my dog attacked by another - any advice?

pulliptears

Im also of the thought that dogs should not be offlead in public areas.

I have a Scottie who is never offlead, because simply I dont trust him, he is a big daft lump that wont listen, but until 2 years ago he was friendly with other dogs.

2 years ago he was attacked, on his lead, by an offlead dog. Its scared him enough that he is now very aggressive towards other dogs. Thats fair enough and its a situation I can handle, until someone with an offlead dog happily lets it bound towards my Scot.

I have lost count of the times I have had to shout at owners and tell them that their dog could well get a nip and to please call it back. They look at me like it's my fault, when its their dog that's running free!

DKLS

I had a similar problem, whilst walking my dog, a small Akita !!!!! who was on the lead in I was in full control, 3 boxers came bounding up to me and one grabbed my dog by the neck, The dippitt owner was shouting they are "only playing"

I did the only thing I could only do, and let my dog off the lead so it could defend itself. What happened next wasnt pleasant by any means and I saw my dog in a whole new light, but needless to say those 3 boxers were never off the lead again.

Edit: I meant female Akita, as the swear police cant differentiate between Joan Collins and a Female Dog !

kle87

Reading posts I totally agree that it's owners who let their dogs offlead that cause problems. My Rotties are big powerful dogs that we have spent 500 pounds each on training and they still cant socalise properly. The only thing to do if we see a dog is to lay them down off the path and wait for people to pass. This works until a playful dog runs at my dog and then he looses the plot. Its more hassel than the worth of it to walk them because of owners not taking responsibility for their pets. Luckily my two have an acre of land to roam but this isnt the case for many owners therefore I hope people reading these posts will realise that all dogs no matter what size or breed should be kept on a lead.

foreign_correspondent

I disagree, despite my unpleasant experience I would never ever stop my dog from exercising off lead. Her recall is excellent, ad I think you do have to take some controlled risks in life.

Dogs need to run and play to be fit and happy, it is their nature. Try as I might I cannot run for as long or as fast as my dog can, so by keeping her on lead I would reduce her ability to exercise properly.

Seeing a dog run just for the sheer pleasure and joy of it is a wonderful thing and I would never deny this opportunity to my dog.

Sure there is risk attached, as I have experienced first hand, but in my opinion this is not a good reason to limit your dog's walk in such a way. The logical conclusion to this train of thought is 'well the dog could still get attacked on lead, so it would be safer to keep the dog indoors' - yes, no risk but cruel to your dog!! (and in the long term will almost definitely shorten the dogs life anyway).

This risk averse mentality is the same mis-judgement of the real dangers as that which leads parents to keep their kids indoors, overweight and attached to the playstation, rather than letting them play out, make friends, explore and get fit, just in case they are snatched. Kids are far more likely to be run over in any case which seems to be less of a worry to many parents, although in real terms the danger is far greater.

pboae

There is no reason why a well trained dog should not be allowed to run off lead. Of course a well trained dog will have been trained not to approach other dogs without checking with their owner first. And a well trained owner won't allow their dog to approach an on lead dog without checking with their owner first.

Many dogs need to exercise of a good run, and the opportunity to play and socialise with other dogs. Plus, many more dogs are reactive when they are 'trapped' by being onlead, when they would handle the situation far more calmly if they were offlead and interacting on their own terms.

My own dog has to be kept on lead (primarily for health reasons, but also for related behavioural problems), but I don't expect all other owners to do the same. However, I do expect them to keep their dog away from mine, and not to let theirs run free if they have little or no control over it. I'm doing my bit by keeping my dog on lead, but they have responsibilites as well.

But to me, that's just good manners as a dog owner. I wouldn't let my dog bounce all over them and their dog, I don't expect them to allow their's to do it to me.

foreign_correspondent

pboae wrote: »

There is no reason why a well trained dog should not be allowed to run off lead. Of course a well trained dog will have been trained not to approach other dogs without checking with their owner first. And a well trained owner won't allow their dog to approach an on lead dog without checking with their owner first.

yep, when we see other dogs my dog looks up at me to see if I tell her to 'walk with me' (which we both understand to mean heel!) or 'go on then' - the only exception to this was when we saw a westie that looked very like my uncles dog (who she plays with) - she clearly thought it was him, and made a dash towards him, till she got about ten feet away and suddenly realised her mistake, then plodded back looking all dissapointed!

orlao

pboae wrote: »

There is no reason why a well trained dog should not be allowed to run off lead. Of course a well trained dog will have been trained not to approach other dogs without checking with their owner first. And a well trained owner won't allow their dog to approach an on lead dog without checking with their owner first.

