To not care how 'friendly' your dog is, if you can't control it, it should be on a lead

[IcouldstillbeJoseph]

I'm neither a lover or hater of dogs but this is beginning to piss me right off rankle.

Near to where I live is a lovely lake. Nice path, children's play area, ducks etc. Popular in this weather.

I was out walking today with DS 2.6 and DD 6mo. As has happened on so many occasions now, we'll be stood feeding the ducks, only to have somebody's dog come bounding along to us, no owner in sight (the path is quite bendy) and start sniffing about. Now, obviously the sniffing I don't mind so much but DS is a bit wary of dogs and today one started trying to lick his face and was licking at DD's feet in the buggy. The owner then saunters around the corner, calling dog's name (to which it pays no attention) and then looks endearingly at the dog and at DS's worried expression and says "oh don't worry she just wants to give you kisses". No attempt to get control of the dog at all.

I gave tight-lipped half smile and turned away resisting urge to wipe DD feet with an anti-bac wipe

CloudsandTrees, your attitude really gets my back up and this is as a dog lover who always had a dog growing up.

I live near Greenwich park and a 2 yr old DD who won't touch animals unless I say it's ok but she is 2 and gets scared. It's not ok therefore for animals to bound up and try and lick her in the face. And actually if you are interfering in my enjoyment of the park then sorry but I think you have less right to be there than me.

There is also a wood nearby where most dog owners take their dogs instead of the park. We enjoy a walk there however as I know that it is a place where people go to let their dogs run off the lead then I make sure I pick her up if any dogs run up rather than asking the owners to put them on the lead. It's about showing respect for other people not a selfish 'I'm alright' attitude.

I do hope you mean that you don't have a problem with it as in, it doesn't happen?

that's clearly what she meant - that it might run past people but that it doesn't engage with them.

Some unbelievable attitudes from (some) dog owners here.
But the vast majority who've posted have been in the YANBU camp. You'll find the same thing on DogHouse threads - there's one at the moment about the importance of keeping off-lead dogs under control around other dogs.

The title of this thread is exactly right:
if you can't control it, it should be on a lead - any responsible dog owner should be happy with that condition.

I hate being slobbered on by it's only being friendly dogs.

Incidentally how are you supposed to teach a child to approach the owner first if the dog gets to yp you before the owner.

I tend now to take the dog by the collar, at arms length of it's mouth and lead it to it's owner with a pointed "is this yours?" There may not like it but it shouldn't have been hassling me and mine in the first place. Often in places they shouldn't be off lead anyway

I do hope you mean that you don't have a problem with it as in, it doesn't happen?

Yes, that's what I meant! Sorry, should have been clearer!

Anne, some posters do seem to be implying that a dog should be on the lead at all times though.

I'm sure a child that's uncomfortable with dogs is going to feel uncomfortable if the dog is anywhere near them even if the dog isn't sniffing or licking them. So even when a dog is doing nothing wrong there are some people that don't want them there. But other people's children are for them to deal with, and my dog is for me to deal with.

If my dog is scaring a small child just for being there, then I will put the dog back on the lead or make him stay close until we have passed said child. But I'm not going to spoil his entire walk by keeping him on the lead for the whole time we are there.

My two dogs are very good off the lead, their recall isn't 100% but probably about 98% which isn't bad for puppies. That said, if I see small children, dogs on the lead or people having picnics they go back on the lead. I don't want one of the rare occasions where temptation is too much and they don't come back on the first call to be a time when it causes a problem for a child or a nervous dog.

I've noticed more and more that children ask me before they stroke the dogs which is really nice to see. As it is my two are incredibly friendly but I do always tell the children that they may be licked if they start stroking them so at least they are pre-warned.

It does make me cross when I've put so much time and effort into training my dogs (they are definitely not perfect, but we try our best) to see other dog owners who don't have the same regard for other people and let their dogs run around with their behaviour unchecked. I was almost knocked flat by a huge dog recently who covered me with mud whilst the owner stood there laughing. I wasn't thrilled.

YANBU

I hate strange dogs running up to me and the DC. I grew up with dogs but don't really like them, I was attacked when younger. Now they make me nervous.

bogeyface you're missing the point - it doesn't matter what an owner thinks about their dog's behaviour - if it is not under control by the definition of the by law. It is out of control.

The law is the law - same as speeding is illegal even if the driver thinks it's ok, and a teenage with an ASBO has behaved anti-socially whether its mother thinks its a little darling or not.

Honestly, some posters on this thread are being a little obtuse. Nobody has said 'a dog is as important as a human', or that the OP is unreasonable. People are disputing the extremist responses of some posters that all dogs should be leashed at all times, and pointing out that it is ethically unacceptable to curtail the basic needs of animals whose lives are, through no fault of their own, entwined with humans, when that animal has been sufficiently trained so that it can be trusted to avoid children, runners, cyclists and other users of the space.

Clouds and trees - you may not have a problem with your dog running up to and licking children but other people do. I think it is disgusting and repulsive when some dog comes up to my children and slobbers all over them. I cannot understand why some dog owners think that this is acceptable.

AAARGH!

Just had ANOTHER one. Terrier type, small rather than toy breed. NOT on the lead, runs up to me quite ferociously growling and barking and pushing it's nose towards my feet in a warning kind of motion. I had to stop running, the owner was walking off ahead oblivious to his animal until it started barking.

'he won't hurt you, he only wants to chase you!'

I don't fucking want your fucker dog to chase me, it is 22C outside and I want to get my run done before it gets any hotter and it should be on a fucking lead!

