Setting the record straight A couple of weeks ago, I posted a photo of a dog that hung himself on a lawn mower. I made a mistake when I wrote that he died in Davidson County. The photo was sent to my by a Volunteer that helps dogs in Davidson County. I jumped to conclusions when I made that error, and to the delight of a couple of the Davidson County Commissioners who are now thrilled and elated to tell everyone that the dog died in Randolph County, and that the Tethering Ordinance in Randolph is failing. Yes, they are having a field day with it, even getting into arguments with myself & others on FB. Well, let me set the record straight once and for all. The fact of the matter is, while I did NOT KNOW at the time I posted the photo - the dog did die in Randolph County, NC. It was very near the line. When I called the Randolph County Animal Control, the Chief Officer - Wess Vann, whom I adore for the hard, thankless, heartbreaking work he does and they all do-day in and day out, said that the 1st he heard of the dog was when the News Station contacted him about it, WELL AFTER the story hit the Social Media pages. And AFTER I posted the photo and it went viral. Nobody ever reached out to Animal Control in Randolph about this dog, who apparently was one of 33 other dogs in a terrible and extreme Animal Hoarding situation. They had no knowledge of it whatsoever, and if they did, they would have rushed right over. They don't know, what they don't know. At this point in time, the remaining dogs have been safely ensconced to various rescues & fosters in the area. The lady who owned all the dogs in the hoarding situation, apparently had died, which I also DID NOT KNOW, when I posted the photo. The Volunteer who sent me the picture, does amazing work helping animals, risks her life weekly, knocking on doors of houses where people are known to do drugs, and other crimes. I have nothing but respect for people who risk their lives for our country, or to save animals, or for any reason to make the world a better place. The lady who sent me the photo has NEVER been known to help animals in Randolph County. Why was she there? Apparently the lady who died, lived way back off the road. The Randolph County Tethering Ordinance is relying on neighbors to report the chaining. NO neighbors could see the dogs. The people who finally called for help once the lady passed away, were her family members, who called these Volunteers, unaware of who to call, and unaware that they could call Randolph County Animal Control. THEY DID NOT KNOW they could call Randolph County Animal Control, and if they had, RC AC would have been there immediately. Apparently the lady lived in Randolph but her family, who were faced with the 33 Animals to suddenly find some way to deal with, lived in Davidson. The fact is that ALL the dogs I used to CRY MY EYES OUT over in Randolph, are no longer chained. Every time I call about a new dog I see on a chain, the Randolph AC either knows exactly which dog, has a record of a Warning Citation that was given, OR they go right out immediately to check on the Animal. Their efforts have been nothing less than stellar to enforce the Ordinance, and I am extremely grateful & impressed. So the RANDOLPH ORDINANCE IS NOT, I REPEAT *****NOT***** FAILING. I am not delusional enough to think that the Ordinance will solve all problems for Animals. There will be some people that STILL chain their dogs, that will go undetected, or will simply break the rules & do not give a flying flip. There will be dogs on chains, no doubt, anyway. However, murders still go on every day, and people get away with them. Does that mean we need should just make murder legal? People still deal & do drugs, we can't catch them all, and the problem is actually growing. Should we give up? I also hate the idea of people tossing a dog in a small pen to suffer all alone, which is not a lot better. But a dog in a pen is protected by most predators, and while it isn't much space at all to move around, at least the dog CAN MOVE on it's OWN FREE WILL. A chain simply limits movement for a dog in a frustrating way. The get tangled & choked, the collars become embedded, they can't reach their water, etc. The NBC TODAY show did a story 2 days ago that dogs can learn 605 words. We already use dogs to find bombs, alert of medical conditions, find missing persons, lead the blind, solve crimes and do all sorts of meaningful tasks. A dog on a chain is like a person in isolation. It's maddening. Isolation is only good for criminals being punished, not man's best friend. Bring your dog in the house. You'll have a lot more cleaning to do, but they snore, they can be taught not to pee on stuff, tear up stuff, and they can really bring you a lot of joy if given the chance. You'll never be alone. They never fuss, complain or yell at you. They are very forgiving creatures, and will love you unconditionally. They are a lot better company than most people. You'll never be lonely! If bringing the dog in the house is not for you, why is a one time expense, of a fence, when a vet bill (an unexpected expense on multiple occasions throughout an animal's life) be too much of an expense? When my boyfriend's cat got sick a couple of weeks ago, and we took the cat to the vet, the bill was $500. An unexpected $500 in the twinkle of an eye. If somebody does not have $500 to buy something to keep a pet comfortable in for the rest of it's life, they most certainly they won't have $500 UNEXPECTED cost of a vet bill, spaying or neutering, toys, beds, chews, etc. Having children is costly, but worth the joy of the expense, and the same is true for animals. When you have a child, or a pet, you have no choice then but to do the best you can to