As the temperatures get colder & colder, please remember the dogs who are chained outside 24/7. Thank you for continuing to share this petition, and for continuing to speak out against dog chaining, and all animal cruelty. Let's continue to spread the word that: 1. This suffering is taking place 2. Little by little, we can force this to change 3. Never lose faith that your voice counts Many people go about their busy lives without giving this a thought. Others worry that they will be seen as meddlers, nosy busy-bodies, not realizing that criticing those who chain their dogs, is more important than the opinion those who do this, have of them. It is more important to me, to anger someone who chains a dog, than to allow the dog to continue to suffer. If you look the other way, for whatever reason, please remember as you snuggle up in your warm bed, that dogs suffer on chains in the freezing cold while we keep warm, and together we can actually change this. I began to notice a dog on a chain on my way to work. I began to lose sleep night after night, worrying about this dog. I considered stealing him, I considered many options, all of which were a threat to my own personal safety & public record. People will shoot you these days, and if you get arrested for stealing a dog, as noble as that may sound, a criminal does not have quite the credibility speaking out, as a non-criminal. Therefore, I continued to lose more and more sleep. Storms, Ice, Snow, Hail, THUNDER. These events were AGONY for me, and I began to be physically ill thinking of not just this one dog, but how many more? I wrote a song. (Dog On A 10 Foot Chain) I shared the heck out of it on Social Media. I rallied with others in my Community. I got my story on the front page of the paper more than once. When several of us approached the Randolph County Commissioners, (that's where I live) ...we braced ourselves for a fight that could last years. We were already angry before we even approached them. We were ready. Low and behold, they passed it on our first attempt! Then the City of Asheboro then followed suit and made us proud! The Commissioners of Randolph County, and the Asheboro City Council just passed an Ordinance at the drop of a hat, and proved that they care about all living souls, quality of life, and how these suffering animals negatively affect property values as NOBODY wants to live next door to that. A dog on a chain is angry too, and poses a threat to Public Safety. Are your County Commissioners prepared to guarantee that dog will never break a chain and bite you? Are they prepared to take on that liability? A dog escaping a fence is less likely to be pissed off and come after you. The Sheriff is on board, the Animal Control is on board, and has done a miraculous job. Neighboring Davidson County, no such luck. Many of us spoke 4 times, and it fell on deaf ears. One of the Commissioners there chains his own dog, and said there were more important issues such as child abuse and elderly abuse, hoping to make us Animal Advocates seem, like all we care about are animals, not people. News flash! The dogs that languish on chains are suffering abuse we CAN see. Nobody is really stupid enough to abuse a child or an elderly person out in the open, but there are millions of people very stupid enough to let a dog suffer on a chain out in the open - and that's abuse - where we can see it with our own eyes. There isn't a single Animal Advocate that I personally know, that would stand back and watch an elderly person or child be abused. And we won't stand for animal abuse either, so we press on. (Also important to note that those who carelessly & heartlessly toss a poor dog out on a chain are the most likely candidates to abuse people, as they have shown to have little respect for life.) We will continue to pick and badger, nag, and protest, until finally, what the Commissioners in that County are defending, becomes too heavy of a weight on their shoulders to keep defending. If what you are fighting for could result in the suffering of a poor little dog, eventually, this will be far too counterproductive in your life to continue fighting for. I wrote more songs. I created this Petition. A boring, really rambling read for some, but lighting a fire for others. I share, share, share on Social Media, and the trick to making a real impact is: Find all the "Groups" on Facebook that support Animal Issues, and JOIN THEM! Some of those groups have hundreds of thousands of followers. They pay attention. It is extremely powerful. Time consuming but powerful. Once you could smoke cigarettes on an airplane. Now you can't. One day I'll be able to say you can't chain your dog anywhere, just like in my County, Randolph County, NC, a County I am PROUD to live in. The dog I used to cry myself to sleep over is no longer chained. All the dogs that worried me sick on chains, are no longer there-suffering on chains, in Randolph County. This ordinance has changed the way people look at & treat their animals. Nobody wants to be a bad guy...a