Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
In the last two weeks I have been out walking my child around in a stroller downtown in my small city and seen two instances of aggressive dogs in public.
The first was a woman sitting at an outdoor table at restaurant ignoring the dog at her feet. There was an event hosted for kids and lots of families out and about. Another woman was walking her dog minding her own business and passed the restaurant. The seated woman's dog (a HUGE GSD- weighed 90-100 pounds if it weighed an ounce) leapt up and started lunging through the barrier around the tables at the passing much smaller dog. The seated woman could not control her animal and the dog actually bent the edge of the metal barrier trying to get through it at the walking woman and her dog. The GSD owner was petite and was not able to get her animal to stop lunging barking and snarling or even sit back down. Luckily a quick thinking fellow diner threw some cold water in the dog's face to get it distracted long enough for the woman to grab the dog's collar and drag it away. The walker by was shaken. There were kids everywhere and I can't imagine what might have happened had the dog gotten through the fence.
Today I was wandering around and saw another incident. A dog was on a porch-- looked like a Belgian Malinois- and a woman was walking a much smaller dog who had a mobility harness by the house. As soon as they passed the dog ran down the stairs and started snarling/barking aggressively. The poor passing dog just froze and the woman tried to pick him up and leave but this got the Malinois even more riled. There was a fence in the front yard but it was at best decorative and about 2 feet high. The dog was seconds from leaping over it when the owner came out on the porch and started calling the dog's name. No response. He then yelled at the passer by to just keep walking. I went over to try and help her as she was struggling to carry her dog. The whole time this A-hole owner is yelling at her like its her fault. Turns out, her dog just had hip surgery and was both scared and having trouble moving. There was no reason for this Malinois to freak out. And the fence on the property was not enough to contain it. I said as much to the jerk owner and mentioned animal control might be interested to know about it. As you might guess, that went over like a lead balloon as it was in NO WAY the dog's issue or his issue-- it was the passer by and my issue for existing I guess.
Our city is very dog friendly. Most of the people I see out and about have no problems with their dogs in public whatsoever. But there is always the person who either 1) can't control the animal and has a breed they know nothing about or 2) blames other people for their dog's behavior. This is especially dangerous living up against one another or on a crowded sidewalk during an event. Any tips on dealing with situations like the two I have detailed? I am not a dog owner myself as I am highly allergic, but I do have a small child and don't feel comfortable after witnessing these incidents.
Honestly, if you find yourself around one of these situations, get yourself and your child out of there quietly and without too much distracting movement. Especially if it's a freaking out GSD or Mal.
My friends and I in the Denver area work very hard to train our dogs to be "Brewdogs," meaning they sit quietly with you at the brewery and don't react to the other dogs while you have a drink with your friends. I recently was walking my kelpie into a brewery and had a previously unseen dog suddenly lunge snarling at my dog totally unprovoked and the owner got a hold of it just in time. Fortunately I did not have my younger dog with me. She is normally fine with other dogs, but if she felt threatened by another dog exhibiting unprovoked aggression, she would promptly have set about giving it a reason to be provoked (which is why people kinda think Catahoulas are jerks, lol). But that's also why she is not yet being taken places like that - we're still working things like relaxing on a mat, recalls and leave its. I will not have a situation like that woman had with her GSD. Of course, both of my dogs are about 35 lbs each, so I can just scoop them up to keep a lid on things.
As for that Mal, I freakin' hate when people leave their dogs out in front yards with insufficient fencing. I'm getting a fence for my front yard so my dogs have more room to run, but they're only going to be let loose there when I'm physically outside with them.
Carry pepper gel. You can order off Amazon. It is currently a trend that have the most inappropriate dog possibly for your experience level and lifestyle - people are getting a breed to prove a point instead of selecting a good companion suitable for their lifestyle. Personally I would like to see laws passed the require certain breeds, or dogs over a certain size, to wear muzzles unless on private, personal property!
This sounds like a lack of common sense by the owners. Any large dog that could possibly hurt another dog or human should be kept at home. I’ve had shepherds and they enjoyed life at home. The woman who had that GSD should have realized this breed is a guard dog and could also be triggered by the prey drive. What’s wrong with leaving your dog at home? I don’t understand the need to drag your dog out in all kinds of weather, when they’d be happier dozing on the sofa with the AC on. Or if your car breaks down on a hot day, it’s just one more thing to worry about if the dog is with you.
I’ve had fun taking my Yorkies to outdoor bars with friends. They shared my meal and everyone made a fuss over them. The biggest worry was making sure the wait staff didn’t walk off with them.
Dogs can function very well in public, or behave poorly and potentially dangerously in the case of the original post. (although in the second incident, the Malinois was on his owner's property and it is not certain that he would have jumped the fence to harm the small dog - If I had been his owner, I'd have been out there quicker, got the dog under control, and reassured the frightened passer-by that I was taking the dog inside) It comes down to the dog's temperament and training. Dog owners, especially dog owners who live in urban and semi-urban areas, need to be proactive and try to anticipate how their dogs will respond to different stimuli. They should take the dog to obedience class, work with the dog diligently, and possibly undertake extra training if the dog presents a potential or actual danger to others.
