Dogs And Democracy: Pets As The Perfect Mirror Of A Nation’s Respect For The Law

-OpEd-

BUENOS AIRES — It would be a bold hypothesis as hypotheses should be, but here goes: can one gauge a nation’s lawfulness and civic-mindedness just by observing the conduct of people walking their dogs on the street? Well, possibly…

Sweden, that paragon of orderly liberalism, is one of the countries with a rock-bottom corruption index — or at least that is how the Swedes perceive it — according to Transparency International. In 2023, the NGO, which monitors governance standards, reported Sweden to be the world’s sixth least corrupt country, though it has even done better in other years. In any case, it is always one of the countries that take the law seriously.

Virginia Higa, an Argentinian writer living in Stockholm, has devoted parts of her beautiful book El hechizo del verano (“Summer’s Spell”) to observing the Swedes’ relationship with their pets.

“Tyst” means quiet

Tyst is the Swedish word for quiet or silent. And as Higa observes, Swedish dogs are very quiet. They travel on public transport, she says, but “never bark and when they do, people turn around and stare. The word quiet is tyst, which sounds like the Spanish word chistido (a whistle). I think it should always be pronounced with a finger before your lips.”

Furthermore, she says, dogs are always walked on a leash “although I’ve seen some running free, especially in the suburbs.” This is in contrast with the dogs one usually sees in Argentine provincial cities. There, she says, “unleashed dogs are seen as a threat, constantly running after bikes and motorcycles, causing traffic accidents, biting at joggers’ ankles or frightening children.”

Buenos Aires dog owners know that the rules on keeping a dog were made for everyone — except you and your dog.

There are no stray dogs in Sweden in any case, she says, adding that a dog’s life is “as functional and orderly as the people they live with. They have their own schools to train them. You can’t adopt a puppy. Dogs are bought and sold, and are extremely expensive. One day I asked my Swedish teacher why you couldn’t adopt an animal. She replied that when people have to pay for something, they take it more seriously.”

Such a good boy?

The global corruption list places Argentina 98th out of 180 countries, in a middle zone with countries like Albania and Belarus above it, and Ethiopia and Gambia below. Anyone who has a dog in Buenos Aires knows that the rules on keeping a dog were made for everyone — except you and your dog.

“He doesn’t need a leash, he’s such a good boy.” Just today as it happens, “I don’t have a bag to pick up his poop.” I never “registered my Rottweiler, he’s so gentle.” I walk “10 dogs, but they’re little ones.” Yes I breed poodles in my apartment, but “they hardly take up space” etc.. How many times have we heard such excuses in Argentina?

So yes: hypotheses should be bold, lawfulness is based on respect for the community, and rules are for everyone.