This was posted on another forum. This lady was walking her dog's, all greyhounds, when the following happened. So what do you think? Tue Sep 21, 2010 7:52 pm i was out walking 3 of my pack there,which was my 2 oldies and Paddy-he has nervous aggression,so im walkin along minding my own buisness,wen a staffie flew from a distance,no lead,no collar,was coming right for paddy,of course as it approached he was going nuts,i started to say to it very nicely "go away,go away,as it was upsetting pads,then the silly arrogant so called owner starts shouting "oh shut up just shut up" i then said to her "" hey my dog is nervous,etc,if your dog continues to go over to him he could go for him,thinkin it would make her clip her dog on,but NO,she then tells me "" i should have my dangerous dog muzzled!!!!!!!!!!!!!! by this point i was fuming,i said my dog is under control yours aint,why have it offlead wen it runs at other dogs,some of which,i am trying hard to work on who has issues, i told her how i have muzzled my dogs in the past in which they were attacked and couldnt defend them selves-therefor i would NOT use a muzzle,so anyway she has now threatened to contact the police and tell them i have a dangerous greyhound....... to say im still very ANGRY and upset is an understatement,any advice would be most appreciated,thanx
Its obvious isnt it .. the Greyhounds are owned by a nice sensible lady & the staffie is owned by an idiot (poor Staffie) I wouldnt worry at all if I were the greyhounds owner
What a stupid idiotic woman!! I don't muzzle mine for the exact same reason. But I too am a resposible owner and never let Danny off if there are other dogs around. Middle finger comes to mind to me too!!
LOL. This argument could go on and on. If the staffie had run up to me in that fashion, I personally wouldn't turn a hair, because I am totally laid back where dog's are concerned, and never panic. So the point is who is in the wrong, the staffie owner just met the wrong greyhound owner. Video of a friend who has homed many a greyhound over the years, always walks them like this and has never had any trouble because primarily he knows what he is doing.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQnMnUrAPZk
Why is the post dated Tue Sept 21, 2010 7.52 pm when at the time I'm posting now, it's only 3.24 pm on the same day?
I am actually a member of the said forum and know the person concerned - i'm sorry but out of courtesy if i have a dog off lead and i see someone with an on lead dog i always put mine on lead. I had a foster dog that was always kept on lead and muzzled but still people let their dogs run over and then stood and watched whilst my dog was lunging and twisting on the lead with me struggling. The womans response to the grey owners was not acceptable i'm afraid. Its all very well shouting out to someone "its ok he's friendly" but how does that person know the others dogs are friendly ? The greys owner had it on lead and the staffie wasn't so who's dog was being controlled and whose wasn't !!!! Good for you if you are laid back - maybe you haven't got a fear agressive dog, perhaps you may feel differently if you had ! other peoples attitudes count for alot as well - this sort of scenario could have been avoided if the other woman had just apologised !!!!! after all she was in the wrong
The timezone on the forum might be set up differently, e.g. an American timezone. I would've told the lady to go ahead and report me, she's the one who in the eyes of the law does not have her dog under control in a public place. Her dog would not have to bite the lady or Paddy to be reported under the DDA, if the lady was malicious she could lie and say the dog growled at her and if there were any witnesses then the story could well be accepted (i.e. witnesses saw the Staffie ran over but were too far to confirm if it growled or not), so the Staffie owner should be careful who she mouths off to, next time it might be to the wrong person. I've had someone have a go at me for asking nicely to put their off-lead dog on-lead so I could pass with my dog aggressive dog (she was unmuzzled but on-lead with a muzzle in my bag incase), and she decided to have a real rave at me for "making my dog worse" etc. so I just marched off and hoped her dog didn't approach us, but I bet she wouldn't have been so keen for me to encourage my dog to mingle and brush it off as "one of those things" if she'd been off-lead and gone and attacked this woman dog
Hmm no, I wouldn't have agreed with you there. I too have a dog that goes nuts when on-lead, if an off-lead dog runs up to him. I normally call a cheery warning to the owner to call their dog back, or it will 'get shouted at' by mine, and most are happy to comply. If I had someone tell ME my on-lead under-control (but reactive) dog should be muzzled etc, I'd have a few choice words for them, as only by careful controlled meetings with other dogs will he ever improve in his reactions, and I take great care to walk him at times of day and in areas where I am least likely to meet other dogs, otherwise he'd never get exercised at all.
