for wanting to walk in the park without being bounced on by giant b*stard dogs?

[bohemianbint]

Shouldn't people keep an eye on their fricking dogs and not let them run all over parks and scare the crap out of people? Was subjected to about 5 minutes fending the world's biggest dog off before the stupid bitch of an owner came sauntering round the corner. Don't people understand that just because they think their dog is great doesn't mean anyone else does?

martianbishop I'm sure you've looked into this, and this is just an honest question not a dig or anything, but did you know there are loads of breeds that have a different type of coat, and don't affect allergies? My friend's brother has terrible asthma, had to use a nebuliser at night when he was a child etc, and they always had dogs, mainly Maltese Terriers and Tibetan Terriers as he could live happily alongside them. I believe that also poodles are the same, plus the new "labradoodle" if you can put up with the funny name!

connie - if i hadn't been attacked and scared to death by dogs when i was small, do you think i would have what you call a dog phoia now ? yes, i am serious about wishing to carry a weapon. have thought about it often, even as a lawyer i feel absolutley no need to hide this desire if it will mean saving my child or another child from getting killed. what is wrong with knowing how to deal with a vicious dog, even if it involves something as unpleasant as putting something up it's backside ? i would say it is unreasonable to think that such a thing will NEVER happen to a child you know. that would be like saying ALL dogs and their owners are ok, which we all know is just not true. better safe than sorry.

no i don't wish ds to have a phobia, in fact he is always going up to dogs in the park and i have to make sure he doesn't touch them. i just want him to know that it is not safe to approach or touch dogs whose owners we don't know. judging by the terrible story of the little girl who was killed by her grandmother's dog, i would say that even dogs you DO know and whose owners you DO know may not always be safe.

they are dogs, not cute little rabbits. even cute little rabbits bite, i was bitten by a hamster at school and bled quite badly. small children need to be told that not all animals are safe.

I am loath to do this. My SIL tried, and her asthma became so bad they had to get rid of the dog to a friend.

Now, the dog is still very much loved, and well cared for, but BIL and SIL are gutted that they 'lost' the dog.

I don't want to do that to my son.

Better not to have one, than to get one and to have to later give it up.

He is so allergic to cats btw that simply being in the car with someone who has a cat csn set him off.

i agree with MB. ALL dogs need to be on a lead in public places. let them run around in places that are private, your garden, not in parks full of small children. it is irresponsible to let them loose and obviously most councils think so too, as most parks i go to have signs to have a dog on a lead, which is more often than not ignored.

i

Yellowrose, my point is that if you honestly feel the need to carry a weapon around in the event of a dog attack you are obviously traumatised by earlier events. It is this fear that needs to be dealt with not how to kill an animal.

I tell my children that we don't approach an animal we don't know - not that all strange animals are not safe - don't instill fear but instill respect and caution.

MB, not sure what the answer is but I walk my dogs on leads down some tight alleyways/footpaths so no doubt being on a lead doesn't prevent your son inevitably coming into contact with animals as part of everydaylife.

Finally, I think the attitude towards dogs is pretty horrible on this thread, supposedly from a nation of animal lovers. Yes, dogs have been involved in horrible events with children but every case I have ever read involved a careless and irresponsible owner and often previous incidents of the dog biting. It is not your average labrador going for a run in the park.

What about all the good work dogs have done for people? Guide dogs, companions for the elderly and other vulnerable adults, police dogs and PAT dogs?

Haven't read the whole thread but IMO bringing back dog licences, but making it compulsory to attend dog (or should that be dog owner) training classes before it is issued would be a big help.

When we had our dog (RIP ) we made sure he was well trained before he was ever let off the leash. We could allow him to run free because he would freeze or return to us at a single command and never went more than 20 yds from us anyway. He was trained not to approach people.

Connie, nothing in life will reduce the risk to zero, but I'm telling you that it would significantly help.

If people are more important than dogs, then when dogs are in parks , they should be on leads.

Worrying sheep gets a dog shot.

Worrying children gets the dog lovers of MN up in arms. Go figure

Children first dogs second surely

Dogs are hardly a public health hazard.

If people know nothing about dogs they should make no judgemental comments either.

Untrained dogs on the loose probably are a health hazard. Not least because they don't have opposable thumbs to aid poo scooping.

I recommend Sue Townsend's book "Queen Camilla"!
One of the storylines is that the Prime Minister tries to ban dogs in the UK; it is a parody of the nanny state, but I found myself agreeing with the PM a lot of the time!

My DS was licked in the face by an over-enthusiastic dog that came bounding up to him with the owner calling after for it to stop. He's only 2 and the dog was bigger than him. He was scared and started crying, regardless of my reaction. He's also immunosupressed due to a transplant and could have caught something from the dog. I just wish that owners would take responsibility and if they can't keep control of their dogs, they should not take them to places like parks. I also get really pissed off with the amount of dog s**t all over the place - why can't people pick it up????????????

I have relatives who bought a pair or Tibetan terriers on the basis that they would not set their son's numerous allergies off. And they don't.

But they sure as hell set mine off! Probably not quite as bad as some other breeds, but a visit there still involves inhalers, antihistamines, a compulsory shower and complete change of clothes afterwards. Just as well it's only once or twice a year.

Dogs are hardly a public health hazard. Well perhaps not the dogs themselves but there is a risk to public health and that is
toxocariasis.

