Why do ppl let their dogs run up to yrs!!

[MarcoPoloCX]

I was walking my friend's dog this morning who is reactive. So I take care to avoid triggers that would set him off. He's not aggressive but barks like a lunatic if a dog gets too close. We were walking on lead in a field and we saw an elderly lady with her dog. I turned and started walking in another direction. Her dog was off lead and was approaching us. I yelled 'can you recall your dog' She went ' oh it's fine, he doesn't bite, he's friendly' I responded 'well mine isn't fine with other dogs' she tried to recall but the dog wasn't responding and it started my friend's dog barking. I met up with my friend who was ahead of me and he tells me she's always like that, she never recalls her dog. Just makes me angry that a lot of people do not have walk etiquette and that you should not let your dog approach others without asking. I volunteer at a rescue. Dogs could be reactive, fearful, injured, recovering from op, old and young puppies need space. I'm sure most ppl know that. Are they simply letting them roam free and not recall because they think oh it's friendly and they wouldn't get into trouble. The other week a friendly dog frightened the living daylight of this little pup. The owner asked how old the pup was and then suggested the pup goes to a socialisation class while it's still young. Yeah, that would be good if you had asked first and not scare the poor thing to death. Rant over.

Urgh top tips really tick me off mine also a rescue has some behaviour problems do they not think we know that he should have been socialised as a pup or let him play with other dogs they will sort themselves out.

i also have no problem with other dogs being off lead......just not under control or owners not bothering to try to control them.

Today in the park I saw a toddler bounced by a large doodle....she fell over and cried. Owner "he's only being friendly". BUT it's not frinedly.

Today in the park my tandem double buggy was passed by closely by a lovely friendly slobbery dog....who licked both babies before I could stop him....He was just being friendly too...but it was inAPPROPRIETE

We let him meet other dogs tbf most walkers are great and understand and the situation is controlled its the odd owners who think its fine to let their dogs jump all over every dog that is just irritating

Op I'm in full agreement with you, it's just common sense that if you see a dog on a lead it's on a lead for a reason whether that be because it's aggressive with other dogs, no recall or recovering from an operation you should automatically recall yours and either put it on a lead or have it under sufficient close control that it will leave the on lead dog alone. My two dogs are fine with all dogs but a couple of years ago one of my dogs had major knee surgery, I was absolutely gob smacked by the amount of dogs who ran up to him whilst he was on a lead and pestered him, it seriously pissed me off.

And another thing... it isn't always a case of socializing, some dog breeds hate other dogs, mine do, they will never attack or even bark at other dogs unless the other dog starts approaching or aggressing, whenever we see other dogs (which is rare, we usually stick to our own land) they have been taught to drop into a down-stay position and just watch. I have spent hours and hours training my dogs, isn't that what any responsible owner does? A dog is never too young to learn obedience and respect, and if you can't control your dog you need to start some serious training or think about whether you should be owning a dog.

You would find that owners with reactive dogs spend a lot of time and energy training their dogs to desensitise them to the triggers, take steps to avoid them and it’s not just a few weeks job and the dog is cured.
It can take months, years and some dogs are never over it.
A perfectly non-reactive dogs can become reactive at any stage of its life.
As before it’s not just reactive dogs that need space …..old, young, injured, fearful, boisterous, aggressive, recovering from op, on heat, aggressive … etc etc ….…
I see many rescue dogs that need space when they are walked for all variety of reasons.
Looking at them you wouldn’t know why and many dogs fall in the above categories , are you seriously expecting them to be all muzzled because you cannot recall your dog or you couldn’t be bothered with checking whether it’s ok?
If your dog is causing stress to another dog and he bites, why do you think you are the victim?

My dog is pretty much always on lead because he has awful recall. He is very friendly and does not mind being approached.

However, this is obvious from both mine and my dog's body language towards other
owners and dogs. Never mind the dog, if the owner is clearly not engaging positively with you or your dog when you encounter each other you can't assume that it is ok for your dog to approach.

I also say things like 'hello, no it's fine he likes other dogs, just has awful recall'.

