Absolutely sound advice! This was how I handle off lead dogs that appear to not be under any control, you can spot them a mile away, body language, not checking in with their owners, hard stares if they see your dog. Once I was on a very large field with my GSD balanced girl, training off lead heel, close heal, side to side, zig zag direction changes at heal, halt, place, come and away commands, she was impeccable even though there were other walkers and dogs around that I kept my eye on. She had worked so well we were rounding up with pure fun activities, fetch and sniff wind down time. Suddenly a woman entered the huge field we were in with six or more different types of terriers, all off lead, all ahead of her, I spotted them immediately, hard stares at my girl and running straight at us, it was a 3 acre field but they made time very quickly, the owner had just made the entrance, I put my girl in a heal and tried to walk away from them but they were locked on! I put my girl into a sit behind me, there was a river behind her, I had to body block these dogs while they barked, growled, jumped and air snapped at me and my girl, I didn't let them get near my girl. The whole time I was calling, not shouting to the owner to call/get her dogs! Her reply was they just want to play! They weren't playing, one of the dogs ripped my trousers FFS! I kept calm and in control, used my body to stop them reaching my girl, she stayed in a solid sit behind me, trusting me to be in control, eventually they gave up, with no interaction from their owner buty body language, blocking and verbal no! Kept us safe, eventually I could lead my girl away.
Advocate for your dog! There's a lot of no brain, no clue dog owners out there. There's more of them than us! Unfortunately my beautiful girl passed away in November 😱 she was a very good special girl and my best friend ❤
One of my biggest fears when out with my dog … thanks for your tips ! I also carry and extra (slip )leash in case of a dog fight and I have dog spray deterrent in case of an emergency
Yes, this has worked for me. I’ve told a few dogs to ‘GET AWAY’ when they have been rushing at me and Daisy, I stood in front of my dog and shouted. Once a lab pushed its way out of a gate while we were walking down the footpath and came at us twice, the second time I yelled and scared it so much it ran off down the road, the owner of the Lab had to chase it about one kilometre down the road. The one time it did not work was when I was a bit scared myself and that time I had got up early and thought it would be good to go for a run on the beach, I had Daisy with me on the leash and as I got over the top of the last sand dune there was a big Malamute there, the owner about 50 metres ahead. It looked at us and came straight at Daisy and grabbed hold of her, I started shouting and screaming now trying it get it off my dog is trying to fight back, I’m yelling at the owner at get it off, it has no collar to grab. He eventually gets it away and there is blood all over my hands, mine and Daisy’s. He said his dog has never done that before (lies). Anyway yes your advice about avoiding unleashed dogs is gold. I still feel apprehensive when I see Malamute type dogs and I know my dog picks up on my feelings and becomes that way too.
Great advice. I agree with you about unleashed dogs. I live out in the country in sputheast Texas. People out here dont have their dogs on a leash. Mine is always on a leash for her safety because of this. Dogs come at us often. I do all of the things you say but me being under 5' is not intimidating but i fought off 3 aggressive pit bulls. I did all of thr things and they still came towards me so i used my pepper spray on 2 out of 3 of them. The 3rd one saw what I was doing and didnt want to get sprayed.
SO right....If I encounter that situation with my German shepherd , an unnutered male( btw , he is off leach most of the time, and totally under control and e-collar trained) and I cannot avoid the situation anymore, I calmly give him a "place" command, step between the dog and him and deal with the other dog with the proper body language. I do not allow my shepherd to interfere, even if the other dog is growling, barking, showing his teeth at us. My dog just knows, I will deal with the situation and stay calm. In cases that a dog comes at us and he has seen the situation before me and he is closer to that dog then me, He will not go for that dog instead he looks at me for guidance , because he learned it is me that will step in. I have these encounters often in my neighbourhood with a couple of farmers dogs that do run free on the street and do tend to approach in a rather aggressive way towards other dogs. They even bit a child. At 1 year old, we couldn't even approach other dogs on leach without him pulling and barking. Today ,at 2 years and after proper guided training ( I was trained btw), I have a well trained , well behaved off leach german sheppard male. Proud at him and happy with the training
See My comments, it's simple, IF , your dog trusts you, it will trust you to take control, IF it doesn't, we'll the dog takes control, it's that simple .
