to want to smack dog owners around a bit?

[smuggins]

Just been for a walk with DD in the backpack.
Walking across a lovely meadow, we saw a woman walking her bear (might have been a large dog - looked like a bear to me) in the distance. As we approached each other, the bear sat down and awaited its owner. As we came closer, it stood up and took two (meter long) steps towards us. Naturally (evolution, survival instinct, etc) we shied away. The owner cheerily told us that the bear was 'a real sweetie' and meant nothing by it. The wife was a bit riled so said something along the lines of how the hell are we to know that, its a fucking bear and it was coming towards my child and its not on a leash. The response was 'well, you weren't to know, so have a nice day'.

Why do dog owners assume that we all love dogs. I hate dogs. And why were we made to feel bad for being threatened by the bloody bear. There are countless stories of 'real sweetie' dogs biting people - be they strangers / family / children. Do the dog owners know the law on such matters? Not sure I do totally, but I'd like to think that if an injury occurred because of a dog owners lack of control of their animal, they would be liable for that injury and the dog will be destroyed. Anyone know any different?

Anyway. I don't like dogs. Keep yours under control. Please.

Sharbie - nope. Am allergic to cats. Pets...hmm...at the moment we have moths .

I would like to take this opportunity to ask the dog owner who let his/her dog do its business on the toy-littered grass in front of my house to please pick up the poo next time, and to tell you that if I ever find out who you are and where you live, you will get a shovel full of some sort of poo in your letterbox the same day.

Do you think a busy mother has nothing better to do with her time than clean your dog's poo off my children's shoes and also scrape it off the floor of my house??????????

And to those who think their off-leash dogs are the sweetest wuzzums ever created and wonder why everyone else can't see their wonderfulness right away (those of us who are stupid or barmy or whatever), have any of you managed to tell that to your dogs in a way they can understand, and behave accordingly? Dogs are dogs. Ask a sheep farmer.

I have found the answer to most of these kind of questions is to speak softly and to carry a baseball bat.

I did shout my lungs out at an idiot man who not only had his two ginormous 'darlings' off the lead, but threw a ball for them AT my 4yo DD!

She nearly wet herself with pure terror when they galloped with teeth glistening in the sun towards her. They were her height - and their mouths were her arm's length. I was there as quick as a flash, but not before they had galloped up to get the ball behind her.

I gave the @rseh0le owner at least five minutes worth of it, and called him a list of adrenalin inspired names.... not very zen, but there you go.
The limbic system is like that I suppose.

Boo to dogs off the lead!! Down with inconsiderate dog owners!!

Nice to see somebody went shopping at Sweeping Generalisations R Us.

WandersOffToLookAfterHerRatherSickDogTiggaxx

I'm not crazy about dogs either. I have been bitten twice. Once by our own guard dog (grew up in a country where you need them), when I was walking the dog and a passerby decided to taunt it. Yes she actually stopped and started mocking the dog. Our dog was a bit of a nutter (would probably have been put down in the UK), and tried to break free of his leash and attack her. I wouldn't let it and got bitten for my troubles.

The second time was actually here, when some numpty in the flat opposite my sisters left their front door open. I tried to get to sister's door and ended up with a dog hanging off my arm. Luckily I had a really thick fleece on, but boy was I angry with the owner. Imagine if I'd been a child.

Anyway, YANBU. Dogs should be on leashes in all public spaces, parks included. And People who don't pick up their dog's poo should have the dog taken off them.

I guess the OP or all the other YANBUs could try to slap me round a bit, but I'm guessing my dogs wouldn't take to kindly to it.

Love it HOWANNOYING [SMILE]

I hate dogs. They are pointless barking+shitting machines. I am scared of them too.

There is a great bit in Clarrissa Dickson-Wright's autobiography (Two fat Ladies) where she punches a dog which is flying for her right in the face. She knocked the dog unconcious and when it recovered, it perceived her as the 'leader of the pack' and thereafter followed her around meekly. She is a total dog lover by the way.

fontella About people putting their dogs on leads if they see you do they same - I want to agree in theory, but I in practise I quite possibly wouldn't do this for my own quite valid reasons.

I have two dogs, one is very easy going, the other can be inclined to be a bit nervous and edgy if she feels cornered - not so much with people but with other dogs, especially male ones. She is generally fine and relaxed off-lead and will socialise happily, and if she doesn't like the look of a dog she'll just give it a wide berth.

