Prospect Park Vigilante Wages Canine Campaign
Off-leash dogs have driven one frequenter of Prospect Park cuckoo. According to a NY Post story yesterday, Orrin Tilevitz, merchant banker and ardent birder, has been waging a war against dog owners who let their dogs run free, blowing the whistle on them to the cops and posting videos of their off-leash carousing on his…
Off-leash dogs have driven one frequenter of Prospect Park cuckoo. According to a NY Post story yesterday, Orrin Tilevitz, merchant banker and ardent birder, has been waging a war against dog owners who let their dogs run free, blowing the whistle on them to the cops and posting videos of their off-leash carousing on his anti-dog blog. While plenty of people wish dog owners would keep better control of their dogs, a traumatic attack seems to have turned Tilevitz into something of an anti-dog zealot. According to one source in The Post story, Tilevitz routinely carries pepper spray around with him and recently used in on two dogs. The major problem seems to be, according to a blog post by Tilevitz on Committee for Responsible Dog Ownership, “The presence of unleashed dogs interferes with–prevents–our ability–and right–to watch birds.” One of Tilevitz’s trademark “gotcha” videos in embedded in the post.
Vigilante Unleashes Dogs of War [NY Post]
Photo by rlj
Letting your dog off the leash before 9 a.m. is permitted only in certain parts of the park – the Long Meadow, the Peninsula, and maybe one other. It’s definitely not allowed on the trails through the woods in the middle of the park, which sounds like where these encounters took place.
Some people can control their dogs with voice commands only, and in those cases I don’t mind them not using a leash. But when some dog comes charging at me while I jog past, I don’t appreciate it. When that happens, I turn around and charge right at the dog, which turns tail and runs. Then I chew out the owner for not controlling his/her animal.
i don’t usually agree with rob.
but this time i do.
you are being a self-important ass if your dog is off leash.
no ifs, ands or buts.
your dog is a dog. it is not a special dog. it is not a person. it chases things. sometimes kids. sometimes people. sometimes its own tail. dont pretend that your dog is unique in that it is always well behaved. you have just tolerated your own dog’s version of social behavior into your lives.
leash it.
p.s. i have had dogs and i love dogs. they should be leashed in an urban environment.
The only time it would even remotely be acceptable to pepper spray a dog would be if it was attacking you, or a child or frail person. Otherwise, this guy is a dangerous crank.
I am not a dog owner, and do get unnerved by off leash dogs from time to time. Knowing that, I would just avoid the park at off-leash time.
im not a dog “owner”. people dont “own” animals. i live with a dog. we are friends, roommates, he just doesnt pay bills. he’s a freeloading mooch. that’s how i look at it. people who “own” pets are F’ed in the head. who’s to say my dog can’t say he “owns” me?
*rob*
Rob:
Many find your childish curiosity and naivete amusing, but there are times when I wonder if in fact you are just insane. At best this means you are destined to be one of the lost souls of New York, trapped in barely affordable accomodations and making do on low income jobs while mumbling to yourself on subways. At worst I worry for the safety of those around you… Or perhaps your therapist has urged you to work out yoru aggressions and illnesses through internet posting?
Hmm, now what is my excuse…
Maybe you shouldn’t be a dog owner, Rob.
If some dude ever decides to video tape me walking a dog, you bet your mutt hating ass he’ll get HIS ass kicked by the bf. AND I’ll call the cops on him for invasion of privacy. Screw this gotcha video bs.
The guy IS right, I suppose, but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t also a crank, at best, or a nut, at worst.
BTW, I’m not a dog owner and have no ax to grind here (or, to use a more appropriate cliche, I have no dog in this fight).
and squashing a cockroach is abuse too to some people. an annoying dog and an annoying owner are just that. annoying. good for him! pepper spray the crotchfruits too.
*rob*