Chris:
I'm in agreement with everyone who said the dog lunging would be cause to be asked to leave. Specifically if the handler were petite and the dog large, or, if the leash appeared inadequate to the task.

I've read the original post several times and continue to come away with the same perception. They were afraid the dog would lunge, if and when she got near the children. I got the part where the dog would pull like he wanted to run, but still, without getting into a debate about the definition of "pulling on the leash" the dog hadn't done anything except be a pit bull on a leash.

Chris -

I did go back and ask the owner if the dog came off it's feet in a lunge at the kids, she said no...as they rounded their fourth loop the dog would look in the direction of the playing kids and slightly pull towards them, followed by a correction to the walking path. So I would say the dog DID NOT lunge at the kids, unless she is just not being truthful. I think people are frightened by this breed of dog as well as others and if what she is telling me is true, then hysteria won. I have a problem with that. Like I said I will leave if people are being stupid, but having your choice taken away is wrong when you have done nothing wrong.

Hmm, seems hyesteria works for us when a thug sees/hears dog and moves on to easier targets, and against us when it impedes our freedoms.

we can't count the times it works for us more often than not
but can hardly miss when the 'stigma' of someone's expectations, whether reality based or not, becomes a killjoy.

I'd bet it works for us at least as often, that is for every moron encountered while we're with the dog, the number of morons not encountered because of the dog is at least as many, likely more.

So it's a wash, they're will never be a shortage of morons!

And you bet as you get older, you care less what some moron might think of what you have to say. Having been there and done that, if at the moment you think you could help the moron not be one in the future, you might hand out a piece of your mind more easily than you would as a younger adult.

So if you're just a crazy old fart at the moment, so what?
Something you might say might trigger some nuerons on the moron's brain in the future. If not, you said what you had to say. Sometimes, you gotta blow off some steam, lest your BP spikes.

Hayley's "Bossy-Pants" and your "Crazy old fart", maybe getting old won't be so bad after all.

Dan:
I make no claim to innocence about owning a male GSD to keep unwanted people off my property. It doesn't bother me when people walk around us. If you (not you specifically Dan) want to be afraid of my dog it's your right as an American to keep away.

OTOH, you (once again not you personally Dan) do not have a right to have me ejected from anywhere, or, make me muzzle my dog until we actually do something. Americans have this whole victim culture thing going. Anyone who complains is presumed to be right. Coming back to the question I always ask "Why am I being punished for someone else's irrational fear?"

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Red Thomas

Mesa, AZ