Judging based on dog breed/owners ‘vibe’

[JudgeyMcJudgeFace]

I met a woman on my morning run who had a Mali. I didn’t really think anything of it at first as when it was clear the dog was (a) still very young and (b) very friendly, I had no issue letting my dog say hi. But the woman was so thankful - she said no one ever lets him greet their dog (I assume because of his breed) and usually avoids him!

It got me thinking, there are definitely some breeds I do avoid (XL Bullies) and sometimes I do swerve other breeds - not because I have anything against the dog breed itself, but because the owner is clearly one of those (those people who enjoy having a vicious dog - and you can spot them a mile away).

So, I guess what I am asking is this; do you judge dogs based on their breed or do you avoid dogs based on their owners appearance/mannerisms/vibe. Or is it a combination of both?

Outside of XL Bullies and Cane Corso, I judge based off the ‘vibe’ from the owner - typically it does tend to be particular dog breeds that the people I avoid own, which tbh seems a shame, but I guess that’s why they ‘fail’ the vibe check? I’ve never been wrong when I have chosen to avoid a dog and owner - I guess my spidey sense is well honed.

Just curious as to if I’m BU to judge people (and their dogs) based off my gut and their vibe and if others do the same.

I have a very boisterous golden retriever puppy, and make her sit when other dogs are walking past as otherwise she tries to greet them very.. enthusiastically. I'm always more concerned owners of certain breeds judge me for thinking I'm judging them.

I avoid everyone. I like to listen to audiobooks and it's the only time I get free to do it. My dog on the other hand is a social butterfly and flirts with everyone so I am constantly having to socially engage 😔

To be honest the owners I hate most are the ones who hone a slightly eccentric look, often have a large poodle. Look like their dog.

Oh and the group of walkers who just stand in my local field but don't actually walk..I've watched them as I go miles round them and they never move. The dogs stay still too. All very odd.

I definitely have bias against certain breeds - because even the "friendly" ones seen to be lacking in behaviour and not aware of their own strength, and allowed to act that way, which is still dangerous. You can have a super aggressive chihuahua, and it still won't do as much damage as a friendly but overly playful and assertive XL bully (and can be defended against more easily with a swift kick, if necessary) unfortunately.

The vibe of the owner also matters I suppose, but matters much less. I'd have less concerns over an obviously vapid chihuahua owner compared to a vapid XL bully owner, for the same reasons above.

I have smallish dogs and they are not keen on big ones. Breed is definitely not a factor in avoiding them.

Mine also don't do young bouncy dogs so it's a blanket no from chihuahua to great dance! (They do bouncy puppies & young dogs, but dog would get told off straight away- which can be tricky with the owners- but their dog would understand!)
Otherwise I mostly judge by the dogs & owners body language and how my own dogs perceive them.

One side of us there seem to be lots of muscle dogs, but they very rarely seem to go to the park the other side, you can guess which one i frequent. It’s a dog with the capacity to damage my dog in concerned about.

Combination of everything I think, you pick up on the body language of the owner and the dog and react appropriately. My dog doesn't like to play on walks, she's okay with a quick sniff but tells the dogs off when they keep hassling her. You can tell a mile off when the owner isn't engaged or able to call their dog off. I don't judge on breed necessarily, but if you've got a man who looks like a bouncer or a woman with ridiculous lip fillers coming towards you with a staffy or bully, I get nervous. But equally I've had daft owners with whippets and labs, so it mainly comes down to the human for me.

Despite the breed, dogs who come charging towards ours off lead and without being under control by the owner are frequently a threat.
Just yesterday 2 Jack Russels attacked our Spaniels. Leads still on, trailing. Owner sauntered over unconcerned.

My husband exercises ours on a local Country Park where he tends to know most dogs and owners. Of course you get fair weather walkers too.

Our beautiful boy gets judged for what he wears not his breed. He will literally eat anything so needs to be muzzled. People assume he’s aggressive of course.

You are right to be cautious though. Better to be safe than sorry.

I tend to avoid little dogs because they always seem to make so much noise. Most people around my way seem to be good dog owners though and I've never actively avoided the human.

My friend has an English Bull Terrier and people cross the road to avoid him which is such a shame as he is the most gentle, lovely boy with people and other dogs.
I have two labs and I do avoid German Shepherds, mainly because my younger girl was quite badly attacked by one when she was a year old and it has made her extremely fearful and defensive around others. I also avoid XL bull dogs, which I think is reasonable although I am aware not all of them are aggressive however the one which lives close to us definitely is! It is always muzzled and on the lead but I know the owner is happier when we give it space so we always do.

Also chihuahuas! Always snappy with my girls and very yappy!

I avoid owners that look odd/weird. It is usually men. Regardless of the type of dog they have.
I avoid dogs on a leash because I assume they are not free for a good reason.
I avoid crazy young dogs who jump up regardless of size (no dog over the age if 6 months old should be jumping up, it's very annoying). This one is a but tricky because I can't always tell they'd be jumping up until it happens first time.
But I don't avoid particular dog breeds.

