 "Photo: Paul Chouy")
Timothy Verret sat with a chained collar around his neck in front of the Capitol this weekend, accompanied by his three-legged dog.
Verret, the co-founder of Chain Free Austin, a group that lobbied for a city ordinance to ban the chaining of dogs in Austin, joined about a dozen other demonstrators for a nationwide 24-hour protest against animal cruelty associated with the practice of chaining.
The demonstration, which lasted from 10 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday, also supported legislation barring the practice. Chaining unattended dogs has been illegal in Austin since October, but there are several cities that still allow the practice, said Cheryl Kaminski, a local organizer for Dogs Deserve Better, the national group that organized the demonstration. Kaminski was the only demonstrator who sat for 24 hours. A dozen other demonstrators took four-hour shifts. Verrett said he rescued his dog after it was chained in a yard with a broken leg, which was later amputated.
Verret, who sat for four hours, said that as people passed the spectacle he wanted them to think about is what life is like for a chained dog.
The Saturday morning demonstration was a part of a 24-hour marathon of individuals aroundthe country speaking out against chaining dogs and supporting legislation barring the practice.
"You have to put yourself in their paws," Kaminski said. "We can be their voice."
Austin's chain-free ordinance passed unanimously last July when it was proposed to city council. The group also raises money to build fences for low-income families who might otherwise be forced to chain their dogs.
Other cities in Texas have passed chain-free ordinances, including Dallas, Georgetown and Fort Worth, Verret said.
"Literally, it's creating a chain effect," he said.
The demonstrations are held throughout the country around Independence Day, sometimes drawing dozens of people in each city. Last year more than 100 people throughout the country participated in demonstrations that took place in 36 states, according to the Dogs Deserve Better Web site.
"I would like that those chain-free laws are passed throughout Texas and the country," Kaminski said. "If you don't want a dog as part of your family, you shouldn't have one."
Passerby Holly Moore, who is a resident of Irving, a city just west of Dallas, said the demonstration helped her understand how a chain-free ordinance can be constructed and passed in a city council.
"Obviously we want to do things to keep our pets safe," Moore said. "Who wouldn't want to participate in that if they knew it was good for their dog?"
Austin residents can report unattended chained dogs by calling 311.
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