People Problems!

Gillie

:mad: :mad: :mad:
I'm mad as hell!
My Fiancee and I have a 16 month old German Sheperd and im getting nothing but grief from ppl when were out walking!
Today she was in the woods with him while I was at work and every time she passed someone she was subjected to:
"Dangerous Dog..."
"That dog should be on a lead"
"That dog should have a muzzle"

In fairness to my Fiancee she was fairly calm with these ppl but i know if I was there i'd lose it!
The dog is extremely friendly! Hes no trouble!
I do not appreciate ppl telling me what I should do regards a muzzle, lead etc.

Has anyone else experienced this crap? How do ye handle it! Im specifically looking for feedback from big dog owners as thats what these "people" seem to have a problem with!

Thanks!

Rant Over!:mad:
Still Mad!

Rabies

It is just that your dog is perceived as being a tough dog to the general public due to its size and the nature of the work its often used for, guard dogs etc.
A dogs temperment usualy depends on the way its treated and trained. I woul love to have a German Shepard but my parents carry the same attitude as some of the people you are meeting while walking your dog.
We have a St Bernard, she is only 9 months old. Our previous dog was also a St Bernard, she lived for about 12 years. She may have been a big dog but she didn't scare people. This prob due to TV. People were always coming up to her calling her Bethoven (sp?), fvcking hated that :mad: We always had her off the lease when taking her for walks.
People just think that your dog could attack them because they know no better.

Gillie

But surely ppl have the intelligence to know that if the dog is on a lead their safe???
I understand that if my dog is off the lead I can expect some reaction.
However if he's on the lead and under my control (walking to heel) its none of their f*cking business:mad: .
Im well aware of what GSD's are primarily bred for but thats not always the case! In fact its very unlikely that you'll ever see a gaurd dog being walked at all!

Understand that my problem isnt that ppl react - its how they react tha annoys me!

(PS. St Bernards are cool!):)

Barbie_666

I have a doberman and a golden labrador. the doberman is really quiet and friendly, and the labrador is just mental!she barks at everyone, but they think its the doberman.
Some of my friends wont come to my house unless hes locked in the shed!!!
and dads friends dont leave their cars!they ring the house when their sittin on the street....i find it quite funny really......:D

Gillie

Barbie,

What happens when you walk them? What reaction to you get?
Do they wear a muzzle? Are they always on the lead?

watty

The only time a dog should be off a lead is on your own enclosed grounds.

If I had a fiver for every time I have seen a Dog intimidate or snap at small children or my wife.....


Dogs ultimately are preditors and carnivors. They are spooked, even if well trained, by scared people.

Many dogs are well trained and would not attack, bark or snap. But many are badly trained too.

If a pet of ANY kind (or even a Child) is in a public place the owner has the responsibility to keep it under control. How this can be done without a leash beats me. At least even one of the reel types you can let out and wind in.

I personally have never had problem with dogs, (well a deranged toy poodle in its home bit me once on nose!) since I 'm not scared of them. Even as a teenager the Milk delivery part time job was no problem. But ppl need to consider other people esp. children, risk of bike / car accidents etc more than indulging their own pet.

Sleipnir

You may know that your dog is "friendly" but how do other people know that?
For all they know your dog could be vicious as hell and prudence requires that you assume the dog is unfriendly until you learn otherwise.
You never trust a strange dog especially if they are around your kids.

I do not appreciate ppl telling me what I should do regards a muzzle, lead etc.

It is the law after all.

Some dogs are not used to children (I assume your own is not?) and react instinctfully when their ear is tugged; they snap.


My girlfriend's friend still bears the scars from when the "friendly" dog next door picked her up by the face as a baby and swung her around. Her nose and eyelid are still (and always will be) quite misshapen.
Why don't you tell her why I should be happy that a dog I don't know belonging to people I don't know is running around my kids?

Nala

It's actually the law that certain breeds must always wear a muzzle in public,I think the GSD is one of them, the Rottweiler is anyway.Never realised how HUGE they are until I stepped outside a petshop and there was one right there.
Gave him a pat,he seemed friendly enough.

watty

If you love your dog and are ANYWHERE near cars or cyclists, then it is caring to use a lead as the dog could easily dash off and be killed by car or cyclist. Or cause a human to be killed.

Kalikat

Unfortunately the Control of Dogs act in Ireland requires that certain breeds be muzzled and on a short leash at all times in public, and yes, a GSD is one of those breeds. The breeds are:

American Pit Bull Terrier
English Bull Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Bull Mastiff
Dobermann Pinscher
German Shepherd (Alsatian)
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Rottweiler
Japanese Akita
Japanese Tosa
Bandog

I have a SBT puppy and if he has a problem in later life (hopefully not with the amount of socialisation we're giving him!), then fine, I'll adhere to the rules. But if he's a friendly bouncy lovebunny (like our previous Staffords), then I'll be very unhappy about muzzling him. Breed specific legislation really sucks.

