Rant: Yet another off-leash dog at Lincoln Park

[ktrapp]

Last night (11/10), around 5:00, it was nice out, so my wife and I decided to take our small dog, and the dog we’re watching for a friend (a 70+ pound Afghan Hound) for a walk along the beach at Lincoln Park. We didn’t know how well she reacts to other dogs, so I literally had her on a short leash. Sure enough, she would occasionally bark and try to make aggressive moves towards some other dogs. We decided to head back, and about midway between the north end of the trail and Coleman Pool, I saw a man with a golden retriever on the beach. Of course that in itself is illegal, but at least I didn’t have to worry about them. Or so I thought.

Our dog (the big one), caught sight of the other dog and started barking. I grabbed her by her harness in order to keep better control of her while they passed. Except the other dog started running right towards us. Which is when I realized it wasn’t on a leash. Our dog started freaking out. And even though I’m 5’10” and 170 pounds, I was having a very hard time controlling her. I stood over top of her and grabbed the harness with both hands, but it was still like trying to control a bucking bronco.

I started yelling at the guy, first demanding to know why his dog wasn’t on a leash. He responded by saying they’re just playing. My dog was frantically barking, growling, and desperate to break my grip. I don’t know the dog that well, but I know dogs enough in general to know that this was not playing. I yelled even more frantically at the guy to get his dog on a leash, and he continued to insist that they were just playing. Meanwhile, my wife was attempting to get in between the dogs, as they were growling and lunging at each other.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, but was likely only 15 seconds, the other guy pulled his dog away. Once we were separated by about 10 feet I again yelled at the guy to get his dog on a leash. He once again insisted that they were just playing. I told him that it was illegal, and if he didn’t get his dog on a leash, I’d be calling the police. We then went our separate ways.

It was utterly baffling at how completely oblivious this guy was to what was going on. I can only assume it was a defense mechanism, since he knew full well he was breaking the law by letting his dog run off leash, and he was trying to minimize what happened. Even IF his dog was “just playing”, our dog most certainly was not. And at about twice his dog’s size, it wouldn’t have been pretty, had I “let them play”. And just in case there’s any doubt that our dog wasn’t playing, my wife walked away with a bite to her thigh. It was our dog who did it. Otherwise I would have run back, tackled the guy, and called the cops.

So proof #235,356,378 as to why you should always keep your dog on a leash in public. I’d wonder why there weren’t more police around to enforce it. But considering they don’t have the bandwidth to keep cars from being broken into in the parking lots there, ticketing leash scofflaws is probably just a pipe dream.

Share This

[EdSane]

Sorry to hear what happened to you. My partner and I both carry mace when we take our dogs walking because of all the self entitled jerks throughout WS with their off leash dogs.

Share This

[LoveWS]

Unfortunately Lincoln Park is known for dog owners thinking they are above the law. I’m a regular runner there and I’ve had numerous dogs run at me, chase me and have seen dog attacks. The owners a lot of times are actually holding a leash while their dog runs free.

Share This

[aa]

This may sound silly but until I read this I never thought about the fact that someone, like you, might be trying to alert the other person that their dog might get hurt. Sorry my new awareness won’t help the situation as I don’t current have a dog. We see entitled behavior at every turn. People who drive through red lights, talk on their phone while driving, leash free dogs, owners who don’t pick up poo, we’re all so separate it’s easy to forget that our behavior effects other people. Ok.. one more thing about phones, What I wonder is, the people on the phone, are they thinking the law is stupid? Or that it doesn’t apply to them?

Share This

[Jeannie]

Call Animal Control. 206 386-7387. Save that number on your phone so it’s readily available. Even if you just see an off-leash dog, call. Take a picture. Of course, if your leashed dog is trying to attack an off-leash dog, your first priority is safety.
Sometimes dogs have a lot more sense than their entitled humans, don’t they?

Share This

[Terremoto]

I have had several conversations with owners of off-leash dogs at Lincoln Park. My dog does not like being approached by other dogs because he has been attacked at Westcrest. I have no other option but to walk in on-leash parks. The entitled attitude, rudeness and flippant “he’s friendly,” are astonishing. These owners do not have a solid recall for their dogs, most don’t even “try” to call their dogs. My dog also starts reacting as an off-leash dog starts running directly at him, so off- leash dog owner, you’ve now destroyed my peaceful walk. If they would recall and heel their dog, which requires training! their dog, I would have no problem. I keep my reactive dog on-leash so your dog is safe. You need to anticipate problems even if the other dog “looks friendly.” My dog looks friendly because I work to focus and relax him. You need to work on training your dog, or better yet, take your off-leash dog to an off-leash park! Lincoln Park is not an off-leash park. There are off-leash parks in Burien and at Westcrest.

Share This

[Author]

Posts