Great outlook Aimee!

Yes, there are leash laws but are not enforced for the most part unless there is a complaint.

My dogs are off leash on the fields with e-collars on for back up & I have only had a couple of occasions to use it in almost 5 years of training there at least 2x a day just about every day rain or shine. My dogs can be on the field with other dogs that stay in their own area. I used to meet the same guy with 3 border collies & he took one end of the 2 1/2 acre & I took the other. Sometimes the dogs balls would come with in 8-10 ft of each other & the dogs would NEVER have any interest in the other dogs...all they were focused on were thei owners & their own balls. And my female is dog aggressive & she would not go after them. Even dogs that have attacked her have come to her & she has recalled to me immediately when encountered.

The cops are always around & watch me work my dogs with no problem. The difference here is that my dogs are very well trained & under control & they see that. To them that's a bihg difference. Even the teachers have no problem with my dogs on the field during gym classes. They ignore people totally. Makes great distraction training. I know some of the K9 guy in town & a number of the cops. One of the k9 cops does decoy work for me.

I have offered to help people that have dogs loose with no training...one commented to me that the dog was a rescue. I asked him what he thought that had to do with training the dog. He just shrugged & walked away. This dog is a little lassa & is of leash with totally NO recall all the time. I have seen him almost get hit in the parking lot whiile the idiot owner is busy talking on his cell not paying any attention to this dog. Just a matter of time for this little dog to meet his maker.

The best part of working the dogs on school fields is that I get to talk to the kids (middle school) get them to help with my training (stand & let me heel around them, ride their skateboards & bikes, throw & kick soccer & footballs etc) & teach them how to train their dogs when they ask how I taught my dogs to do.....whatever. I have even offered to bring my dogs in for show & tell to talk to the kids about training, care & grooming. The kids are great & what better way to create better informed & knowledgable future dog owners.

I feel very fortunate. I was employed by a local dog trainer back in October. Just to clean crates and such, but she took a risk employing a 57 yr old menopausal arthritic numbskull who wanted to learn more about dogs. I'll never be on a par with her or most of those here, but I do enjoy the learning.

 Quote: Anne Jones

I have offered to help people that have dogs loose with no training...one commented to me that the dog was a rescue. I asked him what he thought that had to do with training the dog. He just shrugged & walked away. This dog is a little lassa & is of leash with totally NO recall all the time. I have seen him almost get hit in the parking lot whiile the idiot owner is busy talking on his cell not paying any attention to this dog. Just a matter of time for this little dog to meet his maker.

I have even offered to bring my dogs in for show & tell to talk to the kids about training, care & grooming. The kids are great & what better way to create better informed & knowledgable future dog owners.

I know that there are some every day people that appear to have not heard. But even if you started their minds thinking, what they are doing is 'wrong', it could be a start of a process for them that they might not start out of ignorance. People can be irritating, frustrating but I still try. I also know that everyone on this forum has had an impact for shaping dog owners. I have read soooooo many great posts done on free, personal time that do make a difference in the lives of humans and dogs.

That is so great that you invest time with kids to create better future dog owners! I hope they took you up on the offer.

It gets really tough when people don't see why letting their dogs run around loose is a problem.

The rescue dog comment....I know what it means here, more often than not: "Poor sweety has had a rough life, now he/she deserves to have a little fun off-leash". It's almost as though leashes, or the very idea of setting limits is cruel somehow. Many of these folks are very good at setting limits with their children, but it somehow just doesn't translate to their dogs. There is this weird sort of idea (at least around here, as it pertains to pets) that rescue dogs should be allowed to do whatever they want because that somehow makes up for how they've suffered (whether they actually have or not). Or they should be allowed to do whatever they want if you love them. I don't really get it, but it seems to be a 'thing'.

There's also a lot of ascribing human values/judgement to dog behaviours: Things like "He wouldn't hurt anyone, he's just not like that. He just want to play" when a dog is clearly exhibiting pushy and socially inappropriate behaviours.

I think a lot of folks don't want to think about training and setting limits because it forces them to think of their dog as what he/she really is: An animal vs. a small person covered in fur.

I also think that the other dog owners think I'M the weird one because I avoid the areas with lots of dogs, and chase off loose dogs (often with my purple ChuckIt). I'm sure chasing a woman across the park with a bag of her dogs poop shouting "hey, you forgot something!" did nothing for my image either, but oh well...

