Bare minimum dog ownership

[Luggagerackistopheavy]

I am a dog owner and a dog lover but as the tourists decend on my town at this time of year the appalling dog owners arrive.

Aibu to think this is bare minimum for dog ownership?

1. If your dog doesn't have bomb proof recall keep it on a lead or a long line.
2. Keep your dog on a lead next to roads. It's just idiotic not to even if you feel your dog is bomb proof.
3. Do not allow your little Fluffy to approach an on lead dog without asking. Your dog might be friendly but can you guarantee that the other dog is?
4. If your dog is off lead keep it in your sight at all times.
5. Do not allow little Fluffy to jump up at people. If you can't stop them, get them on a lead.
6. If your dog is playing with others for goodness sake supervise them and put a stop to it instantly if any dog appears uncomfortable or over excitable.
7. Your dog is not well trained just because they can give a paw, do a twirl, roll over etc. Good training is about recall, focus on their owner, behaviour while meeting others and behaviour while playing, stopping when told, not jumping up, not excessive barking etc.

Aibu to think this is bare minimum dog ownership?

I appreciate that if you have a reactive dog the presence of other dogs might be an issue…

… but I don’t think the solution to that is every other dog having to be kept on a lead, not being able to sniff other dogs etc. They are ultimately dogs and they need freedom to be a dog.

If your dog is very reactive and unable to cope, I think the solution to that is walking your dog somewhere you won’t see other dog walkers.

I live somewhere with a lot of dogs (and a lot of visitors with dogs) and I can’t think of the last time I saw any dubious dog/owner behaviour when out walking.

And no dog should be approaching another dog, on lead or not, without the owners checking it is okay. I’m sick of other dog owners letting their dogs approaching mine (always off lead) just because they’re off lead.

Dogs are sociable creatures, it’s natural for them to want to say hello. If your dog is off lead I’d assume it’s ok around other dogs - if not you keep it on a lead. My dog will greet others if they’re off lead, if the other dog is on a lead he’ll walk on by.

Personally I think all cats should be kept inside/in peoples gardens. Dogs don't dig up my vegetable seeds, shit in my strawberry beds, shit on my lawn where I want to sit/eat, sit under my bird table waiting to catch birds or kill loads of wildlife (birds/shrews/slow worms I've all seen recently killed by cats).

I'd much rather people kept cats in their gardens than people kept dogs in their garden as I'd rather have a dog bounce up to me than I would have cat shit in amongst my asparagus (I don't have a cat or dog).

I saw a man calling his dog the day and it wouldn’t come back. It was too busy hassling another dog/owner. Not aggressively or anything but just in the way and being annoying.

The owner wasn’t even walking over. He was right at the other side of the field just doing this pathetic shouting. If I was the other owner I would have been fuming at his lack of urgency to come and get his annoying dog.

Are you suggesting that dog owners are the only ones walking in the winter months? Because that absolutely isn't the case.

I don't think it needs to be one or the other. I very much despair about the cat that insists on pooing in my veggie patch, but equally I didn't appreciate the dog that licked my leg last weekend whilst I was waiting to cross the road.

I like dogs and cats, but less so when they're left to their own devices.

I reckon 0.001% of dogs fit that behaviour criteria tbh, and like children, that’s part of the joy of having a dog.

Most of this is crucial not just for etiquette but also for keeping your own dog safe, so it always baffles me when people don't do it.

Yes, recall training is hard. It's also one of the most important things you will do for your dog. In the meantime you can give your dog stimulation with a 'sniff walk' where they can stop and sniff what they like while on a (possibly loose) lead, or by training other things so they get used to listening to you. We found with a Lab that the best thing was to have something tastier than the thing she was likely to be running after - in our case sprats. It may be harder if your dog is more motivated by fun and wants to play with others, but in that case it's even more important for you to get recall ingrained, because playing with the wrong dog could get your dog killed or injured.

THIS! Instead of a dog licence we should have an outdoor cat licence* tax to subsidise the time those of us who are 'chosen' end up picking up cat shit. I spend more on poo bags for cats than for the dogs I sometimes look after, and with a lot less enjoyment.

*I'm kidding about the licence - don't hurt me, cat owners

"He's friendly" is just code for "I cba to train him, be prepared to be jumped on while I wander on slowly down to you".

