A sign posted in a dog park in Montreal, Canada, outlawing barking has sparked controversy and ridicule.
The sign forbids dogs from barking while in the park. This illogical and unreasonable demand has unleashed a wave of fury from pet owners who frequent the park.
Culprits whose dogs disobey the sign could be fined between $500 and $2,000. The sign states that "it is forbidden to let your dog bark, whine, or howl."
One dog owner told CTV News "It's stressful, to be honest. I'm always looking around to see if my dog is doing good, she's not barking too much … no it's not fun anymore."
Pet owners are speaking out, saying it is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect dogs not to bark in a dog park. They argue that barking is a natural behavior for dogs, and attempting to suppress it could cause harm to their health and well-being.
"This sign was intended to help reduce the nuisance experienced by the neighbourhood of this dog park," a city spokesperson said in an email to local news.
"My first reaction was, 'What?' It's kind of ironic to see that we should prohibit our dogs from barking. It's their way of communicating with each other and there are some instances where they are obviously going to bark. I can tell you with no hesitation that the people that come here are quite responsible with their dogs. So if we see a dog barking for more than 10 seconds, we're going to go intervene. We're going to see what's going on" a dog owner told CTV.
Earlier this year, another Canadian city removed similar signs after public backlash and ridicule. "The city will be reviewing its sign approval process to ensure clear communication in future signs" a statement from the city of Toronto said at the time. This article originally appeared at The Post Millennial, a member of the Human Events Media Group
