Recommend me a dog repellent!!

size5

Not sure if this is right pla,ce to put this tread but I figured some runners must carry them.

Mrs Size 5 has started running past 6 weeks and in fairness she's been brilliant. However a setback came tonight when an Alsatian "came after her"., and the dogs owner was not sympathetic. Mrs Size 5 has a very BIG fear of dogs.

Anyway came in shaking(mrs Size 5 not the dogAnyway don't want the experience to dampen her enthusiasm. So could any one recommend a dog repellent or alarm any one use them

givepress

your mother should do

size5

givepress wrote: »

your mother should do

homer simpson

size5 wrote: »

Not sure if this is right pla,ce to put this tread but I figured some runners must carry them.

Mrs Size 5 has started running past 6 weeks and in fairness she's been brilliant. However a setback came tonight when an Alsatian "came after her"., and the dogs owner was not sympathetic. Mrs Size 5 has a very BIG fear of dogs.

Anyway came in shaking(mrs Size 5 not the dogAnyway don't want the experience to dampen her enthusiasm. So could any one recommend a dog repellent or alarm any one use them

When you say came after her, do you mean out onto the path / road after her or ran around inside the premise's like most dog's do?

size5

homer_simpson wrote: »

When you say came after her, do you mean out onto the path / road after her or ran around inside the premise's like most dog's do?

No out on the road after her, now I have to say he was probably more following her than going after her but it was on a public footpath in a housing estate( owner putting out the bin and very slow in calling dog back)

rom

You could carry one of these and throw it at the dog for a distraction.

size5

rom wrote: »

You could carry one of these and throw it at the dog for a distraction.

homer simpson

size5 wrote: »

No out on the road after her, now I have to say he was probably more following her than going after her but it was on a public footpath in a housing estate( owner putting out the bin and very slow in calling dog back)

E-bay.

I would Imagine it was a one off case if she has been doing it for 6 weeks and this has been the first time, maybe only came out when the owner was around. You can buy dog repeller's online alright, like the one I linked above on e-bay. But be warned if MRS 5 uses it when not necessary you could actually make the dog worse. As in if the dog is coming running after her barking aggressively by all means use it but if the dog is casually walking out and giving a wee bark or slowly following her I wouldn't use it as it will in all likelihood make the matter worse and agitate the dog...

gerard65

Alantic homecare used to do a small handheld device that gave off a high pitched noise that dogs can hear and hate.

RacoonQueen

I know it's not easy for someone who has a fear of dogs but the best repellent is to show no fear. I would assume the dog who chased her is very friendly but was 'protecting' it's home. Dogs that bark and chase are generally cowards. I definitely wouldn't use anything that may agitate a dog that you don't know.

If it happens again I would suggest slowing to a walk, remaining calm and do not look at the dog, move away calmly. Walking isn't as threatening so it can stop dogs in their tracks and they'll stop and be proud of their good work.

Again, I know it's not easy for someone who has a fear of dogs but dogs can smell fear. You need to relax around them.

JohnnyCrash

I dont think dogs are allowed in public places unless under proper control by the owner.You could point this out to the owner and see how it goes.If you dont get a favourable reaction,i'd be having a word with the local dog warden.

Insane1

RacoonQueen wrote: »

I know it's not easy for someone who has a fear of dogs but the best repellent is to show no fear. I would assume the dog who chased her is very friendly but was 'protecting' it's home. Dogs that bark and chase are generally cowards. I definitely wouldn't use anything that may agitate a dog that you don't know.

If it happens again I would suggest slowing to a walk, remaining calm and do not look at the dog, move away calmly. Walking isn't as threatening so it can stop dogs in their tracks and they'll stop and be proud of their good work.

Again, I know it's not easy for someone who has a fear of dogs but dogs can smell fear. You need to relax around them.

Excellent advice but if that doesn't work, I have used the Landrover method in the past with 100% effectiveness.. :eek::D

rom

JohnnyCrash wrote: »

I dont think dogs are allowed in public places unless under proper control by the owner.You could point this out to the owner and see how it goes.If you dont get a favourable reaction,i'd be having a word with the local dog warden.

