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Original poster

Dogs should always be under close control, even if they are just being friendly?

220 replies

Model5 · 20/04/2015 12:56

I'm scared of dogs. I know that's my issue and I deal with it as best I can but I don't want dogs I don't know approaching me.

Out running in the woods early this morning, most of the other people about at that time of day are either runners or dog walkers. In my hour, I had two dogs run over and slobber over my legs, one just up and put muddy paw prints all over me and another came over yapping and growling at me. Another (big one) chased & frightened me and I stood stock still praying for it to go away while it's owner called several times without success.

All of the owners, were kind of apologetic, but in aw bless, what can you do, he just wants to say hello/play kind of way.

TBH, even if I wasn't scared I wouldn't be very impressed by the slobber and paw prints.

Lots of other dogs just trotted by without giving me a second glance and several owners took hold of their dogs as they saw me approach (which I always say thank you for) so I know it's possible to stop dogs approaching me. Lots of owners seem to think it's not necessary. Is it them or me? I realise I came to no real harm. Do I just need to accept that if I go out at prime dog walking time, I'm going to get growled at, chased, slobbered over etc?

OP posts:
mousmous · 21/04/2015 12:00

sorry, badly worded.
I don't care how the dogs are kept under close control. it's not my job to police that but whilst too many owners are not responsible owner atm dog leashed at all times is the easiest (to police) option.

lucycant · 21/04/2015 12:01

YANBU. But some dogs are much harder to train than others. Some breeds are very difficult to train.

Comfortzone · 21/04/2015 12:01

Not all dogs do this so it's very much proof that they CAN be trained not to jump up at humans/children by either throwing a ball far for them to catch if the owner sees kids running around up ahead. Plenty of dogs never ever come over that shows good training on the part of their owners

Comfortzone · 21/04/2015 12:03

Lemon my protective instincts towards my kids somehow DO kick in when a husky dog twice their size gallops forth in their direction at high speed and comes very close for its nose to touch them sniff etc. what do you suppose I do to protect them and get this non verbal dog away?

lemonhope · 21/04/2015 12:04

"Not all dogs do this so it's very much proof that they CAN be trained not to jump up at humans/children by either throwing a ball far for them to catch if the owner sees kids running around up ahead. Plenty of dogs never ever come over that shows good training on the part of their owners"

all dogs are different. all breeds are different. I have three dogs and two of them are the kind of model citizens wished for by most of the posters on this thread. The other one is a nutter (although never ever vicious has never even growled) and thinks everyone is his friend - he is annoying to people.

(he's my favourite)

lemonhope · 21/04/2015 12:06

"Lemon my protective instincts towards my kids somehow DO kick in when a husky dog twice their size gallops forth in their direction at high speed and comes very close for its nose to touch them sniff etc. what do you suppose I do to protect them and get this non verbal dog away?"

ask the owner if he is likely to bite. If the owner says no he is really friendly then ask if your children can stroke it. Then let your children pat it. Hopefully they will grow up and be respectful and not scared of dogs.

lucycant · 21/04/2015 12:10

I had a dog for a while who was almost untrainable. He was small and never aggressive, but he was also very very thick. You could see him trying to figure out what you wanted him to do, but he just seemed incapable of learning.
I always put him on a lead if I saw joggers coming. But I tried to take him out when there would be no one else around. He was scared of other dogs and wouldn't go near them.
The only way I ever managed to get him to come to me, was with the offer of treats. He never figured out that he was only offered a treat on a walk before he was put back on the lead.

Comfortzone · 21/04/2015 12:26

That's good advice thanks Lemon

AndWhenYouGetThere · 21/04/2015 12:28

If someone with dog allergies (like my DC) can't use the park/beach/woods, then that's a problem.

If dog owners train their dogs properly, or keep them on lead, both can use the areas together. It's untrained dogs and obnoxious owners that give my DC problems.

lemonhope · 21/04/2015 12:30

obviously if the owner says 'yes he is likely to bite' then he's a fuckwit for letting it off the lead!

LST · 21/04/2015 12:47

It's unfair to tar all dog owners with the same brush and I stand by what I said earlier! It is cruel to keep well behaved dogs on a lead.

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2015 12:54

So you don't want to police responsible training but will happily police us who are responsible to have to leash them at all times.

Great.

What I would like to see is special dog and owner only areas so people can train their dogs. Because y'know, training starts somewhere but at the moment we only have areas in which other people are. And in the early stages of training it's bloody difficult, especially if they're a rescue dog and especially if people are having a whinge at you.

lemonhope · 21/04/2015 13:03

yes good point grays

it was bloody hard trying to train my dog recall

maybe there should be nice big grassy areas specifically for dog owners with no runners, cyclists, picnics or small children allowed.

