Bloody dogs and their stupid selfish owners.

[pinkthechaffinch]

We live in Dorset, and I don't really care too much if this thread is identifying.

Ds is really into nature and is very good at spotting newts, grass snakes etc.

We went to Thorncombe Woods the other day, where there is a lovely pond with tons of wild swamp life. It's always quite busy up there, loads of dog shit as soon as you come out of the car park, but it's really lovely once you walk on a bit.

Anyway, DS all excited about planned nature observation. but YET again, it's ruined because of bloody great dogs splashing about in the pool, and then shaking themselves over me and my kids, whilst their stupid owners sit and stare at them.

Grrrr

And there are numerous signs asking dog owners to keep their beasts on leads.

OP, YANBU, I think it's perfectly reasonable to wish not to have your and dcs time together outdoors to be not ruined by dogs/ thick dog owners who let their dogs get up to all sorts and don't think of others.
That is not to say that dog owners are thick, or dogs are all horrible.
I just wish that there was better 'policing' of dogs/ dog owners in public spaces I don't know, more fines, someone official to point out the rules or something. I don't like it when dog owners ignore signs saying that dogs are not allowed, or dogs should be on leads, or dog mess should be cleaned up. It makes me really cross to see dogs crapping on the beach, dogs in the play area, dogs bounding around off leads in the country near children and livestock.
The offending dog owners just give a sappy/gormless look if anyone expresses their displeasure. 'He's only playing' is particularly aggravating.
The worst offenders as far as I can tell are at opposite ends of the social scale- green wellied types with boundy labradors on National Trust footpaths are very bad offenders, clearly no rule in the world applies to these people. Chavvy types with staffies on the other. Sorry, I know that's stereotyping, but it's TRUE - or round here it is!

I don't think the newts will mind that much- I bet there's foxes and all sorts fo leaping about in there.
It's not your pond, and like you said, when you mentioned the lead thing they did it, so what's the problem?

Obviously not clearing up shit is very bad, and that poor young girl who was nearly blinded is actually a neighbour of mine :( that shit was in a gated off toddler play area, it's such a huge park that it could easily be one of the many strays that live in that park, or of the scummy lot that hang around after dark. The park warden I think also has a responsibility for checking on this sort of thing-their hut it only 20 ft from the play area

msyikes - many National Trust footpaths permit dogs to be off lead provided they are under control and except where otherwise designated (ie nesting birds & livestock). In all my years of dog walking through National Trust land, I have yet to come across a dog off-lead in fields with livestock or otherwise out of control. What I do quite often come across are discarded crisp packets, chocolate wrappers, juice cartons, etc. People, rather than dogs, do far more to desecrate the countryside.

OP - If there was a sign telling people to keep their dog on-lead near the swamp, then YNBU. If there is no such sign, then I see no reason why dogs should not be allowed to swim in it as it is a public place.

ISPW, maybe it's fair to say that if the public, dog owners and non dog owners alike, were more pro-active in reporting strays in your area to the DW then problems could be limited, if not curtailed.

It goes without saying of course that the feckers who allow their dogs to stray need a boot up the jacksey.

Not everyone is like me and will go out of their way to catch and take in a stray but there is no reason why locals shouldn't pick up the phone to the DW... and if he is crap (and believe me, some are!) to refer concerns to the Director of Environmental Health and their councillors and MP.

Definitly val- me and dp cross there alot and will always gently approach to look for collar etc and then call the warden. The responsible dog owners are in far far far larger numbers however at this park. There is a massive swan pond island thing with all sorts of birds and I hae never ever once seen a dog been let to jump in and disturb the birds, there's not even any signs saying they can't! I think ths shows that by a long way dog owners are responsible and sant to happily share public places with all others.

I'm not fond of dogs in general. But especially the big ones who come over, unleashed, barking and jumping up at my DC.
Then you get the owner giving you a grin saying "oh don't worry love, he 's not a nasty dog!"
I don't really care tbh. I just don't appreciate strange dogs who run riot near my children while their owner just look on.

And i don't like either the dog poo which is left on a daily basis on the path at the back of my house. It's vile.

No, YANBU OP.

actually I agree with that.

when we walk with penis dog off the lead he comes imediately we whistle/call him. It is astonishing how often other owners call their dogs who have rushed up to greet ours and they won't come. Sometimes we have to stand still and have our dog sit so that the owner can walk to us and 'collect' their dog.

the otherthing that troubles me is how often small dogs aggressively approach ours. Because he is big they seem to become very aggressive and yap and nip at him. We can usually spot the signs quickly now and call him away from wagging up to greet them but at least once on every walk a small dog will run at ours and try to bite him.He always looks mighty confused and just keeps tryingto move away. But again - these owners will be saying things like 'oh tiddles, don't be so bad tempered' whilst their dog is trying to bite my dogs ankles.
It must be terrifying for a toddler if they are the same with them.

