Last month, my sister-in-law and my almost-13-year-old niece, Ava, spent two weeks in France, visiting my sister-in-law’s mother and stepfather, who live in Paris. Ava has been a dog lover since before she could walk, so I gave her an assignment, to take photos of dogs in Paris.
I’ve always been interested in the cultural differences between how dogs are handled and treated in different countries and I discussed this with her a bit; she and her mom stopped at my house on their way to the airport, because I dog-sat their little dog, Alice, while they were gone. But, in truth, I wasn’t actually concerned with the photos that Ava might get for me; I had an ulterior motive. Mostly I was trying to give Ava a photography job that would (I hoped) keep her engaged with the living scenery when traveling, to keep her eyes open. Ava has an artistic eye, and as someone who studied photojournalism, I know that being given an assignment to take pictures can sharpen and focus your awareness on your surroundings.
Ava did take and send me some pictures of dogs and dog owners. We’re going to be looking at them and discussing her trip to France at the end of this week, when our family will get together again to celebrate her 13th birthday. But here’s the funny thing: Ava must have told her grandmother that she was taking photos of dogs for me. This morning I received a photo and email from her grandmother, Olivia.
“I heard you need pictures of dogs in France,” Olivia explained. Well, I guess my covert mission needed to be exposed, and I’ve written back to Olivia to recuse her from the assignment and sharing the actual purpose of my assignment for Ava with her.
But after writing the email, I looked at Olivia’s snapshot again. She had actually captured several very interesting things. The longer I look at this photo, which she captioned as “a dog walker in Paris,” the more I see. Look: What do you see?
Here are the things that are most interesting to me:
Of the seven dogs visible in the photo, only one (possibly two) is leashed. Despite this, they are all just hanging out in a relaxed fashion, waiting for their walker, who appears to be taking a snack break.
The two dogs on the right may or may not be with the walker; they are slightly removed from her, whereas the other dogs are arranged in a circle around her. So those two unleashed dogs may simply be waiting for their owners to come out of the store or restaurant. They are unleashed but perfectly safe and comfortable waiting on the sidewalk.
All but one of the dogs resemble purebreds. The dog on the far right might be, too; I’m not familiar enough with all the bully-type breeds to know what she is or might be.
All seven of the dogs are in good weight and look fit. Even French dogs look more slender than their American counterparts!
The white dog on the right appears to be a French Bulldog – but he or she has much more of a nose than the French Bulldogs you see here. I love that the dog’s face isn’t as smushed in the exaggerated way the dogs here often appear.
How do dogs become so habituated and well-behaved that they can safely be taken out with a dog-walker off leash in the middle of a busy city? Are dogs being lost and hit by cars at a rate we Americans would find unacceptable? I’m fascinated – and I just might have to go to Paris to find out! I’m pretty sure I could stay with Olivia…
I moved to France a year ago from the US and it is shocking how irresponsible French people are with their dogs. Most don’t leash their dogs in public and most of the dogs don’t behave well off the leash. I am a dog owner and my leashed well behaved dog has been attacked multiple times here. This week 2 dogs came to attack my dog and one of them bit my dog in the neck and the other knocked over my stroller which had my 1 month old baby in it. Also, they don’t clean up after their dogs and the cities don’t provide clean up stations.
I am so fed up with it which is why I am online researching French leash laws and came across this post.
I can’t imagine allowing my dog off-leash, crazy pray drive, and she chases anything that moves. That being said, even if I wanted her off-leash I couldn’t every single town around me has leash laws. Dogs must be leashed.
The bark.com had an excellent article a few years back on “Why are European dogs so well behaved”. Unfortunately the link to the article no longer works, but it had something to do with them being raised more like we would raise service dogs.
We’re dual nationals (American/French) and moved back to France from Los Angeles almost 20 years ago. I don’t want to seem like a grump, but I sometimes despair over what we term the “French Disneyland” view of France. I know Americans, Brits and Australians who either move here permanently or who have holiday homes here, and treat our small, rural village as if they are in some kind of fantasy world. We actually DO have laws and rules governing behavior of people and animals alike. Alas, as with everywhere else, sometimes these are not followed. Allowing dogs to roam free inside of a town, village or city is illegal everywhere in France, as it mostly is in every other western country. People may do it, but they are breaking the law. There are plenty of unleashed dogs who attack other dogs and people (I know of several instances). And, let’s not even get stated on those who allow their dogs to poop everywhere without cleaning it up!
Yes, dogs are often allowed in places they are not in the States; many restaurants, hotels, etc., do permit well-behaved dogs. But I can’t tell you how many meals have been ruined in restaurants where someone brings a dog who starts barking madly at another dog who has come in with their owner. I know an American who insists on taking her dog everywhere, it is not trained at all and has peed and pooped in other people’s houses more times than I can count. She allows this dog to roam off-lead in our village, which has a major through road and one day he’s will be run over by a car because she thinks it’s ok to not leash him. He has also attacked other dogs at the local café.
All this to say that while we do love our dogs here, we have just as many badly behaved dogs and owners as any other place. Those dogs in Paris that your niece photographed could be just around the corner from costing their owners a several hundred euro fine for being not under the control of their proprietor!
I should also add that while there are places outside of agglomerations where it IS legal to allow dogs to be off-lead, it is also legal for a farmer to shoot a dog who comes onto their property and harasses their animals. So, many things to consider.
I’ve spent some time in London and most everybody lets their dogs go off leash in the parks. Most do just fine, but of course there are some naughty ones! Like the little terrier at Furnivall Gardens who ended up in the bushes and wouldn’t come out despite its owner calling for it over and over. And the Irish Terrier at Regent’s Park who had some serious zoomies and loved harassing the other dogs. But no one makes a big deal out of it. And yes, dogs are allowed on the Underground, even when it’s packed to the gills. One man had two big pit-looking dogs and somehow made it on without trouble. Impressive. Here in the States there are such ridiculous rules, like on MARTA in Atlanta, your dog has to be in a hard-sided carrier/crate with a lock on it. Seriously.
Very interesting article and something I have wondered about. Please post more information on dogs living in other countries. Maybe we can learn more about their lifestyles and keeping them healthy.
When we travelled to Berlin, Germany, I was fascinated to see dogs in stores and on the U-Bann and S-Bann (subway & surface trains). Most we saw were leashed but all seemed well behaved and very relaxed in the middle of a bustling city. But then we found the entire vibe of the city to be relaxed, even in rush hour. The best experience was a lady with a GSP who went on the escalator with her in a shoe store.
I see a German Wirehaired Pointer in that group. This breed is often mistaken for a mixed breed, and of course it was during its creation in the mid 19th century
I observed a lot of healthy looking and extremely well socialized dogs in Singapore. My husband was there for work and so during the day I traveler around on my own. People usually only have one dog at a time and take them many places. The beautiful botanic garden allowed dogs? I was amazed….. that would never happen in the US. They had fancy poop bag stations and garbage cans everywhere. It was so beautiful and peaceful with people and dogs walking quietly. I cannot figure out how they do it!
Forgot to add….all of the dogs were on leashes…
Have to chuckle….the only two dogs leashed are the Basenji and Shiba Inu. The dog walker is wise!
Thinking about this… It’s possible only the dogs that are calm or socialized are taken out together as a group when it’s busier, hence the opportunity for photo op. As such, maybe we do NOT see the reactive one, at least not at 4 pm tea/human snack time. There is something to be said about routine and acclimation to common areas and familiar individuals that live on the same block.