cats, with all respect for ethologists, I am sure that neither the dogs nor their beloved “mothers” are ill. Even in the lockdown of the house, cool and in the shade.
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