Dog walking etiquette :)

luvdogs

So...was walking my young ..very excitable pup...today with my sister in a well used dog walking public park!!
it was an onlead walk as she`d had her gallop already! i used to walk here all the time before moving away and always respected other dog walkers.
If i saw a dog walker coming my way with a loose dog that they put on lead, i did the same, likewise if they left it loose..common sense!
Had words with a woman today who had no control over her dog, it raced over to us which for a variety of reasons which i wont bore you with...wasn`t appreciated!
it got quite snotty when i asked her to call her dog away!!
so really my question is this....have things changed?, i can tell straight away if im approaching someone who wont want my dog coming up to theirs and act accordingly by putting them onlead etc surely its good manners too!!
am i just getting cranky in my old age or what!!

Humans eh!

luvdogs wrote: »

So...was walking my young ..very excitable pup...today with my sister in a well used dog walking public park!!
it was an onlead walk as she`d had her gallop already! i used to walk here all the time before moving away and always respected other dog walkers.
If i saw a dog walker coming my way with a loose dog that they put on lead, i did the same, likewise if they left it loose..common sense!
Had words with a woman today who had no control over her dog, it raced over to us which for a variety of reasons which i wont bore you with...wasn`t appreciated!
it got quite snotty when i asked her to call her dog away!!
so really my question is this....have things changed?, i can tell straight away if im approaching someone who wont want my dog coming up to theirs and act accordingly by putting them onlead etc surely its good manners too!!
am i just getting cranky in my old age or what!!

Common sense is the most important thing with dogs. A dog on a lead will often act more aggressively to other dogs because it feels trapped and restricted but most people don't realise this. Instead of a dog licence new owners should be taught how dogs think and stop believing that dogs act like humans would to stimuli and threat.

Stupidest thing that happened to me recently was young girl(16ish) skinny cocky and pale being literally dragged along by muscular rottweiller (unmuzzled) on opposite side of road, slightly behind us going same direction. She crossed the road to walk up behind us (me my wife, dog and small children 3 & 5) for no good reason, no exits / houses off road on our side etc. There was no one else around.
I dropped back allowing my children to walk ahead and said to her "are you really going to walk up behind my children with that dog" which she clearly couldn't control if it decided to act. She gave me the puzzled furrowed brow look and asked me 'wha' my f***in problem was' and started getting aggressive, I told her that having a rottweiler unmuzzled is a danger to my kids and I would ring the dog warden & cops if she wanted to continue and have the dog confiscated.
She abruptly did a U turn and fecked off shouting like a fishwife.
The possible outcomes were horrifying and it made me mad that these beautiful and powerful creatures are in the hands of total idiots just for show.

andreac

Humans eh! wrote: »

Common sense is the most important thing with dogs. A dog on a lead will often act more aggressively to other dogs because it feels trapped and restricted but most people don't realise this. Instead of a dog licence new owners should be taught how dogs think and stop believing that dogs act like humans would to stimuli and threat.

Stupidest thing that happened to me recently was young girl(16ish) skinny cocky and pale being literally dragged along by muscular rottweiller (unmuzzled) on opposite side of road, slightly behind us going same direction. She crossed the road to walk up behind us (me my wife, dog and small children 3 & 5) for no good reason, no exits / houses off road on our side etc. There was no one else around.
I dropped back allowing my children to walk ahead and said to her "are you really going to walk up behind my children with that dog" which she clearly couldn't control if it decided to act. She gave me the puzzled furrowed brow look and asked me 'wha' my f***in problem was' and started getting aggressive, I told her that having a rottweiler unmuzzled is a danger to my kids and I would ring the dog warden & cops if she wanted to continue and have the dog confiscated. She abruptly did a U turn and fecked off shouting like a fishwife.
The possible outcomes were horrifying and it made me mad that these beautiful and powerful creatures are in the hands of total idiots just for show.

:mad: Seriously?? Why would it be a danger to your kids may i ask? Because its a rottweiler?
The dog was doing nothing to give you an idea that it was aggressive, apart from being a strong dog pulling her, but you asume, as its a rottweiler, its a danger to your kids?

What possible outcomes would that be then? Was the dog going to eat up all your children??

seamus

Humans eh! wrote: »

The possible outcomes were horrifying and it made me mad that these beautiful and powerful creatures are in the hands of total idiots just for show.

