Dog Barks At Me Everytime I Walk Home

LegacyUser

I tend to work during the night, and when I'm walking home and it's still dark there's always a very intimidating, albeit medium sized, rottweiler that barks at me as soon as I'm in its eye line and runs straight for me. I have a nervous disposition at the best of times, and while I can't say that I'm a big fan of dogs I'm alright with them if they're alright with me.

Often the dog blocks me off when I cross the road or try to get past it, still barking at me which I find terrifying. And it makes it difficult for me to get to the house I live in, which is absolutely the last thing I'm in the mood for after I've finished work. I've come to both expect and dread it now, I don't know who owns the dog because it runs to wherever I am and it's really starting to make my life a misery. All I want to do is be able to walk home after work without the fear of a dog going for me. I sometimes end up walking a way that adds 10 minutes onto my journey just to avoid it, and I resent having to do this. And even then sometimes it goes for me there too! It's really wearing me down now, I was wondering if anyone has any advice about what I should do?

Irish-Lass

Short Answer - ring the local dog warden and ask them to have the rottweiler picked up - might make the owners cop on and stop acting like muppets - they are one of the dogs on the Restricted Breeds list and should not be off lead and certainly not allowed to be in a situation where they are permitted to intimidate a person in that way.

I own a rottweiler and while mine is the biggest dope in the worlds dogs are not allowed roam and must be under affective control at all times under the Control of Dogs Act and the dogs that are on the restricted breed are never suppose to be off lead in a public area - while I like dogs that does not mean everyone around me does

Go to a pet shop and buy a thing called Pet Corrector. It's this canister that is designed to stop dogs barking. It basically shoots compressed air at them.

Other than that, go speak to the owners.

Gillo

boneyarsebogman wrote: »

Go to a pet shop and buy a thing called Pet Corrector. It's this canister that is designed to stop dogs barking. It basically shoots compressed air at them.

Other than that, go speak to the owners.

Isn't there a risk that those things can annoy the dog more?
There is also a device you can buy which makes a really high pitched noise that scares dogs off, but again there's the chance it'll annoy the dog more.

Dog warden is your best bet I'd say or possibly calling the Gardai, hope you manage to get it sorted OP.

DamagedTrax

firstly report the owner. as stated he's a restricted breed and should be on leash and muzzled when in public. restricted breeds can be beautiful dogs but some of them need a firm hand which this fellow is obviously not getting.

in the mean time should you encounter him again, i would suggest talking softly but firmly to him and keeping your front open to him as you walk past. ive found something like "hey fella, what are you getting so angry about?" will nearly always work. the idea is to distract him from his train of thought, so if he's aggitated and you use a calm voice then immediatly you'll see his head cock to one side. in dog terms this means "im confused and i dont know what to do next". keep the small talk going and you'll should be able to get past without harrasment.

turning away from him and getting anxious will only come across as fear. but also keep a distance between you. if by chance its a territorial thing, infringing on what he percieves to be his space would not be good.

99% of the time this kind of behaviour is purely out of fear. fear breeds fear is never more true than when dealing with dogs. if he senses a calmness from you then he will react accordingly.

i realise this is easier said than done but until something is done about the situation it may be your best option.

mikemac

Dogs are school kids who get a new subsitute teacher, they smell fear :pac:

Call up the dog warden.
Also go to the local station and talk to the community garda, get their name and rank

Now I'm not saying to lie but you might get a better response from the dog warden if you say children are also getting threatened by this dog.
And it probably was true over the summer holidays

ppink

I would not be shooting compressed air at a dog to be honest. It could end up causing you a bigger problem if he decides you are acting agressively towards him.

Call the warden, and keep calling until something is done.

Taltos

Last time I had a dog bark and charge at me - I put on the happiest voice I could manage and called out "Hi doggie - who's a good boy" - I know I sounded like an idiot - but for me this worked.
Dog stopped dead - barked once or twice more - and I just repeated this a few times.

Allowed me to get well past the dog and no worries - so that is always my emergency response.
However - if the owner is letting their dog wander loose that is an issue that does need to be addressed before someone is hurt.

username123

ppink wrote: »

Call the warden, and keep calling until something is done.

