Preventing other dogs approaching mine?

[MadisonMontgomery]

My dog is super friendly with people but hates most other dogs and will go for them if they come up to him. Obviously I put him on a lead when we see another dog, but because he is little and cute people just let their dogs run up to him, despite me asking them not to, then of course he goes for them and I'm the bad dog owner. I did once see a harness & lead set which said something like 'do not approach' - think it was designed for rescue dogs. Has anyone seen anything like this or has any good ideas?

I've found some online saying things like needs space, do not approach etc - what would people think if they saw a dog wearing one?

You could also get one that says "nervous dog allow space" similar to that, we had one that seemed to work, obviously if any dog did run up to ours if the owners were far away, as soon as the other owner see that it stopped all the "bad dog" comments because it was a bright yellow badge warning so if anything it is good for that reason alone x

That's not a bad idea, but tbh, by the time another dog owner can read it, they've probably already let their dog run up to yours.
I call out, and give a clear signal by getting my dog behind my legs, or right over at side of path.

If they then choose not to control their dog, what else can you do? I suppose a muzzle if your dog is really going to bite.

My dog loves people dislikes many dogs.... openly will try to attack any dog that runs at her.

We have a yellow lead - generally recognised as give dog space.

Still get the dogs running up to her.... With the owners saying - don't worry he/she's friendly... I often have to pick my dog up to stop a full blown fight while others wander over to collect their dog which is jumping up at me...

I do get the occasional - you can't control your dog ...as mine is on a lead and theirs has just run full pelt at it barking -despite them screaming it's name.

Had a park warden have a go at a chap who did exactly that - screaming I can't control my dog as she was in my arms barking at his dog who was launching itself at me.

I have a very unsociable dogs so he wears a bright red harness and lead with caution in bold letters all over it. I got it from Amazon and it does the trick

When walking my brother's dog (she's a little three-legged, dog aggressive, rescue and bro is disabled, so it's me who walks her), if I can't alter my path, I clearly and loudly say "she's dog aggressive" and thankfully so far people have put theirs on a lead and kept as far away from us as they can upon passing. I think "she's dog aggressive" is most effective because it puts the responsibility of approaching dog on that dogs owner and doesn't open it up for them to say their dog is fine whilst it rudely pelts over to your dog, terrifying it.

Re those leads and harnesses it's the orange one for dog aggressive but a lot of reviews say the writing is too small for other owners to read until up close and too late anyway. Bro's dog is a harness and collar escape artist anyway, so I just got my bro's dog the orange coloured perfect fit harness (good for escapist tri-paws) and collar.

If you are walking the dog, best you can do is keep walking and ignore other dogs. Your dog will learn to ignore them too

Put a muzzle on her.

Personally I wouldn't be taking my dog anywhere where there's gunna be other dogs off lead. I always think if your dog isn't friendly towards other dogs why take them to places where you know there's gunna be other dogs?

This isn't a moan at you btw. It's for your own dogs sake as well. He doesn't like other dogs so I personally wouldn't put him in a position which is going to stress him out - taking him somewhere that's he's probably gunna encounter other dogs

You need to listen to your dog. To the poster who said your dog will learn to ignore, no he won't and why should he. He finds other dogs stressful which is why he's not friendly, the more dogs which approach him = the more stressful he'll become. It's easier to just avoid places such as fields where you know dogs are gunna be off lead.
Dogs aren't children, you can't explain to them the same way.

You could have the best trained dog in the world but there could still be a moment or two when they don't come back instantly. And to me, it's not worth the risk. All it takes is for someone not to see you/your dog quick enough and then you've just got hassle on your hands

I have a very people friendly rescue who is scared of other dogs and reacts aggressively if they approach her. I try and avoid places like canal towpaths where we can't keep a distance between us and other dogs. If an off lead dog runs up to us I call to the owner that she's not dog friendly although often they only make a half hearted attempt to recall their dog. Sadly my dog is never off lead and is always muzzled but it's for her own protection so she can't be accused of attacking an off lead, out of control dog.

A muzzle makes everyone grab dogs in horror and avoid like the plague. I think it's the best signal to other owners that your dog is not friendly plus it's the responsible thing to do if your dog is likely to bite.