I understand that you're wary, but would you have been quite so worried if that girl was being dragged along by an umuzzled St. Bernard?
Your fears aren't totally unfounded, but it's not for the safety of your children you should be worrying, it's your dog. And that's true of any dog which isn't under proper control, which that girl's dog didn't appear to be.

Ettiquete is a funny thing when it comes to dogs because there seems to be a few distinct groups of people with their own rules:

1. The conscientious walker who leashes their dog and keeps him at heel unless the other owner invites the dogs interacting
2. The more casual walker who has control over the dog but doesn't actively stop it from going over to other people unless the other person seems specifically to have an issue.
3. The gob****e.

People in groups 1 and 2 are fine. I generally have no issue with other dogs coming up to mine unless they're exceptionally large - St. Bernards, Great Danes, etc. While I know that my dog is no wilting violet when challenged, she still only weighs 12 kilos and I would have serious difficulty separating a 12 stone animal from her if a row was to break out.
Thankfully rows rarely break out and simply walking on usually defuses any stand offs.

There's a woman on my street in group 3. She opens the door and the dog goes out. Gets very excited when it sees anyone else - it's utterly harmless - but doesn't go away and doesn't go back to her when she calls him. Every other dog owner on the road hates walking by her house because they know there'll be a 3 minute struggle to get the dog to feck off.
I now have more control over her dog than she does and he understands me perfectly when I tell him to "go home".
I have once or twice though allowed him to follow us on our walk and I return 20 minutes later to find her panicking and calling out the dog's name. She still hasn't learned though :rolleyes:
He's a pedigree small breed too, he'd be lifted very easily.

The issue of "control" is a thorny one which needs proper addressing. It's equally valid to say that an unleashed dog may be under proper control and a leashed dog may not be under proper control.
Owners should earn the right to have their dogs unleashed in public, regardless of breed or size.

Humans eh!

andreac wrote: »

:mad: Seriously?? Why would it be a danger to your kids may i ask? Because its a rottweiler?
The dog was doing nothing to give you an idea that it was aggressive, apart from being a strong dog pulling her, but you asume, as its a rottweiler, its a danger to your kids?

What possible outcomes would that be then? Was the dog going to eat up all your children??

My kids were holding my own dog, a german shepherd /labrador bitch who was getting agitated by the approach of the Rottweiller who was straining to get at her. My kids come before me "taking a chance" that a dog would not act aggressiverly in any way. WTF should I do ... wait and see..?

adser53

Humans eh! wrote: »

My kids were holding my own dog, a german shepherd /labrador bitch who was getting agitated by the approach of the Rottweiller who was straining to get at her. My kids come before me "taking a chance" that a dog would not act aggressiverly in any way. WTF should I do ... wait and see..?

You let your 3 & 5 year old lead a GSD? Hate to break it to you man but the cops and warden would've been having words with you too as your restricted breed was also unmuzzled and not being led by someone over 16. Ye can't give out about that girl when you did the same thing yourself! How many people would feel uneasy at a feckin 3yr old walking a GSD? If your dog decided to act as you put it, your child could've gotten caught in the middle. Kettle, meet pot.

andreac

Humans eh! wrote: »

My kids were holding my own dog, a german shepherd /labrador bitch who was getting agitated by the approach of the Rottweiller who was straining to get at her. My kids come before me "taking a chance" that a dog would not act aggressiverly in any way. WTF should I do ... wait and see..?

One question, was your dog muzzled? Because you do know that any crosses or strains of the dogs on the breeds list should be muzzled too.;)

I was commenting on how you worded and referred to the situation as it was a "rottweiler". As Seamus said, would you have reacted the same way if the girl was holding a labrador, or collie that was straining at the lead?

Im not denying that the girl didnt have control of the dog, but making such statemtents as you have done targetting the breed is ridiculous and this is the reason these fabulous dogs have a reputation when people like yourself come out with statements like you have.

For all you know the dog might have been straining just to say hi and play, not all dogs that are puling at the lead are wanting to attack every dog they see.

Discodog

seamus wrote: »

1. The conscientious walker who leashes their dog and keeps him at heel unless the other owner invites the dogs interacting.

This is the only rule as far as I am concerned. What is the point of having a dog off lead, but still under control, if one allows it to approach another dog without the owners permission ?.

