Dog walking anxiety

[Aardvarkitsabloodyaardvark]

Hi all.
I'll start with the fact that I have diagnosed anxiety (unmedicated).
I've had dogs for the last 25 years and always felt happy out and about with them.
My current gorgeous dog is a lot smaller but is fiesty. She is the soppiest dog ever but will be vocal in regards to other dogs in retaliation.
The fact is every time I take her out I'm terrified something will happen to her.
I think this is probably a mixture of my anxiety and that years ago my cat was attacked and killed by a dog right in front of me. (I couldn't get it off her). Also there are constant dog on dog attacks and dog snatching in the news.
I'm very aware my dog will be picking up on my anxiety while we are out but it's so hard to keep calm.
Just today we walked around the estate (with my OH) and one house had dogs in the fenced back garden that were literally trying to get through snarling, growling, barking.
My daughter says they do this all the time whether you have a dog or not.
My anxiety sees them breaking through the fence and attacking my dog.
I'm missing out on so much with her as I don't feel I can walk her in my own.

What to do?

What do you mean when you say she is vocal with other dogs in retaliation? Does she bark at other dogs when she's on a lead but only if they are barking at her?

Yes that is all she does. In our area there are dogs she already knows and it's lovely to see her interact.
Today we walked down an alley way next to our house and there were dogs in a back garden charging at the fence to get to us.
Nor just my opinion. I certain won't take her that way again
She is a barker though, very gobby.

Well it's not surprising you worry about her - especially after what happened to your cat. I'm so sorry to hear that happened, it's truly awful.

It's understandable that you'll worth more if your dog is small. I think maybe you could do a few things though to make yourself feel better.

Firstly you could work on her reactions to other dogs. It's completely understandable that she goes back at other dogs who have a go at her first (one of mine does the same ) but teaching her to redirect to you instead (focus on you for treat, fuss, toy, praise, whatever) could stop a situation escalating and help you both feel calmer. There's a game called Look At That I'm sure you can find online. Essentially you train the dog over time to see a dog and to turn to you for direction. If it's one of her friends - great, she can be released to say hi. If it's not, you can get out of the situation and away from the dog with less fuss. This method is used for reactive dogs and frustrated greeters which yours doesn't fit exactly but might help you both?

Secondly, you could teach "middle" where the dog stands between your legs. Practice at home and then practice out and about. Lots of people use this to help their dog feel a bit more secure in a situation where a rude dog is in their space. Might be worth a try? If a ride dog approached it might give you change to cue your dog between your legs and then move away.

Thirdly, people love to say you shouldn't pick up small dogs if another dog is in their space as it "makes it worse". I call bullshit on that. It's a very big, scary world for small dogs and they (any dog actually) need to feel like you are their protector and you can get them out of a situation. So if you need to, scoop her up, throw some treats away to distract the rude dog and walk away with your dog. If she's always on a lead though.

Do you think teaching her not to go back at other dogs, teaching her a nice cue that means you have got her close and she feels safe, and knowing that worst case scenario you could distract a dog with treats, scoop up your dog and move away, might be a good start to helping you feel more on control and less anxious about dog walks?

Thank-you so much. That is such a helpful post. I'm going to work on the Look at that idea. She is very in to her treats.
I'm also going to work on my anxiety and try and get that sorted.