I kinda agree footloose, I always tell people that it doesn't matter what the other dog is doing (because regardless of how much you moan other dogs will do stuff you dislike) as long as you handle the situation properly its a learning experience for your dog. Adam
Sorry but I don't agree with this. It goes against all the "rules" of learning theory. If a fear-aggressive dog is on lead, and then that dog is put in an impossible situation by some numpty owner with an off lead dog with a rubbish recall, then it is most definitely the off lead dog's owner that is at fault for having their dog "dangerously out of control". But worse than that, it can set back the on lead dog's learning process for quite some time. The whole point of trying to desensitise & counter-condition a fear aggressive dog is that you introduce other dogs at a distance & in circumstances that do not trigger the fear response. If other off lead dogs are allowed to come bounding over, whether it's to play, say hello or bark at the on lead dog, then the whole counter-conditioning process goes down the plug hole & you're back to square one. It doesn't matter how the owner of the fear-aggressive dog handles the situation ~ & often the most they can do is prevent any harm coming to either dog ~ it is the perception of the dog that is crucial here. If a fearful dog has all the associated adrenaline & other flight/fight neurotransmiters rushing around it's body, the chances of it listening or taking notice of it's quiet, calm owner are likely to be zero. Of course over time, you can change this perception, but it's far better & quicker to do this in situations that you can control & not situations where you are effectively at the mercy of owners that can't control their dogs.
I think there is no easy way to compromise over how people walk their dog's. Where I go most dog's are off of the lead and seldom is there any trouble. If there is it usually comes from new arrivals who havn't walked their dog at the venue before and their dog's are quickly reconised, and if they turn up again they are given a wide berth.. Personally I like walking my dog off the lead and if I meet anyone who is having a difficult time controlling their dog, I would expect them to detour from my path and not inconvenience me with their problem.
My dogs are off lead 99% of the time too, & I often walk in places where there are other off lead dogs. I don't have a problem with that & I encourage my dogs to greet other friendly dogs & enjoy some play time. But if I see someone struggling with an on lead dog in a place where dogs are usually off lead, then I will avoid them. They've got enough on their hands & don't need my dogs interfering. I don't expect them to detour ~ I will keep out of their way as far as possible ~ it's just polite. I don't mind this inconvenience to me & I am very sympathetic to their problems, having been there myself numerous times as a DT dog walker. Plus I hate to see a fearful dog being put in a position where it feels the need to react ~ poor dog:-(. It must be horrible to be really scared, on a lead so no escape, then have to pass the object of it's fears on a narrow path. I'd much rather keep out of the way & avoid putting another dog through this. No it's not my problem, but as an animal lover, I want to help (or at least cause no harm) to other animals. My objection is that off lead dogs are often allowed to approach on lead dogs. If a dog is on lead in a place where dogs are usually off lead, then I assume there's a reason for it. It may be as simple as it's recovering from an injury, so is on lead walks only, but it may be because it is fear aggressive, in season, ill, in training, has a rubbish recall etc etc. The reason doesn't really matter ~ in any of those scenarios the owner wouldn't be best pleased if my dogs approached their dog.
Absolutely. But most people can`t control their children, let alone their dogs. So the rest of us need to develop strategies for coping. Remaining calm and taking evasive action is the best way I know to deal with this situation. There`s no point huffing and puffing at the other owner. If they had brain cells their dog wouldn`t be running riot.
It depends how you handle the situiation. If you get your dog calm and steady as the other dog approaches and then either allow interaction or drive the other dog off it teaches your dog to be calm even when he is pressured and makes you a better leader in his eyes. Adam
My lot are always on lead and go nuts if off lead dogs run up to them. I don't mind non aggressive off lead dogs who are responsive to their owners, I never have a problem with them, but dog aggressive dogs should always be on their leads unless in a secure place where they aren't going to meet other dogs.
Dogs don`t give you marks for being a good mummy, Adam. They don`t learn that way. If your dog is calm as the other dog approaches there`s no problem is there? I think the problem comes when the dog who being approached has issues. Therefore reacts. So avoid the confrontation. `Driving off the other dog` will reinforce the idea that there is a danger.
