rant about irrisponsible pet owners at the dog park
So if that wasnt enough.... We went to the same park that we have been going to for weeks and went in the morning so that it wasnt so hot. We enter the park there are lots of dogs and lily is excited and runs through the dooor to her friend Winchester the golden. I was standing by the enterance that we came in and talking to some people about her. There is a golden retriever trying to get his ball out of the drinking bucket. This other dogs walks between the fence and the drinking bucket and the golden growls. The owners say " bad dog dont do that" Lily is still standing watching the small dog side by the gate we came into. I say bye to the people I was talking to and start to walk towards Winchester and his parents. I say " lets go Lily" and she starts to follow me. As she passes by the golden now drinking the water, she isnt even paying any attention to him but trying to follow me to go play with her friends, the golden attacks her and wont let her go. She frantically tries to get away and is now yelping and screaming. I start yelling at the owner and the dog and chasing them across the yard because th golden is still attacking Lily. this attack goes on for about 10 minutes before I catch up with them. I take my leash I had around my neck and lasso the golden and throw him off of her. The owner in the mean time has just been walking towards the golden saying no stop bad dog. he tells me dont do that to my dog and I say I will do anything I have to to get whatever it is that is hurting my dog off of her. He says you dont have to yell and I say well you obviously have a food aggressive dog or that is protective of something that isnt his. If you know that your dog is that way dont bring him here. He tried to touch lily and see if she was ok and I just yelled at him and said dont touch her, dont touch her. Again, she was fine, her fur and scruff saved her a lot. She was bleeding a little from her ear flap where the golden grabbed her. So I just dont understand some people who bring those kinds of dogs to the dog park. Apparently a lot of people have been leaving that park due to the unruley dogs there that the owners dont pay attention to. We have a park right across the street from us but since the rain started it has been one big mud puddle so we started going to the other park. Now that it is nicer again I will take Lily back there and hopefully she wont get attacked there. But I just dont understand and then after they dont seem to understand that it was their dog that was the problem. They just blamed it on Lily and she in both cases wasnt interetsed in those dogs, she was just listening to me. I am actually afraid to take her to a park again because if she keeps getting attacked I am afraid that it will start to make her more aggressive towards other dogs as well and make her feel like she cant trust them. Sorry to rant on but I just had to tell someone. |
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| Oh I understand completely
I lved at the beach here in Australia for 19 years and all our Sheepies were down there most days We had sort of this Beach Eticque. If we saw another dog coming we didnt know we would put the dogs on a lead till they went past and then let them off again never had a problem until the Summer when wed get all the "INLANDERS " we called them with their dogs that had never been socialised much and they had no control over their dogs and sometimes they would be half a kilometer away from their owners It was a nightmare I actually physically picked up my OES one day to protect her from this Rotty probably a silly thing to do but it worked Youd tell them off but it was like talking to the wall oh thats if I didnt get the finger and a mouth full of abuse Anyway I guess its always a few that spoil it for the rest Its a shame  |
| Every day at my dog park, I have to be really careful of other dogs. I watch from outside the fence to see what the mood is, I avoid powerfu dogs and dogs I don't know, and sometimes I have to leave fast when the atmosphere turns tense. There are so many mean dogs. I avoid 5pm to 7:30 pm weeknights and Saturday and Sunday mornings (because that's when all the owners who don't have time to walk their dogs set them loose at the park.) There have been so many close calls and some bad incidents I've written about in earlier posts (will never forget the pitbull attacking Mandy's Carl).
Just this weekend, I was watching a really muscular boxer go around and agitate all the dogs. I tried to ask the owner about the dog and she just ignored, staring off in the distance, pretending she didn't hear me. Bad sign. As I was deciding to leave, the dog got growly with Maggie. I called the owner to get her dog. She sauntered owner, sing-songing "she doesn't like you." That girl is just waiting for her dog to attack another dog. What I've learned is that anytime you get a bad vibe off a dog or off an owner, it is best to leave and avoid the trouble. I feel bad for the dog not getting to have as much fun, but I felt so much worse when I ignored the signs and my dog got bit.  |
| Absolutely.
