8 years ago
4
What to do around an off-leash dog
The other day I was taking my puppy for a quick lunchtime stroll around the neighborhood when I noticed a loose dog. Fortunately, I saw him before they saw each other. I turned around and darted into a cul de sac where we would be out of sight. But then I was stuck. I kept peeking and the dog was just meandering from bush to pole to garbage can. We were in the back of the subdivision and the only way home was to walk past him.
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Sounds like this guy is just completely clueless. I make an effort to take my pup to an off leash park for the exact reason of helping him socialize and play with other dogs... "off leash".
Honestly this person just sounds scared of everything and kind of incompetent as a dog owner. I mean, you can't warn off one loose dog? Or keep yours under control, if that's the issue? And the friend hasn't walked her dog since? That's not an acceptable reaction – it's a horrible way to treat your dog!
Really bad advice overall. I find best to stop, make your dog stay right beside you, don't allow your dog to be tense on the leash, and let the other dog come have a smell, just enough time to acknowledge each other and then go on with your business. Longer time can let to aggression. That being said, my dog was attacked 3 weeks ago by an off the leash dog, a boxer. I knew that dog was aggressive beforehand from another encounter months ago. We were on a path not far from our house, and I saw the boxer off the leash, I had enough time to tell my wife to hold our smallest dog (a 4 pound poodle) and "prepare" myself and my wheaten, setting ourselves sideways and in a non-threatening way, but the boxer just came running and very viciously started biting my dog on the leg. She just wanted to kill my dog. No matter how many times I hit and kicked that bloody dog, she wasn't letting off, one time I grabbed her from the back of the neck and she left off, but I was scared at that moment she would bite me and didn't hold strongly enough, and she went back to biting my dog on the other leg. Finally, the stupid of the owner came and separated his dog from my dog. My dog needed 16 stitches on the leg. Luckily it was nothing life threatening, and he has almost fully recovered.
So the thing I learned from that encounter is: if a dog is attacking your dog, calm down, if you are panicking it's going to be even worse, specially don't try to pull your dog or a person away from the attacking dog as you can cause really bad damage (tearing of tissue) instead of just puncture of tissue, and doesn't matter how angry you are and how hard you kick, the attacker is most probably not going to let off. Go behind the attacking dog, get it between your legs, then grab the attacker by the collar with both hands. If the dog doesn't stop the attack right then, with your thumb push hard into the dogs throat in order to provoke a gag reflex so the attacking dog stops biting. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ebR37K8hDg If you have a dog and you don't know this, you should watch it.
Are you afraid of zombies as well? I mean, man. I walk my dog in a park where unleashed dogs are common despite the town's leash law. I keep mine on leash for fear he might run in front of a car, but let him approach the loose dogs and say hello. He enjoys this more than any other part of the walk. I think you need to buck up and quit wishing the world to meet your own apparently paranoid mindset. It is relatively easy to know by body language what a dog's intentions are and you, with your fear, make yourself and your dog a tempting target for any really aggressive dog you might encounter. I feel sympathy for your husband obliged to run to rescue his childish mate.