But if I see an owner approaching who puts their dog on the lead it's a sign to me that they are feeling nervous about confrontation, as you've just pointed out with your JR. I'm not nervous about confrontation with my dogs - I trust them to walk on by without a fuss. But as soon as you put your dog on a lead in that situation you are sending a signal to the dog that thet there may be an issue, and they sense the tension. If I put my girl on the lead she will panic and feel agitated at the sight of an approaching dog because she cannot run away if she needs to. She feels she's being made to stay in a vicinity in order to have confrontation, if that makes sense. She is much more likely to be a bit confrontational on the lead than off it.

There is no right or wrong, here, only different slants on the same problem. But generally I think we should all trust our fellow owners to know their dogs best, and do as they see fit. If another dog actually looks like it's goint attack you or your dog, then fine, have a row with the owner - but what's the point otherwise?

Incidentally I always walk my dogs in places where there are very few children, and almost everyone there is there with a dog. That way we can all relax. They need to run free off the lead - it's not a proper walk otherwise!

I went my local meadow the other day and when I got there there was some village family walk thing going on - kids and babies everywhere - all walking towards me. I didn't even attempt it - I knew someone would get all paranoid and panicky (fair enough - I'd have done the same before I had dogs) so I put them straight back in the car and went somewhere else. Oh, and I always pick up the poo unless it's in the wildest undergrowth of the woods and I can't find it - in which case, no-one else will either!

People who don't like dogs are missing out on a fantastic life experience. And depriving their DCs of the same.

Heh heh. Now that you mention it, my life does feel less fulfilled for not having to walk behind a mutt, collecting its shit in a little plastic bag...

I can see your way of thinking with that one Fellatio. When im with DH, he usually tells me to leave her off lead when another dog approaches and usually they just sniff each other and that's that. Sometimes my dog takes offense to another and he has to drag her away. When it's just me walking her I put her on a lead because I'd rather have her straining and snarling on the lead with me able to control her than risk being bitten by the other dog if it does kick off!

"I'm irrationally worried about cows, but I don't knock on the farmhouse door and demand they are all fitted with extendable leads and tied to a fencepost."

The incidences of irresponsible owners allowing their cows to bound around public parks, beaches, hillsides, streets .. in fact almost every public place you can think of .. is pretty rare. In fact it's non-existent.

In order to be in any danger from a cow you'd have to drive out into the countryside, locate a cow field and climb into it and even then they are unlikely to come anywhere near you. Dogs on the other hand are everywhere, in every open space that is frequented by humans.

Some (I'd like to say most) of their owners are responsible, thoughtful, clean up after their animals, the dogs are well trained and so on - obviously that applies to all the dog owners on this thread . However it is completely delusional to say all dog owners are like that, because they are not! They let their dogs run wild, don't clean up their crap, and can't understand the fuss when they go charging up to other people and especially children (even if it is for a friendly lick and jump about) and the people get annoyed.

The generalisations on this thread are hysterical. There are good dog owners and bad dog owners; nice dogs and nasty dogs; people who are scared of dogs and people who aren't; people who love dogs, people who don't mind dogs and people who don't like dogs. None are weird or odd - it's just how it is.

Obviously all the lovely MNers posting here are responsible dog owners. You can't all deny though that not all dog owners are like you though.

I don't think the point is that the dog might bite or whatever, I like my friends' dogs and it's part of the deal when I visit them that I play with the dog, have it jump on me, slobber or whatever, hang on to it while friend is opening door etc etc.

What I hate is the assumption that I want to interact with a dog when I am out minding my own business. It's like unwanted attention from a man or a rowdy bunch of teenagers, being forced to interact with an animal off the lead.

The dog owner's cheery 'don't worry, he's a big softy' is the equivalent of 'cheer up love, it might never happen' - an unwanted and condescending comment after unwanted interaction.

That's my opinion on why people dislike dogs when out and about anyway. It's the lack of choice involved in the interaction. Someone upthread said it's intolerance in the vein of not wanting to share space with black people or other minorities - in the main dogs are the only members of the community in my local park that I seem to be expected to cheerfully interact with, often physically, which is annoying if I am about to eat a sandwich with my hands or am on the phone.

Call me a grouch - I know this has turned to a dog-owners' love-in.

I like what they do where my parents live in germany. for a start every dog has to be on the lead. the handler can get an exemption certificate, for that they have to show that the dog is perfect as can be at recall, does not show any agressive behaviour at all, knows basic commands.
this certificate is per dog per handler so a family with one dog would need one certificate for every one who takes the dog out.
seems to work, at least it is much more pleasant to go to the playground or park now.
plus you need a dog license from your council to keep a dog for a start + insurance.
dog-shit is another matter entirely, unfortunately.

Ive got a dog. I keep him under control when were out as i understand others might be frightened of him . By the same standard, i am wary of other peoples dogs, and i dont like being lunged at, jumped on or knocked over, dont like my own dog being terrorized by aggresive dogs.

