Guilty by Dog: Off Leash in Bellevue

Bellevue has a secret criminal society and I join it nearly every time I take my pet out for a walk without a leash.

Whenever I go out with him I never know whether some pet-Nazi will approach to reproach and reprimand, reminding me that, by city ordinance, all pets must be leashed, with the exception of city-designated off leash areas.

But as many of the 39 percent of all US households who own at least one dog will agree, persistent tethering of pets compels us to be cruel even as we attempt to love our pets.

It is remarkable and a tribute to dogs that they tolerate leashing and love us back. Perhaps we can learn a lesson or two from our canine companions.

I am not speaking about poop-scooper ordinances. Pet waste can and does transmit disease; an abundance of pets relieving themselves in our public areas is unsightly and worse. I have no argument with that ordinance whatsoever.

But my good-natured, would-never-hurt-a-flea, little dog loves to run, explore, and investigate. (Very much like you and I do, actually.)  The world for him is a never-ending source of fascination and joy; having to haul back on his leash as he strives to live his life is cruel and unusual punishment for both of us.

Well, “What about the off-leash areas?” you might ask. 

In the City of Bellevue there are only two off-leash pet areas; both of them found in . Of the two sanctioned pet areas, one is nearly always a swamp from rain and the other, designed to be a horse corral with somewhat better drainage, is very, very small. Both off leash areas have extremely limited parking options.

There are a few areas known mostly to local pet owners, that tolerate pets off-leash to some degree, so long as they make no disturbance or threat to other citizens. Part of our Bellevue is reputed to be one of them.

But the fact is that, tolerated or not, it is still against city ordinance to let a pet run free- and that makes criminals out of hundreds of pet loving owners each and every day.

So let’s open a new dialog, reexamine the issues and see if we can uncover a golden mean that decriminalizes pet owners while protecting the rights of the rest of us.

It might mean designating, designing, and maintaining more public off leash areas; it might mean banning dogs of a given nature, breed, or size from within our city limits; we might have to require dog licenses that are similar to vehicular licenses, with designated training and behavioral requirements.

I am certain that a society that can design the Internet and iPods and send a man to the moon can find a solution for loving its pets.

We need a public solution that does not criminalize thousands of pet lovers for loving their pets.