Ignorant dog owners…

There was an organised sighthound walk on the beach on Sunday which we couldn’t go on. There were strict instructions that all dogs were to be kept on lead and all poo had to be bagged up. Restored my faith in (some) fellow dog owners.

….poured with rain so Winnie couldn’t wear her mystical beasts wings…

The sheer lack of spatial awareneess and basic consideration on beaches sometimes is infuriating especiially when you actually live there and have to deal with entitled visitors or careless locals every day. Please don't apolgize for ranting. That total adrenaline crash after you finally snap is awful and completely leaves you feeling sick and physically drained. Take it easy for the rest of the day make a drink and give your dog a good cuddle.

They are really ,really strict about dogs here and collecting their poo. We can no longer have one because our yard isn’t secure and a dog could escape. Not that many off lead areas around,either and a lot of dogs seem to be cranky because they don’t get much exercise. We have had some really lovely dogs in the past,including a dingo cross who was a gorgeous boy with a great personality. He liked to climb up high so would easily climb gates etc. I still miss him and it was 20 plus years ago now.

I’ve ordered a ‘nervous’ dog lead. It’ll be interesting to see if other dog owners react to it in a considerate way.

My son has the most lively friendly labrador, but as labs go he is big. We live in rural dog walk area and so can let him off, but as soon as we spot another dog/person, he goes straight on to lead. We do not know what they feel about dogs/ other dogs so why would we make any assumptions? We say he is friendly so they can come and pat if they wish, but we hold him tight if they do. Simple etiquette.

sazz1

My dogs are trained to stop and return to me on command. Very handy when they run up to toddlers, another dog, a stream, a road etc. Easy to teach with a bag of cooked chopped chicken breast to start with then just an occasional dog biscuit. We have 2 spaniels.
People should train their dogs recall.

My whippet has no recall. Other whippets weren’t as bad. Not sure if it’s because her family are show/lure coursing stock. I had a day off from the beach; still wound up. Then yesterday went for a walk and back to normal again; met and chatted to lovely people. Lots of people were throwing balls for their dogs but with an awareness of people and other dogs around them (which is how it usually is).An Indian family that had just dropped their daughter off at uni before flying home. The lady was so beautiful; I wondered if she was a Bollywood star but didn’t dare ask. And then a couple of sisters from down south. They were staying in a hostel above a coffee shop that we planned to go to today and blow me we saw them there and had another chat. Then, to my horror a group of four people walked in and sat at the next table. I was sure they were thepeople I’d shouted at on the beach and I wanted to just disappear. I thought the man was half looking at me so I said’ excuse me but did I shout at you on the beach the other day; if so I’m afraid you caught me on a bad day and I must apologise’. He laughed and said ‘no, it wasn’t me but I will accept the apology on his behalf because you don’t look like someone that makes a habit of shouting at people’. So it was like making a confession and being absolved. And tomorrow is the great global greyhound walk so I have to make Winnie a mystical beasts costume which is this years theme. Looking for inspiration if anyone has any bright ideas. Must be made out of cardboard though.

At least the in one dog owner that trains dogs properly

My dogs are trained to stop and return to me on command. Very handy when they run up to toddlers, another dog, a stream, a road etc. Easy to teach with a bag of cooked chopped chicken breast to start with then just an occasional dog biscuit. We have 2 spaniels.
People should train their dogs recall.

I thought a lot of Councils did not allow dogs on certain crowded public beaches.

Thought it was like Spain where there are only certain beaches are allowed to use by dogs and their owners

StoneofDestiny

*Colourless, extended dog leads are a nightmare for any visual impairment. After an eye op and my first walk out, I only just managed not to trip over it. Oblivious dog owner and narrow pavement*

Absolutely lethal things.

They are StoneofDestiny. I just thought the dog was walking separately to the owner.
Scary!

lovethepuppies

I hate the, "It's fine, they're friendly!" I just say, "Mine's not!" Or, as they approach, "He's reactive!" Seems to work. My dog is actually fine but he is reactive, so the warning is fair. I've also had it suggested to say, "He's just recovering from gastro! You might want to keep your dog away." Apparently it's the most effective because then people have some skin in the game in terms of sick dog and vet costs.

I too respond with “she’s not”. The looks I get.

I was in the vet with one of my DD sausages last week, a mum and two primary aged children were there, along with three other dogs (separate dogs and owners)

Mum had a very strange see through cat carrier, one of the children, a very nice bright boy of about 9 approached each of us, quite close to our dogs to try and stroke them. Mum stood by staring into space.

This little sausage, I had very firmly held in my arms, is very nervous, very reactive and hates strangers (lockdown and puppy farmed!) and I had to say very loudly, please don’t come near to her, Mum still stared into space.

This nice sweet child’s face was incredibly close to a sausage fave, a sausage with incredibly sharp teeth!

Luckily I got called into the surgery with one nervous shaking dog!

The first thing I taught all our children, as soon as they could walk was never ever approach anyone else’s dogs!

Colourless, extended dog leads are a nightmare for any visual impairment. After an eye op and my first walk out, I only just managed not to trip over it. Oblivious dog owner and narrow pavement

Absolutely lethal things.

it’s okay he’s friendly

I hear this from every dog owner! Having been bitten by an off lead dog as a child I am very afraid of dogs.
Some dog owners seem to think everybody will welcome their dog jumping on them, snuggling near them in cafes or barking non stop.
I have friends with dogs who are trained not to do that!

Grrrr or woof! Woof! Me thinks

A dog on an extendable lead ran into the road in front of our car. Didn’t hit it because we always look out for that sort of thing. The owner was completely oblivious to all of it.