Why do people think its ok to have their dog lunge or jump on you or your dcs while they simper " he wont hurt you ect ?"

I agree that you shouldn;t be expected to interact with stange dogs, but don;t assume that just beacuse they walk past you and are not on a lead, you are expected to interact with them! You don;t interact with evry human that walks past do you?! I agree with fontella though - there are good and bad across the dog owning spectrum.

I must say though, I am amazed at how many otherwise decent law-abiding responsible people do not even bother to pick up the poo. Just because it's in a popular dog walking spot doesn't people don't mind if they stand in it, FFS. There are two dog bins to put it in - you don;t even have to take it home.

It's a matter of record on here that I'm not keen on dogs.
However, DS and I were walking through a village when he was around 6, and we saw a man walking a bear. A BEAR! DS had eyes as big as the round tower and a mouth to match.
So we stopped and watched and the man asked if DS would like to meet his bear who was called Hercules.
We did, he was a lovely creature and the owner was great too.
It was DS's first encounter with a Newfoundland, and the biggest one I'd ever seen.

At last, some rational posts from dog owners and non owners alike - acknowledging the fact that not everyone likes dogs for whatever reason, not everyone wants them approaching them in public, rather than people who don't like dogs are 'odd' or 'not be trusted' and all that nonsense.

I like dogs, I've had them in the past and my parents and other family members have dogs. However, I don't care whose dog it is, one I know, or one I don't, I don't want it licking me or jumping up at me when it's just had it's head up it's own arse, or head down sniffing other dogs pee and worse and walking on lord knows what. Sorry but I don't.

Fellatio - the woman didn't have to put her dog on the lead - just call it off, away from my dog and my kids. It was a nice natured dog you could see that, and only curious - but the fact is it was scaring the hell out of my kids by its sheer size and the fact that it was circling us ... and my dog, small though he was, would have taken a chunk out of it (or worse), had it got the chance. I make no apologies for the Jack Russell. I inherited him from my partner who'd had him for several years when we met, and maybe because of his small size, or the breed or whatever, he would go for other dogs like a thing possessed even though he was completely steady with sheep. We'd walk along unfenced paths around sheep fields and he wouldn't even glance in their direction, whereas my mum's big soppy black lab ignores other dogs, but will go after sheep like a rocket even if he spots one half a mile away, and I don't dare let him off the lead anywhere near them.

Dogs are like people - unpredictable.

but don;t assume that just because they walk past you and are not on a lead, you are expected to interact with them!>>

Hmm that is true, but the reality is often that the dog sees you and runs towards you. The moment it does (not when it reaches you) the interaction starts.

You have to pay attention to see if this is likely to be a threat. You are asking yourself if the owner is going to call it back. Is it going to leap at you and possibly knock you down (depending on how frail you are and the size of the dog). Is it going to cover you with filth so you have to go home and change etc.

This is not like passing humans who normally do not change direction and head for you. If they did then that would be disturbing too (depending on the situation).

If you are walking alone down a street and a guy changes direction and starts to approach you then you can't ignore that can you? If it's late at night this could be disturbing couldn't it.

I've just come from a walk where 2 huge red setters came running up to me and my dog (who was on a lead i may add), starting circleing us and growling, yhe owner kept saying oh its fine, its fine but it wasn't fine, scared me to death and when i told him to get his dogs away from us he thought it was a joke!

Now my dog isn't very good when it comes to other dogs which is why she is on her lead. I just wish other dog owners would show the same consideration

I had a similar problem with my son and other children in the playpark when he was younger.
He'd be playing, they'd want to interact, he'd say 'Go away' and they'd not take him seriously.
Then I'd have to intervene, other parents saw me as fussy. I saw me avoiding their darlings being spread over the playground in bite-sized chunks.
A dog not interacting for me is a well-behaved animal passing us as if we weren't there. No sniffing, approaching or anything. Eyes front and move.

she also has a bad habit of jumping up at people. Now I know she is fine with people but I appreciate other people don't like it so when others approach she is kept firmly in check and also when people come to the house she is put into the kitchen.

Its pure consideration and empathy for others, dog do and can bite,they can frighten when they jump up my own son was bitten at the age of 3 by his grandparents dog who was a spoilt fat westie who was indulged by my ex in laws who believed if you didn't like him there was something not quite right about you. Horrible horrible dog

If you were in a park where dogs are meant to be on a lead - fair enough. Otherwise people have every right to walk their dogs - whatever size - off the lead unless they are known to show aggression to other people or other dogs. If you are walking in a public meadow then get a grip!