Even with training, some dogs may not be trustworthy in public. I would think that a German Shepherd, one of the smartest breeds, would be able to be trained to be calm at a restaurant, even if another dog passed by. But if the dog cannot be calm, if the owner has any reason to suspect that the GSD might harm another dog or person, or make a disturbance, the owner should leave the dog at home.
I've had a Labrador who was close to perfect in public; I used to take him with me to grad school classes (some of them, anyway; with the teachers' permission) and he was very calm and slept most of the time. I probably could have taken him to a cafe or outdoor table at a restaurant, on-leash of course. My current dog is even more friendly and much smaller; but I would never take him to an outdoor eating establishment; because I'd spend most of the time restraining him from putting his nose onto my table (and others' tables) to grab food off plates; he is obsessively food-reactive, and the experience would be tiring for both of us. However, he's been perfectly behaved at Home Depot and Lowe's and at a few business meetings; on-leash, of course. (and I watched him closely until he falls asleep to make sure he wasn't pestering people for attention unless they indicated they really wanted to pet him)
You have to know your dog, obviously; and be able to read his/her body language. Unfortunately, some dog owners, like some people without dogs, don't care enough either the dog's comfort or the dog's potential to frighten some people or their dogs or do actual harm.
This sounds like a lack of common sense by the owners. Any large dog that could possibly hurt another dog or human should be kept at home. I’ve had shepherds and they enjoyed life at home. The woman who had that GSD should have realized this breed is a guard dog and could also be triggered by the prey drive. What’s wrong with leaving your dog at home? I don’t understand the need to drag your dog out in all kinds of weather, when they’d be happier dozing on the sofa with the AC on. Or if your car breaks down on a hot day, it’s just one more thing to worry about if the dog is with you.
I’ve had fun taking my Yorkies to outdoor bars with friends. They shared my meal and everyone made a fuss over them. The biggest worry was making sure the wait staff didn’t walk off with them.
So true!
I take my Ripley with me to a few bars here in town. The owners and patrons love her because she's sooo cute AND because she is well behaved. And yes, many people want to leave the bar with her in tow. She is daddys girl so that aint happenin without a few choice bites to your hands.
Carry pepper gel. You can order off Amazon. It is currently a trend that have the most inappropriate dog possibly for your experience level and lifestyle - people are getting a breed to prove a point instead of selecting a good companion suitable for their lifestyle. Personally I would like to see laws passed the require certain breeds, or dogs over a certain size, to wear muzzles unless on private, personal property!
I am old, plus have a spine disability which means I have to walk with elbow canes. This really seems to press the aggression button in some dogs. Invariably these are biggish dogs, left off a leash and able to wander, and owned by men who believe that they can control them by yelling if they are even around.
So....I spray my pants or legs with a very strong pepper preparation, and I carry a spray. I would like to be able to use it on the owners, but it is the dogs that are doing the snarling and snapping, and usually with no one in sight. Early mornings and the owner is having coffee while Fido is left to wander on the street by himself.
Its called TRAIN THE DOG! No matter the breed, no matter the size, no matter the aggression potential. But people are lazy. This thinking of dogs as “fur babies” contributes to this ridiculous reluctance to train the dog. And then the dog suffers when its the owner that needs to be put down. These are ANIMALS! First and foremost with ANIMAL behaviors. And that goes for the little dogs too! Some of the most ill behaved dogs I have ever seen are the small ones because their owners excuse their obnoxious behavior. There is nothing wrong with a GSD or dobe or pitbull or ...... fill in the blank. The problem is the lack of training. Simple solution.
Agree that pepper gel is the way to go. Its inexpensive and effective.
We also live in a city but years ago were in a house in San Francisco. You wouldn't BELIEVE the number of owners who cannot control their animals. My husband was working as an attending physician for a while in the ER and saw so many dog bites and attacks. The breeds represented were definitely skewed toward certain types of dogs and as SF has strong breed restrictions on many rentals, it wasn't just the types you immediately think of.
I agree that the owners are the issues. There is a certain type of person who is attracted to a big, aggressive breed and (IMHO) has no business trying to deal with such a complex animal. Many was the time when my husband or I were in a situation such as the OP describes: minding our own business with a medium sized, non aggressive well trained dog and some canine jerk would start freaking out for no reason. We had to change our walk routes on many occasions and I started carrying a bottle of water and white vinegar to spray dogs who threatened us. I used it a few times. Once an owner tried to bring us to court for spraying her dog with this mixture after he had jumped a fence and was coming at us. She was not able to.
It gets tricky when you pass a house such as the second scenario. I would not want to turn my back on such an animal to cross the street or walk away so I can understand if others didn't either. That owner should have been out of the house lickety split and corrected that dog. Sounds to me like it might be worth giving animal control a heads up that the fence is inadequate, particularly if there are leash laws in your area.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
