Other peoples dogs

[Burke1]

AIBU to ask that people with dogs that they can't control keep them on a lead in public? Witnessed one dog run towards a group of other dogs on a walk. He was much bigger than them and scared them by chasing them for ages and his owner did bugger all to get him back. If you can't control the dog, keep it on a lead, so it doesn't annoy other people and other dogs.

[tomandizzymum]

Cute dogs. My experience of our local strays, and the pets that a free to follow them is that the boss dog is not one humans would point out straight away. She's a manky old bitch, JR cross, what they call a paulistinho. She's mean though, my puppy respects her. She growls at others who step out of line. But like klept said. They don't fight or cause injury by nature. When I first moved here and asked if the stays posed a threat people looked at me like I'd lost it. like "that crazy English woman, don't they have dogs in the UK?"...

[EasyToEatTiger]

Lovely dogs Chiggers! Well done you! And your dogs!

[Chiggers]

The default position I have with my own dogs are that although they are big soppy gits, I will never trust ANY dog/animal 100%. Chiggerdog was beaten, neglected and starved by his previous owners. When we started fostering him (6wks after he was taken into rescue), we could still count every bone on his ribcage. We started socialising him and found that he was quite aggressive, but with time and patience he now runs away from Chihuahuas in an attempt to get them to chase him. He's a big wuss though.

A wee while ago, I took Chiggerdog and Chiggerbitch (his adoptive sister) to the old running track up the road from us, for a bound around and play. A wee Jack Russell got into the grounds through a hole in the dividing fence that wasn't there the day before, and Chiggerdog bounded over gave a playful bark to try and coax the JRT to play. The JRT gave a low-level growl and Chiggerdog ran behind me, cocked his head to the side to look from behind my legs, as if to say "Mummy, mummy, mummy, that big beast is going to eat me". Let's just say the JRT was a fat wee doddery old man. Chiggerdog was about 4x the size of him and scared shitless of it Both the JRT's owner and I thought we'd need a box of Tena pads we were laughing that much at scaredydog .

Here's a photo of Chiggerdog and his big-little sister. The brown one is Chiggerdog BTW

[EasyToEatTiger]

Rant over.

[EasyToEatTiger]

I agree with you Sunshine. It's lovely watching lots of dogs off lead racing around. I really miss it. Bad things rarely happen but when they do, they're bad. When we lived in London, there were sometimes dogs who were just roaming for the day. I don't like that much. We kept out of their way. There are an awful lot of dog owners out there looking for a fight. It's not difficult to distract from dogs on leads. Leads cause all sorts of problems to a dog, regarding communication/being able to get away etc, although of course we need to use them sometimes. Education, not ranting, I guess is key.

[SunshineAndShadows]

Looks like OP hasn't come back - Just started a goady thread about a dog causing no problems to her, who was in all likelihood playing with other dog friends, so that everyone else can jump on the dog hating bandwagon with their own unrelated anecdotes.

Awesome. Thanks so much OP.

When dogs are friends they run, chase, play, growl and bite. If it goes on for ages without escalation then its much more likely to be friendly. There's nothing in the OP that indicates this dog was doing anything remotely antisocial, aggressive or upsetting.

But please don't let common sense or a an understanding of basic dog behaviour get in the way of judgement and hating

[Taz1212]

I do think you shouldn't just let your dog race up to other dogs and this is something we work on every day over and over and over again!

[Taz1212]

I don't think you can tell from the OP if the dogs were frightened or not. My 7 month old puppy (small/med sized) absolutely loves to be chased by large German Shepard dogs. If you saw him on the field being tackled by one of his doggy friends, rolled over and pinned down you'd probably think he was being terrorised. 99% of the time. He's loving it and goes back for more. The other 1% of the time he will let out a little squeal and the other dog immediately backs off.

[EasyToEatTiger]

How do YOU know????

[Nearasdammit]

Sigh. They don't HAVE to be aggressive to be a nuisance. The OP states that a bigger dog SCARED the other, smaller dogs by chasing them for ages.

That is NOT socialisation. That is possibly setting the other dogs up for having issues. But hey it's ok because the big dog was having fun eh?!