I only let mine off if I’m absolutely sure there is no other dog on the field, as soon as one appears she’s recalled and straight back on. She’s a temperamental cockapoo and I simply don’t trust her.
the amount of owners that just let their dogs run up to her saying don’t worry she’s friendly. They get a well mines not and she’s likely to go for your dog. They are really taken aback. Really annoys me.

At the moment, at this time of year, she’s firmly on the lead at all times, she’s got a thing for swifts flying and loses her head, I walk her in woodland mostly in the summer now.

Agree with this.

I have a little dog with awful recall and very over excitable, she is on a lead at all times.
Really surprising to me how many people let their dogs come over to her.

I like dogs but I am still wary.

I was bitten on my face by a friends dog, she was a friendly, relaxed dog generally but that day something wasn’t right for her.
Point being all dogs have the capability to bite.

I am uncomfortable with dogs off lead and I love walking in woods and countryside, the off lead dogs give me pause.

Why do people always describe recall as having to be “bomb proof”? Always with the bomb proof. Are there no other adjectives? You hardly hear bomb proof used for anything else.

Bare minimum dog ownership is not owning a dog at all.

Every dog owner should have third party liability insurance.
If you own a bull breed you should have a break stick with you at all times.

If your dog doesn't have bomb proof recall keep it on a lead or a long line

@Luggagerackistopheavy No dog is bombproof - look at the word. Are you bombproof? Your children? Any human you know? In any situation, especially where food is involved, loads of dogs will be off the chain.

Remember those horses running round London last year? Was anyone calling for them to be better-trained? They are animals.

Recall is reasonable thing but in actual cases would always be tested individually. I'm in Australia, where all dogs have to be on-leash except in designated areas and recall is expected, but all infringements are individually argued.

As we’re dog bashing today, can I put in a plea on behalf of the well behaved dogs please? Please don’t approach someone else’s dog. Recall training for mine was set back by months because of people calling him over and giving him treats. Getting him to ignore picnickers was so much harder after a few encouraged him and gave him food. It wasn’t so bad when he was a cute little puppy but no one wants a massive smelly dog sniffing around their picnic. Just leave other peoples dogs alone!

You’re the worst kind of dog owner.

I’ll add that in this heat I’d hope that people aren’t taking their dogs out, especially in the middle of the day.

I am a dog owner and a dog lover but as the tourists decend on my town at this time of year the appalling dog owners arrive.

Where is this mythical magical town where all the dog owners are top notch and you're only affected when the disgusting tourists hit??

Allowing dogs to greet each other needs to be normalised, they’re sociable animals. There seems to a weird fear of it here. If you let your dog be off lead then that’s a signal to other dog owners (myself included) that greeting is ok.

Im sorry if you have a reactive/aggressive dog, but please muzzle it. Responsibility goes both ways. I won’t let my dog approach on lead dogs without permission, but if you know your dog will bite then it needs to be muzzled.

We’re going to the reservoir so they can swim

Totally agree with this, my dog is reactive to other dogs, she is kept on a lead, loose bad mannered dogs are a constant stress to her and me. I always try to take her in quiet times, and if I see an unleashed dog, go in another direction, but it does not always work, if the dog still comes up to us, I always say she is not friendly, some owners get their dogs, others just look at me.
She is getting old now, I dread her coming into contact with a younger, fitter dog, that if she snaps at it, and it attacks back, and really hurts her.
She and me are entitled to a peaceful walk, not approached by dogs that bad owners can't or won't recall. She is a pretty dog, and looks so inoffensive and even wags her tail, then gets the hump and snaps, I know this, others don't.

Im currently at work in a very touristy area, its been interesting sitting here watching the dogs that are taking their owners for a walk, the occasional dog shouting match usually started by a tiny dog. But whats annoyed me more are the amount of dogs clearly struggling in the heat, walking very slowly and being told off by owners. One just plopped itself on the pavement and refused to move, resulting in the owner trying to drag it along. Its very sunny and hot here, no dog should out in it.

@BennyBee , you are SO wrong. What you have there is a dog with no manners who should under no circumstances be approaching a dog who is under control on a lead.

If a dog is on a lead because it is reactive, the owner is being responsible and protecting your dog as well as theirs.

Like @Bigoldtable 's dogs, mine return to me if they see another dog approaching. I have one who is friendly, but mostly prefers sniffing and exploring to other dogs, and one who is reactive sometimes, but I always assume he will be so he is on a lead around other dogs. He is reactive because he was attacked and subsequently, I can't persuade him 'friendly' dogs are safe if they won't read his body language and leave him alone.