Great post, Robert…and couldn’t agree more! This is precisely what I do if/when an irresponsible dog owner can’t control their dog (and it happens on a fairly regular basis). I have an intact, male GSD and (for some reason) small dogs like Corgies seem to charge at us more often than larger breeds. And they (do not) want to play. The owners are often petite females who just scream and keep calling their dog (to no avail). When they finally get ahold of their dog and continue apologizing, I simply shake my head…turn and leave. Hope the fires are extinguished soon. 🙏🏽 Stay safe
One of the scariest moments of my life was walking across campus in Junior year of college back in the late 80s on a Sunday morning to go study and do himework and coming across a PACK of more than 20 feral dogs running loose near the academic building I was going to- at first it was funny since the pack had a lot of toy breeds in it but there were a couple of GSD who appeared to be the alphas of the pack and they were swarming me. I basically just walked briskly and very intently forward while booming OFF in a very deep voice- I’m 6” tall and was very fit and my voice is pretty deep. It took almost a minute to walk across the grassy area that were patrolling and get through the building door and I was genuinely frightened since they could have mauled me due to the sheer number of them. The campus ALSO had an area with dozens of stray cats literally dumpster diving behind one of the dorms that had a lot of out of state and foreign students who cooked their food on campus rather than eat in the cafeteria or go home on the weekends. The only way these animals could have wound up on campus was from not enforcing rules about keeping pets in the dorms and campus security not patrolling to keep local stray animals from getting in from the surrounding suburban neighborhood
I never walk my dog without bear spray. He's a super friendly 95 lb pit bull american bulldog mix. Right now he has no idea how much he would enjoy fighting an off-leash out of control dog and I intend to keep it that way. Just because your dog is "friendly" doesn't mean you aren't going to create a really bad situation for someone else to handle!
I've been required to use it and can TESTIFY it works. Women (in general) won't be capable of standing the ground in front of a large aggressive dog. Last week a Great Dane and German Shepherd CHARGED me and my Boykin Spaniel. I had to spray the Shepherd. The owner just stood there and said, "Gee, I'm sorry about that".
Had a run in with an off leash dog running up to us recently and I had to tell the dog off in a loud and stern tone and I got into it with the owner who told me not to speak to his dog like that and still did not leash his dog. Some owners are a joke.
Absolutely, great advice. I had two GSDs come at me and did this. Also, Robert, just want to ask you to comment on small dogs in this situation. So many times I see the owners pick up the small dog, and I don't feel that is the best choice. Thoughts?
For real Robert... had a dog try to attack my dog aggressive wlgsd on a walk by jumping off the owners porch, thankfully the owner got ahold of the dog or else that would've gotten ugly 🙄 I've been working on getting my dog over her dog reactivity with a mix of punishment/corrections and play if she successfully passes another dog but experiences like that always set her back.
Loose dogs are the bane of my existence. My dog is usually good with other dogs, but an unknown dog plus my dog on leash is just not what I want. We had a rogue gsd come after us. I usually scan my surroundings but it popped up suddenly. The man didn't know what to do and it was the scariest moment I have had in a long time. It shook me up more than my dog, though. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, but if my dog wasn't so even-tempered, I think both dogs would have ended up at the vets.
always good to carry a second leash...easier said than done though they take up space. just got to thinking- a large carabiner with a short slip lead on your belt loop. if you run into loose dogs often
Great video! Off leash dogs without their owners watching them drives me banana's! Whenever I take both my GSD and Mal to the beach and I am playing with them (usually far from everyone), it's inevitable that a dog or a few dogs will run up to them and will not leave. I've had to literally yell for the owner of the dog(s) to come and get their dog. Why? Because my dogs are not interested in other dogs. They are there to retrieve, follow my commands (to them it's a gam), and simply do not want to be bothered.