+1

Also - contact your local TDs - we had a territorial stray dog hanging round locally a few years back who was going for people and the dog warden was pretty useless, but once the TDs were contacted the dog warden showed up promptly.

Also contact the guards - they will just contact the dog warden but its best to have it on record.

Out of interest, what about your neighbours or other people you live with? Is anyone else being barked at? Would anyone else know who owns the dog? The more people you have complaining to the guards/dog warden/TDs - the better.

Overheal

barkybark wrote: »

I tend to work during the night, and when I'm walking home and it's still dark there's always a very intimidating, albeit medium sized, rottweiler that barks at me as soon as I'm in its eye line and runs straight for me. I have a nervous disposition at the best of times, and while I can't say that I'm a big fan of dogs I'm alright with them if they're alright with me.

Often the dog blocks me off when I cross the road or try to get past it, still barking at me which I find terrifying. And it makes it difficult for me to get to the house I live in, which is absolutely the last thing I'm in the mood for after I've finished work. I've come to both expect and dread it now, I don't know who owns the dog because it runs to wherever I am and it's really starting to make my life a misery. All I want to do is be able to walk home after work without the fear of a dog going for me. I sometimes end up walking a way that adds 10 minutes onto my journey just to avoid it, and I resent having to do this. And even then sometimes it goes for me there too! It's really wearing me down now, I was wondering if anyone has any advice about what I should do?

You're being completely submissive to this animal. That's how it sees you: it owns you.

How you stop this is really quite simple: Remain calm, and be Assertive. Calm is the most important part: if you get scared it knows it, it will wedge on it. Similarly if you try to act 'scary' you look irrational. Do neither - remain calm. The other thing is being assertive. You shouldn't back up the creature into a corner but you need to communicate clearly with your body language that 'this is my turf and I could give a **** what you think of that. Come challenge me and I will end you. So stand back and have a nice day.'

What you have to remember is you have every advantage over this dog. This dog is hardly going to attack you unless you do something to truly provoke it like stick your hand in it's face or keep staring it down. Short of that a dog acts tough because they actually don't want to fight. That's why Chihuahua's are easily one of the most 'vocal' breeds in the world.

jimmycrackcorm

Buy some dog treats to give the dog each time you pass. The other advice about being calm and assertive still holds though .

LegacyUser

Hi OP, I had a similar situation last year which I had a thread on, http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=69597338

In my case I had contacted the warden and they told me they couldn't do anything about it, which was nonsense, just someone being lazy I guess. In the end my husband and I decided to make a complaint to the guards who said they would go talk to the owners. I presume they did as the dogs are rarely out any more. (Coincidentally a family member of mine died an hour or so after I made the complaint, so tbh, the whole thing went out of my head at the time.)

I suggest calling your local warden and being as firm as possible about your complaint. I was way too reserved when I called having only recently returned to Ireland at the time and not being used to how "ah sure whatever" way some Irish services can be. If I was calling now I'd know to be much more forceful when I made the call. If the warden won't take the issue seriously go into the Gardaí in person and make a complaint there.

LegacyUser

Hi everyone, thanks for your responses! I actually read up about those Pet Correcter things a while ago but decided against it as I don't want to risk the dog getting even more aggressive towards me. I don't know who the owners are, the dog always wanders around and never stays in front of one particular house and it's always dark when it's out.

Curiously this dog is never ever about during the day, it's only ever there at night so I've a feeling the owners just leave it outside during the night then take it back into their house the next morning. No one I know here works the same hours I do so they haven't had the issue with the dog. Additionally, I have tried to be assertive and will definitely do so again, but the dog cuts me off completely. If I cross the road it walks alongside me barking, I literally can't get past it. It makes a point of preventing me from going up the road so I can't walk by it without somehow trying to step over it, which I don't think would be a wise move But I'll definitely keep trying!

I'm tempted to ring up the dog warden but am unsure if it's the sort of complaint that will be brushed aside and if I'll basically be told to just try and get on with it. Has anyone here had any experience with contacting a dog warden?

aN.Droid

Even though this dog is a restricted breed and can be very scary, I would try befriend the dog. Get some dog treats as stated already here and place them on the ground for him to sniff and eat. After that if he has stopped barking offer him your hand to sniff, I would not do this if he still looks aggressive as he may bite. if he sniffs your hand I would slowly try to give him a rub. not on the head as this may make him angry as his owner may have corrected his behaviour using slaps to the head which may cause him to think you are going to hit him.