sociopath....an outcast. That's the point that Davidson County is missing. They are so worried a tethering ordinance cannot be enforced, that they are not even willing to try. Sometimes an ordinance, even one that can't be completely 100% enforced, is just helpful in order to change attitudes. I have seen with my own eyes a complete reversal in the treatment of animals in one County, by the passing of this Ordinance, and at times it takes my breath away and brings me to tears. Happy tears! If you don't have the support of Animal Control, the Sheriff, the Commissioners or anyone where you are, don't give up. Keep sharing and eventually good will prevail over evil. Looking the other way will guarantee no changes will be made. So this Thanksgiving, I want to THANK ***YOU***, for reading my thoughts, sharing this vehement protest of dogs living on chains. We will together badger the hell out of whoever we need to, for these poor dogs who are right now, shivering outside, staring hopefully at a light coming on early in the frosty, cold morning, through a window, where they desperately wonder, "why am I here?" "what did I do wrong, to be punished in this way?" When you consider turning a blind eye, think of that light that the chained dog stares hopefully and longingly at, wishing for love and attention, warmth & comfort. As an outspoken Animal Advocate, I will proudly announce that I've been criticized for not caring about issues like cancer, and childhood hunger. My response is this: I care about all of those things, but a dog on a chain, is an abused dog, and I cannot look away. My own Daddy, my hero, lost a battle with cancer. He had just finished telling all of his retired buddies to watch the CMA Awards, because Alison Krauss & Union Station was singing a song his little girl wrote on there. By the time it came on TV, he had fallen into a coma and never got to see it. (Here she is singing it on Austin City Limits) https://youtu.be/xNngj9VJom8 He died December 11, in 2005, and I haven't put up a Christmas Tree since. It's been too hard. Nobody needs to accuse me of not caring about CANCER. Someone being sick is a sad thing. A dog on a chain is something that ANGERS me. We are most vocal about what ANGERS US. There is nothing to be vocal about regarding a sick person, like the protest that can escalate involving an abused animal. Abuse of all living, breathing souls-yes including animals, is just unacceptable to me. One of the most life-changing experiences I've ever had: I wrote the song Dog On A 10 Foot Chain on one of those many sleepless nights. I was sometime shortly thereafter asked to sing at an Elementary School. I braced myself to bore the children to death with my songs, because they had never heard of me. I sang whatever songs I could sing that I thought might appeal to children, and on a whim I sang the Dog On A 10 Foot Chain song. Fully prepared to finish the song and look up at a bored group of youngsters, I looked up instead, to see a room full of children crying and sobbing loudly. I was shocked, and horrified, yet grateful that a song I composed could bring out the emotions of these kids, who instantly recognized the suffering of dogs on chains. They were forced to consider this abuse from the dog's perspective. Who knows how many of those kids perhaps had a dog on a chain in their own yard at that moment? Who knows if the kids ever gave it a thought prior to hearing my song? Maybe the song and the crash of emotions they felt that day, will stick with them. Prior to that, I was uncertain of whether I should record the song on an upcoming album. I feared that I was juding people openly, and I feared I would receive a lot of hate & criticism in return. After seeing the children cry, I knew that I might could make adults cry too, at the thought of a dog on a chain, and that suddenly became more important to me than losing fans, or getting hate mail. It turned out to be a great decision, because now I have learned to lead many who are shy like I was about speaking out about it, to this cause. Thank you all for your support, for sharing, for caring, and for NOT looking the other way. I am thankful for you. I am thankful for this opportunity to inspire you, and encourage you to make this change where you are. Doggie hugs and kisses XOXOXO Donna P.S. For those imbeciles out there who won't pass legislation because they said people can't afford fences: One emergency vet bill can cost far more than a fence. If someone doesn't have money at their disposal for a vet bill, or a fence to keep a dog comfortable in, they simply don't need a dog, any more than I need to try to keep a whale in my backyard, a giraffe, a Polar Bear, a Seal, or a Walrus, even though I would very much love to have one of each. The surrender of dogs that live on chains will be a one time influx, while the dogs meanwhile that are chained, have no protection from reproducing, as one lady here in NC has taken 3 litters of puppies to the pound from her chained Mama dog. Encourage spaying & neutering just as much!