This is something I have to deal with every time I take my fearful/reactive dog out for a walk. I no longer can walk her in my neighborhood (too many loose dogs). So I take her out to an area in the desert near my home. I am constantly scanning the area, as it seems that everyone that takes their dogs to this area, walk them off leash. Had an encounter recently. Saw someone in the distance, and headed back to the car. Another person with a small dog pulled in and I had to wait for them to get far enough away from my car, so I could load Lucy back into the car. It gave the first dog time to catch up with us. Of course Lucy reacted, fortunately the other dog was a friendly dog, and turned around and left just as Lucy lunged, mouth open. Since I'm the wrong person for this dog, my adrenaline starts pumping, no matter how hard I try to maintain composure, and we all know how this affects the dog....not good.
Thank you. Question: If you try walking away and you realize the dog has smelled your dog and is running at you both, you are saying don't run or walk fast. You should stop, turn and get your dog in a position of safety so you can try and scare the dog away. Correct?
And if that off leash dog STILL comes at you then stand firm, get BIG and BARK, deep, guttural voice and LOUD…. Most of the time it makes the dog hesitate and back off… Then I start yelling at the owner 😂
Great advice. My Shep/Chow mix was on leash and a white shep came out of the garage off leash. The owner was so dumb, he kept saying 'sit'. I touched the back of my dog as she went after the other dog. She stopped. Then we went down the street again. The dog ran up to us again. I told the guy get your dog back home. If I get mad, my dog will get mad. Never went down that way after that. People are ignorant.
Tried all of that before the other dog passed me and went straight for my dog. My strong body posture didn’t help. Now I am looking at dog repellent and whatever else I can find. Make some suggestions. I am listening.
I immediately yell, "my shepherd is not friendly!" Most owners try to call their dog back, or run after it. We had a dashund running at us just the other week. The owner calling for it to come back. It had zero recall skills. My Shepherd was grumbly and didn't like this small dog going at us. I absolutely hate when people allow their dogs off leash when they are not trained. I usually always have my 21 month old with us as well, in her stroller. I won't let any attacking dog hurt my baby, or my dog. I will use a walking stick, or a tazer. Sorry not sorry!
Oh yeah. I get in front of my dog and tell the other dog in no uncertain terms to go home! Have even taught my own dogs a home cue. Where's the car cue if you're nowhere near home. Michael Shikashio has an awesome video on when the s**t hits the fan, especially with dogs coming at you off leash. Hope that helps.
I’ve worked hard to train my rescued foster Akita, to ignore all dogs we pass. Owners with their dog off leash, when they have no control, and owners with leashed dogs walking 6 feet (or more) in front of them, are so irresponsible. Sometimes avoidance just isn’t an option. In those instances, inevitably the owners will yell out, “Don’t worry, my dog’s friendly!” My response is always, “I’m not; but you should be. My dog’s not.”
Robert, I'm 65, .. 3 acre fenced farm/yard , I've had dobermans, aussie, sheltie, currently boston terrors, and 2 newfound. 9yr Olds, who have been thru water dog rescue, and draft course's , I'd like a more guardian type dog, in my elder years , also I have 9 sheep that we raise for wool and meat , I'm retired , I'd love a malinois....or dutch shepherd or Belgian, are these breeds to mean for an old lady to raise , my newfs who are now vouch potato's, used to ho with us everywhere , camping hiking , kayaking, we still fo these things , we also have cats .. would I just be asking for trouble getting one of these breeds, I've been researching for a year trying to find all the faults , 😢 but I'm still interested.. I want a female and would live to have her at my side with the sheep , at the lake, and can tgey ride paddleboard, we have stopped so many outdoor activities because of covid and I want to get back into them .. . Yay or nay, also I have copd so dome days I cannot be physical..
