Dogs off their leads question

[Allshallbewell2021]

I am walking every day as part of a rehab program following a hip injury. I walk a local strip of parkland which has paths and some wide open spaces. Loads of kids, football etc, walkers and dog walkers.

I'm never certain what the rules are for dogs being off their leads but most owners seem aware that their dogs when exercising shouldn't be running up to pedestrians, circling them and barking at them.

Twice yesterday I was circled and run at by the muddiest dog. The owner called its name a lot but clearly had no command over the dog. Eventually after the second time she managed to put it on a lead.

I love dogs but felt nervous of being jumped on because I am still a bit fragile.

It seems like this is a shared space so dogs off the lead should still be under control? I saw a lot of owners with dogs on leads as it is an open area with lots of walkers.

Training a dog is really hard work and needs to be done early and reinforced. I know as I grew up with a perfectly trained dog.

Maybe I need to avoid walking at that 5-7 pm dog last walk time.

We walk our dog a lot in glens and on beaches and I've maybe once been jumped up at by a dog in those places in 4 years. The dog owners seem more aware and will put a badly trained dog on a lead....

We also, rarely, take her to the local park where a lot of dogs are off lead, it's a dog park really ... I've been jumped up at more times there - not loads but more...and we know which dogs to avoid now as there owners are useless.

Maybe change where you are walking?

This obviously shouldn’t be happening and I would certainly never let my dogs do this. However I’ve been a daily dog walker for over 20 years and never once had a random dog jump up at me while I’m walking so it sounds like you have been very unlucky.

It depends on local rules on dogs off lead. That said I’d not let my dog do it. She did like to say ‘hi’ as a puppy but we tried to make sure she wasn’t allowed to approach and it it did happen we apologised profusely. We mostly walk in rural areas. I dislike town green spaces for that reason!

Dogs shouldn't be off the lead unless owners have full voice control - unfortunately this is rarely the case!

in theory owners should not let their dog run up to anyone, a person or another dog.
In practise, there are so many badly controlled dogs about that it is going to happen.

Large open shared spaces are difficult as it is a logical space to let your dog off the lead, but then they should be under control, ie have good recall, and many don't

Dogs should always be under control in public... but some people just ignore that.

I find a big difference depending on where I go, some places seem to attract numpty dog owners, there’s no real rhyme or reason to it that I can work out.

One of mine is a bit of a git with other dogs, not aggressive just overly enthusiastic and doesn’t understand consent so he’s on lead a lot where there might be other dogs, there are some walks I just can’t take him on because so few people can recall there dogs, others pretty nearby are fine 🤷‍♀️

Barrelofotters , this parkland is next to my house and partly why we moved here; I can't avoid walking here nor do I want to.

Normally I wouldn't feel uneasy around very excited dogs off leash and obviously loving their exercise (which is fair enough as I'm sure many dogs don't get enough exercise) It's just as I'm recovering it's more alarming to have a dog running round you and running up to you when the owner evidently is not in control of the dog. It was also that the same dog did the same thing twice during one walk that was so noticeable.

Also I think you are far less likely to be approached by a dog when you have one with you. There's a zoning around owners isn't there?

Are you able to walk with a stick @Allshallbewell2021 ?

It would be entirely acceptable to block an approaching, uncontrolled dog with said stick. Slow deliberate placement of the stick in the dog's path should be enough to do the trick.

I am a dog owner and would have no issue with this, although if mine did approach you this way, I would be hugely embarrassed and apologetic.

Speak to your council. They've put up the "It's OK my dog's friendly. NO actually isn't OK to let your dog to harass other dogs and people" notices at my local park and to my absolute shock it does seem to be making a difference. I mean you will still get the anti-social idiot owners who will never listen to any request/law but it is more the lab/spaniel owners (not all, and owners of other breeds can be equally oblivious, before I get shot down!) who allow the sort of not aggressive but still a nuisance behaviour

I'm sorry you feel like this. It's a tricky one and I fell foul of it this morning, however I was actually in the middle of training my puppy, who had on a high vis training line attached (long line you can grab or stand on whilst training them), when a spaniel appeared from nowhere. My older dog had done a poo, so I was in the middle of picking up, and accidentally dropped the puppies training lead. Puppy then went bounding over to spaniel, and owners had a fit, saying my puppy had bitten them (she's a 13 week old Labrador with baby teeth), and telling me to' get my dog under control', while I only had one hand to hold my other dog, and pick up poo. They could see this. I understand in an ideal world, my puppy shouldn't have bothered them, but things happen, and round here MOST people are lovely. Location wise, we walk on a very large council run field, and also a large beach, where there are lots of dogs - it's a 'nice' area demographically, and most people are pleasant and own friendly breeds. Lots of people train and have off lead dogs in this place. You can't win.... I went at a quiet time today to actually try and train my own dogs and avoid other dogs.

It probably makes sense to either engage with the owner or avoid that time.

Lots of people online present themselves as only ever letting their dogs with perfect recall off lead but realistically, there are other dogs around as well - perfect example given of dropping the lead by mistake of one dog while picking up after another.

It happens, you can be trying to clip your lead on to a dog’s collar with freezing hands in winter and they dart off towards a a dropped sandwich they just noticed or they’re in training so they’re not perfect. Not all dogs are and not all owners but you can avoid by going pre 5pm or whatever suits.

Dogs should be under control. That doesn’t necessarily mean on the lead. But my dog ignores people unless they invite him for a fuss. Even then he’s quite reticent! Sorry this happened to you OP especially when you’re trying to recover.

5-7pm is not a good time. 10am to 4pm weekdays is ideal: the morning walkers are gone and the evening ones aren't out yet. Weekends you need to play by ear.

Rules are that dogs should not go up to anyone uninvited. You are well within your rights to be pissed off.

My dog definitely does not have 100% recall and he is big and would look scary if he ran up at someone. I have him mostly on a long line but I do let him off lead if I we are alone (the issue is running up to other dogs not running away). If I see someone coming I recall him in time and put him on the lead to pass them.

Occasionally (less and less with ongoing training) we will have a fail where I don't call him in time and he runs off not listening to me and when this has happened I have always been mortified and apologised profusely.

He is not interested in humans without dogs it's other dogs he thinks might play with him that are the issue. Nonetheless I put him on a lead 100% when passing anyone as I want people to feel safe and see I have him under control.