Then again it may not work at all. just letting you know it may work. it has worked for me in the past, but then again I am a dog person and tend to get on with any dog, even aggressive ones.

Taltos

Limericks wrote: »

Even though this dog is a restricted breed and can be very scary, I would try befriend the dog. Get some dog treats as stated already here and place them on the ground for him to sniff and eat. After that if he has stopped barking offer him your hand to sniff, I would not do this if he still looks aggressive as he may bite. if he sniffs your hand I would slowly try to give him a rub. not on the head as this may make him angry as his owner may have corrected his behaviour using slaps to the head which may cause him to think you are going to hit him.

Then again it may not work at all. just letting you know it may work. it has worked for me in the past, but then again I am a dog person and tend to get on with any dog, even aggressive ones.

Please don't try to pet this dog - he might come over for treats - and might sniff your hand looking for more - but then might realise it is your hand and snap...
Remember - friendly voice - call him by name if possible and just talk to him, don't run, try not to be afraid - if he is barking chances are he is more afraid of you than you are of him - and this is his way of chasing the scary man away. - Hence the friendly voice...

KittyeeTrix

The last thing the OP should have to do on the way home from work is pet and feed some massive dog to get home safely!

Ring the dog warden OP, the owners are supposedly responsible for this dog and as such it shouldnt be able to hinder your walk home. If it is hindering as you say well it's up to the dogs owner to rectify this and certainly is not up to you!!

seamus

mikemac wrote: »

Now I'm not saying to lie but you might get a better response from the dog warden if you say children are also getting threatened by this dog.

That's an absolutely awful suggestion. If you claim the dog is threatening children, then the warden will move to have him put down.
That would be like making a complaint about your neighbour's bins and casually saying that you see him touching himself outside the children's playground too.
The dog isn't doing anything wrong, he's just a dog. It's the owner who's at fault for not controlling him.

OP, you've gotten some great suggestions here. The warden would be your first port of call. Don't embellish or lie, just say that the dog is out wandering and barking at people and you feel intimidated.

But some wardens are good, others are crap and won't bother following up. Another option is to walk the same route during the day and try to locate the dog's home and explain the problem to the owners.

Personally I think for your own sake you are better off confronting this. There will be other dogs, there will always be other dogs. So learning how to deal with them is better for you, rather than running in fear every time.
The best thing I could advise is to find a friend who knows about dogs and is confident around dogs. Not just someone who has a dog, but someone who takes an active interest in them.

Get them to accompany you along the route and they can introduce you to the dog. Someone who knows dogs well enough will know when a dog is just sounding off, and when it's actually warning you to leave or it will attack.

Alternatively you could look at volunteering in a local shelter so that you can spend more time around all sorts of dogs in a controlled environment. This may give you the confidence to handle them in the "wild", so to speak.

Keep in the back of your mind that attacks by dogs on strangers is very rare, and serious injuries from such attacks are even rarer. Dogs have been bred to live with humans, so all dogs by design are not inclined to attack people, they need to be trained or mistreated into doing so. Most of the time, the dog is simply defending its territory against intruders. Their bark is nearly always worse than their bite.
If this guy is consistently wandering the streets, then he has probably never attacked anyone, otherwise he wouldn't be around.

Irish-Lass

I certainly wouldn't be in favour of you making friends with a dog that has already shown you aggression - it may simply be that he is guarding what he sees as "his area"

I'm not sure that area you are in but the mere fact it is a restricted breed let roam should be enough to get the warden and police's attention. The dog maybe microchipped and if the warden has a scanner they can track the owners down this way (obviously only if they went to the trouble of registering the chip)

As others have said this is not the dogs fault its the owners - you take a dog on no matter what breed you have to take full responsibility for it and even more so if it is a restricted breed as some of them can be quiet intimidating purely by their size.

Do you have a fear of all dogs or just this particular one - do you have friends who have dogs that are friendly that is one way to work on your issues with dogs.