It's really not that difficult to check whether your dog's advances are welcome.

merrymouse - I sometimes walk a friend's dog who has a bit of a dodgy knee, so while she's perfectly friendly and has fairly good recall I put her on the lead to meet other dogs...it's really easy to tell the difference because I tell people, she's friendly, just isn't allowed to run about, compared to when I'm with my dog and I'm miles away shouting that he's not ok with dog.

I also never understand why people want their dog anywhere near mine, I mean what on earth is their dog going to get from meeting a dog who would like to hurt it?

Don't get me wrong. The vast majority of dogs my pup approaches are dogs she knows and has played with before. If there's the hint of aggression I'll recall her with the promise of food and hold her collar until I can be sure that the unfamiliar dog is friendly.

I'd say around 90% of the dogs I see in the park are off-lead. It's not uncommon to see up to a dozen dogs on the main field of my park (around 3-4 acres) all off-lead at the same time, playing well together and running round the whole field. You can't walk a dog on a lead through that lot and expect your dog to be ignored.

My dog just wants to toddle along on his walk tbh he loves elderly dogs and is besotted with my neighbours little dog he licks her face as i said before we are all trying to rub along together a wee bit of thought and consideration is all that is needed. I would love for mine to be off lead sniffing other dogs bums but it wasnt to be

I wouldn't walk through that lot. I'd walk in another direction. And if required I would leash up and jog and play games to keep the dogs attention on me.

I wouldn't walk through that lot either, I don't walk anywhere I'm likely to meet dogs en masse.

It's pretty limiting having a reactive dog tbh, he's currently under walked a bit because it's sunny - too many places suddenly get busy when it's sunny.

Collaborate, you should be able to though, if all owners could control their dogs you wouldn't have a problem walking through that lot. I know that I could walk through the middle of the lot of them, with my dogs off lead, and I know that they wouldn't move from my side or react at all. Unless another dog started to approach, then they would roar, still not leaving my side.
I have never been at the stage where one warning doesn't send even the most enthusiastic dog whining and running back to its owner. Dogs very rarely want to approach my two anyway, their size is usually enough of a deterrent.

I am very very glad that I live in a country where its illegal to have your dog off lead anywhere other than your own land or a special dog park, it makes life for anyone with rescue/nervous/other dogs a lot nicer!

I have a dog who is reactive. She is nervous of other dogs and this comes out in an aggressive way. To combat this, i have tried numerous behaviour treatments (to discover she is allergic to SO much food!), tried a muzzle (i cant find one that fits her safely and comfortably - her head is such an odd shape) so I now use a yellow bib.
It works more effectively than trying to explain that she will fly at other dogs (she is worse on the lead as some of it is a protective thing), but also having to explain to other owners that I don't have a problem with their dogs, but I'm warning them that mine needs space.
Sometimes she won't bat an eyelid but it's usually staffies, uncontrolled puppies (no matter how submissive - she doesnt want them in her face), little dogs (but not always!) and bizarrely greyhounds!
I own another small dog (a small hound) so i think that makes people think she's OK... But that's because she knows and lives with him.
She is 8 years old and we've had her barely 2 years. A lot of this behaviour has been reinforced over the years by her old owners who didn't train her positively out of it (and barely walked or socialised her).

We have had a fantastic response from the yellow bib and i hope it's made people more aware that it's not their dogs fault but they need to be sympathetic to the dog wearing the bib. Each time she flies at a dog, we're a step backwards. Sometimes its unavoidable - we move right over, the other owner has their dog under control, but my big dog still insists on making sure she "has a word" and 35kgs is a lot to hold!! But i still have her under control and she is far away enough to never make contact.

We have had small dogs come flying at us from out of the blue and she immediately gets her defenses up... And of course it's my fault that this dog is now scared despite mine being on the lead, close to me and wearing her bib.
Even if we found a muzzle that fitted her, it does not stop the reaction!

She has stopped flying after cats, so i am hopeful that she will get better at passing other dogs.

I highly recommend the bib (it's not waterproof, but it is breathable material in the heat).

Reading with interest. For context I have an 8 month old pointer (our first family dog, so I'm new to the world of dog etiquette). He's big and friendly and can be bouncy, but approaches unfamiliar dogs slowly and gently. He has good recall and is off the lead as much as possible on walks. We live in a rural area where practically everybody seems to have a dog.