I am the only person who walks my dogs down my road on a lead. No one else bothers. Also many walkers freely ramble over farmed land here on the assumption that it's ok to do do - no one ever asks.

sambuka41

While i agree that it is unfair to assume a dog is dangerous just because of its breed there does have to be some common sense involved too. I was in a dog park recently and two unmuzzled pit bulls came in, one was very eager and jumped on me, he was so big that his paws were on my chest and his face in my face. I dont scare easily but imagine if he done that to someone who did? Who might have screamed in his face,the dog could act out of fright.

Its not right but i think that owners of restricted breeds should be aware that even if their dog is lovely,you cant control other peoples reactions to them. Its as much about protecting your dog as protecting other people.

I know my issue happened in a dog park, where everyone was off lead but a certain amount of control should be established before attempting off lead walks.

In general a bit of common sense on both parties and there should be no real issues. I think I would probably fall into number 2 of Seamus categories.

Discodog

sambuka41 wrote: »

While i agree that it is unfair to assume a dog is dangerous

Many do believe that any dog is potentially dangerous. There are lots of people who are nervous of dogs. Allowing a dog to approach someone, without first ascertaining if they agree, is asking for trouble.

There is an increased responsibility on the owners of restricted breeds. Not because the dog poses a risk but because the law assumes that it does. RB owners are duty bound to show their dogs in the best possible light & that means under absolute control.

Whispered

Humans eh! wrote: »

Stupidest thing that happened to me recently was young girl(16ish) skinny cocky and pale being literally dragged along by muscular rottweiller (unmuzzled) on opposite side of road, slightly behind us going same direction. She crossed the road to walk up behind us (me my wife, dog and small children 3 & 5) for no good reason, no exits / houses off road on our side etc. There was no one else around.

I'm well (weeeel) over 18 and still get ID'd when buying drink, I'm also pale (not that I can see the relevance ) . Should I wear an ID badge just in case some nosey person decides I look too young to be walking my large dog?

How rude of you to question someone walking on a public road. There could be a million reasons she wanted to walk where she was. Not that she has to answer to you in any way what so ever. I would say that you acted agressively, not the young girl.

What sort of example are you setting for your children? Starting a row with a young woman walking on her own, while there was nobody else around? I would feel very intimidated if I was her.

You were doing WORSE than her allowing your 3 and 5 year old kids walk your large, agitated dog. Your kids should not have been holding your restricted breed dog. And if your dog was getting agitated it's up to you to control the dog, not have a go at other dog owners.

dmg11234

adser53 wrote: »

You let your 3 & 5 year old lead a GSD? Hate to break it to you man but the cops and warden would've been having words with you too as your restricted breed was also unmuzzled and not being led by someone over 16. Ye can't give out about that girl when you did the same thing yourself! How many people would feel uneasy at a feckin 3yr old walking a GSD? If your dog decided to act as you put it, your child could've gotten caught in the middle. Kettle, meet pot.

I am only commenting to say 'well said' to you Adser53

ISDW

sambuka41 wrote: »

While i agree that it is unfair to assume a dog is dangerous just because of its breed there does have to be some common sense involved too. I was in a dog park recently and two unmuzzled pit bulls came in, one was very eager and jumped on me, he was so big that his paws were on my chest and his face in my face. I dont scare easily but imagine if he done that to someone who did? Who might have screamed in his face,the dog could act out of fright.

But that could be true of any large dog, I have a large grey husky here, he certainly isn't in the habit of jumping up at strangers, but if he did, his paws would be on your chest and his face in your face, whats the difference between him and a pit bull?

Your points are very valid, but I think they hold true for all dogs, not just those on the RB list.

PeakOutput

Humans eh! wrote: »

I dropped back allowing my children to walk ahead and said to her "are you really going to walk up behind my children with that dog"

it made me mad that these beautiful and powerful creatures are in the hands of total idiots just for show.

she wasnt the idiot

seamus

OK, I would like to get this back on the track of discussing the topic in the OP.

And please remember to remain calm and civil. It's not a discussion if you're preaching

Dyr

Whispered wrote: »

I'm well (weeeel) over 18 and still get ID'd when buying drink, I'm also pale (not that I can see the relevance ) . Should I wear an ID badge just in case some nosey person decides I look too young to be walking my large dog?

I think the point being that pale skinny teenager is undoubtedly a frightful commoner :eek:

And for people with kids..my dogs are on leads so how about keeping your brats under control and away from us?

sambuka41

ISDW wrote: »

But that could be true of any large dog, I have a large grey husky here, he certainly isn't in the habit of jumping up at strangers, but if he did, his paws would be on your chest and his face in your face, whats the difference between him and a pit bull?

