I HATE to post this again, dogs off leash, scary story from this weekend

[guidosmom]

I really hate to post this again… but this weekend has been an absolute awful weekend for dogs off leash! We adopted a new dog, a possibly dog aggressive large terrier mix. My other can be dog aggressive when on leash, when approached by off leash dogs. He was attacked several years ago by an off leash pit bull and nearly died. I’ve been working really hard to restore his confidence. We had been trying really hard to stay close by, in the neighborhood, so we wouldn’t come into any scary circumstances with the new dog. So what happens?

This afternoon I took the dogs just on a short walk around the neighborhood. Two Border collies with their fence open come flying at my small dog, attacking him. The “new” big dog was a saint and put herself between them, trying to fend off the bigger dogs. The owner of the dogs didn’t seem to care until I yelled several times for him to call his dogs off. I thought about calling animal control, but really didn’t want to upset the neighbors if it were a true accident, which it could have been.

Then this evening, like 15 minutes ago, I took them out one last time to go potty. We finished going around the block and turned to go back down the alley to our house when a pit bull came flying down the alley at us, off leash, with the owner running/yelling behind. Again, I yelled, “Call your dog back, I don’t know how they will react.” The dog was not under voice command, but luckily stopped 5 feet from my dogs, and my dogs reacted amazingly well! I am just feeling so discouraged this weekend. I adopted this sweet dog who might possibly have dog aggression issues while on a leash, how can I help this if we are constantly confronted by off leash dogs? Especially aggressive off leash dogs? PLEASE, if your dog can’t be called back, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE keep it on a leash when you are around any other dogs!

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[Irukandji]

Hang in there guidosmom.

Keep doing right by your dogs and your community, call animal control when warranted, and know that there are LOTS of us who appreciate responsible dog ownership.

There will always, in any area of life, be those with bad judgment, those having a rough day or bout of bad luck, and an occasional ass who just doesn’t get it.

Hugs to your dogs in training. And thank you for taking in dogs with challenges.

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[CMP]

Doesn’t anyone watch the Dog Whisperer? Maybe people think it’s a bunch of fluff but Caesar clearly shows you can take the anxiety and agression out of a dog rather quickly based on your own reactions. I know some people shouldn’t be allowed to have dogs (or procreate for that matter) b/c of how poorly they manage ownership, but you can at least control your space and show some dominance over their poorly trained dogs. I don’t have a pet of my own, but when I dog-sit I don’t tolerate any crap from my friend’s dog thanks to watching that show.

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[guidosmom]

CMP, I do like that show, as well as “It’s me or the dog”. I am curious, what do you do or what would you do if you have dogs charging at you and actually attacking the dogs you are walking? Thanks.

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[CMP]

I’d probably just stop walking, watch the oncoming dog(s) and stare them down and if I had a dog with me, make sure it’s calm. And most of all, I’d be calm instead of reacting negatively to what’s going on with the dogs. Thankfully I rarely have to deal with that threat since I don’t dog-sit much and that’s why I don’t own a dog…so I won’t have to put up with other stupid owners and their mistakes. I’ve read a lot of posts about bad dog encounters on this blog and can understand the frustration so I’m not criticizing you, but I think there are tools out there that people can utilize to empower themselves besides calling animal control, who clearly doesn’t respond promptly enough.

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[rs261]

Staring at a potentially violent dog is not a good thing to do, its seen as a confrontation and can get you into a lot of trouble. and as for Cesar…please read http://www.4pawsu.com/dogpsychology.htm

or any of the other numerous debunkings of his methods. “Its me or the dog” is completely different in their training, and go about things in a more appropriate way.

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[guidosmom]

Thanks! I couldn’t quite see myself staring down a dog. Especially one charging at me and really only having a second to make a decision. For now I have decided to only walk them in areas where I really think people won’t let their dogs off leash (Alki, Greenlake, the junction, etc..) I don’t even mind if we happen to see a dog off leash, I just don’t want it charging for us and/or biting us. Thanks for the link rs261.

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[JoB]

CMP…

I am glad you told us you don’t have pets.

while it is true that some owners do contribute to their pet’s leash aggression.. that is.. their dog being aggressive towards other dogs while on leash with their own anxiety …

other than getting between an attacking dog and your dog as guidosmom’s new dog clearly tried to do… there is little an owner can do to affect the outcome when an off-leash dog attacks their on-leash dog.

i have heard some who say that unleashing your dog so it has a fighting chance is the answer.. but somehow that sits right up there with all the other bad advice i have seen ladled out by those who seem to have lost their common sense as they gained their reputations.

I hope you never encounter an attack situation while you are walking the dogs you dogsit because the tactic you describe will only make the situation worse and could result in severe injury for both you and the dog.

If i could teach non dog owners one thing, it would be to stop looking other people’s dogs in the eye. it only makes them anxious and anxious dogs do stupid and sometimes dangerous things.

