Dog owners: Protecting your dog..

stuie · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:39

holymonk said:
Not sure what's more scary, the dog or that grim pub in ferndown!

The pub by far

Uncle Petey · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:40

Rotties are pretty misundertood. As with most dogs (and people for that matter), dodgy ones are usually raised by dodgy people.

holymonk said:
He barks at them and will pull so hard I have to lean back with him on his two back legs.

Sounds he wasn't properly socialised tbh. I don't want to make too many assumptions though

I'm one of those idiots that happily lets my dog approach others. In 5 years, there's never been a problem with fighting occuring as a result. Lucky me eh.
That's not to say that some of them haven't got a bit arsey.

Occasional scuffles over a stick or a ball though? Yeah, well, that's dogs for you. Give them a minute and it's all cool.

Efour · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:42

Lopéz said:
Although they look impressive, Rottweilers are far from aggressive. I don't really like dogs but in my experience Rottweilers are just friendly and playful.

My experience is the opposite. They are bloody big, heavy biting machines if trained to be.

holymonk · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:46

Uncle Petey said:
Rotties are pretty misundertood. As with most dogs (and people for that matter), dodgy ones are usually raised by dodgy people.

Sounds he wasn't properly socialised tbh. I don't want to make too many assumptions though
I'm one of those idiots that happily lets my dog approach others. In 5 years, there's never been a problem with fighting occuring as a result. Lucky me eh.

Occasional scuffles over a stick or a ball though? Yeah, well, that's dogs for you. Give them a minute and it's all cool.

To be honest you may be right. We had two originally, the girl was a nightmare and dad was hopeless at training her. I'd take her for a walk, let her off the lead and she would run home to be with him, it was obsessive. So he decided to get another one to calm her down... Which sorta worked but didn't, they became quite pack mentality.... Our neighbour had a small dog and neither they nor my parents secured their gardens properly. One day both dogs got into their garden the girl one opened their back door, their dog bit our male one, he then grabbed it by the throat and killed it. After that incident all trust was lost... That said they were always fine with people but with other dogs it was a complete nightmare, but I think that's more down to having two.

Oh and neither of those dogs were abused at all the first one did get a few smacks when she was naughty growing up but they were very loved.

Lopéz · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:49

Efour said:
My experience is the opposite. They are bloody big, heavy biting machines if trained to be.

You can train any dog to be a biting machine. It doesn't come to rottweilers naturally, they are a herding breed really.

stuie · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:55

Efour said:
My experience is the opposite. They are bloody big, heavy biting machines if trained to be.

Efour said:
if trained to be.

Ive highlighted the important bit.

You can train a hamster to be aggressive and bite people hardly a fair example of the bread naturally. Comparing all rotties to a handful of bad examples that have been poorly trained is like comparing the entire human race all 7 billion to the less than 1% of people held in prisons worldwide. Would you be ok for an alien race to deem us a dangerous race based on the activities of those incarcerated.

Dont tar all with the same brush

EdGey · 20 Dec 2014 at 20:58

This problem becomes more difficult the more dogs you have. Trying to keep tabs on both of mine and then trying to control both of them quickly if I need to can be tough.

I do worry for their safety sometimes but I never carry anything. My dad carries a walking stick for his own reasons but he's aware of it's other uses should it come to it. He's never used it so far but one of my dogs has been attacked on the beach once when I was not there. We were left with a sorry looking but not too harmed dog and a large vet bill.

What scares me the most is that one of my dogs may run AWAY in fear where I can't follow in time, rather than towards me for protection. Or that something might happen when I'm not there.

Uncle Petey · 20 Dec 2014 at 21:05

holymonk said:
To be honest you may be right. We had two originally, the girl was a nightmare and dad was hopeless at training her. I'd take her for a walk, let her off the lead and she would run home to be with him, it was obsessive. So he decided to get another one to calm her down... Which sorta worked but didn't, they became quite pack mentality.... Our neighbour had a small dog and neither they nor my parents secured their gardens properly. One day both dogs got into their garden the girl one opened their back door, their dog bit our male one, he then grabbed it by the throat and killed it. After that incident all trust was lost... That said they were always fine with people but with other dogs it was a complete nightmare, but I think that's more down to having two.

Oh and neither of those dogs were abused at all the first one did get a few smacks when she was naughty growing up but they were very loved.

That's unfortunate to put it mildly

They really need to be regularly around other dogs from an early age (not just one they live with) to learn to how to be comfortable around ones they don't know.

Also, Alsatians in particular definitely need a knowledgable owner who can provide the necessary training/mental stimulation that they require.
I've met a fair few of them that act a lot like yours, going by your description. In each case, talking to the owner revealed that the above checkboxes had been left empty.

As for the pack mentality thing, you're right. I've looked after a pair of dogs in the country that were fine on an individual walk, but when together, they were an absolute pain in the arse Bonnie and Clyde pairing and couldn't be trusted.
These were rescue dogs that hadn't been properly trained or socialised and while I made some progress in the limited time I had, there was only so much I could do.

adam98150 · 20 Dec 2014 at 21:21

Sounds silly, but best thing you can do, apparently, is both owners walk away.