I didn't really swear at him, I was mid run and didn't want to waste any more time arguing with him. If this has been DH though, who is very nervous of dogs, he'd have been terrified. He'd have probably sped up and agitated the dog even more and possibly got bitten! Why DO people have dogs they can't control :(

cloutie, RTFT, Clouds has already clarified that she means her dogs don't ever do that.

Oh and just to clarify, this was a road where the dog should have been on the lead and not a park or such.

I LIKE dogs, but I hate irresponsible owners. Half the time I end up feeling sorry for the dog really. I worry that I am going to kick one, or that it is going to bite someone who doesn't know how to react to it, and that's hardly the dog's fault, not having been properly trained!

Chops, that owner needs their head banging off a wall. If they know if wants to chase, it has done it before - and why take the risk on a road, ffs.

youthecat

clearly in your son's case this wouldn't help - its a generalisation. But I do believe in most cases teaching both people and dogs to be with each other would minimise trouble.

OP, don't give a smile, tight lipped or not.
I find the appropriate response to 'don't worry he's only being freindly' when a dog runs up to me yapping, barking, jumping up or otherwise being too friendly is 'I'm not worried, I just don't want your dog near me'. It's a complete sentence, not impolite and clearly states what you want to happen.
I don't have a problem with dogs off the lead so long as they keep to themselves.

My point was, you don't know if someone out there, being sniffed by your friendly dog, has SN. You don't know if someone is absolutely terrified of dogs or not. I don't know if your dog is friendly and so I assume not. Yes, children need to be shown how to be around dogs and not to run to them.

Dogs need to be on a lead. If your dog tends to snap, then it needs a muzzle when out.

Ds has made some progress when he goes to the stables and there are dogs around. Progress is that he doesn't totally freak out if he can see a dog, but they still have to be kept away from him or he will go into total fear lead meltdown, which is dangerous for him, the people around him and any dogs. Bad dog owners really limit where he can go.

With the exception of one dog-dangerous dog with stupid owner who doesn't seem to realise that pinning another dog to the floor isn't playing I have just never met all these strange owners. And I see loads of dogs of lead.

Must be lucky.

My pet hate. 'Oh he's really friendly'. My friend's 'really friendly' dog bit DS on the face when he was two. He still has the scar and still struggles when near dogs, although at 18 he is more likely to quietly remove himself than to scream and get upset. He has AS and a fear of dogs has not been helpful to him growing up. He will not, for example, go walking round lakes or in areas where people walk dogs and until recently would cross the road if he saw a dog coming on a lead. Now he is more likely to walk in the gutter to avoid it.
I also hate the way people walking round our local lake, where it clearly states 'All dogs must be on a lead during the breeding season' think it doesn't apply to their dog, because it will walk to heel.
Dogs are animals and they can be unpredictable. There was no indication that the dog concerned was going to bite DS. He suddenly lunged forward and did it.
YANBU

YANBU, just revolting.

I would go absolutely crazy if a dog tried to lick me or my children.

Yes, it's completely irrelevant if the dog is "friendly".

I do not want to be "friends" with your dog

'I don't have a problem with my dog running up to people and licking them or sniffing them. He might run past people and be near them, but we use a public park which we have as much right to use as parents with children and my dog does nothing wrong. '

Would you have a problem with your dog having a pot of cayenne tipped over it if it ran up to me and touched me?
All I want is to be ignored by dogs. That's it really. Completely ignored.

I remember being at the beach with DS 4 years old, DD 2 and DS2 a baby. Some dog ran up, jumped at DD and knocked her under the waves. It was seriously unwelcome, and the owner didnt give a stuff.

All those owners who go for a nice walk with their mates through our local park, with their dogs off the lead, behind them where they cant see them, or dont bother to watch, while they shit everywhere and jump up at us.

Owners who walk their dogs along the pavement on extending leads, and let them set up a nice little tripwire at ankle height just as you come round the corner.

Keep an eye on your dog. Recognise that other people dont have your strong stomach for the smell of dog lick and the sight and smell of poo.

I grew up with a staffy. I adored her. She was always under complete control, that went with the deal.

Sorry - I've just read it again. I had read it to mean that she didn't see dogs licking strangers as being a problem. I'll ask for the posts to be deleted.

no worries, poor old Clouds is getting it in the neck that's all.

I completely understand some people don't like dogs, I loathe cats. I wouldn't assume an adult or child would want anything to do with my dog but I do get a bit weary of the children who immediately start screeching the second they see a dog - really if your child is that traumatised by something it will see pretty much on a daily basis then it would be wise to try to make them more comfortable around dogs rather than pander to it. They perhaps may never like them but to acclimatise them so they can walk past one in the street would be wise. We had two dogs when the children were small, I always kept them away from visiting children but would definitely not invite around a child I knew was scared.

But all dogs should be on leads at all times" not allowing a dog to run, particularly an active dog like mine, would actually be cruel. In the unlikely event that she were to jump up, or lick I would tell her off - she is rarely out of my sight though so unlikely to hassle anyone.

Mine would not run up to you, if she liked the look of you she may stop in front of you and put her head down for a stroke - she is cautious as she has been too badly treated by her previous owner.

Ignoring and stepping back if dogs hassle you is the best way to deal with them - making a fuss just excites them more.

We all have things we don't like - I hate motorbikes, cats, rabbits and intrusive children (you know the ones who hang off of your seat and run up and down the aisle on the plane while their indulgent gimp parents looks on) Other people dong so I just have to find a way to deal with it.