I couldn't agree with you more. I've had so many run ins with irresponsible owners and they're defending their "right" to have their dog off leash (in a public area). I had a large very protective male Akita once who was never off leash, never loose in a dog park and admittedly was not completely trained at calm dog interactions, we were still working on it. He was well behaved in other interactions with people, dogs at a distance, crowds, cities, noises, etc. UNTIL any loose dog came right up close to us and he assumed the Akita protection mode, he never attacked, but he had that "make my day" energy.... I would get so mad at the other owners... and they just wouldn't accept responsibility... and say it's no big deal... yeah, it's no big deal until there's a fight and your little dog is lunch for mine and you'll be mad a me, but my dog was on leash and yours wasn't... omg... it only happened a couple of times, but it is very unnerving if you actually care for your dog as well as for theirs, even if they don't
My dog can’t really compete in dog sports any more since he was injured by a loose dog. He can go to dog classes and feel comfortable with a small number of familiar dogs, but meets make him too nervous. Before the attack he was focused on his work and comfortable with all dogs, but one bad interaction left permanent scars. The irresponsible owners that use the unfenced field next to my house (!!!) don’t understand why I react with such fury when their untrained dogs come at me. One time a dog came off the field from a hidden spot behind me and bit my frail, elderly dog, three days before she died. That owner thinks I'm "mean" and told me it was my fault for "giving off bad vibes"!
In Spain it's customary to have a soapy water bottle with you so you can spray the pee of your dog. As some of you can imagine if it gets hot the pee stinks if not diluted. I just use that if me or my dog become targets of unwanted attention of an off lead dog.
Robert, did you tell that owner I can help you help your dog be strong at off leash, so you and your dog can avoid getting hurt by another dog going into protective mode, then give her your business card? 😉 most ppl just don’t understand dog biology & psychology. Even the nicest basic dogs if not properly trained or are young and at a level 1 skill set will go automatically into high alert or protection mode when they see an unfamiliar person or dog and when a strange dog comes rushing up to your dog that happens to be a natural protector that can be seen as an act of aggression, and our dogs will naturally want to protect themselves & us from what they perceive as Stranger Danger.
Hmmm... At what point, if any? Assuming you truly believed the off leash dog was a threat at to you or your dog would you switch from defensive posturing to offensive... If so, pepper spray? Or something of that nature.
Off leash unable to be recalled dogs have a name. If all else fails and I am unable to get away with my dog safely then the uncontrolled animal becomes what we in the military called a “target of opportunity”. Nuff said!!!
ANY dog off leash is a dog with an increased probability of being Shot So If you can stand the sight of your dog whimpering as it bleeds out, go ahead and let your dog be off leash with No respect, No regard and No consideration for other people in a shared public space I don't care if you're a professional dog trainer, a responsible owner, an irresponsible owner or just a jack@$$ - This warning applies to You Respect other peoples space and comfort and Keep your dog on a leash in public
Absolutely sound advice! This was how I handle off lead dogs that appear to not be under any control, you can spot them a mile away, body language, not checking in with their owners, hard stares if they see your dog. Once I was on a very large field with my GSD balanced girl, training off lead heel, close heal, side to side, zig zag direction changes at heal, halt, place, come and away commands, she was impeccable even though there were other walkers and dogs around that I kept my eye on. She had worked so well we were rounding up with pure fun activities, fetch and sniff wind down time. Suddenly a woman entered the huge field we were in with six or more different types of terriers, all off lead, all ahead of her, I spotted them immediately, hard stares at my girl and running straight at us, it was a 3 acre field but they made time very quickly, the owner had just made the entrance, I put my girl in a heal and tried to walk away from them but they were locked on! I put my girl into a sit behind me, there was a river behind her, I had to body block these dogs while they barked, growled, jumped and air snapped at me and my girl, I didn't let them get near my girl. The whole time I was calling, not shouting to the owner to call/get her dogs! Her reply was they just want to play! They weren't playing, one of the dogs ripped my trousers FFS! I kept calm and in control, used my body to stop them reaching my girl, she stayed in a solid sit behind me, trusting me to be in control, eventually they gave up, with no interaction from their owner buty body language, blocking and verbal no! Kept us safe, eventually I could lead my girl away.
