To think, if you can't recall your dog, it shouldn't be off lead?

As a dog owner, I'm sick of it.
"He's friendly"
"He just wants to say hello"
"Dogs need to play with each other"
"Oh he never listens!"
"It'll teach him a lesson if she goes for him"

I'm sure there's more, but they're just piss poor excuses for not bothering to either train your dog, or keep it under control if training isn't good enough, or interact with it while you're walking it.

I mean why bother having a dog if you're not going to interact with it? If you expect everyone else to entertain it for you? Other people to teach it a lesson? If you're not going to teach it to listen to you or if that fails (because it's not always bulletproof) then use other methods to keep it safe? I mean if it never listens what are you going to do if it runs towards a road?

There's so many people with high energy, high prey drive dogs who think that endless walks are the answer, go to the same place day after day, don't interact with the dog or engage it's brain by providing activities that satisfy it's breed and then wonder why they have a very fit nut job that gets over excited at the sight of something different like another dog, person, horse etc. Or worse they don't even realise that's not how a well adjusted dog behaves and think it's cute or funny.

Many also don't understand basic dog body language, the amount that I've been told are just being friendly when in fact they're being dominant and sometimes aggressive. But the tail is wagging so the owner thinks it's all good because they're not looking at the rest of the dog or understanding what they're seeing.

I will tell an approaching dog no, and block it, and I don't care if it offends the owners, if you're not going to control your dog, I'm going to advocate for mine and they don't want or need to be jumped all over or be at risk of being attacked.

Toddlers don't open gates and shouldn't be playing with them....what about the fox and deer pooh

YANBU nobody wants an out of control dog (or anything else for that matter! including children).

If you’ve hired and paid for sole use of a field then crack on.

In public places I believe all dogs should be on a lead, that's my opinion and am entitled to it the same as you are entitled to yours

So my 13 year old, well trained, never failed to recall collie should have to go on his lead because of dick heads who can't control their dogs? I think not.

As a dog owner whose dog has terrible recall, I never let him off the lead. I also believe that all dogs should be kept on leads in parks etc and only off lead in dog enclosures, mine has been attacked by an off lead dog where the owner has said your dog must have done something as he never normally does that! Yes mate he was walking along at the side of me when your dog attacked from behind, it must be my dogs fault! Luckily my dog wasn't hurt.

Are you children you mind giants? Or rather the same size as medium sized dogs like most toddlers?

Oh no cage the ducks ....and the bloody seagulls.

No but they must be that size to pee on the bits of gates you touch

I have had a sandwich stolen by a duck 😆

Did I mention food thieving Irish Wolfhounds?

Dogs meeting on leads are far more likely to be reactive as the introduction is false and doesn't allow the gradual approach and sniffing instead it's more like a passing stranger leaning in for a hug but you can't get distance as your restrained.

How many dogs urinate on the bits of a gate or bench you touch? Seem to be an unusually high number of food thieving Irish wolfhound size dogs in your area....I'm a cm and in 30 years have never had children's food stolen by a dog despite being out in woods and fields most days.

That's clearly not the scenario PP was talking about though.

That's a false equivalence too, dogs sniffing each other is basically the same as humans saying hello and asking how the other is.

Cats are also a nuisance to birds, yes.
They can urinate anywhere other than gates and benches? Just preferably not on things that people have to touch or sit on. It shouldn't be difficult to keep your dogs away from those 2 things I specified if you have some modicum of control over them.

Because dogs that don’t mix well with others (could be wearing a muzzle or a halter or have a “reactive” sign on coat or lead or none of the above) don’t need to interact with other dogs in an uncontrolled way that stresses them out and potentially ends up with someone being bitten etc. You wouldn’t jump all over a stranger and sniff them uninvited, neither should off lead dogs be approaching strangers or their pets without consent.

My dogs are a*holes, so they stay on a lead at all times (ongoing training, as both are under a year).
I'm sick of lovely looking and friendly dogs with poor recall, bounding over ebulliently to mine and the ineffectual, wishy washy owners' "Coco/Lola/Fluffy Prick, come here" whilst mine are backflipping in anxiety and extending my dominant arm length with their fucking yanking.
I don't enjoy dog walks as much as a used to because of the Army of Cockapoos/Cavapoos/Twatapoos that seem to roam freely around the fields and lanes near us.
I'm far from the best dog owner in the world and have had my struggles with training, but at least I have brain cells and consideration to keep my furry bat-rats on a lead at all times in public.

I'm not sure what point you're making here?

My dog is off lead most of the time and he doesn't want to interact with other dogs. I don't appreciate it when people let their dogs come bounding over to him just because he's off his lead.

So basically you hate dogs and they shouldn't exist, are cats in the same bracket? You even object to them urinating do you suggest dog nappies?

The amount of dogs that come up to my DP's dog even though he's wearing a "keep away" harness is ridiculous.

My usual response to them saying "oh, it's OK, he's friendly" is "well this one isn't, so I'd suggest you take him away". In reality, my parents' dog is just a total scaredy-cat and unlikely to actually do anything, but it's enough to get them to take their dog away.

Only once has someone called their dog away without being asked, with the dog going away instantly when called, and the owner saying "sorry about that - I just spotted the harness - hope I didn't worry him too much".

I got a dog to work with children who hated dogs and teach them how to be boring to dogs as so many parents said they and their children were scared of dogs.

What really really annoys me is when you have your dog off lead that people seem to think has bad recall when it's your arsy little dog on a long line going up to MY dog annoying him, then it's my dogs fault when hes interested in your dog!

Also, why have so many people become so anal about their dogs sniffing each other, why are we teaching our dogs to act like robots, yes they need to listen to us, recall when we tell them to but why is it so outrageous for them to interact with other dogs?

A long line not lead. It is specially for learning recall. You don't walk the dogs on them. They need to be used in an appropriate place.

Totally agree OP. I've ranted before about the same.

Dogs running up and circling/pushing/licking my toddlers

Dogs jumping up into the pram onto the baby

Loose long leashes being wrapped around the toddlers while the dogs go mental around them

Picnics being eaten by dogs with no owner in sight

Jumping on my on lead dog - who is actually friendly - so much that she gets pissed off, and then making sarcastic comments about my dog not being nice

Dog shit everywhere

And the one that makes my skin crawl instantly "they're friendly". I don't care if they just want to say hello, does it look like I do?

And when you ask them to move the dog, mention that they've stolen your child's lunch, say that you've upset your child/your dog - you're the unreasonable one!