SaucyJack · 21/04/2015 13:03

lucycant Grin

I had a cat like your dog once. You could almost see the cogs whirring, but nothing would compute. It was painful to watch.

voluptuagoodshag · 21/04/2015 13:38

When you see properly, well trained dogs it is a joy. Look at police dogs, guide dogs, sheep dogs, gun dogs. They do exactly as they are told, every time. To achieve that needs a lot of work/patience/time which most folk don't have but they'll keep a dog anyway and if it sits and gives you a paw then they consider it trained.
Guide dogs spend a whole year with a puppy walker before commencing their formal training. They are with this person constantly.
Police dogs are similar and live with their handler.
Out of the number of dogs I know reasonably well, I can think of only two that are a pleasure to be with. They do as they are told and one is never off the leash even though she seems a big sweetie.
The other dogs, one eats everything in sight, cannot be let off the leash as will chase everything in sight, constantly pulls when out for a walk. Another never comes when called, runs through picnics. another cannot be let off the leash as it is a greyhound and will chase down any smaller dog and kill it. Another yaps away and constantly wants attention (both 'parents' out at work all day. When it's dog walker comes by the poor dog goes mental with joy just to see her). And the worst one of all will growl, bark, jump up when you first come in, pester you constantly, gets a hold of items of clothing belonging to you and bares teeth when you try to get it back and to top it all tried to shag my leg for 2 hours during dinner so I had to kneel at the table. It then went behind me and jabbed it's nose into my butt constantly so I'd put my legs down for another shag. When we retired to soft seats, it was on me again. Owners laughed and said oh dear, he's behaving really badly before I got so pissed off they finally locked him in their car. But not the dogs fault, just the owner.
Dogs are pack animals and need company. To get one and be at work all day is just wrong IMO. There was a documentary on TV where dogs were filmed. 85% of them had some issue to a greater or lesser degree. The pathetic owners were watching the playback crying because they hadn't realised. Duuuuuuh.

lucycant · 21/04/2015 13:46

Guide dogs, police dogs are chosen for their ability to understand what is being asked of them, and their obedience.
I had a labrador who was incredibly obedient. I did train him, but his nature was to please, and he was very intelligent. He was easy to train and would walk to heel.
Dogs are animals. Like children, some are easy to get to be well behaved, some are not.

maninawomansworld · 21/04/2015 13:55

YANBU. But some dogs are much harder to train than others. Some breeds are very difficult to train.

Agree, however people should do their research before buying a dog and make sure they get one that has the right characteristics for their situation / experience level.

I have spaniels and they are very well trained gundogs. I don't need to lead them ever. I walk them through the middle of a flock of sheep or a herd of cattle and they'll do as they're told and walk to heel.

When friends see them doing this for the first time the response is always the same 'gosh that's incredible, ours is bloody loopy' etc...

My response is usually something along the lines of ' well if you will buy a high energy dog that requires 2 - 3 hours off lead every day and lots of mental stimulation then give it a couple of short walks round suburbia with the kids on weekends before locking it in the house for 10 hours a day while you work 9-5 what do you think is going to happen?'

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2015 14:28

I just wanted to add this because it might give an insight into why I can't let my dog in the garden all the time and free run as people have suggested

Me and my dog sat in the garden enjoying the sun. I briefly walk into the living room (opens straight out onto the garden) and a group of lads walk past and say 'i could have had that dog the other day, I'm gunna get that i'm telling ya'

So yeah, forgive me if I don't want to let my dog spend all his outdoor life in the garden, forgive me if I can't let him get all his exercise there. I can't even go 2 feet away without threats of him being stolen.

Least if I take him out for a 20 minute walk/run he gets all the exercise he needs, with me that is safe.

Instead of a few hours in the garden (which doesnt come close to a good run offlead anyway) where he's at risk of being stolen.

It's not as simple as just letting them come and go.

lucycant · 21/04/2015 14:38

Dogs will not get enough exercise in most gardens to replace a long walk off the lead. Dogs need to be able to run about and be active for long periods of time.

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2015 14:42

I agree, and running involves using different muscles that wouldn't get exercised were they confined to a garden.

I just wish people would be more tolerant. We all have to share this world.

mousmous · 21/04/2015 14:42

then run about and be active with your dog close by

tabulahrasa · 21/04/2015 14:45

Dogs won't get enough exercise in a standard garden and all dogs being on lead just to make sure the owners who don't control their dogs aren't a pita is going way too far and probably wouldn't make a difference anyway as being on a lead doesn't automatically mean under control...you still have to do things with an on lead dog to keep it under control.

However plenty of people do have on lead only dogs and manage to give them enough exercise, it just takes more work.

It's easier with most dogs to get a reliable recall than to exercise them on lead.

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2015 14:45

He is close by, but he's off the lead.

I myself can't run because of my arthritis.

tbtc · 21/04/2015 14:53

Complete and utter lack of tolerance in here due to hysterical and ignorant attitudes.

My lack of tolerance is born of my experience of I'd say 3 out of 5 dogs giving me bother when I run. The majority of dogs bother me when I run so my default when I see one is to prepare (look around for the owner, carry on running slowly to gauge nature of dog, stop if necessary). I am even less tolerant when said dogs are not even meant to be off the lead in the first place.

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2015 15:08

So basically all you're doing is what any dog walker should do.

Stop, have a look if anyone is around, gauge the situation.

It's not asking for your last breath is it.

Using your logic, I can say my tolerance for runners has run low.
Many MANY times we've had our activity interrupted because runners have ran in the middle of us then started complaining that my dog has gone to them, despite me instantly recalling him. I simply clip on lead, wait till they're back out of eyeshot and let him go again. I don't find this painstakingly hard, a bit like you shouldn't find it that difficult to slow down or what have you.

People make the tiniest things seem oh so difficult and life ruining. Being part of society means you give people leeway and in turn you receive it too. Running in public means people might disturb your run at a point. Dog walking in public means your activity might be disturbed at some point.

But when people start dictating and trying to restrict others from their day to day activities that becomes a problem.