 Quote: kristel smart

There's also a lot of ascribing human values/judgement to dog behaviours: Things like "He wouldn't hurt anyone, he's just not like that. He just want to play" when a dog is clearly exhibiting pushy and socially inappropriate behaviours.

I finally fired my dog walker. He seemed to have this attitude toward my dog.

He actually said something once along the lines of "If you show them you really love them and then get really mad at them about something, I think they learn to listen because they love you back!"

My girl has a tendency to be super pushy with people (even if its in a way that seems sweet, its still pushy) and is starting to show some signs of being on her way to dog aggression problems.

I found out he was letting her off leash and I fired him immediately.

Since firing him lots of thing have gotten so much better, separation anxiety being one of them (maybe it was all that "love!"), and the leash reactive behavior. I have also been able to stop her from jamming her nose into peoples crotches.

The only negative has been that she wakes up earlier in the morning.

 Quote: kristel smart

I also think that the other dog owners think I'M the weird one because I avoid the areas with lots of dogs, and chase off loose dogs (often with my purple ChuckIt). I'm sure chasing a woman across the park with a bag of her dogs poop shouting "hey, you forgot something!" did nothing for my image either, but oh well...

I'm about to be that woman at the park. We had an aggressive dog charge, tail up and barking, just this morning. Luckily the owner had enough control to call him back before he got to us, but she still didn't put him on leash. In fact she rewarded him by playing fetch. She's probably one of those people who thinks he can't be aggressive or dangerous because he's a lab.

I'm totally at the point that I'm ready to go after the next dog who does this. If I get bit in the process I'm suing the owner. People need to learn that not everyone is going to put up with their irresponsible choices.

I have gone at a dog with the chuck it before, but they all seem to recognize the orange one. Maybe having the purple one is key.

Quote Lauren: "they all seem to recognize the orange one. Maybe having the purple one is key."

Hey Lauren.....maybe you have the answer to the problem. The purples have it!

I think that any breed can be aggressive. My dogs have been attacked by 2 Aussies, a pit bull, a weimeraner & a little Lasa type mixed dog of varing ages. But all with stupid, inconsiderate owners.

Have any of you guys seen the owner of an unleashed out of control dog give their dog obedience commands that the dog just ignores, so that they dont seem like they are doing nothing?

It happens a lot in my neighbourhood. Not to toot my own horn, but when they see my puppies ignore their dogs that are fence charging/ballistic and are listening to me, they will make a feeble attempt at giving some commands which the dog does not even register, while constantly trying to make eye contact with me and an apologetic smile.

I have started making my puppies sit right in front of the dogs that are acting crazy and pay attention to me. I praise them and when the owners of the "postal" dogs see this they are embarrassed.Some even give me dirty looks as if to say "Why are you teasing my dog? cant you see that he does not like that you are walking on a public road? Why dont you just run off like he wants you to?"


So they say something like, "fritz, come here" and as far as the dog is concerned, they dont even exist.

Thats an other weird behaviour.

It happens all the time....that's why there is a problem with unleashed dogs charging & fighting with other dogs.

The owners have no control of the dogs. All of the times that my dogs have been attacked there has been an owner chasing after his dog yelling commands at the dog ( come, sit, lay down, come get your ball etc etc )to stop it. Obviously the dogs aren't listening. It does no good if the dog isn't TRAINED for distractions. People think that because thier dog will sit in the kitchen or come in the backyard that it will do it everywhere. Dogs don't generalize. So if it is not TRAINED in different places under different distractions it is VERY unlikely that the dog will NOT make that associatiion & follow the owners commands. That's just basic dog training knowledge. But one that many people forget.

Quote Anne: "Dogs don't generalize."

I'm starting to think that most dog owners don't generalize!

Hello! If your dog doesn't listen on a normal leash walk, or in your back yard, there is no way he is going to listen when let loose in a busy public place!

I have actually met people who have told me they go to the park just because the dog "Doesn't walk good on a leash". As if some dogs magically come pre programmed for loose leash walking. The sheer stupidity in this idea is astounding.

People can't train their dogs for one of the most basic functions of a good dog/owner relationship so they give up and just let them loose on the general public. Then they get surprised or upset when "He doesn't listen."