Dogs off lead-not under control

[hannahmonk]

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Hi everyone,

What is the best way to deal with other dogs that are OFF lead?When I say this,I have absolutely no issue with dogs being off lead that are under control but I have had several incidents lately where the the owners just let their dog bound up to mine or casually walk up to him with no attempts to recall their dog,just 20 minutes ago we were on a walk and a staffy was off lead making a bee line for my dog so i politely asked them to call their dog as mine is nervous,they then apologised and made several attempts to call the dog back,which didnt actually work,and the dog only parted ways with us because I was leading us away.

Arnie [my dog] is generally not too bad with other dogs but he does sometimes snap which i think is mainly down to fear aggression,my main concern is my dog is under control and theirs isnt!There is a border collie we see on our walk who is always off lead but he is only solely interested in his owner so I have no worry that the collie will come up to us,it sounds ridiculous but it makes me anxious about going on walks when this should be a happy relaxing time for the both of us and I am worrying about whats round the corner!Sorry,rant over,think im worse because its not long happened AGAIN so on a bit of a rant!

 

[lurcherman]

you rant all u like, i say sorry to nobody on this issue after many lucky near misses i act to protect my onlead dogs by force if it looks and feels like a attack, i mainly walk in steelies so as some owners cannot be trusted then other dogs do not get near mine if i do my job right..

 

[hannahmonk]

Sorry for sounding silly but what does `steelies` mean?x

 

[lurcherman]

Ooops sorry steel toecapped boots, work boots..

 

[Rocky Rescue]

I hope you use the boots on the owners and not the dogs

 

[lurcherman]

Nope sorry if the dogs off lead and charging with teeth out then ma boot meets him head on as ive said before my job is to protect MY DOGS , if i dont protect my dogs then its a trip to the vet for cuts and stich? No thanks..

 

[xena]

It's a big issue and it's my dog's issue too. That's why i always call him back on leash when i see dog we don't know, before he spots this dog. My dog is still a youngster and sees everyone as a good company to play with, he would never approach you in agressive way, sometimes he's being so silly makes dogs who are not really excited about other dogs, accept him (probably they think "oh such a pain in the a**, let him be" ) , But i know not every owner wants this and not every dog is eager to be his playmate. He can still be so stupid, dog attacking him makes him think it's a fun game So because he can sometimes be all over the place (if i don't make him tired) I'm paying as much attention to surroundings as when i had an aggressive dog. He meets new dogs when on leash and only if both are ok they are being let off to play.

About border collie- probably his owner has a ball hihi I have total control over my dog when ball is in my pocket, nothing else will take his attention

And so i do it myself, not having aggressive dog, i expect other people to do the same. I very often tell people off for letting their chihuahuas or other small dogs off leash and letting them approach my dog in aggressive manner. I say- will you be happy if now, when your little dog was trying to bite my dogs leg, i let my dog off leash and let him deal with the situation? Probably not, so i'll ask you politely to take your dog under control. I don't care what size is it- rules apply to every dog.

Last time I was actually furious. I spotted a girl walking her well muscled staffie off leash in the park, she saw me taking my dog on leash, she didn't do the same, just carrying out writing text mssg. Before dog even approached i knew it's not going to be nice- from distance i could see his tail went straight up, body stiffen up, staring at us. If she paid any attention to her dog body language, she could easily stop him. but no. So he came closer and at some point attacked my dog, luckily my dog doesn't go for any fights if can be avoided, so he ignored attack. I stood between dogs and really shouted at other dog and i did mean it. Luckily he backed away. But you know wha5 was silly?? Women responsible for this dog gave me a smile and turned around. Made me really go mad. And in last words I said to her if once again your dog will do this i call police and you can be sure next time i will report this. Since then- she sees me and her dog goes on leash

 

[hannahmonk]

