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Original poster

To be furious over what has just happened?

652 replies

DippyDiplodocus · 15/01/2019 09:46

Out Walking our dogs and my 6 month old baby in carrier. I have four dogs and look after one of my friend's dogs while she's at work occasionally. My four are quite large, the biggest being big German shepherd size and the smallest is a pug (friend's dog).

Before I get flamed for having too many dogs, two were mine, two my DH's before we met, so obviously we now have four. We aren't the kind of people to get rid of dogs just because we had a child - dogs are family too and we treat them as such.

We live in the countryside, very quiet rural area.
Coming to the end of our walk over the fields (where I never usually see any other walkers) I see another dog approaching - muzzled Siberian husky with a bloke.
At this point I already have four on leads ready for the road back to our house and bent down squat position to put pug on a lead.

I thought man would stop when he saw me bent down but he carried on approaching. I was struggling to get wriggly pug back on lead so I called out to him "can you just wait there a sec so I can get this one on the lead?" - No response and continues towards us.

Still trying to get dog on lead and my dogs are now getting a bit twitchy and unsettled that this bloke is approaching them, so one of mine barks.
Just to add here, our dogs are all very well behaved but they are protective over me and DD and will act accordingly if they feel threatened.

Man takes no notice, I call out again and say "can you just give me a second?" Ignores me completely.

He decides to squeeze by my dogs and I with a stupid smirk on his face. He can clearly see I'm struggling and baby is now crying and the others are pissed off. One of mine pulled forward and I dug my heels in and sat back so as not to land on my daughter.

I shouted at him and called him a fucking arsehole.

If he could have waited one second, I'd have been out the way and that wouldn't have had to have happened.

FFS Angry I just despise people at times.

OP posts:
Shockers · 15/01/2019 12:22

He was a twat. You put your hand up to signal that you needed a second or two.

Wordthe · 15/01/2019 12:22

Certainly walking multiple dogs is a logistical problem, but it is your problem other people shouldn't have to put up with the nuisance of multiple dogs

The obvious solution is not to get multiple dogs

Yulebealrite · 15/01/2019 12:23

What would have happened if all other factors remained the same but the dog wasn't muzzled and was loose?

How can I possibly answer that question without a crystal ball?

But that's the key point. It may well have ended up ok this time - BUT it may not have done and it might not do at some point in the future. You just cannot guarantee your baby's safety 100%.

Op, I can see why you feel picked on but the majority of people agree that the man could and should have been more considerate, however the fact is, he wasn't. So YANBU to be annoyed. HOWEVER what happens next time? The outcome may be different.

Yes, we get it's difficult. Yes, we get that you didn't choose to have 4 dogs. Yes, we get the other two dog owners work. It's not easy. But we also get that a baby in a sling is being put in danger by this situation. Because next time it MIGHT not end so well.

Original poster
DippyDiplodocus · 15/01/2019 12:24

The obvious solution is not to get multiple dogs @Wordthe
If you read the full thread you will find that this has already been addressed.

OP posts:
thedancingbear · 15/01/2019 12:24

now if he was a real twat he could have rounded on you, whilst you were alone with out of control dogs and a baby, on your own, in a secluded area.

There's nothing really to suggest the guy is any more than a bit discourteous (maybe). If he didn't react to the OP screaming abuse then he's probably quite a restrained fellow.

ILoveMaxiBondi · 15/01/2019 12:24

he did not.

I’m now 100% convinced he didn’t hear you asking him to wait.

Original poster
DippyDiplodocus · 15/01/2019 12:25

@IknowTheBoswellJoke it wasn't "frantic calling" - I think you're being the dramatic one here...

OP posts:
ChristmasSnow · 15/01/2019 12:25

There is NO WAY anyone would be able to control 4 large dogs and have a small baby in a carrier....

Not in a million years!!!!!

Wordthe · 15/01/2019 12:26

definitely shouting abuse at a man you don't know, in a situation like that with all those dogs and a baby
Really stupid and risky thing to do

IknowTheBoswellJoke · 15/01/2019 12:26

Hmm. Ok. Because we all go from polite requests to shrieking 'fucking arsehole' in the blink of an eye.

DarlingNikita · 15/01/2019 12:26

IKnow, yes, that's why I referred to 'the last few replies on here'

TBH yours is the nastiest though.

AnotherPidgey · 15/01/2019 12:26

Your attitude to the range of responses is not going to sway people to thinking you were being resonable for shouting an abusive comment when you were struggling for control regardless of the man's motivations.

How did DP walk his two dogs before you got together?
You have no obligation to the pug which appeared to be most problematic to deal with. If it is the dog that exceeds your limits, your friend is responsible for organising its care.
How will you manage when you have a toddler wanting to dawdle at their own pace and screaming blue muder because they don't want to be carried that day? What happens if you encounter an aggressive dog?

