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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Dogs not on lead

82 replies

Devastatedyetagain · 11/05/2021 14:57

I need some perspective on this! Just returned from a walk with my puppy and I am still shaking a hour later.

I live in a lovely village with a large open park. You take your life in your hands walking across it due to the amount of dog poo that is left, but the issue today was a big retriever type dog racing up to me and my puppy. Owner nowhere to be seen. Said dog had been running up and down drives before bounding over to me. I noticed the owner through the hedge on the path that runs adjacent to the park. I shouted "put your dog on a lead" which met with some feeble calling but at this point her two other dogs appear. I was told I was being silly because they aren't dangerous - at no time did she remove them or put them on a lead. We had words but as a person who is apparently a solicitor and has had dogs for 12 years she does not need to have them on a lead or close to her.
So AIBU?

OP posts:

Chathamhouserules · 11/05/2021 17:40

I think you will have to get used to it a bit. I have about 3 dogs per walk coming up to say hello.
Still say she was unreasonable because your dog was on lead and her dog was out of control.

WiddlinDiddlin · 11/05/2021 17:43

Next time take a spare lead and put her dog on your spare lead and walk it away from her.

Tell her it was clearly straying and as you've no idea where she lives you were going to take it home and have the dog warden collect it and take it to the stray pound.

Guarantee she won't let her dogs run up to you after that.

If you want peace of mind over doggy legal issues though, I recommend Trevor Coopers DogLaw SOS scheme, for an annual (i think) fee you get access to free legal advice on a range of subjects from two solicitors who are dog law experts :D

WouldBeGood · 11/05/2021 17:55

This does my head I’m @Devastatedyetagain and I don’t like the confrontation that can come with it. Most people are really good about putting their dogs on leads if I ask, as my dog is reactive but I was shouted at last week.

They often say their dog is friendly: well, mine isn’t!

My other dog is good and friendly so I let her off leash, but put her on when approaching others

nothingcanhurtmewithmyeyesshut · 11/05/2021 17:56

Legally she is correct. There is no legal requirement for them to be leashed or close by.

What they do have to be is under control. I'd have given her a mouthful personally as how does she know your dog was friendly? She has scared you, scared your puppy and endangered her own dogs.

My older dog is rarely ever on lead but if I call her back she will come. Immediately. That is what is meant by under control.

If they aren't at least 80% on recall then they should still be on a long line. You're always going to have a couple of whoops moments when they are young, where they totally ignore you but that is the case with a child of any species. The very young do not always do as they are told. (can anyone guess the quote?)

So I am fairly understanding if it's a puppy but multiple dogs all out of control, I'd give a piece of my mind.

Bearnecessity · 11/05/2021 17:57

Definately YANBU a much loved pet of mine was attacked by a dog not on a lead and we had to put him down after the attack. I now have another dog and loose dogs are the bane of my life, only last week he was attacked by a massive bulldog that was wrestled off my dog while I stood there c

Bearnecessity · 11/05/2021 17:58

Crying.

LST · 11/05/2021 18:04

@pheasantsinlove

YANBU but won't get much sympathy on MN OP... MN is one of the few places where dog owners seem to think it's perfectly acceptable for dogs to be off lead and approach whoever they want, be it people or other on lead dogs , because their off lead dog is friendly so screw the fact that some people don't like dogs approaching them, or the other on lead dog is nervous or reactive... it's bonkers! I completely agree that the owner was totally in the wrong and her dogs should not have been roaming freely like that. Dogs should only be off lead if they have excellent recall or are in an area where no one is around. And yes I am a dog owner myself!

I see the exact opposite. Every dog thread always ends up with people saying dogs should never ever be off lead. Which I agree with if they have no recall.

BeneathYourWisdom · 11/05/2021 18:06

Her dogs should have been under her close control in a public park, not running around wildly and failing to recall.

Etiquette is you call your dog to heel (or lead goes on) to pass other people/dogs!

One day they’ll run at the wrong on-lead dog and get a nasty shock.

There’s no need to have big dogs off lead in a park (that’s also used by puppy owners, people with prams and toddlers, people with mobility problems who may be knocked over by a boisterous dog, people trying to enjoy ball games and picnics).

I wish there was a blanket ban that all dogs must be leashed in public! And restrictions on owning large breeds.

I’m a dog owner but find other big dogs scary if they run at me across a park. Either because I’m trying to keep them away from my child or dog or because they’re just intimidating especially 3 at once!

Sparrowfeeder · 11/05/2021 18:07

Well, I’m a solicitor and my dog is always on a lead! YANBU.

1Morewineplease · 11/05/2021 18:07

What did this ferocious , angry, aggressive dog do to you to leave you shaking for an hour?

LST · 11/05/2021 18:08

And @BeneathYourWisdom comes straight along and proves my point!

Wineat5isfine · 11/05/2021 18:11

Legally she may be right, but if an owner can’t be bothered to train their dog with a proper recall, the dog should be kept on a lead in public.

My (very big) puppy has good recall (still
Learning in paddocks etc), but when on a lead, he doesn’t like to be approached by off lead dogs. The number of times I’ve been laughed at because I’ve asked owners to keep their dogs away is ridiculous. “He’s friendly! Wouldn't hurt a fly!” Yes, but my dog is reactive - so back the fuck off!!!!

surreygoldfish · 11/05/2021 18:12

This drives me nuts. One of my dogs is not good with other strange dogs coming up to him so this is the bane of my life...... he’s on a lead for a reason.

