Another off lead one

[ismu]

Just back from a walk where my dog was set upon by two off lead dogs running ahead of their owners. Fortunately they only seem to have ripped his rain coat and grabbed his harness.
Of course they have NEVER done that before and no they don't need to go back on a lead. Even though one was a breed which "is known for its pugnacity".

"My dog is bred to sniff and hunt, yours is bred to fight, somewhere back in time. Please respect that and don't give your dog opportunities to reinforce negative behaviours".

That's what I should have said to the two posh dog owners but of course I just went home and gave mine extra treats.

Dogs should be under control at ALL times, including around intact dogs. These dogs weren't.

Totally agree with this. In the end, this is what it all boils down to. 2 dogs that were not under control when they should have been.

All the talk about harnesses and neutering is just white noise to the root of the issue: if all 3 dogs had been under proper control this would not have happened. As it was, only 1 dog was and it did.

Exactly. I'm really not sure what being in the countryside has to do with it either

I get so sick of posts blaming the on-lead dog, or the unneutered dog. No - the dog at fault is the one who is off the lead and out of control.

If you can't recall your dog or if your dog "doesn't like" entire males then your dog should be on a lead whether they're in the countryside or not!

@SweetSixty Waving back atcha!

I wonder if rescue dog owners are more focused on training than those who have dogs from a puppy?

Rescue dogs often have lots of issues and they need a lot of consistency.

My social group has an annual Christmas meal that I've had to dip out of due to the newly developed separation anxiety. The chap organising it suggested I 'get a cage' and put dog in it (we won't go into the feathered tongue due to over crating...). I said to him that doggo needs consistency, training, encouragement and some fuss - a bit like a new husband...!

He didn't reply!

if all 3 dogs had been under proper control this would not have happened.

Agreed. But sadly, the OP and every other dog owner is going to come across out of control off lead dogs with hapless owners on a regular basis. Talking about what should happen, reporting to dog warden, citing the law... it's all irrelevant. It's getting increasingly difficult to keep dogs safe let alone actually enjoy walking them. That sadly is the reality of the world in which we live. The best thing the OP can do is to try to find a way to walk her dog safely and hopefully enjoyably. No easy task so she has my sympathies.

@Killingoffmyflowersonebyone bit ironic you picking up on the OP for jumping to conclusions re class of owner and you jumping to conclusions on type of harness and dog being on a lead.......

Tactical harnesses can be worn for many reasons. They are very well fitting for active busy dogs and cause less impact or issues on the dogs movement, a dog recovering from injury may be happier in a tactical harness as the weight is distributed better on the whole body the list goes on..........

I hear you! Walking with our two female, on lead whippets last weekend we were on a narrow wooded path and could see a young couple in the distance coming our way. They were in the distance so didn't see they had a dog. As the path was narrow we climbed out of the way with our two girls to allow this couple to use the path and pass us. However, as we climbed up and were stood with our backs to the path, their off lead dog came out of nowhere and immediately launched an attack on our youngest whippet. She defended herself and my husband managed to get this dog to loosen its grip on ours and stop the attack and we both shouted at it and managed to herd it away from us.

Seconds later the owner appeared full of apologies, popped the dog on a lead and they scarpered. We didn't even have chance to confront them and to be honest we were more concerned in that moment about our whippet who was bleeding profusely from a bite laceration to her front leg. We raced to the vets and she had to have surgery on the wound and have it stitched costing us £140. I was furious!! I wish I had confronted them but it happened so quickly and then they were gone and we just didn't have a moment to get our heads around what had just happened. But its so unfair. Dogs that are liable to attack others should not be off lead!!!! They way this dog just launched an immediate unprovoked attack makes me think this can't have been the first time they have done this.

The area we were walking is a well known dog walking area too so they must have realised there was a very good chance they would bump into others with dogs.

Its bloody annoying!!!!!

I’d just put it in local facebook group to warn others
and email it in to non emergency police in case there’s been other reports then helps them see the full picture

@OldTinHat - I wonder how that guy thought putting you pup in cage would help your dog or satisfy your desire to help your dog. So peculiar how peoples' minds work.

Sounds like your dog has found the perfect home.

I've never heard of feathered tongue, what is that?

Rubbish!
None of my four males was ever castrated, nor were they ever walked off the lead. For their own safety. They were not reactive, nor badly behaved, just very large and independent minded so we walked them on leads out of respect for other people.