Dog handling experience can only be gained one way.. handling dogs. You can certainly learn possible techniques from books and videos, but even those of us who have been successfully handling “problem” dogs our entire lives find ourselves humbled on occasion by a dog that just doesn’t fit any of the current advice.

dogs, like kids, are individuals and there is no one size fits all formula for teaching them to be good citizens.

there is however, a once size fits all formula for teaching dog owners to be good citizens…

leash your dog when you are not in your own fenced yard or a contained appointed off leash area.

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[datamuse]

Twice in the month of August I encountered aggressive dogs, off leash, in Westcrest Park, outside the off leash area. In one case the dog growled and behaved very much as though it was about to charge. His person had to call him three or four times before he responded.

And that’s the problem. MOST of the dogs I encounter in the neighborhood, on or off leash, are fine. But I have NO way of knowing that when I encounter them on the street or in the park. That last incident has made me rethink my habit of not taking pepper spray with me when I run, and that’s really sad.

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[mellaw6565]

JoB – thanks again for your cogent post. As a pet sitter (part-time) and pet owner (full-time) you’re right on. CMP’s philosophy terrifies me.

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[CMP]

My friends still trust me to dog sit so I guess that’s all that matters…hopefully they don’t read this blog and recognize me. Although their dog is well behaved and won’t come charging after anyone when he’s on a walk with me b/c he’s on a leash. What really worries me is that some of these dog owners you’re all complaining about probably have children that are equally awful which is a frightening thought. And I’m sure they don’t read this blog to realize their poor ownership skills annoy a lot of people in West Seattle. Rest assured, I will never own a dog for a number of reasons, but am always impressed to see the well-behaved dogs out there that kind of make up for all of the bad ones.

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[JoB]

CMP…

i am sure you are a great dog sitter..

just don’t try staring down any aggressive dogs… unless it is combined with exactly the right body posture, they think it means you are aggressive and that just makes them more aggressive. Not a good thing when a dog is charging you..

anyone who likes dogs well enough to dog sit is all right with me.

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[mellaw6565]

CMP- I agree with JoB – if you are going to pet sit and walk dogs, you have to be safe. Staring a dog down and putting yourself inbetween is not only dangerous, it could be deadly if the attacking dog is big enough.

That was the thought that was terrifying me, not the fact that you are a pet sitter.

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[guidosmom]

Tonight I tried to take my dogs out (about 10) one last time before bed, and this time encountered an off leash pit bull with no owner in site. I quickly turned around and went back home. I tried calling animal control but could not get an actual person. Since the recent events in the news regarding this breed, I was very nervous to see one roaming the alley between CA ave SW/44th AVE SW and Seattle St. I left a message with animal control. I am sure the dog is most likely not aggressive, but it makes me really nervous.

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[changingtimes]

i live in the same area and have never seen an offleash dog (besides the 100 year old golden ret that the owner walks off the leash most likely due to the fact that one pull would break the elderly dogs kneck) let alone a pitbull….maybe its a sign or something…..

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[changingtimes]

ooops spelled neck wrong :P

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[guidosmom]

I hadn’t either until 2 weeks ago. I hope it’s just a fluke.

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[JoB]

pit bulls are actually very nice dogs if they are raised in a loving home and not left kenneled and unattended all day.

it’s possible what you encountered was a lost or abandoned dog.

since pit bulls or anything vaguely resembling a pit bull went on banned dogs lists, there has been an increase in pet abandonment of this breed.

why people don’t do the responsible thing and at least tie them up outside a shelter, i don’t know…

but you are right not to risk the temperament of an unleashed dog.. calling animal control is the right thing to do.

i hope you are not walking your dogs in alleys at night… it’s better to stay under streetlights.

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[guidosmom]

Job, I agree, pit bulls can be really nice dogs. Unfortunately my smaller dog was attacked by one off leash 5 years ago and almost died, so I no longer take chances.

The first thing my mom said when I told her this story was “what the heck are you doing walking in alleys at night!” I hadn’t ever thought of it that way, since there are so many town homes around us with their main entrances in the alley I never really thought of this as an alley, but you are both right. From now on I’ll stick to walking them along California if we walk at night.

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[Lena]

We are on 44th and College and have had a pit bull roaming the neighborhood on and off over the past month and a half. He is unaltered and can not be easily approached. We tried to gently catch him. We have called animal control twice but he is always gone by the time they come. May be the same dog you saw. I think he has a home but am not sure where it is. There are many very nice pits but the unaltered ones make me very nervous because they tend to be more likely to be aggressive. This dog is also not well socialized. No dog should be roaming around without a person. For there safety or the safety of others in the neighborhood.

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[guidosmom]

lenamegan, Yikes! I am glad you called animal control too. They called back this morning and were patrolling around the neighborhood but unable to find the dog. They said if anyone sees any sitings to call back with the location.

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[JoB]

This is a dog that needs to be picked up by animal control for it’s own safety…

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[changingtimes]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008172211_pitbulls11m.html

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[JoB]

if you own a dog you had better keep it in your own yard or on a leash.

there are people with guns out there and it sounds like they are not only willing but planning to use them.

i know this article was about the seatac neighborhood.. but it may not be so different here.

There is an easy fix for all of this.

if you own a dog it should be securely fenced in your yard or on a leash.. then both the dog and anyone the dog could encounter are safe.

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