provide. One has to sacrifice, and give up things, so those that depend on us for comfort and survival can have what they need. Animals & kids all need things. We work for what we have, and to provide for those we love. If you don't have the money for a pet, OR the time, For Heaven's sake get a stuffed animal. I never understood why the law requires fencing to be around a pool for liability purposes, but the odds of someone getting torn up by a dog who BREAKS LOOSE from his chain, are far greater than the odds of someone falling over into someone's pool. A very important fact is that regardless of where the poor dog died a terrible death by chain, in the hot sun.....regardless of WHERE, Hawaii, California, Australia, regardless.......it goes back to THIS. The Davidson County Commissioners do not feel that chaining dogs is wrong. They continue to say that Animal Abuse/Neglect is the problem, not the chaining. They continue to claim that not all Animals on chains are abused/neglected. The PROBLEM is that, in order to stop the ones who ARE abused and neglected, you have to stop it all! Pretty simple stuff. If you want to convict a murderer, you have to 1st make sure it's illegal, so they can be convicted of a crime. If it is not a crime, it cannot be punished. It's really hard to decipher between the dogs that are neglected and the ones that are not, if you don't have rules about it at all. Animal Control makes 20 pointless trips checking on the same sad dog with no outcome, if there is no tethering ordinance. Talk bout wasted resources! Slap a warning ticket on them, or a fine, and the dogs start coming off the chains. And this is already happening in Randolph County! The fines can be useful! People carrying dozens of litters of puppies to the shelter, because Mama dog was unprotected on a chain, again-wasted resources, wasted lives. The fact is that, no matter where the dog died on the chain on the lawnmower......the RANDOLPH COUNTY Commissioners LISTENED, they CARE, & they face haters on a big scale to STAND UP and do what is RIGHT for the creatures & citizens of that County. They heard the Citizens, and they made a difficult change. Davidson County does NOT have the Animals or the Peoples' best interest at heart, but their own Agendas, as I am to understand by many angry citizens that have told me....ONE of the Commissioners, and I admit, I do not know which one, CHAINS his own dogs. If you're a smoker, you probably didn't want to be told you couldn't smoke on an airplane or in a restaurant anymore. I'm not criticizing smokers, but it was a hard change to make I'm sure. High Point City touches 4 Counties, and passed a Tethering Ordinance last summer. Davidson County is the only one out of 4 Counties that has no ordinance in place for tethering. Some of the Commissioners continue to tell people there are far worse problems in Davidson County, NC, such as elderly abuse & child abuse. Here is my response to that: If someone hits a kid out in Public, and I see it, I won't stand for it either. I would call the police right away. If someone abused an elderly person, OUT IN THE OPEN, where I COULD SEE IT, I would do something! The fact that they are trying to act like dogs suffering OUT IN THE OPEN where I can see it, on chains, suffering night & day in heat, rain, lightning, snow, ice, is not a concern, or a concern that should be given as much or any consideration because there are other issues, is absurd! How about if we don't allow abuse of CHILDREN, ELDERLY OR DOGS? How about if we ban/block/make illegal/take a stand against/prevent ALL ABUSE of ALL KINDS??? Would that be difficult to hope for? Am I wrong that I don't want any living thing/creature/human/person abused? Nobody is stupid enough to abuse elderly people in the open. Nobody is stupid enough to abuse a child where anybody can know about it. WHY? Because they KNOW they will go to jail. Can't I be allowed to hope that someone could get a simple TICKET, or FINE? For abusing & neglecting a poor voiceless, innocent dog? I am sorry, but a dog who lives 24/7 his entire life on a chain is ABUSED. Just because I care about dogs doesn't mean I don't care about anything else. My Daddy, my hero, died of cancer. I always help cancer causes when I can. I will raise money for somebody's cancer in a heartbeat. I've never told anyone no that asks for my help. The REASON I am criticized for helping dogs, is because the plea for a Tethering Ordinance in Davidson County, NC has fallen on DEAF EARS. There may be at least one Commissioner that feels dogs should not be chained 24/7. Thank Heavens there is at least one. Davidson County needs more Animal Control Officers/I don't think anyone would argue with that. Their job is thankless, tireless, dangerous, and to say “difficult” would be the understatement of the century. If there were more of them, it would be much easier to help change what is truly an out of control and bad situation in Davidson County, NC. In regards to me posting the photo with all the facts WRONG, which I totally admit that I did: I am NOT a press/media/journalist. I do not claim to be, nor do I aspire to be. I simply have a lot of people that believe in what I am doing, support my vision of helping dogs, and people who enjoy reading my thoughts of hope for change on this issue. I have never written for a newspaper, or done reporting for a TV Station. I will try to get more facts before posting pictures, and fussing at people through my postings. But regardless of what I screw up in my information, the fact remains that dogs live on chains in Davidson County, and the people who have the power, do not have the courage, inclination or concern to change it. Much love & doggy kisses, XOXO Donna Hughes