LST · 11/05/2021 18:13

@1Morewineplease

What did this ferocious , angry, aggressive dog do to you to leave you shaking for an hour?

Does have to be ferocious, angry or aggressive to scare someone. And the op has already explained that it was the confrontation that left her upset. Which you'd know if you'd read the thread

LST · 11/05/2021 18:13

*doesn't

JustAnotherOldMan · 11/05/2021 18:15

Legally the other person is right and wrong.

If there is a PSPO in place regarding dogs on leads then it is a legal requirement
But generally there is no Dogs on lead’s law in the UK, but all dogs must be ‘under control’, indoors and outdoors on public or private land.
But ‘under control’ is open to interpretation, but generally means if you’re dog bites a person or another dog or they think it’s going to bite them or makes them fearful, then it’s not under control.

If this gets reported to the police, they then have a duty of care to investigate, and can instruct the person to keep the dog on a leash or be muzzled in public, or not walk in certain places etc etc

Nightbear · 11/05/2021 18:19

Yes, dogs should be supervised and from what you’ve said there’s no way that the owner could have seen if her dogs had a poo that needed clearing. Having said that, I think that what happened with your previous dog being attacked and then being reactive to other dogs has understandably made you anxious about dogs bounding up to you. Unfortunately you will pass that anxiety on to your puppy unless you’re careful. Dogs shouldn’t be bounding up to you and being annoyed about it is totally reasonable. If you treat them all as a threat though, your dog will start to see them as such.

Blossomtoes · 11/05/2021 18:20

“Can you call your dog, please?” would have got a much better reaction than an instruction to put it on its lead. If you don’t allow your dog to interact with others it will never be socialised, OP.

Our tiny Jack Russell was pinned down under an Irish Wolfhound’s paw when she was four months old, she just got up and went back for more. Dogs need to play with and chase other dogs.

PinkMice · 11/05/2021 18:36

Some examples of yellow harnesses/lead sleeves incase it helps OP:
www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TheHuggableDog
www.bellascollars.co.uk/collections/harness

Lou98 · 11/05/2021 18:54

But a big friendly retriever most likely wanted to say hello and isn’t a bad thing for a pup to meet a nice friendly dog.

How is the OP meant to know if it is friendly or not? Being a retriever means nothing - I've had a nasty bite off one before that showed no signs of aggression before bounding over.

I'm quite surprised at a lot of the replies on here - you shouldn't have to "just get used to it" because you have a dog, or toughen up in your reaction or any of the rest of it. You did absolutely right calling over to the owner - sounds like she couldn't even see her dog never mind have it under control. If nothing else, that isn't safe for her own dog, anything could have happened.

I don't believe that all dogs should be kept on a lead at all but they should if they don't have good recall and there's other dogs around - especially when not even in the owners sight. The law is quite simple in that dogs must be under control.

I have one dog that has excellent recall and is really friendly with other dogs - I still don't let him go up to dogs that I don't know, especially when they're on a lead. My other dog has excellent recall but can be funny with other dogs, he isn't aggressive but can be quite afraid and reactive - I don't care if someone else's dog is friendly, if he's on a lead and someone's dog comes bounding over to him, of course I'll say something. My dog wouldn't harm theirs, he would just be terrified but the fact is they don't know that. That could be the wrong dog they go up to and it's their dog that's going to suffer when another dog snaps. They're also usually the first to claim they've done nothing wrong when it does eventually happen

Cryalot2 · 11/05/2021 19:04

this makes me and dh so mad as well. There are signs in places we walk our small dog (always on a lead) saying that all dogs are to be kept on leads and cleaned up after toileting.
So many off lead dogs owners never clean up. One attacked a swan but still you get selfish owners.
The only thing you can do is report to anyone in authority, contact local council and even invite a local councilor to take a walk through the area.
Owners who have off lead dogs are a menace who think they are above the law.
Hope you are feeling ok . Horrid woman.

pheasantsinlove · 11/05/2021 19:05

100% agree @Lou98

pepsicolagirl · 11/05/2021 19:10

My dog has excellent recall so I do sometimes walk her off lead but she doesn't bolt off (even when there is another dog nearby) and I make sure we are in a suitable place (no small children, no livestock, at the moment not by the river as there are full nests etc)

People need to act responsibly and "it's ok he's friendly" is how accidents happen

LST · 11/05/2021 19:25

@Cryalot2

this makes me and dh so mad as well. There are signs in places we walk our small dog (always on a lead) saying that all dogs are to be kept on leads and cleaned up after toileting. So many off lead dogs owners never clean up. One attacked a swan but still you get selfish owners. The only thing you can do is report to anyone in authority, contact local council and even invite a local councilor to take a walk through the area. Owners who have off lead dogs are a menace who think they are above the law. Hope you are feeling ok . Horrid woman.

Some owners who have off lead dogs. Not all.

Original poster

Devastatedyetagain · 11/05/2021 19:28

Thank you for your comments. To reiterate I am not frightened of dogs! The issue was that her dog was running riot in a park, unsupervised. She couldn't see what it was doing.
I really hate the attitude that I will have to get used to it! No, people need to keep their dogs under control - if not on a lead it must have excellent recall and be in your sight. I hate to think what would have happened if it has been a toddler that her dog decided to say hello to!
To everyone saying my dog needs to get used to other dogs and I will make her reactive - she is working dog who doesn't have much interaction with other dogs so I take her to socialisation classes. I do not want or expect random out of control dogs to come bounding up to me.

OP posts:

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