@@lilGomez96 great work!! This happened to me and I did same thing years ago
Advocate for your dog! There's a lot of no brain, no clue dog owners out there. There's more of them than us! Unfortunately my beautiful girl passed away in November 😱 she was a very good special girl and my best friend ❤
@@nakitazmom1369 it happened to us years ago too! Unfortunately there's no time limit on ignorance I'm afraid, we have to educate!
That could have ended up real bad if the terrier pack approached a dog and owner that wasn’t as highly trained as you two.
@StarkK9Academy absolutely, if they went at a reactive dog, or just one having a bad day, forced to defend itself, doesn't bare thinking about!
I wonder how quickly an owner would move to retrieve their dog after saying "they're friendly!" if you responded with "okay but I'm not!"
@@OKLynnie couldn't count how many times I've tried that. Never worked. Even once. People are irresponsible and oblivious.
You are so right! It is a disaster when a dog walks and runs off leash and the owner sees only his or her phone.
One of my biggest fears when out with my dog … thanks for your tips ! I also carry and extra (slip )leash in case of a dog fight and I have dog spray deterrent in case of an emergency
Yes, this has worked for me. I’ve told a few dogs to ‘GET AWAY’ when they have been rushing at me and Daisy, I stood in front of my dog and shouted. Once a lab pushed its way out of a gate while we were walking down the footpath and came at us twice, the second time I yelled and scared it so much it ran off down the road, the owner of the Lab had to chase it about one kilometre down the road. The one time it did not work was when I was a bit scared myself and that time I had got up early and thought it would be good to go for a run on the beach, I had Daisy with me on the leash and as I got over the top of the last sand dune there was a big Malamute there, the owner about 50 metres ahead. It looked at us and came straight at Daisy and grabbed hold of her, I started shouting and screaming now trying it get it off my dog is trying to fight back, I’m yelling at the owner at get it off, it has no collar to grab. He eventually gets it away and there is blood all over my hands, mine and Daisy’s. He said his dog has never done that before (lies). Anyway yes your advice about avoiding unleashed dogs is gold. I still feel apprehensive when I see Malamute type dogs and I know my dog picks up on my feelings and becomes that way too.
Great advice. I agree with you about unleashed dogs.
I live out in the country in sputheast Texas. People out here dont have their dogs on a leash. Mine is always on a leash for her safety because of this. Dogs come at us often. I do all of the things you say but me being under 5' is not intimidating but i fought off 3 aggressive pit bulls. I did all of thr things and they still came towards me so i used my pepper spray on 2 out of 3 of them. The 3rd one saw what I was doing and didnt want to get sprayed.
SO right....If I encounter that situation with my German shepherd , an unnutered male( btw , he is off leach most of the time, and totally under control and e-collar trained) and I cannot avoid the situation anymore, I calmly give him a "place" command, step between the dog and him and deal with the other dog with the proper body language. I do not allow my shepherd to interfere, even if the other dog is growling, barking, showing his teeth at us. My dog just knows, I will deal with the situation and stay calm. In cases that a dog comes at us and he has seen the situation before me and he is closer to that dog then me, He will not go for that dog instead he looks at me for guidance , because he learned it is me that will step in. I have these encounters often in my neighbourhood with a couple of farmers dogs that do run free on the street and do tend to approach in a rather aggressive way towards other dogs. They even bit a child. At 1 year old, we couldn't even approach other dogs on leach without him pulling and barking. Today ,at 2 years and after proper guided training ( I was trained btw), I have a well trained , well behaved off leach german sheppard male. Proud at him and happy with the training
See
My comments, it's simple, IF , your dog trusts you, it will trust you to take control, IF it doesn't, we'll the dog takes control, it's that simple .
