Scott,
I had almost the same identical thing happen to me with one of my dogs. I had seen this woman once before sitting in front of the local Starbucks (without my dog). I knew she was crazy because she was sitting there by herself talking and cussing at someone who wasn't there. A month later I was with my dog in front of the Safeway which is only a couple of stores down from the Starbucks and I was engaged in conversation when this same woman walked by approx. 25' away. I didn't see her at first because I had my back turned away from the parking lot and she was walking down the red line that seperates the parking lot from the sidewalk. This woman was not saying a word and she was walking slowly and looking at the ground, so I know it wasn't a defensive reaction caused by staring.
My dog alerted on this woman all of a sudden with a big long bark and lunge that stopped at the end of my leash. I've thought about that incident and the only thing I can think of is my dog like other dogs can pick up on changes in brainwave activity. I know it sounds kind of weird but I've seen it before. I think that dogs are capable of telling the difference between normal brainwave activity versus one that's not so normal. My dog is a defensively driven dog so his response came out of that drive.

 Quote: Michael Reese

Scott,
I've thought about that incident and the only thing I can think of is my dog like other dogs can pick up on changes in brainwave activity. I know it sounds kind of weird but I've seen it before.

No it is not even weird at all. You are right about dogs can pick up on changes in brainwave activity. It is so obvious because dogs can pick up on people who are about to have a seizure before it happens.

So, how can all of you tell if someone is CRAZY,WEIRD,RETARDED, etc... P.S. if your dog does bite or attack someone,do you think animal control will accept your excuse?

 Quote: bella smith

So, how can all of you tell if someone is CRAZY,WEIRD,RETARDED, etc... P.S. if your dog does bite or attack someone,do you think animal control will accept your excuse?

Bella If it can be proven in a court of law that certain types of medication can provoke a negative response from a dog and that at the time of the incident the "victim" was under the effects of one of those medications then Animal Control would have very little to say.

There is also a large difference between a person being attacked by a dog that is running free IE they could not avoid the confrontation, and a person who voluntarily may place themselves at risk of being attacked by approaching a dog or any other animal who is confined/secured and can be avoided.

Unfortunately there are very stupid people out there but fortunately there are laws and great lawyers who can protect us from their stupidity.

My dog has been close to and seen hundreds of people and only had an adverse reaction to this one person, which is why I posed the question of whether a medication or drug could potentially cause his type of aggressive response from him, my description and general feeling about the person in question is of my own personal opinion obviously.

Scott, that makes sense. My issue, is what exactly determines Crazy or Weird, not a scent from a certain medication or body odor.I'm not talking about loose,free running dogs.Your dog was not loose,but still had the same reaction.I am training my dog for therapy work,and just want to be prepared for that kind of distraction.I was not judging anyone,the fact is that i work with elderly and sick people everyday. This is why i'm concerned about your question.

P.S. has there ever been a documented case where certain meds have caused a negative response in a dog?Just wondering?

 Quote: bella smith

P.S. has there ever been a documented case where certain meds have caused a negative response in a dog?Just wondering?

Bella,
I can understand your concern due to the fact you will be around a lot of people on medication.
I myself cant find anything via "Google" about a dog reacting negatively to anyone on a certain type of medication which is why I posed the question here, to see if anyone else may have experienced something similar to what I had.

All I know for certain is that my dog did not like whatever it was he smelled when he got near this particular person, for all I know this woman could have Ferrets or something like that.

The reason I think it may be a response to a medication is the over all impression this woman gave me of being "disturbed" or not quite right, perhaps she is a habitual drug user and was on an illegal substance, I really don't know since Marcus cant tell me why he acted the way he did.

Sometimes I really wish dog's could talk

Gotcha,
thanks for the response,I understand completely.

I saw your post and thought I would comment. i am a school psychologist and have a therapy dog- GS. He went through training to do this both at a prison program and with the group that finishes the training insofar as service dog types of training. I found that my dog gravitatd toward handicapped individuals- in a friendly way - so they sense that too. He does not respond well to men we have encountered (in public)that have been drinking or that have a Psychopath type scary look to them. I have had to work with him on this and still do. I work in a school for emotionally disturbed and conduct disorder kids. He does great , however, there have been occasions whereby kids come to school on drugs or pot and he alerts to that and doesnt act aggressive but will go right to them - and then I ultimatly smell it and we have a lttle talk. One time I had a kid in a large room approach me that was a very disturbed kid and one that is dangerous and mentally ill- I'm talking future serial killer type behaviors. My dog did not like him instantly and barked. I had to use a stronge corection. Point is - they know- there are chemical nuances they percieve that we dont or a vibe of some kind. Some people suggest " the person must have done something to the dog in the past" no - My dog has never seen these people before. They just know. Also, I was told that not only dogs but wild animals can detect or smell people who are meth users or crack. Wild animals , I am told , will not eat the remains of a dead person dumped in the woods that is a meth user. This is how law enforcment knows they must be a user when they find a body. So I'm told by people who do cadavir search and rescue where my dog was trained. Also- they train dogs to detect seisures , diabetic alert, migraine alert etc- so they sense alot. It would be interesting to know the story on this woman. She could be on pschotropic meds or could just be mentally ill and your dog senses it.

My point was that my dog is used to what I'm calling "normal" (normal is really only the setting on a dryer) brainwaves. When encountering the woman that I deemed as crazy I think he just didn't know (another words felt insecure) what it was all about and he just didn't trust it so he reacted the same way that any dog does when they encounter another dog that gives them that same feeling of insecurity.
If the dog is used to all the different brainwave activity )such as what comes from someone who might be bi-polar) then it's nothing new and for him, nothing to worry about.

The best advise for you is to trust your dog what ever the reason,I have found that very often later, that there was a reason, and that you may have just avoided something bad. Good luck