Dogs – Own Your Ownership

Welcome to The Other End of the Lead – the canine welfare website run by celebrity lawyer Nick Freeman, aka, Mr Loophole. When incidents happen that involve dogs, blame is often squarely placed on the animal itself. When invariably the real issue lies with the person at the other end of the lead. Of course many people do take the responsibility of having a pet very seriously. But the aim of this website is to show owners how to “own it” when their dog does misbehaves or goes on the attack. Not by deflecting blame onto the animal itself or onto the target of its misbehaviour. But rather by acknowledging their own role in the dog’s development. A situation which can only make the world a safer, happier place for pets, their owners – as well as the people and wildlife with whom they come into contact.

Nick Freeman is the country’s leading road traffic and criminal defence lawyer, badged Mr Loophole by the media for his ability to secure acquittals for celebrity clients based on legal technicalities.

But alongside his legal work, Nick is an avid dog lover and has been since his boyhood in the 1950’s. And just as his professional life is devoted to the pursuit of justice, so Nick feels passionately about redressing the injustice of dogs getting the rap when their so-called bad behaviour is down to poor training or the lack of responsibility and experience of their owners.

This website isn’t about finger pointing – but rather a clarion call to those with dogs to take ownership of their end of the lead. Be it from knowing which dog to own, when their pet should be restricted or free to roam. To how to deal with unexpected situations. In other words to take responsibility as a dog owner.

The website is here to promote awareness, provide education and help about all aspects of dog welfare.

Nick & George At Crufts

We are also campaigning for the Government to amend the Dangerous Dogs Act and concentrate more on behaviour of all owners rather than being breed-specific. There is also an urgent need to introduce a licensing scheme.

Says Nick : “I’ve lost count of the number of aggressive and angry dogs I`ve met over the years. And it’s a situation which has worsened in recent times. But what doesn’t help is the default position of owners whose inability to control a dog is covered by a litany of lame excuses when a pet misbehaves (classics include; “he has never done this before”, “I don’t know what got into him”, “my dog is really friendly”, “you spooked him”) That’s why I’m hoping to shift the culture and help make dog ownership a better and more responsible experience. When you choose your dog, you should have an idea of what your expectations are in terms of training your pet.

On one trip to France we went for a pizza in the small square of a provincial town. I was with my beautiful Staffy, George – sadly, no longer with us – and my friend was with his great Dane. I said we should get the dogs to sit down by our feet. My pet did. But my pal’s dog, wouldn’t and instead took the pizza from the next table! Why? Because he had been overindulged and hadn`t been trained. Tough love doesn’t mean you don’t love. So having an untrained dog is like having an untrained child. You have to have basic commands otherwise it just won’t work. Every dog needs to know it is not the leader of the pack and who is the leader. There can be no confusion about this.

Remember they are dogs and not humans, however much we love them.