Great post, Robert…and couldn’t agree more! This is precisely what I do if/when an irresponsible dog owner can’t control their dog (and it happens on a fairly regular basis).
I have an intact, male GSD and (for some reason) small dogs like Corgies seem to charge at us more often than larger breeds. And they (do not) want to play. The owners are often petite females who just scream and keep calling their dog (to no avail). When they finally get ahold of their dog and continue apologizing, I simply shake my head…turn and leave. Hope the fires are extinguished soon. 🙏🏽 Stay safe
One of the scariest moments of my life was walking across campus in Junior year of college back in the late 80s on a Sunday morning to go study and do himework and coming across a PACK of more than 20 feral dogs running loose near the academic building I was going to- at first it was funny since the pack had a lot of toy breeds in it but there were a couple of GSD who appeared to be the alphas of the pack and they were swarming me. I basically just walked briskly and very intently forward while booming OFF in a very deep voice- I’m 6” tall and was very fit and my voice is pretty deep. It took almost a minute to walk across the grassy area that were patrolling and get through the building door and I was genuinely frightened since they could have mauled me due to the sheer number of them. The campus ALSO had an area with dozens of stray cats literally dumpster diving behind one of the dorms that had a lot of out of state and foreign students who cooked their food on campus rather than eat in the cafeteria or go home on the weekends. The only way these animals could have wound up on campus was from not enforcing rules about keeping pets in the dorms and campus security not patrolling to keep local stray animals from getting in from the surrounding suburban neighborhood
I never walk my dog without bear spray. He's a super friendly 95 lb pit bull american bulldog mix. Right now he has no idea how much he would enjoy fighting an off-leash out of control dog and I intend to keep it that way. Just because your dog is "friendly" doesn't mean you aren't going to create a really bad situation for someone else to handle!
I've been required to use it and can TESTIFY it works. Women (in general) won't be capable of standing the ground in front of a large aggressive dog. Last week a Great Dane and German Shepherd CHARGED me and my Boykin Spaniel. I had to spray the Shepherd. The owner just stood there and said, "Gee, I'm sorry about that".
Had a run in with an off leash dog running up to us recently and I had to tell the dog off in a loud and stern tone and I got into it with the owner who told me not to speak to his dog like that and still did not leash his dog. Some owners are a joke.
Agreed! Great advice
Absolutely, great advice. I had two GSDs come at me and did this. Also, Robert, just want to ask you to comment on small dogs in this situation. So many times I see the owners pick up the small dog, and I don't feel that is the best choice. Thoughts?
Glad to see you back at work.
Great reminder, thanks for posting :)
For real Robert... had a dog try to attack my dog aggressive wlgsd on a walk by jumping off the owners porch, thankfully the owner got ahold of the dog or else that would've gotten ugly 🙄
I've been working on getting my dog over her dog reactivity with a mix of punishment/corrections and play if she successfully passes another dog but experiences like that always set her back.
Loose dogs are the bane of my existence. My dog is usually good with other dogs, but an unknown dog plus my dog on leash is just not what I want. We had a rogue gsd come after us. I usually scan my surroundings but it popped up suddenly. The man didn't know what to do and it was the scariest moment I have had in a long time. It shook me up more than my dog, though. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, but if my dog wasn't so even-tempered, I think both dogs would have ended up at the vets.
always good to carry a second leash...easier said than done though they take up space. just got to thinking- a large carabiner with a short slip lead on your belt loop. if you run into loose dogs often
You can also use the large carabineer as a weapon....