There is a great range of torches around these days. Decathlon have a fantastic, bright chest torch (rechargable) that leaves hands free and is designed for activities like running or dog walking in the dark.

There are alternative solutions avaliable.

Lweji · 15/01/2019 12:26

The obvious solution is not to get multiple dogs @Wordthe* *
If you read the full thread you will find that this has already been addressed.

Or not to walk so many dogs at the same time, which you really don't have to.

dustarr73 · 15/01/2019 12:26

@DippyDiplodocus at the end of the day you are responsible for bringing out 5 dogs and a baby[sounds like a film]

The man had one dog,who was leashed and muzzled.Hes not in the wrong

You are lucky thats all it was.Could have been a dog off the leash,cyclist,runner.Not everybody takes in their surroundings if they are doing their own thing.

Seriously nobody is saying put the dogs to sleep or dont walk them.Just dont walk them altogether with a baby in a sling.Thats an accident waiting to happen.

Original poster
DippyDiplodocus · 15/01/2019 12:27

Clearly, it's a problem. Because you're the one struggling with four (plus one) dog and a child. Encounters like this are likely to happen again.
Stand up for yourself and make him (and your friend) responsible for some of the dog care.

Don't really think that is a fair assessment. A few seconds of trying to get a dog on a lead doesn't equal a whole day struggling.

OP posts:
HeadsDownThumbsUpEveryone · 15/01/2019 12:27

There's nothing really to suggest the guy is any more than a bit discourteous (maybe). If he didn't react to the OP screaming abuse then he's probably quite a restrained fellow.

This is very well put. The fact you admit he didn't even respond to you yelling abuse at him also suggests he is either incredibly calm or he didn't hear you.

Now will you please answer my question OP

Do you honestly think this is a sustainable way to walk the dogs? What happens when your child is a toddler who wants to walk will you still take all 5 dogs and a toddler with you?

WFTisgoingoninmyhead · 15/01/2019 12:27

Should I just not walk them then and keep them cooped up inside?

I would be inclined to go on separate walks if I had to take a baby in a sling. Can you not walk them when your partner is home? As good as your dogs are, animals, ALL animals are unpredictable and if the Husky had decided to have a pop at one of your dogs, it could have been a very different outcome for you and your baby.

MarshaBradyo · 15/01/2019 12:27

You sound quite stubborn

A pack of five dogs and a baby - it’s too much

thedancingbear · 15/01/2019 12:27

Heh. I love the way the man is the potentially-dangerous agent in this situation, notwithstanding the OP's pack of unruly dogs and shouting verbal abuse.

adaline · 15/01/2019 12:28

Sorry if this has already been answered, but why wasn't the pug on a lead in the first place?

It's clear you struggled to bend over and put the lead on so why take it for to start with? I mean, if a dog bounded over while you were crouched down with a baby strapped to you, one or both of you could have been seriously injured.

Equally if your protective dog had pulled while you were crouched down, what would you have done? The man had his dog completely under control by the law (it was muzzled and leashed) and you clearly didn't have yours under control.

If you can't cope with all those dogs and a baby then you need to tell your friend that you can't walk her dog anymore.

Original poster
DippyDiplodocus · 15/01/2019 12:28

Have you tried @ChristmasSnow ?

OP posts:
Lweji · 15/01/2019 12:28

A few seconds of trying to get a dog on a lead doesn't equal a whole day struggling.

No, but you struggled in this particular occasion. To the point that you insulted the man.
And this occasion could have endangered your child.

It's up to you. Be a martyr to your OH and friend. Put your child at risk, keep insulting passers by.

Wordthe · 15/01/2019 12:29

One person with one dog on a leash and muzzled, this is a good dog owner

One person with a baby and 5 dogs not on leads, you just look like some kind of dysfunctional nutter

Sideeyes and a very very wide berth

Grumpyoldpersonwithcats · 15/01/2019 12:29

OP - I do feel you over-reacted and am surprised that you clearly don't consider walking 5 dogs with a baby might cause some issues. What I really don't understand is why you compound the situation by walking a neighbours dog as well as your four - you could just say No. Do you get paid for doing this?

Angelicwings · 15/01/2019 12:29

Not RTWT as 14 pages (!) but in answer to your OP I'd say going out with 5 dogs and a young baby in a carrier is not a good idea at all. Added to that you had one off the lead? Four dogs on the lead, a baby, and a dog wandering loose?

Yes the man could have given you a second, but to be honest, you made yourself very vulnerable with a dog off the lead and your hands so full with 4 other dogs and the baby etc.. If a big aggressive dog off the lead had come along you might have been in bigger trouble, so perhaps this man has done you a favour to expect the unexpected and rethink five dogs and a baby with one of those dogs being loose especially.

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