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He has done pretty well until the neighbor's dog was out. Then he bolted to greet him. Luckily, no cars. He is leashed again for now. He is so loving that he wants to greet all people and other dogs. He has control with humans. Now for the other distractions (birds, other dogs) - he has never been distracted by a cat.
Please remember - not everyone loves dogs and I hope after reading the replies you will rethink letting your dog off leash in areas other than dog parks and private, fenced areas that no one else but you has access to. Can you tell this is a button pusher for me?
He has done pretty well until the neighbor's dog was out. Then he bolted to greet him. Luckily, no cars. He is leashed again for now. He is so loving that he wants to greet all people and other dogs. He has control with humans. Now for the other distractions (birds, other dogs) - he has never been distracted by a cat.
This is what we are trying to say. He is not 100% under control. "Pretty well" doesn't cut it! ANY distraction, animal or human, means he should be leashed unless you are in a dog park or fenced in area. Forget the leash laws...people do not appreciate any dog running up to them! No matter how friendly YOU think he is!
I ONLY walk my dogs off leash just because we never got them accustomed to walking on leashes while they were young. But they're very obedient and only follow me, so there's no problem. Even if they see a squirrel or another dog, as soon as I firlmy say their names, they're quiet and put .
Not a good idea. You cannot speak or act for your dogs! One day they may change their minds about squirrels or other dogs and bolt! Better to be safe and responsible than sorry....and the dogs would suffer in the end if they were to get hit by a car!
Leash Laws protect everyone - They should be enforced!
What really annoys me is when people have their dogs off leash as "Leash Only" parks.
You can be doing everything right with your dog but these people who choose to disobey the laws can cause something bad to happen and your dog will still pay the price.
When push comes to shove, the courts don't consider the why but the what... "that something happened"
In dogese, it generally falls to the fact that the dog who defended their territory - is the one at fault.
How would you feel if walking your dog off leash caused someone else to lose their dog? Maybe you'd just feel that the other person's dog deserves whatever might happen to them because they reacted to your dog who was off leash???
So then, it follows,...
Do you have Leash Laws in your community that require you to leash your dog? If your community has Leash Laws and you choose to walk your dog off leash -- aren't you breaking the law?
I personally believe that Leash Laws should be enforced. If they would start with enforcing just that one law, it would solve so many other problems!
sorry, I'll get off my soapbox now....
Last edited by World Citizen; 08-20-2008 at 08:37 AM..
I screen applications for a rescue group. Occasionally I will receive an application or do an interview with someone who says they take long walks with their dogs off-leash, or, because they don't have a fenced yard they just let their dog out to do their doggy business and they don't worry because the dog ALWAYS comes back. So I check with their town and find out if they have a leash law; most often they do. I then deny the application, explaining why. One person actually told me that their dog loved to run in the state park next to their house. I looked up the park and found that it is a state wildlife refuge and no dogs are allowed in the park. When I pointed that out they said their dog would NEVER bother any wildlife!
I screen applications for a rescue group. Occasionally I will receive an application or do an interview with someone who says they take long walks with their dogs off-leash, or, because they don't have a fenced yard they just let their dog out to do their doggy business and they don't worry because the dog ALWAYS comes back. So I check with their town and find out if they have a leash law; most often they do. I then deny the application, explaining why. One person actually told me that their dog loved to run in the state park next to their house. I looked up the park and found that it is a state wildlife refuge and no dogs are allowed in the park. When I pointed that out they said their dog would NEVER bother any wildlife!
I agree....Yikes our rescue group would never give a dog to those people! A fenced yard was a must for any of our dogs to go to. We would do Home-
Checks when possible. There is one very important thing to look for when adopting out a dog in a person....if the person or people do that, 99 percent of the time it is a go!
We walk on Bike local bike trails alot and I keep them leashed there too and almost every serious bike rider that passes us slows down and says thanks for keeping them on leash. So you have to consider the others around you too as not everyone wants to meet you dog.
I do this as well, and the dog owners do appreciate it. I've even made new friends that way, both human and canine. But God forbid you should point out to someone whose dogs are not on a leash that they're violating posted laws as well as good manners and common sense.
I was at a park -- with plainly and prominently stated leash restrictions -- with my nephew, who was 2 at the time. A guy with his beautiful and friendly golden retriever let the dog off the leash after he saw us. Of course the dog bolted straight for my nephew, who up until that point loved dogs. Poor kid screamed in terror as he got knocked down by a dog who was twice as big as he was. Stupid idiot owner didn't even apologize. I can't blame the dog -- he wanted to play and obviously he was a good judge of character because my nephew is a fun kid!
It's up to the owner to control the dog; it is not up to the dog to behave like a human instead of a dog. And that means running to greet people or dogs who may not want to be greeted, bolting for cats or rabbits, or just being curious.
Ok, I have two retired assistance dogs, both labradors, one is 11 and the other is 10. One spent 7 years with his now deceased blind owner. Both dogs are gentle, intelligent, immaculately behaved etc. Throughout their lives both were walked regularly off the leash - the older one was given an hour off every day and enjoyed running through the woods, swimming in a river etc - generally being allowed to be a dog, as a measure of saying thankyou to him for the other 23 hours a day in which he devoted his time to assisting a disabled human being.
We recently moved to virginia and have found that the area is very anti-dog. There are many responsible owners who do take their dogs out (mainly on leash), many more dog owners when asked where they go to walk their dog reply 'we don't, he exercises in the back yard'. One told me recently that they keep their dog in the kitchen for the whole summer because it is too hot outside and she isnt allowed in the rest of the house.
My dogs have stayed in hotels, been in shops, on boats, on an aeroplane and much more. Throughout their working lives they were devoted and beautifully behaved, and were admired and complimented. If I take them on the beach here (after labour day of course, they wouldnt be tolerated before then) and let them swim in the ocean - which they love- there is always some ******** 200 yards away who starts behaving like there is a shark in the water. The dogs do not approach people or other animals unless invited and yes I do believe this will always be the case.
We created domestic dogs to be our friend, companion or to do a job for us and in return I feel we owe them some measure of freedom in appropriate places. I know there are badly behaved dogs out there and I would not walk a dog off leash if I thought he would annoy people, animals or create any kind of problem. What I am struggling with is the open aggression I experience on a regular basis towards two elderly dogs which devoted years of their lives to helping people. I even had a empty bottle thrown at one of the dogs two weeks ago. And the aggression is always from people who walking past several yards away and whom the dogs are not even looking at much less trying to approach. It makes me sad - complain if a complaint is warrented, but if an animal is not causing any threat or nuisance to anyone then dont prejudge. I will continue to allow both of my dogs some small pleasures, like off leash swimming - they deserve it. And if anyone ever comes up to say hello to either of them, both dogs will greet that person sweetly and politely. Which is more than you can say for alot of people!!
I notice people walking their dogs off leash all over London. The dogs stop and sit at traffic lights or when about to cross roads. Me? I walk mine on leash but take them every day for a minimum 1 hour sometimes longer off leash walk/run in fields or the woods. The thought of them dashing across a road is more than I can handle.
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Leash Laws protect everyone - They should be enforced!
sorry, I'll get off my soapbox now.... 