Prime example, these XL bullies. I only have knowledge of the breed from MN and have seen a handful of instagram posts of stupid owners with their ridiculous looking dogs. So I know nothing about the breed really. I met a chap the other week with what he claimed to be a real pure XL bully, muzzled and on a lead. The dog looked nothing like the Instagram examples, was very chilled and didn't look scary as I imagined. I mean it was huge but not scary looking. The guy also appeared to be a normal, polite and level headed individual. We passed each other because it was a narrow footpath and I put my dogs on the lead because this other dog was on the lead but it wouldn't have occurred to me to actively avoid the pair just on looks.
I am fortunate that my dogs are particularly calm and I feel I am in control at all times. If I had a jumpy yappying super energetic dog, I'd probably avoid everyone.

I do not have a dog and have zero interest in dogs, can obviously recognise the basic breed like labrador or spaniel but wouldn't know what a "mali" is or a cane corso.

I would judge anyone who has a poorly controlled, jumpy, snarly dog to be honest and there are a lot of those people around. If there is a scale of judginess, I add an extra layer of judginess for people with large, aggressive, muscular dogs which are more able to tear your leg off.

I'm really bad for this, I judge dog and owner hard.
Stupid xl / cane conso / husky dog. Won't even give them a polite smile as the owner is usually dodgy. Neither will I talk to a sloppy (or one of those) type dog owner who isn't paying attention to what their dog is doing.
Otherwise I'm happy to say hello to any dog who wants to and if the owner says it's OK.

I’ve got an American bulldog cross, a rescue, who shares some characteristics with the government’s broad definition of an xl. We avoid all strangers and their dogs, but not because of his temperament or behaviour.

I avoid dogs that look like they could overwhelm a human with their muscle, strength and teeth. So rottweilers, GSDs etc. It's a simple survival instinct isn't it.

I don’t think there’s been one time I’ve thought “I bet that dog’s got its balls” and been wrong. The owner is always a young man who’s obviously got a fantasy that they’re going to train a dog to Lassie levels of responsiveness armed only with a vague idea of alpha wolf theory. Often found insisting their dog is only being friendly when said dog has raced 300 metres to stand over another dog, tail fully erect, and is displaying no signs of playfulness.

Much more telling than a dog’s breed in my opinion.

I dodge all dogs tbh but I explicitly tell my kids to dodge the 4 bull type dogs that this stupid woman walks off-lead through the neighbourhood daily. Stay far far far away.

I do judge owners by the breed of their dog. Unhealthy squashed face breeds = owners who don’t have a clue about dogs, husky = cruel choice of dog (I live in London), Pomeranian = rich and didn’t do their research (they are so barky and aggressive), staffy/pit bull types/Rottweiler = aggressive owner, Alsatian = always assume dog in control rather than owner, Labrador = owner wishes they lived in the country.

Those are just my fleeting thoughts and massive generalisations.

I don’t think there’s been one time I’ve thought “I bet that dog’s got its balls” and been wrong.

This is the thing, isn't it? And these types of owners do tend to have the same types of dogs - you never see dickhead Dave with a Cokerpoo or a Golden Retriever, it's always a Doberman/XL Bully//GSD/Cane Corso/Rotweiler.

I do swerve other breeds - not because I have anything against the dog breed itself, but because the owner is clearly one of those

"One of those" are also more often than not pretty solid humans. We have a couple of chaps in our local park who can be described as "one of those" and they are, on a whole, friendly once you get to know them. I was walking down from the shop one day and a friendly pitty (off the leash) came up to me for a sniff and a cuddle followed by a shirtless man who was all smiles and surprised to see that I didn't mind his dog as most people give them a wide berth.
I am much more likely to avoid an old lady with fluffy things off the leash.

Yep I judge people on the breed of their dogs, and usually always right

That is quite risky though. My friend’s ‘friendly’ pit bull type dog bit the fingers of her sister’s hand and took a massive chunk out of her. The dog ate everything it had bitten off so nothing could be retrieved and sewn back on. She showed me a photo of the hand before I could stop her and it was really gruesome. It has made me very wary of powerful dogs. The small fluffy things can’t do as much damage. I always think of this incident when I see those videos that pop up of pit bulls with chicks, kittens or even worse, with babies.

Yes, I feel a bit scared of anything that looks like a pitbull/bull terrier regardless of how the owner looks, even though I know the owners say they are the loveliest dogs. Same with German shepherds/rottweiler looking dogs. I start looking around for my kids making sure they are not in their path.

I love dogs, the bigger the better and there aren’t many breeds I’ll give a swerve but I did meet a guy with a boxer with its tail docked. That’s been illegal in the uk for some time and he shared that he’d gone to Ireland to get the dog because he wanted the tail docked.

That told me he cared more about the dogs appearance than the welfare of the dog.

My now late ddog was definitely "breedist" he liked dogs of his breed, he liked spaniels, cockerpoos and poodles otherwise he would be aloof and leg it in the opposite direction if dogs wanted to play.

And stink of weed no teeth and look like rabid ferrets!!😂