Sleipnir

Originally posted by Kalikat

I have a SBT puppy and if he has a problem in later life (hopefully not with the amount of socialisation we're giving him!), then fine, I'll adhere to the rules. But if he's a friendly bouncy lovebunny (like our previous Staffords), then I'll be very unhappy about muzzling him. Breed specific legislation really sucks.

It may suck but it's there for a reason. Of course people will say
"but my dog isn't like that"
However certain breeds of dog are more prone to attack people than others.
It's "in the breed" as they say.
Some dogs have the instinct to retreive, some have a greater instinct to defend territory than others.

Gillie, the point is, do you want to be the owner who appears in the paper and says, like so many others before,
"he's never done anything like that before"

Falkorre

I have to say,
As a wheelchair user, unleashed dogs really annoy me.
However as the owner of two hyper dogs, I also hate the breed prejudice, my mother has a very very large (all muscle) wicklow collie, and people will literally cross the street when they see him coming even though hes on a lead! And in reality, he's a giant teddy bear who wouldnt hurt a fly.

my own two are small, a jrt and a pom, but people feel the same way about jrt's, even though she is an absolute sweetie also.
In fact, the pom is more likely to snap if i take my eyes off him, and yet, because hes a big fluffy wookie-like thing, they will be cooing over him! :rolleyes:

But, all that aside, where I live, there are literally unfortunately, hundreds of dogs left to roam the street day and night :mad: and the majority to not react well to my chair, if it werent for the fact that *I* know how to react to them, then I am certain I would have been bitten by one by now.

i would never like to generalise normally, but here where I live, in neilstown clondalkin, i have never seen so many strays in my life, and iv lived many places.
it is so sad, that for some reason, a lot of people here dont practise neutering and just let their pets roam.

B

Kalikat

Sleipnir, I'm well aware of the BSL laws over here, which is why I posted 'em. No need for a lecture.

Fact is, dogs are dogs, and any and all breeds are capable of doing serious harm. I think promoting awareness and responsible handling by owners would be far more effective than demonising any particular breed.

Sleipnir

Wasn't addressing you in particular. You're not that important.

watty

My grandparents had a Pom when my mun was at home. She is a lifelong dog owner (lots of Dachounds). But she still maybe 50 years later shudders about that Pom. Obvioulsy some dogs belie their looks. Most the years I knew my Grandparents they had poodles. Then their last dog was a Shi Shui (sp? or something ), small, long haired, snappy and dished in shape face.

All the Dachunds were very amiable. Though one never quite got over his tounge getting pulled by one of my kids when age 2. Happened so quick!

Falkorre

grrrrrrrrrrr oim viscious oi am!

eeek, just noticed, no wonder he looks pissed, terrible woman has her thumb up his butt!

noels little bu

While out walking my german shepard i got stopped by the gardai asking me why i had the dog muzzled. like how stupid do you have to be. i asked him did he want to find out and he told me not to be so cheeky. but in all honesty i have him muzzled because he classed as a dangerous dog and i dont want anything to happen while i am out with him. I know that he is a pet to me and i am totaly safe with him but you never can tell how he will react to other people and dogs.

watty

Yep can make the law nervous if they actually see people keeping it voluntarily...

"Hmm... dat look suspicious, why he driving at only 30mph?" says Bob.

"Maybe he got explosives or being carefull because he drunk" says Jim

"Wrong time of day for drunk" say Bob "I that case we either call for backup or pretend not to notice"............

Kalina

I have a very quiet Norwegian Elkhound, she is so friendly with everyone. She's very curious like most dogs so she likes to go up to people that we meet out walking just to check them out. As she looks like a miniature wolf sometimes this terrifies people. As a result I keep her on a close leash when we're out near other people.
It's a pity because she is a real sweetheart and loves to play with kids and have attention lavished on her. But I've got to respect people who have a fear of dogs and parents who are very protective of their kids. It must be a scary thing to see your toddler petting a dog that looks like a wolf from a distance! :eek:

Gillo

3 points
1, First it's the law, all dogs in public must be on a lead, certain breeds of dog (including German Sheperds AFAIK) are also to be muzzled when in public

2, Alot of people are nervous of larger dogs, but feel a lot more at ease if teh dog is on a lead

3, Where I live, alot of people leave dogs out without leads, and as a aresult teh majority of times I brign my daughter down to teh beach she ends up running back to me cos someone has let their dog run all over the place

4, Somehow the casual he won't touch you dosen't actually work

5, Sorry your fiancee got the hassle, but in fairness she was asking for it

koneko

Ehh... did you notice this thread was dead for about 4 months now?

Just for future reference it's good to check that. Unless you have something important to add to a thread, if it's dead it's best left dead.

Sarky

watty wrote:

Dogs ultimately are preditors and carnivors.

My dog likes potatoes. Take that, your opinion!

Gillo

Sorry I hadn't realised it was dead, and agree it's best to let sleeping dogs lie

Sorry couldn't resist the pun.

I only saw the thread cos it showed up as been recently added to when I logged in??????