Asking other owners to put dogs on leads?

[sjbm]

Evening, new to the forum but need some advice/support.

I have a 18 month old King Charles Cavalier Spaniel who is a little gem.

Last week I walked (off Lead) my usual route alone through a wooded area on the way to collect my 4 year old from school. We came across a man and a woman as we were coming towards the end of the path which comes towards a road. My dog approached the people but then saw the very large (and beautiful) dog of theirs which headed straight for him. He then dash back past me, swiftly followed by this much larger dog. I am not saying the breed as I have no issue with any dog large, small, old, young etc. Unfortunately my dog has been chased down by a dog like this in the past so is a bit scared and I was trying to get hold of him while at the same time asking if the people could get hold of their dog.

I wanted to explain about my dog being scared from a past experience and that I in no way felt their dog was doing anything wrong. But by their dog trying to say hello to my dog it was causing me a problem. I did not want my dog to run off being aware the road was down the path.

Rather than call their dog the man proceeded to verbally attack me. Shouting insults and swearing at me (while I was getting hold of my dog) He then continued the abuse an inch from my face. And i mean an inch from my face, i could identify him by his teeth. I stayed very calm and dispite trying to explain the above I could not get a sentance out inbetween the shouting and swearing. This went on for several minutes, although it felt so much longer. Eventually he and the woman, who by the way seemed perfectly ok with a man shouting insults and swearing full blast an inch from a womans face, walked on. I continued on to pick my son up, walk home and then totally broke down. I ended up reporting him to the police as I felt so threatened, it really was a horrible, frightening experience.

Would he have done the same if I had had my 4 year old with me? Would he have done the same if my 15 year old daughter had been walking our dog? I have always told her that if she has any issues to get hold of our dog asap and ask other people to get hold of theirs. This was all 6 days ago yet I am still a bit shakey and very anxious about walking the dog. My other half has brought a clip camera to video while I'm out walking as I am so worried about coming across these people again. I can't avoid this route as I have to walk it 4 times a day for the school run. I feel quite silly writing all this and I'm annoyed that it has bothered me so much. Even if this couple did not feel it necessary/didn't want to call their dog, all they had to say was no.

I suppose what I am wondering is what other peoples opinion is about asking people to put thier dogs on leads? Has anyone had a similar problem? I have been asked to get hold of my dog before and do not even question why before doing it. But I never though asking someone would spark such a strong reaction!

Many Thanks in advance for any comments x

 

[Biker John]

All I can say is yes a few times I have been asked to call my two, a Whippet and a Shih Tzu, into me and / or put them on leads. And have never questioned it just complied. sometimes they have then told me their dogs had been frightened before and some have then allowed their dogs to approach mine with all on leads to say hello. So to me I can not think what the chap was thinking but it was totally unacceptable behaviour.

 

[lurcherman]

First off the bloke was a moron for abusing you the way he did, both dogs off lead so things happen very quickly so thats life im afraid, if a off lead dog approaches mine then i step inbetween and if it carries on the my boot comes into play, i have no time for unrully dogs offlead

 

[4PawsandClaws.co.uk]

My dog is off the lead a fair bit when we are out (obviously when it's safe) and she will happily say "hello" to any other dog, however, I often ask the other owner first as she can be a bit boisterous and if their dog is on a lead I always check before I let her approach as I worry they may not be friendly. However, I have been out when she has got over excited and dashed over to a dog who she may have scared and it's happened to us too when she hasn't want to be bothered. If dogs are off lead then it's both owners responsibility to make sure everything is well with a meet and greet. Obviously things will go wrong and both owners should take responsibility and make sure their animals are safe. This man was completely ridiculous, not only for verbally abusing and intimidating but if his dog was being a nusience to yours what problem did he have in gaining control or putting on a lead for the few seconds until you passed? Complete moron, glad you have reported him.

 

[gypsysmum]

Sorry to hear of your terrible experience. The man was totally out of order!

Try not to worry too much if a dog approaches your dog. I think you may be making your dog more scared of other dogs by keep getting hold of him/her when dogs approach. Mostly dogs will sort themselves out and if your dog is non confrontational then it usually all works out all right. The approaching dog sees your dog as no threat and so relaxes and the encounter is just dogs saying hello to each other. Try to socialise your dog a little more so that he/she is more confident in encounters so that you can relax a little more on your walks. The more dogs you meet the better. Each encounter will be different because all dogs have different characters. It looks horrible to us when our dog is being chased etc but as long as your dog does not retaliate then things usually settle down and the next encounter will be better until they greet each other more calmly.

The vast majority of dog owners will, if their dog is being over boisterous, get them under control because they will see that your dog is lacking confidence around other dogs. It is not unreasonable to ask politely that they put their dog on lead so that your dog can approach in his/her own time to say hello. Dogs feel much better if they can move away from things that worry them so your dog being off lead while the other dog is on lead would help your dog to relax more and learn not to be so fearful of other dogs.

Hope you are feeling better after your awful encounter.