Dog parks are fun, but I keep a very close eye on my dogs and the other dogs. I keep them away from any that look tense, or suspect, or where the owners look frazzled. On Sunday a female boxer got a bit growly with a beagle, and the owner cuffed her on the side of the head! I couldn't believe it! I couldn't help myself, and blurted out "Don't hit your dog. You are making things worse." Then as I tried to explain he walked away all mad at me. We moved to the other side of the park, and left shortly after. Also, if there are lots of dogs that run in packs, I call mine away. All you need is one to get too aroused and you get the pack mentality going. Poor Dixie is very submissive, and gets picked on by bullies because she submits to them, so I keep her with young dogs or other gentle ones. Bosley can take care of himself  but he hasn't yet had a bad experience with a dog, and I don't want him to. |
| I've learned that there's really no such thing as a bad dog at the dog park, only bad owners. There are so many people who bite off more than they can chew with large breed dogs that they've lost control with long ago. The trouble begins when they think the dog will be fine because it's "fine" at home, but the situation at home versus a pack of excited dogs are two completely different things. I've found some people, particularly those that own dogs that most would consider "bad dogs," seem to think that even when their dog is nuts and is terrorizing others that "it's just what dogs do." No, it's just what your dog does because you're doing nothing to correct the behavior. As one dog gets excited, they all get excited and pretty soon the whole chemistry of the park changes. Then, like Val said, it's time to go.
I have to say, my regular park is a great bunch of people. We do have to pay (only $50 for the year) but it's almost all the same people that have been going there since it was free. It's kind of hidden away so it's not very obvious to the public-- you almost have to know someone to know where it is if you don't live nearby. There are a few people that have been going to the park for a long time and, even though they moved at least 10 miles away, they still go to that park instead of one closer to their new homes. One thing I have noticed though is that it seems like at most other parks I go to, there are a lot more overprotective owners than problem dogs. I'm not saying that they don't exist and I'm not saying it's the case with any of the situations any of you have described, but some people freak out as soon as a big dog walks in the park. I think that energy really spreads to the dog and fuels any fear that they have. One thing about Clyde and Lucy-- nothing intimidates those two, they're really good about sensing when to back off and when they can mess around with a dog. Bear is learning and is very easily intimidated. For his size, you'd think he'd be a big tough guy but there's a Border Terrier that keeps scaring the crap out of him. I think a lot of people have no idea of the difference between normal dog play and roughhousing versus unwanted behavior and aggession. Even humping, as goofy as it looks, is no big deal unless one dog is seriously upset about it. I've seen people really get enraged about humping but do nothing while their dog is terrorizing another. I always feel sad for those dogs because everyone starts to hate the dog and they forget that it's actually the owner that should take the sole responsibility. I think there a lot more bad seed people than bad seed dogs! |
| I've seen overprotective owners that yank their small dogs out after all the larger dogs have been whipped into a frenzy and definitely seen dogs enjoy some spirited roughhousing, but at my park there are a ton of powerful, underexercised dogs with clueless lameass owners who seem almost proud of the harm their dogs inflict. |
| I understand exactly what you mean. Since moving to Nashville I've been taking Daisy to the park most every day after work and most weekends.
The first Sat we were there, there were about 5 or 6 dogs that suddenly started picking on her (She will whine immediately if she thinks someone is going to hurt her and apparently this set them off). A large Great Dane got hold of her and bit her ear. Everyone there immediately tried to get the dogs off her and the owner of the Great Dane got him off her and immediately took him out. Of course I ran toward her but as soon as she was free she went in the other direction but did finally come to me. I sat down and examined her and there was some blood on her ear where the dog had bitten her. I think the fur saved her from any worse damage. I calmed her down there and let her play again before leaving and cleaned the ear after we got home - it was just a little nip on the corner of her ear. Since then I try to be more aware of when several dogs get together. She loves everyone and tries to play with all of them, but is better about staying away from those that are aggressive. This past week we went and there was a pit bull mix (recent rules say no pit bulls or pit bull type dogs) and this dog started after her the minute we got there. She tried to stay away from it but everytime she started to play or run it would go after her. We just left to avoid any problems. It is so aggrevating when owners don't see this as a problem and let their dog chase and attack a dog that doesn't want anything to do w/ their dog. I've had to break up a couple other incidents not involving Daisy and fortunately nothing serious happened. |
| I hate sucky dog owners that get off on their dog being the most vicious or mean dog there.
We have several dog parks. At one there is a group that stand in the middle drinking their beer with their Rottweilers. They take pride in the fact that their dogs are unfriendly. The first time I went there, one lady told me my dog doesn't like hairy dogs. Needless to say we avoid that place during certain hours. I used to be so niave and used to think that all dog owners were friendly. NOT! Some people are really prejudiced against fluffy dogs. I guess they think they're Frou Frou. Regardless, I take my dogs away immediately when things don't appear safe for them. |
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