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I need to correct you on this. I do not have a fear of dogs who are barking from their own yards.
I HAVE BEEN CHARGED and cornered by a dog that was barking from its own yard and then RAN OUT INTO THE STREET. So, how am I supposed to know which dogs who are viciously barking at me are going to stay in their yards, and which one's are going to come charging at me? The one's who come charging at me scare the hell out of me. The ones who stay in their yards don't scare me. But again, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW???
You can know by doing RESEARCH. Several people now have suggested it and different ways to go about it...talk to the owners, become familiar with the dogs, the internet, going to a dog park...there are a lot of REALLY good suggestions and you still seem very relucucant to try one of them. You are supposed to know by becoming familiar with dogs. It doesn't have to take contact. You could even call the local vet and ask how you can tell if a dog is aggressive or just behaving normally. They certainly would be a great research tool.
And you HAVE to remember that just because one dog charged you doesn't mean they all will. That is the assumption you have right now and it's wrong. You are letting this fear consume you. I think your best bed to overcome this fear is to do research and until you are comfortable with the behaviors of dogs...take a diffferent route on your walk.
I use to go walking in my neighborhood every single day, 5 mile round trip. I live in the country and passed 7 houses in that 5 miles. The first house had 3 dogs in a chain link fenced yard. They barked like they would eat me up but could not get out of the fence. I paid no attention to them as I walked by.
The second house had a dog who actually bit someone who was walking with me. I informed them and they got rid of the dog.
The third and fourth house both had huge big red vicious looking dogs not in fences or chained. They both barked at me. One I called Rusty would bark viciously the entire length of his yard, but never came out into the road towards me. The other I called Big Red would come into the road barking at me. I talked to both of them as I walked by every day. It took months, but two things eventually happened with the dogs. Rusty kept barking and folllowing me the length of his yard. He must have done something wrong because a year later, they had him chained in the back yard. Big Red....well....I ended up taking some treats in my pocket one day. I always talked sweetly to her every time I walked by her yard. She still barked and came into the road like she was going to attack me. Then I fed her a treat one day. I guess I would not recommend this to everyone but I did it. We became best friends instantly. She would wait on me, I never took anymore treats to her, but she waited and when she saw me she walked up with her tail wagging and would walk with me the mile and a half past her house and back....every day. I was coming back one day and her owner pulled up. He got out of his jeep and I thought he was going to scold her. I explained she and I had become friends and I hoped he was not angry at her for walking with me. He said she use to walk with him every day until his job changed and he could not take her anymore. He was thrilled she was walking with me and she is going to be something I miss terribly when I move.
I own dogs, two of them, that I adopted from the shelter. Cletus, the old half hound, is a good watch dog and lets me know when somehting or someone is around that should not be. It is dogs instinct to be protective, they feel in most cases that is what they are here to do. They take pride in this. It is not their fault....it is what most dogs do.
It is sad that you feel you cannot walk in your neighborhood without problems from dog owners, and I say owners because these dogs are animals that are doing what they naturally do and it is not their fault they have not been shown exactly where their "territory" is.
I would suggest carrying a walking staff with you for just in case purposes. I would also suggest you not threaten the dogs with that staff unless you feel you are going to be attacked. One threatened, you best back it up and figure the dog will remain your enemy from then on out. I would also suggest you try to talk to the dogs as you pass. If you know their names use them, even ask the owners what their names are. If called by name, they will respond better. If you don't know the names, give them their own names from you. Calmly talk to them and use that name each time you pass by. Eventually, you will just be a part of their life and not considered a threat. And honestly, I know you have a dislike it appears for dog owners but....give them the benefit of the doubt as well. You can always make an effort to speak to them, asked the dogs name, ask for suggestions on what they would like for you to do in the situation. Building a wall of tension between you, the dog and owners will only make things worse.
I live on 20 acres of land and let my dogs out to run every day. There is a huge lake behind me on my neighbor's land. I had no clue for one year now that Cletus was going to the lake and barking at their little lap dog. I heard gun shots one day and saw him come running from the lake. I made an effort to go meet with the neighbors and asked point blank is Cletus had been causing problems. They told me what was going on. I had no clue. Maybe I am a bad pet owner who knows. But I gave them my phone number, assured them he does not bite, introduced them to Cletus, told them to call me immediately if he ever causes a problem for them and now we all get along, their dog even comes over to my yard to visit. COMMUNICATION is a key factor in keeping peace with ones neighbor....and their dogs.
dog owners----keep your unleashed dogs off public property or off any land that does not belong to you !!!