Toxocariasis

Toxocariasis is an infection of the round worm Toxocara canis. It is a zoonotic disease that is spread via unwashed vegetables and dog faeces. Young children in particular are at risk due to their weaker immune systems and because they are more likely to expose themselves by ingesting the eggs. A puppy can pass as many as 15,000 eggs per gram of faeces, and they are a major source of environmental contamination.

Each T. canis female can lay up to 700 eggs a day. These are passed out when the dog defecates and can survive for up to three years in soil. After two to three weeks of warm weather the eggs develop into an embryo state, containing larva - this is when they become infective to dogs and people.

The larvae try to migrate through the human body as they would in a dog's, but the human body treats them as foreign material, which causes a reaction and tissue damage.

There are two types of toxocariasis: visceral larva migrans (VLM) and ocular larva migrans (OLM).

In VLM, the larvae reach the liver, causing inflammation and symptoms such as abdominal pain and pyrexia. Most people recover spontaneously.

OLM occurs when a migrating larva reaches the eye. It causes a granuloma to form on the retina, causing significant visual impairment and in severe cases even blindness.

There are about 12 new cases of OLM diagnosed annually in the UK.

FFS!

The park that I take my dog to has areas where the dog has to be 'under control' and areas where the dog has to be 'on a leash', and even an area where dogs are not permitted.

I let my lovely little cocker off the leash and all she does is run in and out of the rhododendrons and sniffs other dogs' bottoms. She ignores other people totally (apart from us).

Dogs aren't the only hazard in parks - I find the rollerblade/ipod combination much worse.

Oh dear! This thread has turned into a stupid childish war!
The bottom line is is that dog owners should be responsible and not let them bound and jump at kids in parks. Wether they are being friendly and excitable or not. And cleaning up after their dog. As a dog owner myself, I do this. Im sure everyone agrees with this.
But this thread has been blown way out of proportion!! Silly comments about black dogs, savage dogs, dogs shouldnt be let off in woodland areas, germs etc etc... It all sounds bloody ridiculous and there are too many nit pickers on here!!!
How on earth did a thread about dogs jumping up at kids turn into a pathetic 'debate' that has been twisted round to the point where it cant be taken seriously anymore! Some comments obviously come from snobby, bone idle, hypocontriacs! Who need to learn to relax and stop being so uptight!
I completely understand about the allergy thing btw. I have a dog but he is well behaved and only off the lead in woodland areas. He doesnt wonder to far and doeant bound and jump at kids. But loves it when kids approach him and make a fuss. I think its lovely.
Some kids approach dogs and some dog owners have timid dogs. So it works the same as some people need to control their kids!!!

Our local park is mainly fenced and gated off as a 'dog free zone' which is just great. There's plenty of room in the other areas for them to run around.

This is much smarter then having a fenced off 'dog execise area' , there is one of those near my grans house and people seem to treat it as a huge dog loo so it always smells disgusting, especially in summer.

IMHO dogs are largely treated in the uk as the owners ickle babies which is why the majority don't train them properly (as do the owners of working dogs, guide dogs, sheep dogs etc).

Poorly trained dogs are a total pain for the whole community but people in our society are shameless about this. You're not allowed to criticise anyone for anything anymore.

I think if people really loved dogs they would train them properly. Dog happier. Society happier. Dogs are animals not ickle wickle babies.

[whispering] I do kinda agree with connie's first post. We have 2 dogs and we take them on the school run (we tie them up out of the way) And even though they are on the lead and not paying attention to anyone, there was still a woman who snatched her son away as soon as she saw the dogs, it was a very obvious and ott reaction. I must admit that I did not consider that the child had asthma etc. However, after a year of this, the mum stopped doing it and the boy petted my dog. He looked so happy. I want my kids to have a healthy respect for dogs too, and I do get annoyed when children come up to my dogs without their parents being there, I know my dogs are friendly, but how do they? IYSWIM.
And my house doesn't stink.

By the way, my kids come first. We got a second dog last year, the littermate of my greyhound (it ended up back at dogstrust, and we decided to have her too!). Anyways, the second dog bit my daughter. It went back. Even though we looove our dogs (we have 2 again) if they started biting they would go. End of!

Droile's story is just marvellous. LOL.
We've got so fed up with large dogs bounding into our picnics, scaring the children and drooling onto/eating our sandwiches while their owners (if they're anywhere near, usually they're out of sight) laugh indulgently at them that we've joined Kew Gardens.
Yes it is on the other side of London and very pricey but dogs are barred -- so children are free to roam around, making camps in the shrubberies without fear of getting crap all over their hands and shoes

i own a collie and he is not always on the lead but always in sight and will come to me as soon as i tell him and that is the key. i am not sure what the law is but think it is something like dogs have to be under control at all times (and in all honesty ,even with a well behaved dog like mine ,the only way to achieve that is to keep it on a lead).i think it is percieved threat that they look at rather than actually waiting for you to be bitten so you do have a valid legal point. YANBU to expect to be able to walk down the street without being accosted by anyone/thing and if my dog jumped up at a strange child he doesnt know i would be horrified. most people that let their dogs run around jumping at other people are just being selfish i am sure they would get f*$ked off if someone with a well behaved tiger started jumping at them some councils operate a policy that you must put your dog on a lead if requested to do so by a council official/police officer, so it may be worth reporting to the council so that they know there's a problem and can perhaps send soemone to monitor/keep an eye/change policy etc.

Dogs should be on leads unless they are on their owners land imo!