Michael, Due to regulations of my State License, I can not carry these things, including the horse whip, as they "endanger" the children! My best bet is the stick or a bat, but I would rather the dog not come that close, at least one of the kids in this situation is attached to my leg, so I need one hand to keep them in control. I' m sure that when the day comes that I need to whack a dog with a stick, I'll be reprimanded for aggressive behavior with children in my care!

Debbie, I have been there with the horses too!

Cute horse story. lol

I am not sure about the laws but will check into it.

Scary stories. Some people should not be dog owners.

I think even if there were laws to protect us, these people would keep doing what they are doing. That woman I spoke with yesterday seemed pretty simple minded! She did not care one bit about our safety.

Call her when I take a walk....what an idiot.

We have leash laws here, but many think they do not apply to them!

My friend was riding her horse and was actually threatened by an owner with off leash dogs, "Don't ride that horse around here, if it hurts my dogs, I'll kill it!"

I live in town, and even with the leash ordinances and the threat of big fines, NOBODY seems to think the laws apply to them. It was especially frustrating when I was trying to work on my dog's leash reactiveness and couldn't find a single place that didn't have dogs running loose....grrr...

There is even a guy in my building who thinks it's perfectly okay to walk around with his pit bull off-leash. Those folks have heard an earful from me, but 'out in the world' I carry pepper spray, and I carry it quite visibly.

If I'm approached by a loose dog (whether or not the approach is accompanied by the owner yelling "he/she is friendly!") the pepper spray is off my belt and in my hand, ready to go. From then it becomes a race: Will the owner get their dog before it reaches me? Or will their dog get sprayed? Personally, I would much prefer to spray the owner but it wouldn't solve the immediate problem of the approaching dog.

I hate feeling like such a meanie, but I've really had it with the general lack of control people have over their dogs, and that they find it perfectly acceptable.

I love the dressage whip idea too!

LMAO, Debbie! I am so glad I'm not the only one that uses these methods ... I worry sometimes that I'm being too harsh, but then I encounter yet one more idiot and their mutt who really (really??) thinks he can take on my entire pack!

I like the dressage whip idea, that's one I haven't considered.

I've tried an opening umbrella to scare off dogs, but if they don't scare easy it's hard to use it to defend your dogs physically.

My dad made me a niffty lil headless carbon fiber driver (golf club) walking stick to carry for protection. I love this because I can put on quite the frightening angry primate show while swishing it around impressively, and it will work as a whip if I have to make contact with a dog. It's a driver for like a 6'plus man, so I can keep a little distance between me and an off leash dog. Plus it helps keep my clumsy self upright on rough trails

Most importantly, I have trained and trained and trained my dogs to move behind me in unison on the command "behind me" (very creative, I know), sit, and stay no matter what. This way I can handle the offending dog without any "help" from mine. Then if the owner tries to get mad at me for wacking his dog, I point to Kobi (the really big bicolored GSD) and say "would you rather I handle your dog, or let him handle it instead?" That usually gets my point across rather well

 Quote: Tammy Moore

Michael, Due to regulations of my State License, I can not carry these things,

How's about a cell phone then.:wink:

 Quote: Tammy Moore

We have leash laws here, but many think they do not apply to them!

What happens when you call the authorities every time the dogs are out and exhibiting threatening behavior?

I just can't imagine law enforcement or animal control ignoring all these calls. They'd do something. The people probably don't feel the law applies to them because it has never been invoked on them. Educate them via fines.

That incident, we were at a park and the owner/dog left. I have reported that this park always has dogs off leash, nothing seems to change! I agree about more phone calls and fines!

 Quote: Tammy Moore

That incident, we were at a park and the owner/dog left. I have reported that this park always has dogs off leash, nothing seems to change! I agree about more phone calls and fines!

Tammy,

I recently called about the Pope John Paul!

AC old me that they would be on it and absolutely nothing has changed. I think I am going to do what Michael suggested, bring my cell and call every time we are rushed by a dog. Out of all the dogs I see off leash there MAYBE three of them are well trained enough to be off leash in such a busy place.

I'm sick of it.

Keep going over everyones head. Animal control won't do anything, go to the police department. Police won't do anything, go to the mayor.

There is always somebody to go to.

All else fails, go to the news. Maybe a little local coverage will get the matter some attention.

I just can't imagine a situation where I am actually scared for my, my family's, my kid's, or my dog's well being and letting it go unresolved on some level.

If it is just annoying, well, I get over it. But I keep hearing these stories where poster's are saying they are worried, but don't really do anything.

I've never been scared and not taken action physically, or with the proper authorities.

Maybe there are some people in power who don't listen, but I've got to believe that the majority take their jobs seriously, and care about your well being.

If one person doesn't listen, talk to the next person. But do something.:smile:

Julie, I would suggest buying a walking stick or some pepper spray, and be prepared to kick at a charging dog. Simple as that, IMO. I have had to kick at (and made some contact) with a yellow lab off leash (owner was walking the dog, but was at least 50yds away) that charged me and my GSD and my choc lab (who was only about 6mo old at the time). The owner yelled at me and said that the dog wouldn't hurt me or my dogs and I said yeah right, get a leash on your f-ing dog. There's a leash law where we were walking as well.

My mom has had multiple run-ins with strange dogs charging her on walks with her standard poodle, and that's in the city.

Sad that the owner that you called told you to call her when you wanted to go for a walk so they'd be outside to watch the dogs, when she had said that they are outside watching the dogs all the time. Very dumb and she totally contradicted herself. I love idiot owners-->>can you sense the sarcasm here? lol