Another poor dog owner....

[CandyCrushLevel14809]

I was out running on a country lane.
I heard a high pitched whistle in the distance but thought nothing of it. Next thing I became aware of a large dog bounding across the field towards me.
It was fast and seemed determined.
I was worried it was going to jump off the verge to jump up at me so I stopped.
I then realised the whistle was from the owner, a good distance away.
The dog was barking and baring its teeth. It then did respond to the whistle and go back, whereupon the owner gave me a thank you wave.

If your dog does not have good recall please keep it on a lead. Other people should not be made to feel unsafe when they are enjoying the countryside.

Most dog owners are great and we share the paths with respect for each other.

I agree with you, as a dog owner - I have had quite a few dogs running up to us when the owner of the other dog is nowhere in sight. It can be very scary.

On the flip side though, I usually walk with my (small) dog off lead in remote parts and a couple of times I have met men - my dog is very protective and has given them warning barks. I always call him and put him back on the lead, but the men have continued to walk towards me while I have been clipping ChenDog on, rather than stopping and giving me a bit of space while I do that. That's been a bit nerve wracking - I like to think they're just out walking, but you never know really.

So dog runs around, and comes back when whistled? How terrible.

So your dog doesn't have 100% recall and others should change their behaviour because of that.

You missed the frightening bit about the dog barking and bearing its teeth.

I had a similar experience with a Doberman. I was
running. I came up behind a woman and her Doberman. I stopped running and starting walking. The dog turned to face me and was bearing its teeth and flattening its ears. I was scared. I called
out to the woman but she didn’t notice because she was on the phone. I shouted at her with all my might and thankfully she heard and then grabbed the dog by the collar. Phew!

Well of course she was on the phone. It's not actually possible to walk a dog without scrolling or talking on a phone. Or it doesn't seem to be at least.

No, the dog didn’t go back when whistled, it was not responding to the whistle for a good while. Me running was more distracting than the whistle. Only when I stopped because I was scared, did it respond.

Yaaaay. Another dog/owner bashing thread, it’s been at least 3 hours since the last one.

And why shouldn’t I start a thread about an inconsiderate dog owner?

That’s what I thought 😂

That isn't what she has written at all.

Yeah….funny.
Being scared by a dog not responding to its owner, while barking and baring its teeth at me. Hilarious.

I wasn’t laughing at you @CandyCrushLevel14809 , it was more that it seemed a bit of an overreaction. Sorry you got a fright but the dog did go back and no harm done. I agree some dogs can be a bit intimidating though.

What’s my over reaction? That I was scared?

No, more the ‘another poor dog owner.’ I don’t think the dog owner did anything wrong.

So a dog w/o good recall is fine then?

Take those posts with a pinch of salt OP. Chances are they would collapse into a puddle of their own urine and whimper if an unleashed dog dog barked and bared its teeth at them.

If a man meets a lone woman on a remote trail and her dog barks at him while she's putting her dog on lead to warn him to stay back then yes, he should change his behaviour and stay back - not continue to walk towards them. Decent men know to do this, because a) know it can be intimidating if they don't and b)it's normal to adjust your behaviour to take account of other shared path users. I'm sure you know this really.

People in general are not perfect and unfortunately there is a lot less tolerance than there used to be.
I’m afraid that some runners can be pretty bonkers and place others at risk as they don’t want to ‘break stride’ or whatever they think of it as.
On one occasion whilst walking with our dog ( on lead) and two young childrenin a National Arboretum (eg a relaxing place, not a sports track!) a male runner actually shouted at us to get out of the way! When we failed to do that in the five seconds available he JUMPED OVER our dog!!! The path was wide enough three times over for all of us!!!

What the actual?! 😲 I mean, I would say I was surprised but when some men put on running shoes, pedal a bike, or go hiking, they become a bit unhinged.

I have been running on the roads since the 80s. It is only in more recent times I have had problems with dog owners not controlling their dogs. My tolerance towards situations 'breaking my stride' has not changed over the years. I understand that public roads and paths are to be shared.

What has your unfortunate anecdote got to do with what happened to me today?
Should I keep quiet because there are knobbish runners out there?

My point is there are ‘less than perfect’ all types of people literally everywhere.
You encountered a slightly less than perfect dog owner today although nothing bad happened to you and it ended up being a non event.As an owner of four dogs I get fed up of these moany dog posts!!!

Indeed. We regularly have cycling events in the area too and the behavior of some of the participants is downright insane!

To be fair, there's far more intolerance generally - there are far more knobbish drivers, cyclists, runners and walkers than there ever were. Everyone who does any of those activities will have a tale to tell about knobs they've come across - vent away, OP, I don't blame you for not wanting an off lead dog running up to you, barking and baring its teeth. It's bloody scary when that happens. Equally, when you're being a responsible dog owner and you come across knobbish cyclists, car drivers, horse riders or walkers it's frustrating - and sometimes scary too. I don't think it's unreasonable to share those stories.

Fair enough, but not as a counter-argument for my tale of woe.

I genuinely feel that people cannot cope with anything less than perfect these days. Its depress