Hi Everyone-

Fairly new to the forum so hopefully this is not a stupid question...

Last night while walking my girl (6 mo old GSD) we encountered a group of dogs who I thought were tied outside their owners home. They were making a lot of noise but I wanted her to remain calm and keep walking. Which she did but then she got real nervous and tried to run. I made her sit for a moment but she just kept looking backwards. Well apparently one of them was not (or he broke his tie)because when I looked back he was coming down the street after us. I don't know if he was aggressive or not but I wasn't going to find out.

Does anyone have any advice on what to do in a situation like this? I hope I didn't make it worse for my dog by making her wait when she wanted to get out of there.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

PS: If this has already been addressed I apologize. I searched but couldn't find anything.

Hi Krystina,

Scary! I know a LOT of people here have dealt with this issue, on a continual basis, and there are at least a few good threads addressing it. A few suggestions: carry pepper spray or a walking stick. As far as dealing with your dog while this is going on, you should find some posts here that have discussed it, they'll be very informative.

I'm going to try to post a link to one of them that I found, sorry if I mess it up (hopefully someone else will know how to do this better...), this was the name of it:

Loose dogs + reactive dog = ?

Good luck,
~Natalya

I went through the same thing. At first, yes I was afraid for my young pup too, but I had to remember to stay calm.
Anyways, I figured I should apply it to there training (situations). I did exactly what your doing just get her to stay followed by some positive reinforcement when other dogs are barking. Another good one is people walking there dogs or should I say dogs walking their people. But first you should report all loose dogs in you neighbourhood. good luck and have fun with it.

Here's another one:

Three boxers off leash against my three!

~Natalya

Barking, but otherwise contained dogs are a good training distraction and an opportunity to enforce the ignoring of other dogs. Loose dogs are a whole other story. They pose a potential threat, so the best thing to do is calmly leave, making sure the loose dog(s) get nowhere near your pup. The aforementioned pepper spray and walking stick are helpful in this regard.

Thanks Natalya...Those threads were both very good. (I guess I need more practice with the search feature) Great ideas!!

She handled the tied barking dogs like a pro...It wasn't until we got past them that she started pulling. She had to tell me one was coming I had no idea.I am very lucky I guess that she is not the reactive type. If a dog wants a fight she is not one that is going to give it to them.

Glad to help - there's an amazing breadth of information here to help you work your dog through all kinds of training and real life situations, just randomly poking around can be very rewarding!!

It's definitely a benefit that your dog is not one to provoke a fight, but even calm, well trained dogs can be great indicators of danger if you watch their reactions to their environment. The fact that your girl became suddenly aggitated, focusing on something behind her, let you know to watch out for the potential threat of an unleashed dog. Good girl!!

I take my big boy woods trail running and there have been a few times that he's alerted me to the presence of a coyote just by his behavior - and ALL of the hair on his back standing up at once! I would never have known the critter was there otherwise...

~Natalya

Hi Krystina,

A few months ago, I gave a lengthy reponse on a post related to this issue. I understand, there is a wealth of information here, that sometimes you may have difficulty finding what you're exactly looking for.

Here's the post.

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=19&Number=139455&Searchpage=1&Main=14860&Words=&topic=0&Search=true#Post139455
Leerburg.com Discussion Forum: Walking Dog without Aggressive Dog Attacks

Where I live, it's very unpredictable, as far as loose dogs. I walk my dog twice, daily, and when we do, I'm already expecting to deal with a dog or two. I carry a 2.0 oz of good pepper spray...it's now empty from so much use. That's how often I have to deal with stupid dogs. Dealing with a loose dog who is large in size can be dangerous.

A lot of times, pepper spray isn't enough for many large dogs, and that's when you have to take the big guns out. Sometimes, they will come for more, even they got a good shot of spray. I personally carry a stun gun, and like many have already suggested, a walking stick. Many times, I wish I had some sort of stick, but California's Dangerous Weapons laws are pretty strict on what you can't and can carry in public.

Not too long ago, I spent about 2 minutes trying to scare a pitbull away. At first, it charged at us, then I sprayed it pretty good. It ran away, but then it came back for more. This is when the stun gun came in handy. This is why you should carry more than just pepper spray.

Whenever you see dogs out on a lawn, skip that house, because they WILL charge at you. These dogs perceive the sidewalk as their territory, and will defend it. Also, if the dog is running around the lawn, and the owner is present, skip it, times 3! I have noticed that when these dogs are alone, I'm capable of making most run away without incident. However, when the owner is present, they seem to get very brave.

Whether it's a strange aggressive dog or not coming at you, keep it away. Try standing between the strange dog, and yours as you scare it off. Sometimes, this may be difficult to do if you're dog is moving around so much (trying to run away, or nervousness). If you can't keep your dog in one place, then just get a good grip on the leash and get down to business.

Either spray it, whack it across the head/snout with a stick or kick it if it's close enough. You will find out that trying to kick a strange dog is easier said than done. Most dogs will keep their distance once they see that you've become defensive, but that doesn't mean that they'll go away. Just keep your eyes and ears open. Remember this, if you can hear dog tags rattling, and/or the sound of claws hitting the pavement rapidly, stop what you're doing because there is a loose dog catching up to you.



Edited by Julio Martinez (06/07/2007 12:29 PM)
Edit reason: Left out some info

Julio, good post (your previous one as well) - but I'm sure glad I don't have to walk my dog in YOUR neighborhood! Not only does my city not have many loose or otherwise out of control dogs, but if we DO come across one, chances are it'll just be a fat old Lab looking for a belly rub!

When I lived further out in the country with my parents I would jog along the back roads and often encountered nasty big dogs loose in yards - no pit bulls or fighting breeds, just VERY protective big mutts who spent their days alone on the lawn. For skip's sake they probably considered MILES of surrounding land their personal property to defend!! And it's a real pain in the rear when you find yourself on a narrow road with no available detours (other than turning around) and a questionable loose dog appears. I found that yelling worked pretty good (I can't really run comfortably with a stick ) but my mom bought herself a can of pepper spray and did use it on a few occassions. I was lucky to never have been bitten . My current neighborhood has changed, but now that I have a big dog who doesn't mind engaging ANYTHING, I'm a lot more careful about where we walk.

~Natalya

Thank Julio.....and I agree with Natalya about the neighborhood. It's only recently that we have alot of dogs in ours. My parents have live in our house for 30 years and we were the only ones with dogs. Now there are dogs everywhere and most people don't watch them.

We have a rottie cross across the street that found the short in his invisible fence and used to chase people down the street. They now have to keep him contained per the local PD.

Now that I know about the dogs we encountered I will have to find another walking route. Unfortunately where I live we don't have side walks so we have to walk on the soft shoulder. We have a flat 1 acre field at our house that we work/play in (mostly play) but I want her to be exposed to everything so she goes for walks.