Help separate them, and you're dog will mistake this for helping them fight the other animal. Pack instinct and all that.

I like to think I'd fight off the dog if it got a hold of mine. Though I really don't know how I'd react. Dogs are scary, can be real dangerous.

Conscript · 20 Dec 2014 at 21:32

I like letting Bella off the lead as much as I can, but I am careful. She is friendly and has never exhibited any form of aggression toward anyone or anything else, but this means if she sees another dog, she will go charging straight at it...I know all she wants to do is play, but I'm aware other dog owners don't know that. So if there's another dog around, I'll only usually let her loose if the other dog is also loose.

As for over exuberance from other dogs, I actually think it's better sometimes to let her off. The other day a very boisterous and large young Alsatian came bounding over and started getting very sniffy/playful before the owner could react. I had Bella on the lead, but it was actually more helpful to let her off. She's so quick, she then has the freedom to run off and engage the dog in play, whereas when I hold her on the lead, I think she starts feeling a bit threatened and her hackles go up because she can't get away.

adam98150 · 20 Dec 2014 at 21:49

^ Mine's always off the lead when we go to park. It's a dog walking park so it's perfect really. Meets big groups of dogs. The majority of them are well behaved/friendly.

Antony101 · 21 Dec 2014 at 00:44

We have two GSDs, I've had to steel toe cap a few dogs in the past for having a go.

It's not very nice when you have a pack of dogs attack your own, luckily my walking attire includes a pair of steel toe capped boots (they are my only pair of waterproof boots) and a quick punt seems to do a good job.

Rroff · 21 Dec 2014 at 01:08

Uncle Petey said:
Rotties are pretty misundertood. As with most dogs (and people for that matter), dodgy ones are usually raised by dodgy people.

Used to play for hours with one on a family friend's farm and was one of the most pleasant natured dogs I've ever come across. Woe betide anyone who came onto the farm who wasn't properly introduced to their rottweilers though.

Definitely a breed that needs a responsible owner.

batsy · 21 Dec 2014 at 01:13

OhEsEcks said:
Sink your boot into the offending animal. That simple. It's up to the owners to have their dog under control at all times. If a dog is off a lead and "out of control" then you can deal with it however you want. I've done it myself in the past. I own bull breeds, so they're never off the lead, because if something went wrong, they'd be destroyed no questions asked. I've had people cross paths with me and their dogs are being aggressive towards my dogs and I've told their owners to get them under control or I was going to deal with it.

Even if my dogs on the lead and a dog off the lead gets too close to my dog and fur starts flying, just by the fact I have bull breeds, I'd be the one having to defend myself and the actions of my dog, despite it being on the lead and under control.

Do the bull breeds still come with a shell suit and a council house or was that a limited time offer?

OhEsEcks · 21 Dec 2014 at 01:21

batsy said:
Do the bull breeds still come with a shell suit and a council house or was that a limited time offer?

I get my rescues from Mid-Antrim animal sanctuary. And you know what Antrim folk are like. Though not as shafty as those from Ballymena.

Pestilence · 21 Dec 2014 at 01:53

OhEsEcks said:
I get my rescues from Mid-Antrim animal sanctuary. And you know what Antrim folk are like. Though not as shafty as those from Ballymena.

You forgot the "hei" after Ballymena.

dunker · 21 Dec 2014 at 01:57

that's a cute little tiny toy pet there awww

moody hungry labrador will eat that in one bite. actually i think any cat would paw your pet into yelping. buy a treadmil? i dunno i would'nt let that anywhere near a more wolf like dog.

Threepwood · 21 Dec 2014 at 02:04

To be honest you have to choose better places to have the dog off the lead.

In heavily populated random dog/dog owner territory, having your dog off the lead is asking for trouble.

Sadly.

D.P. · 21 Dec 2014 at 02:29

Uncle Petey said:
We've all got a story to tell mate.
I'm still not sure what your point is though.

Is this just going to turn into the same old dangerous dogs argument thread full of the usual sweeping generalisations?

You had a bad experience and the owner of the other dog was a clueless ****. Sadly, it happens sometimes.

The annoying thing is it is mostly clueless ***** that buy dangerous dogs so it is very hard not to stereotype.

By nature most so called dangerous dogs breeds are very safe but they nearly always get raised by council estate thugs with zero training.

What is also common with small yappy rats on leash type dogs is the owners put in equally minimal effort because they think the dog is harmless.

Uncle Petey · 21 Dec 2014 at 02:43

Rroff said:
Used to play for hours with one on a family friend's farm and was one of the most pleasant natured dogs I've ever come across. Woe betide anyone who came onto the farm who wasn't properly introduced to their rottweilers though.

Definitely a breed that needs a responsible owner.

Certainly. They're incredibly protective of family and territory as Skodamart found.

While I've encountered a few that go ape**** at the mere sight of another dog, I've also had some great playtime sessions with Rotties belonging to complete strangers while out with my dog fwiw.
You can guess which ones have been raised by people who know what they're doing.