The only issues I can see in regards to the dog warden is that you have said the dog is not out during the day and dog wardens only work during the day so it might be hard for them to track down the dog but you can give a rough idea of the house if nothing else they can check to see if the owners have a dog licence

ppink

barkybark wrote: »

I'm tempted to ring up the dog warden but am unsure if it's the sort of complaint that will be brushed aside and if I'll basically be told to just try and get on with it. Has anyone here had any experience with contacting a dog warden?

Ok so you have been given all sorts of advice from shooting compressed air at him to befriending him.
The fact is that every person has a right to go about their business without fear from animals. Even if you befriend him will the next person or child??
Dog wardens are there to stop stray dogs...........thats their job! I love dogs but I am very anti dogs being allowed wander, it is not fair on them or on society.

Lollipops23

seamus wrote: »

Personally I think for your own sake you are better off confronting this. There will be other dogs, there will always be other dogs. So learning how to deal with them is better for you, rather than running in fear every time.
The best thing I could advise is to find a friend who knows about dogs and is confident around dogs. Not just someone who has a dog, but someone who takes an active interest in them.

I believe that is a totally seperate issue, although it's still good advice

But to me the bottom line is that the OP shouldn't have to encounter an angry dog every evening to get home! I hate that some owners let their dogs wander around like that, especially a restricted breed (although I staunchly believe there are no bad dogs, just bad owners). These types of dog need particular handling and training, to let them wander un-watched is criminal.

I think you need to call the dog warden and stay on their case OP. It's the best course of action IMO. If the owners are thick enough to let their dog wander, they may well be thick enough to take offence if you try to broach it with them.

CrazyRabbit

Any dog that acts so agressively towards people without provocation should be put down.

Sorry, that may seem harsh, but what if the dog encounters a small child? That child isn't going to 'speak calmly and firmly'....they are going to run, and the dog will likely attack them. The owners seem unwilling/unable to control the dog, so I wouldn't rely on the Warden having a word with them.

DamagedTrax

CrazyRabbit wrote: »

Any dog that acts so agressively towards people without provocation should be put down.

that is possibly one of the most ignorant statements about animals that i've seen in a long time. luckily you dont work in any of our rescue centres or many of us (myself included) wouldnt have our beautiful dogs that were found frightened in appalling conditions.

"look that dog's barking and growling. kill it" :mad: really?

the dog needs to be under control. whether it be by its owner, warden or whoever... not destroyed.

@ OP - do not try to befriend the dog with biscuits. do not put your hands anywhere near the dog. i have years of experience with them and i wouldnt get within 10 feet of him if i could help it.

just take the advice myself and a few others already gave about being assertive and calm if you MUST walk past him. but most importantly try to avoid him as much as possible until you can report the owner.

nyarlothothep

What people need to confront more are the owners who either don't train their dogs properly or anthropomorphize them, this is the root cause of the problem and its endemic. If you own an animal you are responsible for its actions, ergo be grown up and responsible enough to train it. This issue needs to be taken head on, people need to be held accountable for their lack of self responsibility.

CrazyRabbit

DamagedTrax wrote: »

that is possibly one of the most ignorant statements about animals that i've seen in a long time. luckily you dont work in any of our rescue centres or many of us (myself included) wouldnt have our beautiful dogs that were found frightened in appalling conditions.

"look that dog's barking and growling. kill it" :mad: really?

the dog needs to be under control. whether it be by its owner, warden or whoever... not destroyed.

@ OP - do not try to befriend the dog with biscuits. do not put your hands anywhere near the dog. i have years of experience with them and i wouldnt get within 10 feet of him if i could help it.

just take the advice myself and a few others already gave about being assertive and calm if you MUST walk past him. but most importantly try to avoid him as much as possible until you can report the owner.

Well I wouldn't have a 4 inch scar on my chest if my neighbours aggressive dog had been put down before it finally decided to attack me. Not much has changed in 25 years...aggressive dogs still have more rights than an innocent child. Since I'm speaking from actual experiences, ignorance is not an issue.

Oh, and good luck to any child trying to be 'assertive and calm' when faced with an angry dog. They'll need it.

Kadongy

A dog warden would put it in a pound no?
I worked in an animal shelter one summer, which was considerably better kept than a pound. A lot of dogs got sick and needed to be put down nonetheless. My only experience with a dog from a pound was that it was very sick and needed to be put down.
Talking very assertively with the owners would be a better first course of action in my opinion.