Sorry only just seen these replies!thanks everyone,interesting to get different opinions on the matter.I have since had another instance of a dog off lead,tiny thing it was,off lead,owner out of sight but on the same park.Arnie [our dog] as normal, gets all worried leaving me in a rather awkward situation with my dog who is panicking and an off lead dog with no owner to be seen,she eventually casually walks around the corner pathetically calling her dog,with me asking her if she can get her dog back please,WELL that went down like a lead balloon!`shes friendly` was the response i got,i told her i dont know that your dog is friendly!!and my dog doesnt like the attention thanks!she then starts going off at me that if my dog cant be trusted he should be muzzled!i said i have no need to muzzle my dog,hes not going to bite every dog off lead but if provoked,who am i to know what he might do?i wouldnt want to walk around a park myself with some strange person bothering me either!Arnie is a nervous dog by nature as he is a rescue.she then proceeded to tell me that we are in a park so what do i expect,i told her she is correct,it is a park for EVERYONE to enjoy,not to expect to have dogs who arent under control running up to me and i then told her if she wishes to excercise her dog off lead she should go to the dog park,which is actually within the park!!!!the argument ran and ran and i should mention her dog was still no more under control from when i first asked her.I think its just ignorant,and ive said it before i have no issue with off lead dogs UNDER CONTROL xx

 

[wifeofProgressdogtraining]

I have to agree with most of the points above. I really do not know why other people think that people and dogs want to be harassed by their dogs off leash. I also find that it is usually these free running dogs which are the ones responsible for the piles of dog poo left lying around because their owners are not watching them.

 

[jayelew]

My previous dog was a wonderful, gentle GSD. She often walked off a lead, she had playmates she met up with regularly and they always enjoyed their fun and game. My dog was always under complete control on or off the lead as were most the her playmates. However, a neighbour had a terrier bitch who had an unreasonable dislike of my GSD, was never on a lead and would attack my dog on sight. This went on for years. Never once did my lovely girl retalliate. She just did her best to ignore the terrier, turn her back on her. It was a difficult situation as the terrier's owner was a friend and he really couldn't see that his pet's behaviour was acceptable. He used to boast about how brave his pet was to attack a "big Alsatian"

My girl passed away last Autumn. The owner of the terrier said: "I always admired your dog. She showed such dignity."

What do you say to that?

 

[lurcherman]

I say your a fool letting a terrier attack your dog and as you say for years, now did the terrier have no teeth as your dog must have been cut to hell, a jack russel attacked my lurcher 3 yrs back the 1st time i moved the dog away the 2nd i pushed it away gently with my boot and told the owner next time im going to stop their dog with force so the 3 rd time the russell went 3 foot in the air, and the morrel of this story is keep ur raging dog on a lead as mine was.. What do you say to that?

 

[jayelew]

I say your a fool letting a terrier attack your dog and as you say for years, now did the terrier have no teeth as your dog must have been cut to hell, a jack russel attacked my lurcher 3 yrs back the 1st time i moved the dog away the 2nd i pushed it away gently with my boot and told the owner next time im going to stop their dog with force so the 3 rd time the russell went 3 foot in the air, and the morrel of this story is keep ur raging dog on a lead as mine was.. What do you say to that?

And I say you are extremely rude to call me a fool when you know nothing about me.

I don't hit dogs. Not mine, not anyone else's. I certainly don't kick dogs either. The fault lay with the owner. My GSD was not hurt. She was longhaired the the terrier's teeth were not long enough to penetrate her thick coat. She treated the attacks, though vicious in intent, rather as I would treat an annoying fly. I just used to shout at the terrier, put my dog on the lead and walk away. No one was ever hurt. I don't doubt that the terrier could have hurt short coated or smaller breed. I told her owner as much on more than one occasions, but that was not my problem.

 

[lurcherman]

Your job is to look after your dog and not let in be attacked and if your dog wasnt hurt then thats good but letting a russel attack at random is plain stupid, i like protecting my dog thats my job, its all well and fine saying its the owner but its the dog thas has teeth and i repeat i will do my best to stop a dog from hurting mine end of, sorry if you thought i was rude but cant see many people standing by letting a terrier attack their dog..

And by the way you did ask

You say she was long haired but what about her eyes?? Protect your dog at all cost its our job thats all i wanted to say.

 

[jayelew]

At no time were my dog's eyes in danger. At no time was my dog in danger. I think I know my dogs better than you ever could.

I can protect my dogs without resorting to violence again other dogs. I have done so with many dogs over many years.

Violence is never the answer.

 

[lurcherman]

Sorry your living in another world if you think your protecting your dog by letting other dogs attack geez wake up and smell the coffee, i mean no harm to you so i will say no more.

 

[jayelew]

Agreed.