But to me, that's just good manners as a dog owner. I wouldn't let my dog bounce all over them and their dog, I don't expect them to allow their's to do it to me.

That is so true!!!

If only people realised how much easier and nicer it is to have a mannerly dog:D It's well worth the blood, sweat and tears (all mine!) that it takes to train a dog properly. I have to admit to being a fairly recent convert to real dog training as my JRT's are not what you'd call, ahem, 100% reliable in their training which on occasion has left be tearing my hair out when they disappear over the horizon after a rabbit....or a squirrel....or a fox:eek:

Since I've had a large dog (one of those breeds that kill on sight:rolleyes: ) I've had to buck my ideas up a bit and settle down to serious training and the results make life so much easier.....we can go anywhere, do most things and nearly always get invited back! The joys of not having to scan the area to check can you let a dog off it's lead, not dislocating your shoulder being pulled by something that appears to be part sherman tank by breed......

I'm coming around to the idea that ALL dogs should have at least basic training ( don't ask how to regulate that, I haven't got that far:p ) before they are allowed off lead in public areas. If you don't have the time or money to go to training classes then maybe you can't afford a dog? Harsh I know but there so many unmannered animals out there that I can see "responsible" owners losing facilities as a result which really annoys me:mad:

No offence meant to anyone but untrained dogs can be dangerous....not just biting/ fighting but causing RTAs or damaging livestock.....the list goes on....

Sorry, rant over;)

Hope your dog has completely recovered from her ordeal and she looks gorgeous in her photos

michelleliverpool

we have a Japanese Akita called simba we rescued him at 3 mths old and have had him for 7 mths i have just been out for a walk when another dog was on the field with us and simba came free from the lead because the collar snapped he went straight for the other dog and bit him ive read that Japanese Akita's are meant to be dangerous dogs but this is the first time simba has shown signs of this can anyone help and advise us of what we should do

mrcol1000

michelleliverpool wrote: »

we have a Japanese Akita called simba we rescued him at 3 mths old and have had him for 7 mths i have just been out for a walk when another dog was on the field with us and simba came free from the lead because the collar snapped he went straight for the other dog and bit him ive read that Japanese Akita's are meant to be dangerous dogs but this is the first time simba has shown signs of this can anyone help and advise us of what we should do

I would get a stronger collar in future. All dogs have the potential to be dangerous and its all down to the owners and the training the dog recieves.
If you know the owner of the other dog I would offer to pay in full or towards any vet fees. If they threaten you with the police or the dog warden then just remember that the police rarely deal with dog biting people let alone other dogs and that it was just unfortunate that the collar broke. You were not commiting an offence by walking a dog with a crap collar.
Just move on and learn from this. Your dog needs to be kept on a strong lead and wearing a strong well fitting collar.
You need to take responsiblity for what happened but then you also need to remember that dogs are animals and unpredictable. Also some dogs have traits but no dog is automatically dangerous because of their breed (although some breeds have restrictions on)

tori.k

foreign_correspondent wrote: »

I disagree, despite my unpleasant experience I would never ever stop my dog from exercising off lead. Her recall is excellent, ad I think you do have to take some controlled risks in life.

Dogs need to run and play to be fit and happy, it is their nature. Try as I might I cannot run for as long or as fast as my dog can, so by keeping her on lead I would reduce her ability to exercise properly.

Seeing a dog run just for the sheer pleasure and joy of it is a wonderful thing and I would never deny this opportunity to my dog.

i agree dogs need time off lead to have a good run out, and so glad that this hasnt put you off walking your own dog off lead, anychance you can strike up a conversation with this bloke if he is approchable, you have a wealth of knowledge FC, does sound like he is out of his depth with the 3, fear could have been the reason he made a quick exit with his dogs tho no excuse for not checking your dog was ok.