Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

See all MNHQ comments on this thread

Original poster

To expect dog walkers to keep their giant dogs on leash around other peiple

999 replies

Thewithesarehere · 27/12/2020 12:52

I am still quite sick after seeing a dog, nearly my DC’s size, running after my DC knocking them to the ground and running over them.
DC is covered in mud. I was taking a picture of them running to me and it happened in a flash. I shouted at the dog owner who something like put your own children on leash.
Why the hell people don’t keep such huge dogs and then let them off leash in a public park around children? DV is covered in mud, shivering and complaining that their leg hurts where it hit a rock and that they are scared of dogs. I wish I had done more but don’t know what else I could have done.
AIBU in feeling bloody furious?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 13:44

Licences, mandatory training and off lead dogs restricted to designated areas only, all this would send a clear message that owning a dog is a serious commitment

Original poster
Thewithesarehere · 30/12/2020 13:45

@cantdothisnow1

I definitely wouldn't object to licences and mandatory training.
It would be good to see how these two things work in countries where designated spaces for off lead dogs have already happened.
OP posts:
BillyCongo · 30/12/2020 13:46

@cantdothisnow1

Domestic dogs are not generally considered to be predatory animals.

Yes they may have instincts to chase animals, my gentle Golden Retriever has the gun dog instinct to chase birds.

But i don't think that was what the poster meant when they described the greyhound as a large predator.

Domestic dogs are predators. I don't know why people can't bloody understand this! We have pregnant ewes which stay with us each year for lambing as our paddocks are safer. Out of control dogs kept coming down from the footpaths in the nearby woods and killing them in their normal field. They don't have to savage them to kill them. The stress can make them abort or just collapse. It's not just urban areas where people need to control their dogs. If it can't be controlled then it should be on a lead.
cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 13:47

@Yohoheaveho

Licences, mandatory training and off lead dogs restricted to designated areas only, all this would send a clear message that owning a dog is a serious commitment
I think it would be reasonable to have designated ON LEAD areas rather than designated off lead.

All urban parks for example.

Most beaches already issue fines to dogs off lead at certain times of year.

To make all of the country side (unless designated) mandatory for on lead walking would be completely disproportionate.

Original poster
Thewithesarehere · 30/12/2020 13:48

@LakieLady

If you want a dog which needs lots of exercise, you need to be fit enough to keep up with them if you want to let them off-lead

Yes, I should have realised when I got my lakeland terriers that I was going to develop arthritis in my knees and spine 10 years later, or Achilles tendonitis that lasted 2 years. Hmm

Thankfully, their recall was bloody excellent by then, and they would hunt rabbits, which gave them plenty of exercise (and the occasional free dinner).

It is definitely possible to come up with some specific rules that work in situations like yours.
OP posts:
Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 13:49

Lakielady I'm sorry to hear about your arthritis and tendonitis🌺
And this is another problem, being dog owner requires a certain level of fitness and these levels cannot always be maintained as one gets older...we need to incentivize people to think long-term before they commit themselves to dog ownership.

cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 13:49

It's not just urban areas where people need to control their dogs. If it can't be controlled then it should be on a lead.

Where have I said that dogs should not be under control in rural areas?

Sheep bothering is completely unacceptable and dog owners who don't have their dogs on leads around Livestock are completely stupid and deserve whatever response the farmer gives them including taking action to destroy the dog.

LST · 30/12/2020 13:51

Fuck off @Yoho. Now you're just being ridiculous. I've had arthritis since I was 16. Shouldn't I be allowed to keep dogs in your opinion? Ugh I am done with this thread and the idiots on it

Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 13:52

To make all of the country side (unless designated) mandatory for on lead walking would be completely disproportionate
Disagree strongly, the default status of any dog (outside of private property) needs to be ON a leash

Original poster
Thewithesarehere · 30/12/2020 13:53

@cantdothisnow1
That could work in areas where there is a clear division. We are lucky to have the best of both at door step and there will be a lot of arguments on which part is countryside and which part isn’t.

OP posts:
Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 13:54

@LST

Fuck off *@Yoho*. Now you're just being ridiculous. I've had arthritis since I was 16. Shouldn't I be allowed to keep dogs in your opinion? Ugh I am done with this thread and the idiots on it
Im sorry to hear about your arthritis 🌺 LST
cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 13:54

So i have to keep my dog on a lead in case i come across as dog hater like Yoho, thank god in the real world i'm out with my dog in the countryside off lead for around 2.5 hrs per day and when I see people they also tend to be dog lovers!

cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 13:56

@LST

Fuck off *@Yoho*. Now you're just being ridiculous. I've had arthritis since I was 16. Shouldn't I be allowed to keep dogs in your opinion? Ugh I am done with this thread and the idiots on it
They don't understand how theraputic pets can be.

Dogs are great companions to many many people, including the frail and elderly.

Don't let this get to you, it's not reflective of the real world.

Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 13:56

@cantdothisnow1

So i have to keep my dog on a lead in case i come across as dog hater like Yoho, thank god in the real world i'm out with my dog in the countryside off lead for around 2.5 hrs per day and when I see people they also tend to be dog lovers!
It might be reasonable to make a distinction between urban and rural areas 🤔
cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 13:58

This is what you said earlier Yoho

Disagree strongly, the default status of any dog (outside of private property) needs to be ON a leash

In response to my suggestion that it should be different in the country side.

LolaSmiles · 30/12/2020 13:59

Licences, mandatory training and off lead dogs restricted to designated areas only, all this would send a clear message that owning a dog is a serious commitment
I hate to break it to you but they're not going to make the irresponsible and selfish owners magically realise a dog is a serious commitment.

We have driving licence and targeted campaigns to warn against drink driving, but some people still think they can drive after drinking lots, or they'll just have a couple, or drive the morning after still over the limit because they've not thought sensibly. Having a driving test, licence, points, driving courses, public health campaigns doesn't stop people who want to drink drive. Those of us who are responsible are responsible. Those who aren't, aren't.

Original poster
Thewithesarehere · 30/12/2020 14:01

@LolaSmiles

Licences, mandatory training and off lead dogs restricted to designated areas only, all this would send a clear message that owning a dog is a serious commitment I hate to break it to you but they're not going to make the irresponsible and selfish owners magically realise a dog is a serious commitment.

We have driving licence and targeted campaigns to warn against drink driving, but some people still think they can drive after drinking lots, or they'll just have a couple, or drive the morning after still over the limit because they've not thought sensibly. Having a driving test, licence, points, driving courses, public health campaigns doesn't stop people who want to drink drive. Those of us who are responsible are responsible. Those who aren't, aren't.

Based on that argument, we should stop making all new laws because someone will break them eventually.
OP posts:
Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 14:05

@cantdothisnow1

This is what you said earlier Yoho

Disagree strongly, the default status of any dog (outside of private property) needs to be ON a leash

In response to my suggestion that it should be different in the country side.

Indeed I did! I then reflected and wondered if it might be reasonable to make a distinction between rural and urban areas🤔
LakieLady · 30/12/2020 14:13

I've got a dog who hates bikes, so I never let him off lead where we're likely to encounter any. And I've lost count of the number of times idiot cyclists come charging out from behind bushes in woods, where either the bye-laws prohibit them or I know the landowner doesn't want them, and get shitty with me because my dog barks at them

Both my dogs hated bikes. One was hit by a mountain biker cycling on a track where cycling isn't allowed, and the other by a bike falling on her when she was tied up outside the local shop, and a cyclist propped her bike right where the dog was, and it fell on her. They wouldn't bolt though, they'd just duck into undergrowth or right to the edge of the path.

An elderly lady's small dog was also hit by a mountain biker and sustained a broken pelvis. The surgery to fix it cost more than £600 and the cyclist responsible just rode off. Local dog owners who heard about it kept popping into the vet to donate towards the bill and it was more than covered.

After that, one elderly dog owner took to carrying a stout stick that he vowed to poke through the spokes of any bike being ridden on the footpaths, and he said he wouldn't care if the cyclist came off and broke their neck as a result. I thought this was a bit iffy, given that he was a retired police chief superintendent!

cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 14:13

I then reflected and wondered if it might be reasonable to make a distinction between rural and urban areas🤔

I think that is more sensible than a blanket ban.

Original poster
Thewithesarehere · 30/12/2020 14:21

After that, one elderly dog owner took to carrying a stout stick that he vowed to poke through the spokes of any bike being ridden on the footpaths, and he said he wouldn't care if the cyclist came off and broke their neck as a result. I thought this was a bit iffy, given that he was a retired police chief superintendent!
Like me, they must have had enough. Grin

OP posts:
Yohoheaveho · 30/12/2020 14:29

We have runners walkers cyclists, people with children, people with dogs all competing to use the same outdoor space, the needs and requirements of these different groups are in many cases extremely incompatible.
Ultimately I feel we need much better provision for exercise and leisure activities.

Porcupineintherough · 30/12/2020 14:31

Without wishing to muddy the waters, off lead dogs are a big issue in rural areas too. Disturbing to livestock, disturbing to wildlife plus the issues with horse riders, walkers etc.

cantdothisnow1 · 30/12/2020 14:39

@Porcupineintherough

Without wishing to muddy the waters, off lead dogs are a big issue in rural areas too. Disturbing to livestock, disturbing to wildlife plus the issues with horse riders, walkers etc.
This has been addressed already on the thread. Dogs should always be on leads around livestock and horses.
80sMum · 30/12/2020 14:57

It might be reasonable to make a distinction between urban and rural areas

What sort of distinction? Personally, I think it's just as important for dogs to be under control in the countryside as it is in urban areas. The answer is for all dogs to be kept on leads at all times when in places to which the public has access, with the exception of designated dog-walking areas.

If dogs were always on leads, there would be no more heartbreak of dogs getting lost after running after a deer, for example. Where I live, dogs go missing daily and many never return. It would also stop the gangs of dog thieves that steal dogs almost from under their owners' noses when out in the countryside. It would stop dogs from approaching people or other dogs and causing problems. It's a no-brainer. I can't see any down side to it at all.