I muzzled mine for years without issue

sparkling so the dog should be confined to its home and garden? Or are you saying boring pavement walks are ok?

IME paths alongside roads are very difficult and distressing for dog aggressive dogs as they can clearly see other dog for a long way before and after. And it's often harder to get well away from other dog. Plus if other dog is on opposite side of road, you then get the dog aggressive one lunging toward the road/cars driving along road.

The best places I found walking bro's dog aggressive dog, are the wide footpath with small wooded areas on both sides and lots of little paths off into the trees that aren't used much, that I can divert onto, and wide footpaths with wide grass areas both sides allowing us to create the same distance as dogs passing on different sides of road without the hazards.

Thanks everyone - I live in the countryside so do try and walk him away from busy paths but can't always avoid meeting other dogs. I have thought about a muzzle but he is half pug so quite flat-faced and not sure how well it would work - he doesn't ever bite, just snaps and snarls, but it might make people think twice before approaching.

NO DOGS Orange Color Coded 6 Foot Padded Dog Leash (Not Good With Other Dogs) PREVENTS Accidents By Warning Others of Your Dog in Advance www.amazon.com/dp/B00MNFC490/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_BvtYzbJ6YQK6N?tag=mumsnetforum-21 A leash to warn other people walking their dogs

www.yellowdoguk.co.uk

Just came on to mention YellowDog but noticed PP has

My usual response to "he's friendly" is "but I'm not, so put your fucking dog on a lead."

To be honest, I see off-lead dogs approaching each other, offering to play, sniffing bums etc as a normal part of dog interaction and a reasonable thing for owners to allow. Your dog will be capable of signalling that it's not keen and most dogs will then back off. If your dog is so reactive it goes straight to an attack response, I'm afraid your dog is the problem, not the well adjusted dog behaving normally.

There are exceptions. People shouldn't allow puppies to rush in as they can misread other dogs' body language, and may stress out older or nervous dogs by being too full-on and not taking the hint to back off. So puppies' owners should ask first, and you should be able to say no thanks.

But otherwise, if yours is the biting risk, I think it should be on a lead or muzzled. Sorry.

I honestly think most of the dogs allowed to run riot and greet others are not friendly and well adjusted though Tiny. Dogs who have been allowed to do whatever they want often are pushy and rude and lack social skills which often leads to aggression from the dog not wanting to interact.

Dogs running up to eachother is not acceptable in my opinion unless asked or signalled that it is okay by both parties for many different reasons least of all aggression.

I don't think reactive dog or aggressive dog owners deliberately walk in to a group of dogs.
Those that I know often avoid triggers, they scour the surroundings, zig zag in parks and often choose the time and the area they walk when hardly anyone's around. They change directions or leash up if other dogs are approaching.
Have friends who rarely take their dogs out in busy periods.
If they are training their dogs and avoiding triggers then hopefully other people would give them the respect and keep their dogs away especially from on lead dogs.

I understand that young dogs are boisterous and don't always have reliable recall. But as they get older, hopefully they'd have a decent recall and the owners to be more knowledgeable about dog walk etiquette.

You know your dog will bite at some point. He needs to be muzzled. I don't care if he weighs 3kg or 300kg, he's capable of hurting someone.

As for other dogs approaching, I know that's harder to control but you can protect yourself from future issues.

tinymeteor the problem is most owners can’t read dogs body language. When my dogs recall was rubbish due to teenage deafness I avoided all other dogs. Now his recall is great and I always ask other owner if their dog is ok before allowing them to approach mine otherwise I turn and walk the other way. Unfortunately a lot of people can’t read the dogs interaction and it annoys me when they let their dogs run up to mine and can’t understand why I won’t walk with them because I can see my dog is getting bullied by the others and isn’t happy.

A dog is on a lead for all kinds of reasons.
It could be reactive, fear aggressive, DA, injured, in season, in training, recovering from surgery, nervous, poor recall, the owner may handle better on lead. all sorts of reasons.... you just don't know.
So why would people let their dogs approach it?

If the owner can control the dog, keep it on lead and listens to commands.
Why do you want to muzzle it?
You're taking away his ability to defend itself.

Imagine you have a dog that's nervous and growls if approached by strange dogs. A dog goes straight up, ignores your dog's body language. Your dog starts growling and a fight ensues and your dog cannot defend itself.