Great video! Off leash dogs without their owners watching them drives me banana's! Whenever I take both my GSD and Mal to the beach and I am playing with them (usually far from everyone), it's inevitable that a dog or a few dogs will run up to them and will not leave. I've had to literally yell for the owner of the dog(s) to come and get their dog. Why? Because my dogs are not interested in other dogs. They are there to retrieve, follow my commands (to them it's a gam), and simply do not want to be bothered.
Same. Same.
This is something I have to deal with every time I take my fearful/reactive dog out for a walk.
I no longer can walk her in my neighborhood (too many loose dogs).
So I take her out to an area in the desert near my home.
I am constantly scanning the area, as it seems that everyone that takes their dogs to this area, walk them off leash.
Had an encounter recently. Saw someone in the distance, and headed back to the car. Another person with a small dog pulled in and I had to wait for them to get far enough away from my car, so I could load Lucy back into the car. It gave the first dog time to catch up with us. Of course Lucy reacted, fortunately the other dog was a friendly dog, and turned around and left just as Lucy lunged, mouth open.
Since I'm the wrong person for this dog, my adrenaline starts pumping, no matter how hard I try to maintain composure, and we all know how this affects the dog....not good.
Thank you. Question:
If you try walking away and you realize the dog has smelled your dog and is running at you both, you are saying don't run or walk fast. You should stop, turn and get your dog in a position of safety so you can try and scare the dog away. Correct?
See my comments
And if that off leash dog STILL comes at you then stand firm, get BIG and BARK, deep, guttural voice and LOUD…. Most of the time it makes the dog hesitate and back off… Then I start yelling at the owner 😂
How does your dog feel at your "anger" at the approaching dog? Especially if she too wants to play? Or would rather run?
Great advice. My Shep/Chow mix was on leash and a white shep came out of the garage off leash. The owner was so dumb, he kept saying 'sit'. I touched the back of my dog as she went after the other dog. She stopped. Then we went down the street again. The dog ran up to us again. I told the guy get your dog back home. If I get mad, my dog will get mad. Never went down that way after that. People are ignorant.
Tried all of that before the other dog passed me and went straight for my dog. My strong body posture didn’t help. Now I am looking at dog repellent and whatever else I can find. Make some suggestions. I am listening.
Oh, I’m wondering if you videotape this this would’ve been great for us to see
Watching a lot of your videos it looked like you were in the Palisades area, how's your house doing?
I immediately yell, "my shepherd is not friendly!" Most owners try to call their dog back, or run after it. We had a dashund running at us just the other week. The owner calling for it to come back. It had zero recall skills. My Shepherd was grumbly and didn't like this small dog going at us. I absolutely hate when people allow their dogs off leash when they are not trained. I usually always have my 21 month old with us as well, in her stroller. I won't let any attacking dog hurt my baby, or my dog. I will use a walking stick, or a tazer. Sorry not sorry!
Oh yeah. I get in front of my dog and tell the other dog in no uncertain terms to go home! Have even taught my own dogs a home cue. Where's the car cue if you're nowhere near home. Michael Shikashio has an awesome video on when the s**t hits the fan, especially with dogs coming at you off leash. Hope that helps.
I’ve worked hard to train my rescued foster Akita, to ignore all dogs we pass. Owners with their dog off leash, when they have no control, and owners with leashed dogs walking 6 feet (or more) in front of them, are so irresponsible. Sometimes avoidance just isn’t an option. In those instances, inevitably the owners will yell out, “Don’t worry, my dog’s friendly!” My response is always, “I’m not; but you should be. My dog’s not.”
