Scary moment for me and Miyuki

maru

Gah... I am still fuming >_<

I was walking Miyuki today on a paved path that surrounds a large baseball field. A man and a woman were playing fetch with their 2 off leash dogs, a golden retriever and a shih tzu, near the center of the field. I try my best to stay out of sight but the golden spots us and then all hell breaks loose. Both of them start charging towards me.

Oh god...this cannot be good...my heart starts pumping a mile a minute as I've never been in this situation before. I put myself in between the charging dogs and Miyuki...but with 2 dogs at the same time it is quite hard. My main worry is the golden as it is now barking and foaming at the mouth. It REALLY wants to hurt my dog. I am getting dizzy spinning around in circles and angrier by the second...the woman takes her sweet ass time...at first she just tries calling her back...obviously she does not know when it requires more than a "here boy"...

2 minutes of barking and spinning and growling pass and this horrible woman finally walks up cooing at Miyuki and commenting on how cute she is. WHO CARES HOW CUTE SHE IS HANDLE YOUR DOG. she tries to get a collar and leash on her dog...yes her dog didn't even have a collar on it.

the golden is now lunging at Miyuki and manages to nip her in the butt. no skin is broken...it just makes her angrier...now she starts trying to fight back. oh god >.<

the woman tries calling for help from the guy who she is with. all he does is stand there and laugh from a distance...WTF?!

I am trying to stay calm and keep my dog from being eaten...all the while this lady is just chasing her dog in a circle...

FINALLY...after about 3-4 minutes of continuous blocking and maneuvering Miyuki around the 2 horrible dogs she gets a leash on the golden...she says sorry...i scream "leash your f**cking dog" and walk away. I probably could've handled that better but i was SO mad.


later as I'm walking home I hear the same dogs get into another fight with another person and their dog. geez...people just don't learn.

needless to say...i am picking up pepper spray tomorrow and possibly a kennel leash. sigh...i hope this doesn't ruin all the work I've been doing to help socialize Miyuki. Sorry for the rant >_<

StefJackUk

That sounds like a nightmare! I am not able to take my pup out yet but situations like this are a concern for me when I do take her out. I will keep control of my dog but you just can't trust some ignorant owners to do the same. My sister had a situation just like this last week and even though my sister kept her dog on leash and tried to move away from the situation the lady who's dog went for my sisters dog had the audacity to blame my her! :-O Needless to say my sister and her husband were not happy and are now worried about how their dog will respond when they see approaching dogs on a walk!

Some people are just oblivious to how dangerous a situation can be and how damaging it can be to a pups confidence!

cdenney

@maru I feel your pain I've been charged by several 80 lbs plus dogs while the owner is yelling from where ever they are "don't worry he is friendly". Fan-fucking-tabulos for you, my dog is a flighty sketchball who will when unable to run defend herself. I used to walk carrying a small (ft or 2) stick so if a dog came near I could push them back rather than leash them and hold both back from each other. I've started walking my girl on either an 8.5ft or 30ft leash rather than the typical six as it gives us more room to manuever and she feels less trapped so is a bit calmer when rushed. That might help your pup?

@stefjackuk why can't you take your pup out yet? Once they get their first round if shots they're good to go.

StefJackUk

@cdenney our vet advised not to take her out until after her 2nd round of vaccinations. I thought I could take her out after the first but just not to parks but our vet said otherwise so I thought best not to take her to be on the safe side. Did you take yours out after 1st?

cdenney

I got mine as an adult so no but there are several threads on here showing new research on socalization. I don't know how it is with JAs but with Kais every moment counts. The breeders on here would probably be able to give you their opinion on the matter. I don't want to tell you to go against your vets advice but I know there are several theories on the matter, go with what is right for you and your pup.

Calia

Situations like this are why we stopped walking the pups around the neighborhood, there are just too many loose dogs and I've gotten sick of having to deal with them. We go to a park or beach instead, where the lash laws are strictly enforced since tons of non-dog people like the frequent these places as well and don't much care to be molested.

We always carry an extra leash, which can be used as a slip lead in a pinch. I also try to carry a walking stick, I don't give a damn about hurting the other dog and pissing off the owner, it's just one of the risks you take for having an off leash dog in a public area. A stick can be used as a sort of cattle prod, allowing you to make a barrier to keep the offending dog at a distance.

At least for now, Miyuki is small enough to pick up and throw and your shoulder, should you really need to get her out of that type of situation. Until she gets too big, you could probably do that and run or kick.

*JackBurton*

I hope you too are ok. I avoid dogs when I walk its just a PIA to do a meet and greet anymore.

TRDmom

OMG!! I can totally relate to all of you! People don't control their dogs and then want to blame me. Happened at a dog park one time so we've stopped going there. I try to just keep walking and not stop for 'visits' when we're out. I also tend to take my pup out alone if I'm going downtown or on a bike ride because it does get difficult to manage my three dogs and prevent another dog or dogs from starting a fight.

Crispy

@Maru I'm so sorry. I can absolutely related.

Unfortunately, it's something that continues through life for me. It's a constant battle. Now, my landlady has dog-aggressive dogs and she lets them out without collars and leashes. I was coming home from a walk one day and Gauge (her biggest GSD) charged us at the end of the driveway, got a hold of TK (Shikoku) and started shaking him. London (my Malamute) reacted quicker than I did and started balls-out battling with Gauge and my landlady just stood there and watched as I broke up two 100+ pound dogs and body-blocked to keep Gauge from going after them once I separated them.

No one was hurt, fortunately, so I didn't make a huge deal out of it. It was a just a whole LOT of noise... but I've done fives years of work with London because of a few very similar incidents that caused him to become dog-aggressive in the first place, so every time it happens, I'm always irritated. I do my best to keep quiet and calm in the situation, but it's so hard. Even worse, it makes me feel like I'm disappointing or failing my dogs - I'm supposed to keep them safe and it's hard when there are people who manage their dogs in a such a way (or... neglect to manage their dogs).

shibamistress

Maru, that sucks. I would have probably had a similar reaction, except for now I start yelling as soon as I see the off-leash dog, before it can get to us. Because, yeah, had to deal with this too many times. And I carry pepper spray. And may start with the stick too!

And yeah, about the socialization--check out some of the threads about that here. Better to take your dog out and about asap--not dog parks, but other places. Most vets are still kind of behind the times on the really absolute need for early socialization in the best window of time for it, which is something like 7-11 weeks, vs. the worry about vaccinations. Waiting til all the vaccinations are done is the worst case scenario (you've missed the critical early socialization window), but even waiting til the second set is done sets you back some.

Crispy, you're more calm than I am--I would have a LOT to say to the landlady after that. that kind of shit makes me crazy. I am NOT patient with it.

mdokic

I really hate people sometimes...I think I would have reacted the same way youdid LOL, but much sooner! xP you were too nice putting up with it! glad you both are ok...hopefully you dont have to deal with it again!

maru

thank you all for your advice and concern. I think I am more fazed than Miyuki is. After the scuffle all she wanted to do was play with the ball in my hand.

It felt like a kung fu movie where we stood back to back fending off bad people from all sides lol.

@crispy that sounds like a horrible experience >_< I am glad your pups are okay.

I am thankful Miyuki wasn't bigger. I probably wouldn't have been able to hold her off had she been fully grown and I might have had a dead shih tzu on my hands. which is what pissed me off the most. I would never want my dog labeled as vicious because of a stupid situation like this.

I'll pick up a stick along one of my walks and keep it with me next time we walk. It just sucks that I have to do this =/ There are A LOT of bad behaving dogs in my neighborhood.