AIBU to be annoyed about a dog roaming free near play park

[saffy56]

AIBU to think a rottweiler dog should not be able to roam free?? We have a fab play park near us but there is a rottweiler that lives very close by and on nice days he is left to roam free . He is a well known dog and everyone says he is lovely and wouldn't hurt anyone but because of his size my kids are really scared of him and it is stopping them being able to go the park with their friends.

Wow, you would have been a basket case in the 70’s when quite a few dogs were out and about.

You need to teach your children not to be so terrified of friendly dogs.

YANBU OP.
It is not your fault the owners have mobility issues. The dog shouldn’t be roaming around by itself. I’m really bored of people trumping the needs of an animal over children and adults. I don’t care if the dog is friendly either, it shouldn’t be unsupervised.

YANBU. If you feel threatened, then the dogs is classed as out of control. Report it to the dog warden.

We have a family like that near us, live near Park and just let dogs out to roam free, like the park was an extension of their garden

They were reported and now have to control their dogs.

Nope. The dog needs controlling

Off lead, unaccompanied, free roaming Rottie?

Get it reported, this dog vulnerable and at risk of theft, and reacting to a situation out of his control that will get him destroyed. Your doing him a favour.

Oh bless him. 😔

I wouldn't care what breed of dog it was, whether rottweiler or miniature yorkie. I'd call the dog warden every time I saw it. Or clip a lead to it and take it to the nearest vet/animal centre as a lost dog.

No dog should be free roaming without an owner present. Apart from the poo issue they're a danger to themselves and others even if very friendly - cars, bikes etc. If it got in the way of a bike or car it could kill people.

Why can't you just walk them to the play park?

given the dog isn't having regular a snack of child, why are your children so scared of it.

years ago it was normal for dogs to roam.

it isn't now, but a dog that's been doing it for years & has elderly owners, I wouldn't be reporting it & making their quality of life miserable.

Generally those dogs were fairly well behaved too. Bit awkward when they started having a shag with a random bitch though. I remember someone going nuts who visited the estate with their in season girl.

What do you mean "roam free" Without its owner or off lead?

Kids should be taught not to fear dogs though. They are going to be living on a world that involves the high probability of coming into contact with dogs. Plus dogs smell fear so it makes sense to bring them up not to think dogs should be feared, that also involves teaching children to respect dogs and act appropriately around them.

I'm confused, is it actually roaming free or are the owners there and let it roam off lead whilst watching it?

If the dog is absolutely brilliant with recall and the owners are in the vicinity then I wouldn't say it's an issue, your kids being scared of dogs that much is not great to be honest and you need to deal with that. If the dog is actually roaming free and the owners is sat at home then definitely report it, they should be paying for a walker if they are unable to walk it.

My dog is a large breed and still a puppy (9 months), his recall is shocking still as he's just so excited and friendly when out he goes completely deaf so he is only ever off lead in a secure dog field or on a long line when in the park. We have constant off lead dogs coming up to him whilst we are trying to train him when hes on the lead, it can be really frustrating, luckily he's friendly so no issues really but irresponsible owners drive me mad.

You need to teach your children not to be so terrified of friendly dogs.

Or someone could teach the owners to be responsible for their dog?

It's both.

Ideally dog owners would take care of them properly but the other hand, there are still moments where dogs get out/are let out or are just stays on the street. So yes, its much better to walk around the planet not being so terrified of dogs,if it can be helped.

Teaching kids not to be afraid of dogs is a wierd concept when the child's fear is a result of out of control dogs jumping on them, such as in the case of my DD. Maybe its true they can smell her fear as she seems to attract them!

Any dog can snap and turn from friendly to unfriendly... just needs the right provocation. And just being allowed to roam increases the chances of this (yobs throwing things for example. Or picking up an injury. Or just aging. )

Dogs often jump up when people are shrieking/flapping hands around though (not saying that's what your DD did of course) so teaching people (not just children) how to deal with dogs could actually stop them jumping up at them or certainly minimise the situation. It's not ok that dogs are out of control and jumping up of course but actually mostly they are not doing it to attack someone, literally just to say hi so no real reason to be scared, and even if they aren't friendly screaming etc won't diffuse the situation.

It's not normal to be scared of all dogs, my DS2 was absolutely petrified when he was younger, it didn't even happen because he was jumped up at, it was almost overnight he developed a terrible fear, he even ran into the road once to get away from a perfectly behaved dog walking on a lead. He was also terrified of cats.

We spent a lot of time helping him to not be scared (as it was ruining playdates etc as he was so frightened and it's not fair that a dog should have to be shut away in their own house) he absolutely loves dogs and cats now and even wants to work with them.

So who should be picking up its poo then?

As long as he’s not in the actual park then it’s your issue and you need to get over it.

Not ok. Not legal. Someone needs to pick up after the dog and have it under control. If they can’t walk it then someone else needs to. Or they will have to rehome it.

You should report it for the sake of the dog if nothing else.

It is at risk of being stolen or hit by a car.

Also no-one to pick up its poo!

They need to hire a dog walker if they can’t walk it themselves.

Exactly .
If someome has mobility issues they need to hire a dog walker.
Or re home the dog.

There’s an older person with mobility issues, who goes in my local park.
They have a mobility scooter and walk the dog on the lead, then let it off to throw a ball for it.

The owners could do that if they can’t walk easily any more.