[paxtecum]

I'm with Sunshine.
I thought puppies went to 'socialisation' classes, so they learn to say hello to each other, ie sniff each other's rear ends and then play or trot off.

Luckily where I live 99% of dog walkers think the same and enjoy watching the dogs chase around.

[Nearasdammit]

For those who, for whatever reason need their on lead dog NOT to be approached by other dogs, one thing I've found incredibly useful is a "Watch Me" cue.

If there's a dog in the distance that has spotted your dog and looks like it might be thinking about coming over, asking your dog to hold eye contact with you, rather than eyeballing the other dog is sometimes enough to cause the other dog to lose interest in yours.

Not comparing this with LAT and similar techniques - but since I've been asking for a watch I've noticed FAR FAR fewer other dogs have even bothered coming over.

[Nearasdammit]

Exactly FisherQueen.

My dog is very good at telling other dogs off if they come too close and she feels threatened but I don't want her practising that behaviour thank you very much. I've spent a long time getting her to be more comfortable around other dogs and just one bad incident is enough to set her back WEEKS. Sorry but I'm not willing to let her feel uncomfortable just so that some muppet who can't/won't show some consideration can have their dog "taught a lesson". Teach your own dog!!

[SoonToBeMrsB]

Totally agree. My dog isn't great with other dogs so he is never allowed off his lead but I hate taking him to the park because everyone and their granny allows their dogs to run wild. I've actually had to lift my dog up and remove him from the area because other dogs come running up, getting him all stressed and their owners do nothing.

[FisherQueen]

Just because it would do your dog good to be told off by an older dog kitten doesn't make it good for the dog doing the telling off, it can set back training and cause stress and real harm to the dog being harassed. My older dog is on lead, muzzled and walked in quiet places at quiet times or in parks that are on lead only. Just because he can't harm another dog hasn't stopped him having seizures when he has been repeatedly harassed by a dog that is unable to socialise correctly (and yes a dog that ignores the clearly uncomfortable/avoid body language he displays before he even gets to the vocal displays is poorly socialised and a bully).

[Nearasdammit]

*NOT preventing

[Nearasdammit]

Stance A) that dogs should be able to interact with other dogs at will especially if they're not aggressive and that anyone who disagrees is a dog hater and if their dog reacts it's THEM who is BU.

Stance B) that dogs who can't be trusted not to run up to people/other dogs should be kept on lead until their recall/ability to ignore distractions is reliable, and that preventing your dog from approaching others until you've checked it's ok is Just Very Rude at best.

Stance A tends to be taken by people who either can't control their dogs, or are Very Rude, or both.

Stance B tends to be taken by people who have manners, or know a bit about dogs, or both.

[Owllady]

My dog can be a bit sharp with other dogs so I keep her on the lead with dogs we don't know (she's a collie too kelp, a young one)

[SoupDragon]

Those extendable leads drive me mad.

No, crap dog owners drive you mad.

[Behindthepaintedgarden]

Those extendable leads drive me mad. Yes, some dog owners have common sense and retract them when people are around, but others don't bother and their dog might as well be running free. Are there any regulations about how those leads should be used in public spaces?

Re dog parks, there's one in my local park (Marley Park in Dublin). It still doesn't stop lots of selfish dog owners allowing their dogs to run around off the leash in the main part of the park where children are playing and elderly people are walking around

[kittentwo]

Thata great all bark an no bite is fine as a youngster it does her good to be put in her place by an older dog but there is a massive difference between true aggression and an older dog telling a pup whos boss I have no problem with that my older one puts her in her place all the time .

[ExitPursuedByABear]

kitten. No I won't muzzle my on lead dog just because your youngster might approach him. As I have said, he is all bark and no bite, your dog is your responsibility.

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

I have no problem with dogs under close control (not a dog owner).

But two things I wanted to say:

A jogger should not have to slow down for dogs. If your dog instinctively chases moving objects surely it should be on a short leash?

I think it is possible to train your dog to shit at home/on command. Dont guide dogs do this?

[bubalou]

They're a great idea wasytoeattiger

However I have one

Seems to make no fucking difference! Haha

[EasyToEatTiger]

Get a Yellow Ribbon then. www.yellowdoguk.co.uk . There are actions you can take. There is a choice.