By law, all dogs must be kept on a leash whenever they are on any property other than their owners unless they are in designated dogs off-leash areas. However, I have seen many dogs off-leash in normal parks where there are at least 10 signs that you should keep your dog leashed. While there is a lot of monitoring for other rules and bylaws in the city like driving laws (if you park in a wrong spot, you would immediately get a parking ticket), I haven't seen a single police officer monitoring this throughout my entire life in Canada and the City doesn't seem to be serious about this at all! Breaking the law is breaking the law and I don't think there should be an exception! 

When I was 7, I was attacked by a dog and since then I get a panic attack when a dog comes close to me. I really love animals in general and dogs, but since then when a dog comes close to me, my heart rate goes so high as if I'm dying, I start sweating, and you can see my face turning white. This is completely physical and out of my control! So I ONLY go to parks and areas that dogs are supposed to be leashed. 

Just last month, I had 3 horrifying accidents in nearby parks and the story of all of them is as follows. I see a huge off-leash dog coming toward me from distance. I yell "I'm scared of dogs, can you please stop your dog?!!!". The dog owners either respond and say "Oh, he's so friendly, don't be afraid!!!" or they just don't respond at all and just watch their dogs getting close to me and finally in my legs. Next moment, I'm panicked and my body is shaking and they finally see the urge to come and get their dogs.

Every time an accident like this happens it destroys my whole day, it takes me a few hours to cope with the extreme anxiety that it brings for me and makes my fear of dogs even worse. There are many people just like me suffering from similar accidents each and every day in Ontario just because some dog owners are not considerate and break the laws! 

Dog owners that do not follow this rule, not only break a rule but also bring severe anxiety and tension for people like me. If this is really a law, there should be more monitoring to enforce it and maybe even an increase in fines. It is estimated that more than 5,000 dog bites are reported each year in Ontario and that in Canada, 42 dog bites occur every hour. These rates can drop significantly by ensuring proper monitoring and increasing the fines. 

If you have also suffered from similar accidents, please join me, and let's unite our voice and convey our message to the community and the City. Dog owners that are not considerate and violate this rule, violate the right of many people like me! Walking in a park and having a peace of mine is a basic right that we all need to have!