Robert, I'm 65, .. 3 acre fenced farm/yard , I've had dobermans, aussie, sheltie, currently boston terrors, and 2 newfound. 9yr Olds, who have been thru water dog rescue, and draft course's , I'd like a more guardian type dog, in my elder years , also I have 9 sheep that we raise for wool and meat , I'm retired , I'd love a malinois....or dutch shepherd or Belgian, are these breeds to mean for an old lady to raise , my newfs who are now vouch potato's, used to ho with us everywhere , camping hiking , kayaking, we still fo these things , we also have cats .. would I just be asking for trouble getting one of these breeds, I've been researching for a year trying to find all the faults , 😢 but I'm still interested.. I want a female and would live to have her at my side with the sheep , at the lake, and can tgey ride paddleboard, we have stopped so many outdoor activities because of covid and I want to get back into them .. . Yay or nay, also I have copd so dome days I cannot be physical..
I couldn't agree with you more. I've had so many run ins with irresponsible owners and they're defending their "right" to have their dog off leash (in a public area). I had a large very protective male Akita once who was never off leash, never loose in a dog park and admittedly was not completely trained at calm dog interactions, we were still working on it. He was well behaved in other interactions with people, dogs at a distance, crowds, cities, noises, etc. UNTIL any loose dog came right up close to us and he assumed the Akita protection mode, he never attacked, but he had that "make my day" energy.... I would get so mad at the other owners... and they just wouldn't accept responsibility... and say it's no big deal... yeah, it's no big deal until there's a fight and your little dog is lunch for mine and you'll be mad a me, but my dog was on leash and yours wasn't... omg... it only happened a couple of times, but it is very unnerving if you actually care for your dog as well as for theirs, even if they don't
My dog can’t really compete in dog sports any more since he was injured by a loose dog. He can go to dog classes and feel comfortable with a small number of familiar dogs, but meets make him too nervous. Before the attack he was focused on his work and comfortable with all dogs, but one bad interaction left permanent scars. The irresponsible owners that use the unfenced field next to my house (!!!) don’t understand why I react with such fury when their untrained dogs come at me. One time a dog came off the field from a hidden spot behind me and bit my frail, elderly dog, three days before she died. That owner thinks I'm "mean" and told me it was my fault for "giving off bad vibes"!
In Spain it's customary to have a soapy water bottle with you so you can spray the pee of your dog. As some of you can imagine if it gets hot the pee stinks if not diluted. I just use that if me or my dog become targets of unwanted attention of an off lead dog.
Interesting
A common problem in Pennsylvania. Sometimes the owner is drinking.
Usually owners not paying attention to off lease dogs. On mobile phone
10000% I have no prb with off leash dogs that are under control with recall
It’s the ones that don’t
Robert, did you tell that owner I can help you help your dog be strong at off leash, so you and your dog can avoid getting hurt by another dog going into protective mode, then give her your business card? 😉 most ppl just don’t understand dog biology & psychology. Even the nicest basic dogs if not properly trained or are young and at a level 1 skill set will go automatically into high alert or protection mode when they see an unfamiliar person or dog and when a strange dog comes rushing up to your dog that happens to be a natural protector that can be seen as an act of aggression, and our dogs will naturally want to protect themselves & us from what they perceive as Stranger Danger.
All these behavior changes we must perform to avoid other lazy and irresponsible dog owners is quite ridiculous.
Hmmm... At what point, if any? Assuming you truly believed the off leash dog was a threat at to you or your dog would you switch from defensive posturing to offensive... If so, pepper spray? Or something of that nature.
Lead by example, be responsible
It seems every time I take my dog out I encounter an irresponsible dog owner with their dog off leash....even in places where leashes are required!
100%
Off leash unable to be recalled dogs have a name. If all else fails and I am unable to get away with my dog safely then the uncontrolled animal becomes what we in the military called a “target of opportunity”. Nuff said!!!
ANY dog off leash is a dog with an increased probability of being Shot
So
If you can stand the sight of your dog whimpering as it bleeds out, go ahead and let your dog be off leash with No respect, No regard and No consideration for other people in a shared public space
I don't care if you're a professional dog trainer, a responsible owner, an irresponsible owner or just a jack@$$ - This warning applies to You
Respect other peoples space and comfort and Keep your dog on a leash in public