Gordon

To watch videos on how to be assertive with dogs, Cesar Millan the Dog Whisperer is a great show, try to find some of his stuff on Youtube if you can.

Also, if you have an iPhone, there's a dog whistle app you can get (good to check your hearing too!). Dog whistles don't make the dog curl up in a ball and whimper, it's just a high pitched tone that can be quite loud and annoying to a dog and can make it stop in its tracks and get confused. Might be worth giving that a try - playing a high pitched tone while walking directly to your house, trying to ignore the dog.

Good luck with it, I know what it's like to be afraid of dogs, but once you understand the pack mentality of them, you'll see that it doesn't matter what size you are and how many teeth you have, it's all about the way you act. Some dog pack's leaders can be tiny little dogs compared to the rest of the pack, simply because the tiny wee dog acts like 'the dogs bollocks' and takes charge of situations.

kylith

OP, go for a multi-pronged attack
1) Report the dog to the gardaí
2) Call the warden, tell them that you've reported the dog to the gardaí, and then keep calling them until the do something.
3) I know it can be nerve wrecking but try to ignore the dog until the warden picks it up. Try to keep calm and don't stare at it. Signals like looking away or yawning are dog-speak for 'I don't want any trouble'.

Please don't try any Caesar Milan techniques. His training techniques are generally considered out of date, and some of them are downright dangerous and could result in being bitten.

willmunny1990

CrazyRabbit wrote: »

Any dog that acts so agressively towards people without provocation should be put down.

Sorry, that may seem harsh, but what if the dog encounters a small child? That child isn't going to 'speak calmly and firmly'....they are going to run, and the dog will likely attack them. The owners seem unwilling/unable to control the dog, so I wouldn't rely on the Warden having a word with them.

The dog shouldnt be put down,the warden should in fact bring this issue to its owners and if they dont cop on it should be taken off them.

That dog could be fine with reasponsible pet owners,wouldnt you rather give that a shot first rather than putting it down straight way?Ive been bitten aswell and i wouldnt call for it to be put down,i dont get why when people get bitten they call for all dogs to be put down its plain stupid every dog deserves a chance,plus this dog hasnt even bitten yet.

Gordon

kylith wrote: »

Please don't try any Caesar Milan techniques. His training techniques are generally considered out of date, and some of them are downright dangerous and could result in being bitten.

Aye, don't go jabbing the dog in the neck, but learn from his explanation of confidence and standing your ground.

Honey-ec

CrazyRabbit wrote: »

Well I wouldn't have a 4 inch scar on my chest if my neighbours aggressive dog had been put down before it finally decided to attack me. Not much has changed in 25 years...aggressive dogs still have more rights than an innocent child. Since I'm speaking from actual experiences, ignorance is not an issue.

Oh, and good luck to any child trying to be 'assertive and calm' when faced with an angry dog. They'll need it.

Oh please. So we should pre-emptively destroy all potentially aggressive dogs (and most people seem to automatically assume a vocal or territorial dog is potentially aggressive) just in case they eventually attack? You might as well ban dog ownership outright.

Get real.

And the bit in bold would be laughable if it wasn't so inflammatory. Without getting into a "my scar is bigger than your scar" pissing contest, I too was mauled by a dog when I was very young. I've posted about it on Animal & Pets issues before, so I'm not going to go into the details again. But am I afraid of dogs? No. Do I think every dog out there is an attack waiting to happen? No. Do I think breed-specific legislation is a load of tosh? Yes. And do I think there are a lot of incredibly ignorant dog-owners out there who are only increasing the bad reputation of their chosen breed? Absolutely.

But seriously, eugenics for dogs? Get a life, dude.

OP, as others have said, get on to the dog warden and keep at them until they get off their arses. Yes, the dog could end up in the pound and from the sound of the owners, they may well not bother going to retrieve him, but there are fantastic dog groups out there who take dogs out of the pounds and go out of their way to place them with responsible, loving families.

DamagedTrax

Honey-ec wrote: »

Do I think breed-specific legislation is a load of tosh? Yes.

+1

as a staffy lover the BSL is one of the most bizarre pieces of legislation ive ever come across.