Someone on a previous doggie thread had a stock response to any dog owner who announced " It's alright, he's friendly" would say " Yes, but I'm not".
Colourless, extended dog leads are a nightmare for any visual impairment. After an eye op and my first walk out, I only just managed not to trip over it. Oblivious dog owner and narrow pavement.
Horrible experience for you and your dog MayBee.

Siptree

We live next to common where cattle graze I the summer. A couple of weeks ago a couple, who remained unidentified, had a husky of the lead that starting chasing the cows and set off a stampede. It was lucky that not many people were around at the time it could have been extremely dangerous. They are often incidences of swans and ducks being attacked by dogs too as the river runs through. There are plenty of sign saying dogs must be on leads.

I’ve very rarely seen a husky off lead. They are lovely dogs and I’m particularly fond of them but they have no recall and their owners are usually aware of it. The only time I walk my dog near cattle is when they’re in the dunes. They will be moved on in October. They have miles of land to roam, they don’t have calves and aren’t territorial about it. We still make a detour when we see them, though. I do give other dogs treats but only if their owner agrees to it. It’s a way of distracting my dog too. And she’s thrilled to bits if someone gives her a treat and talks to her as she’s not a cute cuddly sort of dog that attracts attention.

It is also obvious that I have a mobility problem, too.

icanhandthemback

I agree that these dogs had owners that were ignorant. However, if an owner is throwing the ball for their dogs on the beach away from you, I don't think they are doing anything wrong even if your dog is desperate to join in. It is perfectly possible (but hard work) to teach your dog to leave or to distract it as part of its training. That said, I can see that it must have been painful if your dog was battering your knee.

As a dog owner, I always put my dog on lead if we encounter another dog on lead. It is the etiquette and my dog is a young dog who has not learned not to approach other dogs yet but I have had other dogs who didn't need to be on lead but would walk politely past walking to heel.

I also agree with OldFrill that giving treats to another person's dog is wrong. My dog only has BARF or treats that are high protein, low additives and that is for a very good reason. I will always ask if a dog is interest in them if it is alright. Even with friends, we have an agreement that we only treat our own dogs. That way their dogs (and mine) learn not to pester anybody else because it is thankless.

Owners that leave their dogs faeces around, bagged or not, are just the pits. On a rare occasion I can't find my dog's offerings which are normally disguised despite copious efforts to find it so I always clean up a couple of other people's. It's not ideal but I hope it mitigates the problem in some way. Incidentally, I absolutely hate cleaning up other dog's offerings. They are rarely raw fed and smell revolting. One of the problems in finding my dog's is that they barely smell and it doesn't help I have a problem with spacial awareness.

They were throwing the ball towards my dog even though we’d moved away from them. They were throwing the ball because they were wrapped up in their conversation and were throwing the ball to keep their dogs occupied. After we’d moved away from them the dogs ran towards us barking. That’s when I told the dogs to go away and they shouted ‘they’re friendly’. If, by throwing a ball you can see it is upsetting another dog you should wait until you’re away from it imo. Also when you throw a ball for a dog on a beach every time the dog picks it up it invests a small amount of sand. Ok if it’s only a few times but over a period of time it can cause problems. My dog has been taught to leave. The owners of the large dogs should have recalled their dogs as soon as they started barking at us. She’s been attacked on the beach several times by small dogs that run up to her and go for her throat. That’s why we’re always so vigilant.

Most of the dogs in the country park I walk in are well behaved but I was jumped on by a large out of control dog. I have arthritis in both hips and it nearly knocked me over..

The woman owner was laughing and saying She won't hurt you.. I told the woman that I could have easily fallen and at 79 with painful hips that could easily have happened.

Dogs should be banned from the beach during periods when children will be playing there - spring, summer, and early autumn - because they dig in the sand and handle it. And from my own experience I know that every park and cafe/restaurant seems to be fine with dogs going there, so they are hardly without places to go.

I agree that these dogs had owners that were ignorant. However, if an owner is throwing the ball for their dogs on the beach away from you, I don't think they are doing anything wrong even if your dog is desperate to join in. It is perfectly possible (but hard work) to teach your dog to leave or to distract it as part of its training. That said, I can see that it must have been painful if your dog was battering your knee.

As a dog owner, I always put my dog on lead if we encounter another dog on lead. It is the etiquette and my dog is a young dog who has not learned not to approach other dogs yet but I have had other dogs who didn't need to be on lead but would walk politely past walking to heel.

I also agree with OldFrill that giving treats to another person's dog is wrong. My dog only has BARF or treats that are high protein, low additives and that is for a very good reason. I will always ask if a dog is interest in them if it is alright. Even with friends, we have an agreement that we only treat our own dogs. That way their dogs (and mine) learn not to pester anybody else because it is thankless.

Owners that leave their dogs faeces around, bagged or not, are just the pits. On a rare occasion I can't find my dog's offerings which are normally disguised despite copious efforts to find it so I always clean up a couple of other people's. It's not ideal but I hope it mitigates the problem in some way. Incidentally, I absolutely hate cleaning up other dog's offerings. They are rarely raw fed and smell revolting. One of the problems in finding my dog's is that they barely smell and it doesn't help I have a problem with spacial awareness.

We live next to common where cattle graze I the summer. A couple of weeks ago a couple, who remained unidentified, had a husky of the lead that starting chasing the cows and set off a stampede. It was lucky that not many people were around at the time it could have been extremely dangerous. They are often incidences of swans and ducks being attacked by dogs too as the river runs through. There are plenty of sign saying dogs must be on leads.

Don't mention dogs and unruly children.