Here's a fun little civics lesson for the growing number of San Franciscans who seem to have forgotten: leash laws exist. They're on the books. They apply to your dog, yes, even your dog, the one you swear is "super friendly."

The off-leash dog problem in SF parks and sidewalks has gone from annoying to genuinely dangerous. Residents are reporting more unleashed dogs than ever — running up to strangers, charging at leashed pets, and in some cases, outright attacking smaller dogs while their owners fumble to do exactly nothing about it. One local recently watched an off-leash dog go after a smaller leashed dog, forcing the victim's owner to physically scoop their pet off the ground to protect it.

And here's the thing: if your dog were actually trained for off-leash behavior, it wouldn't be sprinting toward every stranger and animal in sight. That's not training. That's negligence with extra confidence.

One Bay Area resident trying to socialize an anxious rescue dog put it perfectly: "So many unleashed dogs run up to him and freak him out, making it harder to bring him out the next time." They added that unleashed dogs also mean more unseen — and uncollected — poop. "Double douchebag behavior."

Try telling these owners to leash up, though, and you'll get an earful. As one local noted, "Unfortunately if you tell these people to leash their dogs they'll lose their shit. Until fines are imposed, people will do as they please." Another resident recounted asking an owner to leash his dog, only to be met with a philosophical retort: "'But there are lots of laws…'" Incredible.

This is a textbook case of what happens when laws go unenforced. The city has leash ordinances. Animal Care & Control has authority. But without consistent ticketing, it's all just words on paper. Meanwhile, we've got cops clocking mountain bikers on downhill trails instead of writing tickets for unleashed dogs on shared paths where the actual safety risk is higher.

We're not asking for a police state. We're asking for the bare minimum: enforce the rules that already exist, protect responsible pet owners and non-dog-owners alike, and stop letting a handful of entitled people turn every park into their personal dog run. A few $100 fines would change behavior overnight. The question is whether the city cares enough to bother.