Your points are very valid, but I think they hold true for all dogs, not just those on the RB list.

I would agree that it would be intimidating for any large dog, what i mean is in the way of the reaction. Its going to be worse if it was a RB rather then a husky or lab. Not that it is fair or right, but the bad media that surrounds the RB's has created an auto pilot reaction in people. The park cleared that day, especially the people with small dogs,they all left. (in fairness I didnt get a good vibe from these particular dogs myself:()

In reality it is true to all dogs,but for anyone who doesn't have the experience that you or I have they will be more likely to react if its an RB.

adser53

sambuka41 wrote: »

In reality it is true to all dogs,but for anyone who doesn't have the experience that you or I have they will be more likely to react if its an RB.

Very sad but true

luvdogs

the issue in my case wasnt so much the breed of dog, it was more the principle of the whole thing, i find it easy enough to read a situation when approaching a fellow dog walker...in my case it should have been quite obvious that i wouldnt welcome this dog coming up to my onlead dog at a gallop!
i usually walk mine, onlead, on country roads.....offlead dogs running out at us is a WHOLEEEE other thread :mad:

seamus

luvdogs wrote: »

the issue in my case wasnt so much the breed of dog, it was more the principle of the whole thing, i find it easy enough to read a situation when approaching a fellow dog walker...in my case it should have been quite obvious that i wouldnt welcome this dog coming up to my onlead dog at a gallop!

Yeah, I really have no idea what's going through some people's heads tbh.

I was out walking in a local park one day when a dog came sprinting from across the field (a good 250m) to say hi to my dog. Grand, didn't bother me too much. The owner called the dog for about 10 seconds, no response then came sprinting after, huffing and puffing and panicking and apologising profusely.

When I looped back around 10 minutes later I saw her having the exact same exchange with another dog owner. Offlead training is fine, it has to be done and everyone who trains offlead will have occasions where the dog makes a break for it. But some people just have no cop on about what is and isn't appropriate.

ISDW

sambuka41 wrote: »

I would agree that it would be intimidating for any large dog, what i mean is in the way of the reaction. Its going to be worse if it was a RB rather then a husky or lab. Not that it is fair or right, but the bad media that surrounds the RB's has created an auto pilot reaction in people. The park cleared that day, especially the people with small dogs,they all left. (in fairness I didnt get a good vibe from these particular dogs myself:()

In reality it is true to all dogs,but for anyone who doesn't have the experience that you or I have they will be more likely to react if its an RB.

Well its weird with huskies, people either think they're really cute snow dogs and want lots of hugs, or think they're wolves and run away screaming:D

luvdogs

ISDW wrote: »

Well its weird with huskies, people either think they're really cute snow dogs and want lots of hugs, or think they're wolves and run away screaming:D

lmaoo :pac:

i always get asked why my girls are muzzled too.....just cos they wear headcollars :rolleyes:

homerhop

We have Flint on a whistle now so one quick blow and he will drop on the spot but I still leave the harness on him when out walking. When we go somewhere new I keep him on his leash and when meeting others coming the other way I make him sit beside me. It still amazes me the amount of people who see me do this with my dog but allow theirs to run up to us and stand over the pup in a dominant fashion.

ppink

Haha. I was in a great woods on the outskirts of Ballina Co. Mayo once and it had a couple of bus loads of kids arrived just before me. When I got out of the jeep with our GSD all i could hear was them screaming with excitement at the "wolf dog". they were so thrilled to see him and of course he was full of his own importance accepting the attention:D

unfortunately there are all sorts of eejits out there with dogs. I suppose we are fortunate having land to have ours out loose but I can never understand how people get dogs and then think about where can they leave them loose or indeed those who think that every park is a dog off lead park.

luvdogs

Glad im not alone in my thinking was soo annoyed yesterday, it spoiled which would`ve been a lovely walk!!!

SophieSakura

andreac wrote: »

:mad: Seriously?? Why would it be a danger to your kids may i ask? Because its a rottweiler?
The dog was doing nothing to give you an idea that it was aggressive, apart from being a strong dog pulling her, but you asume, as its a rottweiler, its a danger to your kids?

What possible outcomes would that be then? Was the dog going to eat up all your children??

Because they're really big, strong dogs and it wasn't properly under her control.

SophieSakura

I think walking dogs off lead is fine, but I don't think you should let the dogs go up to strangers/strange dogs unless you have permission first. And unless your dog is friendly of course!