If you can't abide by this, don't have dogs.
SIMPLE !
Had you not noticed that the original problem was, with one exception, with dogs that were in their owner's yards (thus not qualifying as public property or land that did not belong to them)? So your advice does not apply (and also leaves out those places where the dogs are officially allowed to be, public or not - dog parks, property of friends, neighbors who like the dogs to come visit, etc.).
I expect my grandkids to be able to bike or walk down a public rural road with out having an angry lanowner run out on the road and threaten them verbally.
I expect my grandkids to be able to bike or walk down a public rural road with out having that landowner's dog run out on the road and threaten them verbally, ALSO !
I read that post. Have you read the entire thread? (And why does the landowner - not the dog - yell at your grandkids for doing nothing more than walking down the road? As someone who lives in a rural area myself, I detect a story here, with two sides to it.)
The original problem was that there were lots of dogs staying in their yards and barking, and one dog (the exception, and, if you read, you'll see that everybody thinks that was abominable) who left the yard.
... The bottom line is that the responsibility rests on the owner of the dog to make sure their dog is adequately restrained and behaves in a socially acceptable way. People have a right to walk down the street in relative peace.
AMEN! I'm a dog lover, but you're absolutely right. I can't believe all the people who disagree.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Driller1
The size of the dog doesn't matter. I got bit by a little "ankle biter" once. I was riding my bike. This is where you make lemon-aid out of lemons. I got a small settlement. $30,000.
And we wonder why our insurance claims are high.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TexasNick
... My thought is that all dogs should be on a leash when in the front yard (depends on size of land).
Only thing I disagree with it that it shouldn't depend on the size of the land unless you're talking about a farm or ranch. In town, pets need to be under constant control by the owner -- either on a leash or behind a fence.
Quote:
Originally Posted by fatmancomics
Back where I come from, when I lived there, you were allowed to kill a dog that you saw on the street. There was no law against it and people hardly ever made a big deal if it happened. You were also not protected against getting bitten by a dog either so, if you were bitten and didn't know the owner had given the dog its shots then you'd have to go to the hospital and get the ol' 21 shot salute on the belly.
Anyway, if there was a dog loose on the street that was bothering people, every once in a while they would get a special "snack" with poison on it and the dog would die in his sleep. Maybe you should take a late night stroll some night and drop off some "snacks" along the way that those adorable pooches could enjoy the following morning. You just need to feed it to enough dogs (say three or four) so that the other owners get paranoid and start putting their dogs in the back yard.
And you ought to be clubbed for suggesting poisoning pets. That's illegal in most places. The penalties aren't as high as they should be, but most states don't hang criminals these days.
FCG, if you're still reading this, check with the police department to find out if there's a leash law where you live. If so, call the animal control department and give them the names of the offending neighbors. You have a right to walk the sidewalks without being chased off by dogs. I don't care if the dogs are on their property; they need to be fenced in or on a leash. If they start charging you, they aren't likely to come to a screeching halt when they come to the sidewalk -- which is public use property regardless of who paid for the land.
Horselady--------do you allow your dog to run out on public roads / streets and threaten people?
You seem quite defensive of people who do.
Why is that ?
No, I don't (my dogs are on my 55 acres and if they bark at someone passing on the road - which they very rarely do - said person is a quarter mile away and may not even be able to hear them, never mind feel threatened by them.
And, no, I do NOT sound defensive of people who allow their dogs to run out on public roads/streets. You will note that I said that the one dog that left its yard was indeed a problem and should be dealt with (abominable was the word I used in my most recent post - does that sound like I'm defending a dog running loose to you? If so, wow, I don't think that word means what you think it means). The dogs that are in their own yards are something else entirely.
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And we wonder why our insurance claims are high.
Only thing I disagree with it that it shouldn't depend on the size of the land unless you're talking about a farm or ranch. In town, pets need to be under constant control by the owner -- either on a leash or behind a fence.