CrazyRabbit

Honey-ec wrote: »

Oh please. So we should pre-emptively destroy all potentially aggressive dogs (and most people seem to automatically assume a vocal or territorial dog is potentially aggressive) just in case they eventually attack? You might as well ban dog ownership outright.

Get real.

And the bit in bold would be laughable if it wasn't so inflammatory. Without getting into a "my scar is bigger than your scar" pissing contest, I too was mauled by a dog when I was very young. I've posted about it on Animal & Pets issues before, so I'm not going to go into the details again. But am I afraid of dogs? No. Do I think every dog out there is an attack waiting to happen? No. Do I think breed-specific legislation is a load of tosh? Yes. And do I think there are a lot of incredibly ignorant dog-owners out there who are only increasing the bad reputation of their chosen breed? Absolutely.

But seriously, eugenics for dogs? Get a life, dude.

OP, as others have said, get on to the dog warden and keep at them until they get off their arses. Yes, the dog could end up in the pound and from the sound of the owners, they may well not bother going to retrieve him, but there are fantastic dog groups out there who take dogs out of the pounds and go out of their way to place them with responsible, loving families.

What the hell is wrong with you? I didn't mention killing random dogs just because they are aggressive breeds or are just barking. I'm talking about dogs which has specifically shown aggressive behaviour towards people. Dogs which could at any moment attack a child/adult for no reason.

Look, I have 2 cats myself, and grew up with a dog. I've no problem with dogs, or any other animals. But...if a dog, or any animal becomes so aggressive that it becomes a danger to people/children, then I'd rather be safe than sorry. We can't depend on the owners to correct the dogs behaviour...if they were decent owners then the dogs wouldn't be aggressive in the first place.

This has gone off topic...so no more replies from me on this. Believe what you will.

CorkMan

It is clearly very wrong for a rottweiler to be preventing the OP from getting home, something needs to be done pronto.

For people saying specific breeds shouldn't be banned, why not have a 400lb male lion wandering round the place? Sure just feed him and he'll be alright.

musicinyou

a dog, every single dog can read your energy from up to 100 yards away, you get the feeling of ohhh **** this dog, and hes thinking il have my fill, the best thing you can do is just breath, relax, in your mind your thinking im boss here, or you can pretend he doesnt exist, but you have to beleive it yourself, remember its energy the dog is reading, if he was going to attack you he would have done so this is not an issue, the only reason hes barking and what not is because hes protecting his ground and all that goes with it!!

"do not and i mean do not give it treats" ignore that advice, you dont need to raise attention

dog will only act upon what he is reading, no need to worry, keep your head up in the air, dont make eye contact walk at a slow calm pace and remember think calm.

best of luck

Lollipops23

musicinyou wrote: »

dog will only act upon what he is reading, no need to worry, keep your head up in the air, dont make eye contact walk at a slow calm pace and remember think calm.

best of luck

Well meaning advice, but the point is that she shouldn't have to do all this in order to get home of an evening. The dog needs to be prevented from leaving the garden in the first place, it's not right that's it's terrorising people in the estate.

I am a friend

Op with the debates raging here, it would be useful to know if the owner is of any help

musicinyou

Lollipops23 wrote: »

Well meaning advice, but the point is that she shouldn't have to do all this in order to get home of an evening. The dog needs to be prevented from leaving the garden in the first place, it's not right that's it's terrorising people in the estate.

i hear ya, but im assuming the owners have a license for the dog, and untill the dog actually does something bad, nothing is going to happen! the only other option would be for the OP to call to the said house on a day off and have a chat! my dog is trained and obedient and i train dogs too the above advice should work depending on how energy is delivered to the dog! i really do hope it works out for OP because i do agree you shouldnt have to face that

Honey-ec

I am a friend wrote: »

Op with the debates raging here, it would be useful to know if the owner is of any help

I think the OP already mentioned that she doesn't know who owns the dog.

musicinyou wrote: »

i hear ya, but im assuming the owners have a license for the dog, and untill the dog actually does something bad, nothing is going to happen!

If you train dogs, you should be familiar with the legislation on restricted breeds (as idiotic as it is). Whether or not the owners have a licence is irrelevant - all dogs are required to be under proper control at all times. In addition, restricted breeds, which this dog is, are required to be muzzled while in public.