wolfhound on a short chain

thanks wikimedia commons {PD}

Paulus Potter (Dutch; circa 1625-died 1654) specialized in animals placed in landscapes.  This is his Wolf-Hound, an oil on canvas painted sometime in 1650-52.  You can see his signature over the door of the doghouse.  I don't know whether this was anyone's particular guard dog, and I know I need to allow for the philosophies of the time.  Still, though he has a good stout bone in reach, I was disappointed at the roughness of his doghouse and especially the shortness of his chain.  All he can do is sit and watch and pace a step or two.  No wonder there is a wistful light in his eyes, poor fellow.  Then I recalled that Potter died young of tuberculosis no more than 4 years tops from when this was painted, and I wondered - did he already know his chain was short, too?