Aggressive dog should be muzzled?

[OdiesMum]

Where I live we have a long pedestrianised walkway down the side of the house, big grass verges on either side, a lovely walk for dogs as no roads and no danger. Lots of people let their dogs off lead around here to play with each other, myself included. My dog is a friendly little thing who just loves to play. The locals have used this area to exercise dogs for years.
Recently a woman has been on the grass verge with a Dobermann. She has it on a long line and throws balls for him etc on the grass. Last week my dog ran over to hers to play and her dog went ballistic and almost pulled her over. I was terrified it would get away from her!! I ran to get my dog and she shouted at me that mine should be on a lead. I politely explained that people use this area to let their dogs play and she said hers was dog aggressive which is why it’s on a long line and so should everyone else’s dog be on lines. I didn’t get into an argument with her, just got my dog and walked away. This morning I was talking to another dog Walker who said to watch out for the Dobermann on a long line as it had attacked her dog!!! If I see her again I’m going to tell her to muzzle the bloody thing. Why take your aggressive dog to an area where there are off lead dogs?? AIbU?

Sorry, but you are completely in the wrong. If you can't control your dog from approaching other dogs, then your dog should also be on a lead.

Sorry OP but you are in the wrong here. You should not have let your dog approach her dog that is on a lead. Why should her dog be muzzled when it was happily playing and your dog approached it and caused the problem?

Also muzzles in this situation stop on lead dogs being able to defend itself against intrusive off lead dogs, so I wouldn't recommend one

YABU.

Another thread with another entitled dog owner. Gives the decent ones a bad name.

I'm thoroughly against dogs bring off lead in such situations anyway (ie not a safe wide open space ) double YABU.

Or...keep yours on a lead and teach it some manners so it doesn't just run up to other dogs.

You, and only you, are responsible for what your dog does and to protect it from harm.

You shouldn't be allowing your dog to run up to on lead dogs. You are responsible for keeping your dog under control, it wasn't under control.

She shouldn't be taking her dog to a place where there are offlead dogs running around. And she should be bringing it into a short lead when she sees other dogs.

Ahh I’m so glad to read this thread - I felt for sure I’d be the only one here saying to keep your dog away from dogs on leads.

My dog is very wary of other dogs and has been aggressive in the past. We got a trainer in who taught us how to make her feel safe on her lead and how to deal with other dogs that run over to her.

We have very few problems with her now, but every single issue has been caused by a dog off the lead running up and jumping around/getting in her face.

Would you like it if a stranger did this to you?

She shouldn't be taking her dog to a place where there are offlead dogs running around. And she should be bringing it into a short lead when she sees other dogs. That doesn't help the dog in the long run. She has to be able to familiarise it with the outside world and help it become less reactive. If you don't do this you end up with permanently fear aggressive dogs. I pass enough of those to know that isn't healthy for them, or anyone around them!

What the other woman was doing is what most trainers, dog behaviourists, recommend. Play with your reactive dogs in a space that other people and dogs pass through, but keep them on a long line (it gives them more feeling of freedom and it is often the restriction of the lead that causes some of their reactivity) and make yourself the best thing since sliced bread until all the other passing distractions fade into the background for your reactive dog.

The woman obviously had collected her dog in as OP says that it almost pulled her off her feet! So she had seen OP and her dog and taken some additional measures to control her dog - something OP didn't do at all, by her own words!

A dog on a leash shouldn't be bothered by dogs off the leash.
No matter how friendly, small or big the dog is, if the dog doesn't have a good recall, they should never run off and try playing to a dog on a leash. There's a reason why the dog is on the leash, respect it.
Our dog's recall is still shaky due to puppy brain even though she has improved massively so whenever we see a dog on a leash and accidentally let her run loose before that, she automatically goes on the leash too or we hold her till the dog passes.
Dobermann or not, the dog was on the leash, yours wasn't, your dog ran to the leashed dog, it's your fault.

Has to be a wind up, no-one could be stupid enough to let their off lead dog run up to an on lead dog and then wonder why it reacts.

I’d say it depends on how your dog got to the Doberman. If he ran straight to it and got right to its face, so that owner had no time to prevent reactive behaviour, I’d say you are also at fault for letting your dog do so.

If your dog however approached very gently, gradually, testing the waters and her dog ran straight to yours with the owner struggling to control it whilst acting aggressive then she was totally in the wrong.

