Argh annoying owners!!

[SquidgyMaltLoaf]

I am trying to train my reactive dog to not bark at other dogs (she's very nervous and therefore has taken to preempting another dog scaring her by being aggressive to them first). I have her muzzled and on a lead and will do until she is better. I'm currently working to clicker train her and she's responding really well, and I'm using distraction to prevent the reaction at the moment.

Today I saw another dog running around - mine on a lead as usual and I tried I give them a wide berth, but the dog followed us and was running up behind mine and running around her which made her even more scared and jumpy. I called to the owners to not let their dog near mine as she was on a lead for a reason but they just kept shouting the dog's name which had absolutely no effect. I was trying to avoid them but the flipping thing kept running up to mine and she was getting really stressed.

I REALLY wish people would keep their dog on a lead unless its recall is good! I've never let mine run up to one on a lead as you just don't know why it is. It makes me so mad because I was making such good progress and she ended up really riled up again

But then dogs off the lead doesn't offend me. Other posters may disagree...

It would depend if your dog took a hint and moved on, or carried on pestering until my dog air-snapped to make him go.

Dogs off the lead are not a problem if they don't follow us down the field!

The issue I'd be concerned about is that at only 5 months he will be naturally timid and respectful of unknown adult dogs. Likewise most adult dogs are very tolerant of small puppies.
When he becomes a burly teenager, he will probably be more gung-ho in his approach at a time when the other dogs also start putting him in his place a bit more for any perceived rudeness.
I'd be inclined to start as I meant to go on tbh and teach him to greet only when I said so, in order to prevent future issues

It has just happened again Off-lead collie coming towards us so I tried to avoid it with Squidgydog. It followed, I asked owner to call it away, he halfheartedly tried but by that time although I was trying to go in the opposite direction the collie was snapping and barking and baring its teeth at Squidgydog, who was completely freaked out. I confess I did get rather angry with the owner!

On the other I saw a wonderful collie owner, who saw hers was getting too close to ours from behind and called for it to 'down'. It immediately lay down and waited patiently for her to catch up. Now that is good dog ownership!

My mum told me off for shouting when I have my rott. She said I look like a loudmouth chav with a chavvy dog. I told her to fuck off.

That's a good idea, if recall is bad get them to stay!

I don't agree that only dogs with perfect recall should be let off the lead, as puppies they need to be off the lead to practise recall - however off lead needs to be handled responsibly. I always put my dogs on a lead when I see other dogs on leashes since I don't want my dogs to have a chunk taken out of them

Exactly, hmc - they do need to learn, and that's fair enough. But because we can't yet trust Squidgydog to come back every time we put her on a lead when we see another dog on one - you never know why it's on a lead!

Oh this drives me mad. Had this at the weekend.

Some sort of large spaniel type dog rushing up to my small dog who is minding her own business and wanting to jump for her ball as we walk along.

Spaniel is leaping around in front of us and waiting for me to throw the ball, which obviously I'm not going to do while it's there. Spaniel's owner is nowhere to be seen and I eventual see her some way away on her phone. She's really too far away for me to shout to her about calling her dog but she clearly doesn't care that her dog is being a royal pain.

Eventually when she's out of sight I hear her call her dog. Does it react? Of course not. It just goes on leaping around us until in it gets bored and runs off in search of its owner.

This is the second spaniel I've seen in as many days who's owner has spent their 'walk' on their mobile - there was another one the day before in a different park - but that doesn't make me think all spaniel owners are irresponsible.

So why is there this prejudice on here against all small dogs? My dog is a small fluffy breed. She's well trained, polite and has completely reliable recall. I don't let her run up to or jump up at people. And she doesn't yap or snap or steal other dogs' balls. She just wants to be left alone to play with her ball without other dogs getting in her face.

I'm sick of dogs stealing my dog's ball and the owner chasing the dog for 20 minutes while they assure me that they will get the ball back for me.

I know dogs have to learn recall but why can't people make sure they're close enough to have control over their untrained dogs until they are trained. I had my dog on a 30ft trailing lead for months when I was training her and I kept her on it until I felt confident that she would come back when called. It was a bit awkward but it did mean I had a certain amount of control over her.

If it helps pigs I was impressed with the two small dogs who trotted past mine the other day. I think it's another generalisation - small dogs owned by people who just think it's cute if they snap, big scary-looking dogs are all aggressive, spaniels all just want to play etc etc... It is annoying!

It is a generalisation but for me, it's been very true.

People with small dogs don't have to train their dogs as much as us with big dogs because if a little dog yaps at your feet and jumps up you it doesn't matter. If my dog does it, you fall on you arse. If a little dog chases someone else's ball it's laughed off. If my dog does it, everyone says he's vicious not trying to play.

They are bad dog owners, regardless of the size of their pooch. Thank god they have little ones really.

It's nice to see you fighting the army of bad little dogs

Was walking my dog with my friend today and a "friendly" setter came running over to "say hi". The owner did nothing. He just stood there watching! In the end Wiggins saw the setter off. After it knocked my heavily pregnant to the floor! Poor Wiggins has been being so good about not snapping at other dogs but I understand why he did it.
But really annoyed at the owner. no apology, no offering to help my friend up or stopping his dog from jumping on her while she was down.
But heard him say to the dog as they walked away "did you have fun with your new friend?" ..... Idiot.
Sorry about the vent lol.

That's fucking stupid! It really is bad owners and not bad dogs.

I think I must edit my previous post. It's not as much the size of the dogs, tho that is a big factor. It's more the breed of the dog.

My Rottweiler is small so most people think he's a girl. He's no taller than my mums labradoodle but he is wider. People are naturally scared of a dog like mine so I need to have excessive control but people with labradoodle and the like, don't realise their dogs could be just as vicious as mine and not exercise the same amount of training. Rottweilers actually score lower on aggression that Labradors and lower than the average dog.

Yes, it's definitely about bad owners rather than bad dogs. Unfortunately a lot of people will form an opinion about certain breeds or size because they happen to have met one or two dogs of that type that belonged to bad owners.

All the Rottis and Staffies I know are lovely because they are own by lovely people. Same with Chihuahuas, treated like dogs they are lively feisty little dogs but because some stupid people use them as accessories and stick them in hand bags they have this awful snappy snarling reputation. I have met several that are gorgeous, happy little dogs

Have to admit I did meet a dog of the same breed as mine a few days ago that scared the hell out of me. So if I didn't know my dog, who loves everyone she meets, I would probably have formed a very negative opinion about the breed from that one meeting.