All good owners should walk their dogs twice a day. Sadly, some people neglect their pets. In Germany, this neglect will soon be officially illegal.

Dogs love being outdoors. It’s in their DNA. But some owners don’t give their dogs enough outdoor time. Well, Germany has said to these owners that enough is enough.

In 2020, the country’s government saw evidence that a large proportion of its domestic dogs were not being walked nearly enough.

In response to this, Germany’s lawmakers are currently creating the Hundeverordnung, which translates into the Dogs Act.

It states that dog owners must do more than just take their dog outside for a few minutes every day. Instead, dogs will need to be outdoors for an hour a day.

The law will also implement a few other things that will help dogs all over Germany. For instance, no owner will be able to tether a dog to a chain in their yard for a long period of time.

These laws were introduced to Germany’s government by Julia Klockner, who is the nation’s minister of agriculture. She has said that these new rules are designed to reflect scientific findings that prove that dogs must have a, “sufficient measure of activity and contact with environmental stimuli.”

The agriculture minister also stated something that every dog lover should agree with: “Dogs are not cuddly toys. They also have their own needs, which need to be taken into account.”

Of course, implementing this law may be tricky. Almost one-fifth of Germany’s households own dogs. And Germany is a relatively big country. Right now, the law is being constructed, so enforcement will be worked out in the following months. However, lawmakers have said that the 16 different states of Germany will each be responsible for their own enforcement of the law.

Naturally, some have opposed these new measures. For instance, one dog owner has highlighted the fact that his pet has cancer and is only able to take short walks. Hopefully, issues like this will be worked out by the time that the law is introduced.

Obviously, in a perfect world, every owner would make sure that their dogs get enough walking and outdoor time. Sadly, we don’t live in a perfect world, meaning that laws like this need to be in place.

The USA, like Germany, is becoming more forceful when it comes to dog and animal legislation. For instance, in late 2019, the US Senate unanimously passed a bill that made animal cruelty a felony, which was later signed into law by the president.

Laws like these are good news, both for humans and animals in the US and in Germany. Yes, the citizens of both countries are now more polarized than they have been in many years. But most people are united when it comes to dog welfare.

Yes, some people, like the owner of the dog with cancer, are voicing criticism of the laws. But those complaints come from a concern for sick dogs, which is understandable. Surely, Germany will work out a law that benefits dogs without punishing the owners of dogs with medical conditions.

At the end of the day, if Germany’s new law will make dogs healthier and happier without punishing the owners of special needs dogs, then that’s a great thing.

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Source: Ceasar’s Way, The Guardian, ABC News, ABC News