As someone who works constantly with dogs, I honestly believe that any law which prevents irresponsible people, from allowing their dogs to roam free in public places, is long overdue.

Not all dogs are friendly, which is why responsible owners keep them on a flexi lead, offering them complete control. When another dog comes bounding over it can and does cause chaos, usually ending in tears.

The best trained dog in the world can be distracted, i.e car backfiring, bitch on heat, etc etc. Dogs can take flight into the path of a car, and cause complete mayhem, which is why I applaud this law.

My German Shepherd was attacked when he was very young, by another GSD which was off lead. As a consequence my dog was extremely fearful towards other dogs, and was only allowed off lead in the countryside.

I have had two dogs attacked whilst in my care. Both were leashed and extremely sensitive dogs, that were attacked by a lose dog. They did not respond to their owners recall, and the psychological damage was worse than the actual injury.

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