Is the general consensus that if you see a dog approaching on a lead, when your dog is off lead, you should always either a) recall your dog and keep it close or b) put your dog on the lead? I haven't always done this tbh, as people often seem perfectly happy to have him approach their dog. Obviously if they said 'Please recall your dog' or looked bothered, I would do so straight away.

Holme, I would say recall your dog everytime, and if he will stay at heel off lead, no need to put him on the lead, but if he won't stay at heel then put him in the lead. Pointers are lovely dogs, I had one growing up.

Yes! I have always walked my big dog on the lead in the hope that when someone sees me grabbing her close that1 they will assume she doesnt want to talk :)

I have also assumed that people who have their dogs on a lead for a reason but sometimes it's not clear, hence the yellow bib campaign :)

holmes - just recall him and it soon becomes obvious if you didn't need to and you can let him go again, but anyone who is walking a reactive, elderly or infirm dog will really appreciate it.

Recall your dog and check with owner if you see a dog on lead.

In the same way, some people love dogs and like to be approached and some people hate dogs. It isn't usually that hard to tell the difference, but if in doubt assume that they aren't pro-dog.

A dog lover will generally start gazing lovingly at the dog before they notice its owner.

I think pps who think it's ok for their dogs to approach anyone or any other dogs are missing the point. It's a case of how much control you have over your own dog and how considerate you are prepared to be to other dog walkers.

I ended up have very strong word with a stupid couple a while ago because their very large bouncy puppy would not leave me alone on a beach - the beach was stony and so it can be quite tricky to keep your balance - but apparently it was perfectly acceptable, in their eyes, for their totally untrained dog - when they did try calling it when it was heading for the water, it completely ignored them - to leap up at me and run between my legs (why dog puppies do that?) in an effort to play, more, it seemed, with me, than with my dog.

I didn't want to play with their annoying dog and when I told them to call their dog off me I was told I was miserable and I should 'get a life'.

I was with my dog in the park a few days ago and we passed a woman and her small dog - her dog was on the lead mine wasn't - they were quite some distance from us when my dog started to run towards them. The woman call out 'he isn't friendly' so I called my dog to me and she turned immediately and came back to me. The woman smiled at me and we both went on our way. Why is that such a difficult idea of good dog manners for some people to grasp.

I'm not trying to stealth boast, my dog isn't perfect, she has many annoying ways, but I've made sure she will come back to me - I want her to be safe and good recall can often play it's part in saving a dog's life. She's learned this because I've trained her, not because other dogs have got so fed up with her annoying them with inappropriate behaviour that they've felt the need to put her in her place.

I have a very bouncy 6 month old lab and i get odd looks as i recall him at momenet being a sod on recall teenage years and we are working on it so am very carefull where i let him of and some places he stays on lead becuase i can not trust him at moment not to take of after other dogs to play and yes he has and i apolgised greatly same as I accept sometimes that it happens to me as we are all only human and it happens

and or put his lead on before i allow him to greet dogs as long as other person says ok . as Im aware that he is big and not all dogs appreicate that he is being friendly .

Only once checked with owner then is he allowed of to run with there dog

Mind sigh i lost track of amount of times that dogs run up to mine and starts yapping and yes mostly small breed and told oh they being friendly but at 28kg if mine starts bouncing and lands on yours its going to hurt them
in that case mine is not at fault as i have pulled him in right next to me and have hold of him

while we are at if if your dog not like wheels call it back to as i hate dogs snapping at my wheelchair

#extra moan if mine wearing a cost that says training then please while im telling my dog to leave and ignore grab your dog please as while yours may be friendly mines having to learn that when wearing coat and harness he is working and needs to ignore a she will be a working dog

Mind i also like humans to do same and get some traing when he wearing his coat in shops too.
Though he is good at ignoring people in shops and when packing he is only young and if you go to fuss him or start making clicking noises some of time he is going to get distracted and then when i do stern leave dont glare or tut at me as sure you dont want a lab causing a clean up in aisle 10 or in the egg aisle

I have noticed that the 'aww, he's friendly' brigade make a lot more effort to recall their bouncy dogs away from the aggressive looking big dogs than my cocker spaniel. She's nearly been flattened several times by large dogs who 'just want to play'. The owners only seem to be bothered if they think it might be their dog that gets hurt