My small dog is very friendly but approaches other dogs very gently. This gives me and the other owner to react accordingly, them to let me know that their dog is reactive so I can call her back or me (and more often my dog herself) sensing that it’s not a friendly dog and moving away.

You were absolutely being unreasonable to let your dog run up to an on-lead dog. It was entirely your fault.

Skits to add that I find this attitude that dogs on leads should never approached very sad. 9 out of 1p dogs if not more that we approach are friendly and welcome the interaction and are on the lead because of their issue with recall. It would be so sad for these dogs if they never got to interact with others unless taken in enclosed places which is often not possible on a regular let alone daily basis. I actually had owners thanking me for letting my dog approach theirs for that reason.

Common sense and a gentle approach should prevail.

@vivainsomnia - it doesn't matter if it's gently or straight. You DO NOT let your dog approach a leashed dog. If you do and they react, the potential resulting injury or attack is your fault.

9 out of 1p dogs if not more that we approach are friendly and welcome the interaction

With respect and admitting I don't know your background or experience - but 9/10 owners I see could not accurately recognise when a dog is friendly vs something else.

It's actually frightening how often owners have declared their own dogs are friendly and just want to say 'Hi' when the body language of that dog is screaming something else. They just are blind to what the dog is really trying hard to communicate.

@vivainsomnia how could you judge that an owner has common sense and their dog will be gentle as they approach?

Common sense and a gentle approach should prevail.

Common sense is not to let your off lead dog approach one that is on lead. It is on lead for a reason.

Mine is always on lead and I'm fed up with "oh, he's friendly/gentle/just playing!" Keep your bloody dog away. Mine is prone to grumpiness and is going deaf. He's been attacked by off lead dogs so many times it's ridiculous. The last time results in antibiotics for nasty puncture wounds.

Effectively though, the woman with her leashed Doberman prevents anyone else from using the space.

@vivainsomnia it doesn’t matter how another dog approaches a dog on lead it should never approach with out the owners permission first.

Also my dog is kept on a lead at all times and has brilliant recall. Not all dogs on leads have recall problems.

@vivainsomnia - it's not about dog never meeting others. If two owners agree, the dogs can meet - but a free running dog should never approach a leashed dog. It's not sad, it's a fact.
As humans, we also don't run to each other randomly, meeting and greeting. If we meet, it's because we are meeting friends. As our dog trainer once said - would you make your child go on playdates with every child or do you agree those playdates with children who she is friendly with?

@vivainsomnia unfortunately your perspective is the same as that of the people who encourage their dogs towards mine. Setting him back with every encounter.

He gets plenty of play time with other dogs, off lead, when he isn't at all reactive, as is the same for many other dogs. You have no idea what other dogs do or so not do. You don't get to override the decisions of the owners because of some situation you have invented out of whole cloth!

Your single encounter doesn't mean you are right. Stop making decisions for other people's dogs.

Comon sense and NO approach unless invited should prevail!

it doesn't matter if it's gently or straight. You DO NOT let your dog approach a leashed dog
Allow me to disagree as do most in real life thankfully. I have had no issue in real life and that’s with 2 or 3 walks a day, in the streets, local park and open areas for a few years.

The worse that has happened is my dog being growled at. Perfectly fine. She never comes up straight to the dog.

if you do have a dog that is likely to bite, it shouldn’t be on a long lead, unmuzzled especially in an area where it is common for dogs to be unleashed. How can you possibly judge the distance? Or do you expect all dogs to stay 10 metres away?

The OP's post is a good example, thinking on it. A dog that is really well versed in dog body language would not run up to a nervous/reactive dog because it would be super clear to them that their invitation to play will not be reciprocated.

Instead what tends to happen is the dog running up is pretty socially clueless and has been led to believe that play is something they can demand from another dog.

The difference is the way socially savvy dogs interact with strange dogs is really very different to 'running up to play'. Truly, the micro gestures of a socially competent dog are a wonder to behold - as is their ability to effectively diffuse aggression by not pushing themselves on another dog and by displaying clear comms that they have no interest in the worried dog.

Lots of pet dogs do not have these skills - which is why not allowing an off lead dog to just approach any dog they fancy is the safer option for everyone.

Curious, sorry it’s an issue for you. As said, I’ve never had a complaint, probably because the owner has plenty of time to tell me their dog is unfriendly before mine gets close enough to distress them. I have however had owners thanking me for allowing my dog to socialise with theirs, so I shall stick to my approach.