Barking mad in Mallorca

There is a misconceived belief that dogs, along with cats, donkeys, bulls and most other animals are badly treated throughout Spain and here in Mallorca, yet that is simply not the case. Most Mallorcans absolutely adore their animals, and love their dogs with a passion equal to any dog-lover back in Old Blighty. Not all dogs are left outside throughout the night, or chained on short leashes and left to bark continually in obvious distress.

The majority of Mallorcans treat their dogs with the utmost respect. You see them everywhere, walking their prized pooches with the obligatory plastic bags attached to their leads for the ‘poopies’. However, this hygienic regulation is sometimes sadly ignored by uneducated dog owners, who conveniently turn a blind eye to this public legislation and let their dogs out on their own, to do their ‘business’. Out of sight, out of responsibility! When challenged, these callous dog owners usually reply, “Oh! The dog has escaped.” How convenient for the owner that their clever dog can let itself out of the house on a regular basis at least twice a day!!! Why is there always a precious minority who think they are outside of any law?

Living together harmoniously in a common community should mean that we all respect the perimeters and adhere to the same rules and regulations. (Big opportunity here for all the trolls to comment with their usual negativity).

In our village, we recently had a constantly barking dog that was kept all day in a small, outside enclosure, despite the fact that there was ample land attached to the mother’s property for the large dog to run free. Guess the ‘thirty something’ owner, along with his ‘novia’ didn’t really want to look after the designer dog themselves! The dog wasn’t treated badly, apart from being abandoned during the day, and thankfully they used to bring it in when they returned from work – quite late in the evening as this is Mallorca after all!

The constant barking continued for several months, until finally, the neighbours became seriously fed up with the unacceptable ‘molestia’. Rather than reporting the incident to the police, one neighbour decided to speak politely yet collectively with the dog’s owner, (employing the correct, Mallorcan protocol) yet was told there was no way they could fix the problem and literally told everyone to ‘do one!’ Charming!!! Sometimes, you just can’t win, can you? If the barking dogs don’t drive you mad then the stupidity and insensitivity of their owners invariably will!

Thankfully, yet reluctantly, the dog was eventually taken to their new home which was being reformed, giving the entire village some peace during the day. Then, shortly afterwards, the owners moved away into their new abode and peace reigned for several, idyllic months. Until you stop banging your head against the wall you don’t actually appreciate the calming effect!

Man’s best friend is an entirely sociable animal that craves the attention of its owner and loves company. Thankfully, there are many devoted and responsible dog owners here in Mallorca who wouldn’t dream of abandoning their animals all day, or leaving them outside all night. But sadly there are also a minority who obviously don’t really know why they have a dog in the first place. Perhaps it’s just to annoy the neighbours?

Tragically, for no known reason, the annoying designer dog is back and barking! The owners still live ‘off’ property yet have taken to bringing the dog back each day, including weekends, to bark its silly head off until they return to collect it each evening. And there is nothing, anyone can do about it!
No animal should spend its life chained or alone in isolation. There is no question about that. A dog is for life, not an accessory to pick up and drop whenever it suits. If you can’t look after any animal properly then simply don’t have one. Simples!