I always see comments like these online, but they seem kind of absurd to me, coming from a country where it's not only totally common to walk dogs off-leash, but completely legal. There's really very few incidents of dogs darting into the streets here, and actually half the ones I've ever seen have been dogs on a lead anyway. A well trained dog doesn't do that.
I'm guessing you are from a country that requires a license or something to own a dog or, at minimum, treats pet ownership more seriously than the US does. Just last week I have seen 3 dead dogs on the road and maybe 2 cats.
You should never trust an animal's training to stick 100% of the time. I wouldn't trust a wolf raised by humans since it was a pup, nor would I trust a bobcat raised and trained by people.
Have you ever lived in or around a major city? I'm very near a major city in the Midwest and have a lot of trashy neighbos and neighborhoods.
Fuck about a year ago or so I was driving home from work at 5am and there was a loose dog in the street. I pulled over, popped my door open, and it hopped inside and rolled over for belly rubs. Sweetest little thing ever, and if I had not been paying attention, it would have been a pancake.
I've lived in and around major cities, but never in the Midwest.
Fuck about a year ago or so I was driving home from work at 5am and there was a loose dog in the street. I pulled over, popped my door open, and it hopped inside and rolled over for belly rubs. Sweetest little thing ever, and if I had not been paying attention, it would have been a pancake.
Maybe I've always lived in places with good animal control. I couldn't imagine stray dogs being let roam around in any of the places I've spent significant parts of my life. I once lived in a place that was regularly broken into, but God forbid there be a dog roaming around unattended.
chicago area here. Have seen dead dogs and cats in roads only a few times in like five decades but granted that is usually pretty close to them getting struck. Pet carcasses tend not to just lay in the road the way like a squirel one might.
I've seen a dead dog once here in NJ. I've seen more cats and deer though. Usually animals get cleaned up very quickly though. It's not that the roads aren't killing them, cleanup crews are very quick.
Sometimes, sometimes it's just not paying attention.
I live in an area where people just let their dogs and cats roam(people just don't really care, "oh, it's a small Southern town, it's just how we are!"), and they're absolutely awful for running out at the last second. Even with me slowing to a crawl, I've almost had incidents where one decided last minute to turn direction into the road, and had to slam myself to a stop so I didn't catch a tail/paw.
There's a terrifying amount who either don't slow, or somehow don't notice the 3 bright white Great Pyrenees running full bore down the hill.
I live in the midwest and have seen plenty over the years to not trust my dogs training 100%. There was a dead cat a mile up the road from my house yesterday that got hit by a car.
Every once in awhile an owner decides to walk their dog from the dogpark entrance to their car without a leash and it runs off and gets hit. It's not the dogs fault the owner is a dumbass