Some people are just scared of dogs or will overreact.

And if you let your dog wander up to another dog, your dog might get attacked, and it'd be partly your own fault.

Also people with unspayed bitches might be really annoyed by male dogs following their dog, and they have a right to walk them too.

And I'm just scared my dogs will get attacked, which has happened before. I'm usually just as wary of small dogs, big dogs, restricted breeds, unrestricted breeds (unless it's one of those breeds that is known for being nearly always friendly), but I'll usually try to keep my dogs away from strange dogs. Which is kinda hard when you have 4 dogs on a walk at once! (I had to start only walking two at a time even though they're small, just so if they get attacked, I can pick them up!)

I had a lovely greyhound following me around when I was walking my Cavalier puppy recently. Obviously I was scared and picked up my puppy until I could tell the greyhound was small-dog-friendly. Not being prejudiced to greyhounds, just being careful.

The Sweeper

sambuka41 wrote: »

While i agree that it is unfair to assume a dog is dangerous just because of its breed there does have to be some common sense involved too. I was in a dog park recently and two unmuzzled pit bulls came in, one was very eager and jumped on me, he was so big that his paws were on my chest and his face in my face.

With all due respect, you've just fallen foul of breed discrimination there yourself. You say the dogs were unmuzzled pitbulls.

The breed standard for an adult male pitbull has a weight range of 35-60lbs (about 15kgs to 27kgs). Unless you're an extremely short person (e.g. 5ft or less), and the dog was the absolute top end of its weight class, it's highly unlikely that the dog large enough to have its paws on your chest and its face in your face was a pitbull - especially not given that the muscle mass of a pitbull would mean it reaches 27kgs while still relatively short in stature.

Two unmuzzled bull breed type dogs that could have been mastiff Xs or american bulldog Xs or staffordshire terrier/labrador crosses, for instance, approached you in the park.

andreac

SophieSakura wrote: »

Because they're really big, strong dogs and it wasn't properly under her control.

Sorry, but can you tell me exactly how it wasnt under her control?? She had it on the lead, it wasnt exactly running around loose out of control, what more do you want her to do with the dog?

Some dogs are strong and take a pull, i own a rottweiler and he is strong and would pull me sometimes, but he is totally under my control.

Shanao

The Sweeper wrote: »

With all due respect, you've just fallen foul of breed discrimination there yourself. You say the dogs were unmuzzled pitbulls.

The breed standard for an adult male pitbull has a weight range of 35-60lbs (about 15kgs to 27kgs). Unless you're an extremely short person (e.g. 5ft or less), and the dog was the absolute top end of its weight class, it's highly unlikely that the dog large enough to have its paws on your chest and its face in your face was a pitbull - especially not given that the muscle mass of a pitbull would mean it reaches 27kgs while still relatively short in stature.

Two unmuzzled bull breed type dogs that could have been mastiff Xs or american bulldog Xs or staffordshire terrier/labrador crosses, for instance, approached you in the park.

I was only just thinking that myself. Wasn't sure of the standard for pits so checked it up, and there really is no way those could have been pit bulls. Probably crossbreeds of some variety. Then again, could have been anything cos people dont even seem to know what pits look like.
Friend of mine has a white boxer and an american bull and the amount of times she's been stopped, even by the bloody dog warden once, to be told that they should be muzzled is unreal. She even got to the stage where she carried their papers around with her to prove they weren't. And they are always on leads.
Just goes to show, if you lined up five dogs, most people still wouldn't be able to tell which was the pitbull.

And I love instantly how its the RBs that people complain about. I've seen people being dragged all over by labradors and huskies and my fella has already been lunged at five times by medium-big dogs, twice by collie crosses, once by a lab, once by a red setter and once by a bloody st bernard. And i cant even count the amount of times yorkies or bichons or shih tzus have run at him, barking and snapping. And yes, my dog is an RB who I have put the time and effort into training and making him dog friendly. People seem to forget that that's actually possible.

koneko

SophieSakura wrote: »

Because they're really big, strong dogs and it wasn't properly under her control.

A GSD is a big strong dog too, and I doubt a 3 and 5 year old could keep it under control if they had to.

ISDW wrote: »

Well its weird with huskies, people either think they're really cute snow dogs and want lots of hugs, or think they're wolves and run away screaming:D

Haha, so true You get people doing a big circle around you with a scowling face, as if you have a wolf out with you, and 2 minutes later someone else will run up to pet them.