Go past the house yourself. If the dog comes out and intimidating you then record him on your phone. Email the video and address to the warden. They can't ignore that as if someone ends up getting bit it will be on their head. Don't bother talking to the owner as you will get the same response as people always get that the dog is right. It is like correcting someone elses child you are never gonna be right.When my parents dog mangled someone elses tiny dog when she was just walking it somehow parents dog was not 100% wrong . Other threads here give the view that in a park that if you are running on a path behind a dog and he gets a fright then its your fault if you get bit as somehow dogs have some sort of rights. http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/environment/animal_welfare_and_control/control_of_dogs.html
Dog not kept under control - €30 fine. If you have a video it's proof. If the warden does nothing then post it on youtube saying where (the warden's locality) where it is. Send him on the link again and CC his boss.

P.S. I have nothing against dogs but if we could get rid of all the dog owners I would be happy.

spurscormac

As a recovered sufferer from a phobia of all things canine, and now proud dog owner, I think I can see this from both sides.
I used to think that all dogs were dangerous, especially if they approached you, and even more so if they came bounding over.
I was petrified & didnt understand dog behaviour at all.

Now I realise that dogs are just behaving in a natural way & can read the signals.
Dogs can be very protective of what they consider their patch, whether that's their house/garden or an area around it.
They will also learn to repeat behaviours if they see some reward in it, whether thats food, attention, or their belief that they've succeeded in their task.

That's why you see dogs chase cars repeatedly, possibly barking or growling as well, cos every time they do, they successfully chase them away(this is why dogs hate posties - they always succeed in getting rid of them, so always bark menacingly).
The same can be said of cyclists & runners on occasion, but they don't tend to be that way towards walkers as they can monitor the situation rather than chase due to the slower pace so there's no perceived threat.

If I see a dog monitoring traffic, bikes, chasing after them, I tend to slow right down (if safe to do so obviously), and move towards them slightly. It really surprises them & they get confused & stop the chase.

On top of all that, there's also the friendly dog, who'll approach anyone & everyone just looking to play. You can generally tell this from the wag of the tail & the happy look on the face. These dogs are mostly harmless, but for someone with a fear of dogs, can be very off putting when they start to follow you.
The best way to deal with these, remember, all they want is attention, is to just ignore them and slowly move away, not encouraging any contact.

Regarding the lack of dogs on a lead, its a touchy subject with dog owners. I will always have mine on a lead as I absolutely don't trust his road sense & recall, so the only way I can responsibly take him on a walk is on a lead. A lot of dog owners have perfectly obedient dogs that there's no issue with having them off lead as they simply stay with their owner at all times. Unfortunately, there's a number of owners who don't recognise when their dog can be a nuisance & refuse to do put them on lead. To me this is pretty annoying and completely disrespectful to others who have a fear or are not used to dogs.

It would be much easier if all dogs were leashed, but I know that's not gonna happen any time soon. Hopefully the meeting was a chance occurrence, if it repeats & none of the solutions worked, I'd just change my route if it still made me anxious.

rom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP4NMoJcFd4

littlebug

I usually have my own dog with me so other dogs are usually after her rather than me but given that there are about 40 dogs along our usual 3 mile route I've learned a few tactics along the way.

The ones that stay within their own perimeter are grand... some bark like mad but don't come any further. I ignore them.

The ones that come out barking and come too close... I walk, I stop and say hello to them It works... it took a while but now it's a bark followed by happy waggy tails when they see us. They still want to come up to us and say hello and I still slow to a walk but they aren't threatening to me anymore.

The dogs that charge and are seemingly intent on killing us... well I've tried but got nowhere with them but stooping to pick something up to throw at them sometimes is enough to make them think twice... even if i don't actually pick anything up... or sometimes a few pebbles tossed in their general direction. I don't want to hurt them either.

I have accepted that I can't run that loop uninterrupted and there will be dog induced stops and walks but I can live with that.