I think sometimes owners of small dogs see them as vulnerable and incapeable of being dangerous. Perhaps they can be less stringent in terms of training whereas if you have a big dog and want to do the rightthing you are all over trainning because the danger is more obvious
Does that make sense?

Of course I am speaking very generally - most dogs we encounter are friendly

Bloody children and their stupid selfish parents... Let's try and ban then from certain area because a few are really irritating!

In fact let's ban everything so no one is ever inconvenienced!

Life would be a whole lot nicer if you grew a little tolerance - you might need people to feel tolerant about you or your kids one day

ROFL at the idea of people being tolerant of my children...

The op is being daft and people who tar all dog owners with the same brush are equally daft. But tit for tatting rather than accepting that some dog owners are bloody irresponsible just looks like defensiveness and a lack of arguemnt.

Round here the hunter welly brigade do pick up pooh if being observed but ive seen them leave it if Think nobody is looking. also its a bit pointless if they then leave the bags of pooh on the floor which we see a lot.
I quite like dogs but don't like my crotch sniffed or dds face licked or paw prints on my clean clothes.think owners could improve peoples general opinions by remembering that.

I got given the finger by a woman when I told her to pick up the shit her dog had just done by the play house in the local park.

I wish the park rangers were f*king snipers.

Trouble is, these pesky kids are drawn to piles of festering dogshit like ants to jam. The sooner we can ban kids from the countryside the better. This is why mcdonalds have play gardens ffs.

Laska, you can't compare children and dogs in this context. My child is never off the lead and only shits in hedgerows.

I do wish that people who let their dogs foul didn'tget fined.
I wish they had to walk around their local area and collect a set number of big doggy shites.... maybe one hundred.....
[dreams]

"Dog poo is spaced to get the maximum number of wheelchair wheels."

- you see I wasn't imagining it - you're naturally very dry Riven. Thanks for my first laugh of the morning on MN.

Agree with Riven's 9.03 post.

Can we draw the benchmark for 'well-trained dog with responsible owner', as having the ability to call your dog off if it jumps up on someone who doesn't want to be jumped on?

Because, thinking about it, not one dog owner I've ever known has had this power. They normally stand there going "Down, Rover! Don't worry, he wouldn't hurt a fly... down, boy!" until the creature decides for itself that you are sufficiently slobber-covered, or that your leg is erotically satisfied.

And come to think of it, that's going to make children afraid, isn't it? If they see that the adult has lost control of the situation - can't get the dog to stop bothering them - then that in itself is going to scare them.
No matter how much you try to teach them not to be afraid.

Slightly off on a tangent, but I'd like to mention the fact that my dog is better behaved than any child I've ever met! :)

I find it rude and very irresponsible of parents to say "Go on Alfie, say hello to the doggy! Alfie loves dogs, you know". How do they know that the dog wants a heavy-handed young child pushing, prodding and even just touching them?!

Rules to abide by, if you insist on taking children to good dog-walking areas:

• Do not run up to the dog and smack or drag them around. They also don't like having their noses poked over and over again.
• Do not feed them whatever you have in your hand.
• Do not shout in unison down their ears.

If child owners act responsibly, there are no problems, and no one shall lose a finger!

BTW, before anyone draws the conclusion that I have an aggressive dog, I don't. She is extremely tolerant. More fool her!

Agree with Booja and also responding to Heathen, it's a two way street... It's impossible to train a puppy when kids just run up and think they have free rein to pat and touch dogs. Luckily, mine doesn't worry and loves it, but it does mean it's difficult sometimes for him to control himself and he does occasionally jump up. Other children ask if they can pat him and I make him sit down and behave before they do. I think if people respect dogs and dogs/owners respect people all will be well. I know when my little one comes along I will be teaching him that under no circumstances do you ever touch another dog without checking first.

It's a real shame when things like the OP's post happen, because it does give owners a bad name as proved by this thread.

Children are more important than dogs and other animals.

Oh great ANOTHER anti-dog thread. How very unoriginal and boring.... 'The dingo ate my baby crew' love a good dog bashing. Maybe we should ask Cameron to start a dog cull and then they'll be happy or maybe they'll find something else to complain about seeing as they think every public space was designed solely for them and their often badly trained kids?

I can't even go to a decent restaurant in peace without the precious darlings running around screaming everywhere while I'm trying to have adult time and no I don't hate kids, I'm about to have one of my own but I've noticed that in recent years the numbers of inconsiderate parents who believe their children should be allowed everywhere is increasing to unbearable levels. If you're kids are allowed in every pub and restaurant I go into then my dogs are allowed in any park I want to go to, they are well behaved and I pick up after them.

Bollocks to you if you don't like sharing public space with other species, you can stay in doors. Why do some humans think the entire world is only for them?