To think this is really not on (dog thread)?

[TinyMystery]

I am very pro-dog, usually far more tolerant than most of mumsnet when it comes to dog behaviour, and even I am really pissed off by this so I suspect strongly that IANBU. But I can’t believe this just happened!

I was walking DS (just shy of 1) across the nature reserve near my parents house in his pushchair. It’s an area used by dog walkers and we know a lot of them through my parents/their dog. It’s part of the reason we go up there as DS likes to point out dogs (and woof 😂) so it keeps him entertained. A lot of dogs are off lead as it’s a big enclosed area and we anticipate that. I’m happy to be approached by dogs and know how to handle myself.

Coming up to a gate this morning there was a large border collie waiting on the other side. I could see the owner coming up behind and she appeared to be in no rush so I opened the gate and passed through with the pushchair. This dog then proceeded to spend the next 5 minutes or so or of my walk sniffing and biting at the wheels of the pushchair. Initially for the first couple of minutes I was just thinking ‘she’ll get bored in a minute’ and she wasn’t aggressive towards me or DS so I just ignored her. The owner did nothing at all! She walked about 50m behind us not saying anything! Didn’t try to call her back, didn’t even say ‘sorry she’s just interested in the wheels’, didn’t come to get her, nothing! Eventually after firmly telling her to stop with increasing volume several times she looked at me quite alarmed and turned away. The owner then called the bloody dog so definitely could talk!

Obviously I am not nervous around dogs so it was less stressful for me than someone else but I’m still mightily pissed off. I wish I’d said something to the owner but I was just a bit shocked! I didn’t want to grab the dog or pull her in case she did become aggressive and I spent most of the time just reminding DS not to touch the dog and to keep his hands in the pushchair (all the dogs he knows, he can touch with supervision so he was a bit confused!).

YANBU. I've had something like this happen with my DD when she was around 5 months old. I had taken her, and my dog (on the lead) out for a walk in our local woods. There was another dog off the lead who came over as I stopped to take her out of the pram for a feed. He kept jumping up, barking and upsetting both DD and my dog. The owner was standing a few feet away watching this happen and didn't bother to say anything or call the dog off. I ended up shouting at her because of the distress it was causing me, DD and my dog who wanted to protect the baby. The owner did eventually intervene but I couldn't believe she just stood there while her dog was jumping up someone holding a young baby and didn't call him off/collect him and put him on the lead. She made some off-hand comment about her dog not being any danger but I didn't know that - it was a stranger's dog and I didn't know how it would react to a crying baby!

I think it's really bad dog ownership. It really upset me, especially seeing the mud from the dog's paws on my DD's tights and coat. DD had worked herself up into such a state because of the stranger's badly behaved dog.

Maybe she wasnt worried because as you said it wasnt being aggressive.

That’s too big an assumption for her to have made about the OP’s boundaries though Brunette. Obviously not the case that you don’t call your dog back from a pushchair until/unless it displays aggressive behaviour.

No, it’s really not on. But unless you say so, loudly, clearly and emphatically to the indifferent owner, they will neither care or even notice. When’s you do point it out, they may well be annoyed, aggressive or tell you that you are making a fuss over nothing.
Many dog owners are like this.
Much like the sex pests that heckle uninterested women and then slag them off.

Brunettes she wasn’t aggressive towards me or DS but repetitively biting at the pushchair should be enough to register a response IMO.

Having spoken to my dad it sounds as if there have been a lot of problems with this dog and her owner unfortunately. The owner appears to have some kind of mental health difficulties and the dog is sadly under-stimulated.

YANBU. I hate it when people won't call off their dogs - my daughter is very nervous of dogs, and I get very annoyed when one comes bounding over, with its owner bellowing "It's okay! He's friendly". She, and her younger brother, have been knocked over on more than one occasion (although my son always finds it hilarious. I am less amused.)

However, just in case this turns into a dog owner bashing thread - am very grateful to the dog owner who could see how nervous my daughter was, asked his dog to sit, and asked if she wanted to stroke the dog. He hung around for a good few minutes, just so that she had a chance to slowly approach a calm, quiet dog, which really improved her confidence with them. So good owners exist too!

The owner should have called her dog back, ridiculous that she didn’t. I don’t understand that, you see your dog is being a pest and annoying some one you call them back.

You really need to ask the owner to recall their dog..unfortunately a lot of owners think people don’t mind their dogs pestering non stop

Ah I see,yes fair enough.

YANBU - I adore dogs that but that isn't OK at all. The owner should have called the dog back as soon as she approached the pushchair and put the dog on the lead until you'd gone. Some people are really bloody clueless.