Anyone else completely fed up with the Rude Dog approaching from the rear, or, uncontrolled on a long flexi-lead and charging you and your dog head on?
I am usually walking a very happy, excited and playful young 90 pound dog. He has been taught to be polite around other people and dogs, that when one is approaching his job is to sit and look at me for to tell him what to do next.
Typically, that means ignoring the other dog because he is simply too strong and can’t control himself from jumping up and landing on dog or person with all paws. The way he controls himself is by staying in a sit and letting dog or person “please pass us by.”
When dogs or people surprise us from behind, all chaos breaks out. I ask you, if you were walking down the path and I ran up and buried my face in your back, how would you react? I doubt you would be happy about it. More than likely, you would turn around startled and snap at me, or, perhaps try to run away in the opposite direction.
That’s the same feeling the dog has when surprised by a sneak approach from the rear by another dog. It isn’t a question at all of being “friendly.” It’s what is polite. Let the owner at least see you and your dog. Then you can watch the owner and know whether or not to approach.
This week, I was in the woodland area of the park chatting with a fellow bird watcher, my dog sitting politely at my side, when suddenly a smallish dog has his nose right on my dog’s butt. The rude dog’s owner was twenty feet away on the other end of a flexi-lead. As nicely as I could I shouted “this isn’t a good idea” and got my dog to focus on me and move away with me. Owner gave me that look. That “oh he’s not friendly” look. I called to the owner “it’s never a good idea to let your dog surprise another dog from behind.” And she walked off in a huff. Ok, it’s never fun to be told you’re wrong.
To her credit, a few minutes later she returned and gave a very sincere apology. Good Dog!
For me, I don’t allow approaches at all, period, from any dogs and people we aren’t well acquainted with. My dogs and I are very friendly and sociable; we just don’t need or want chance encounters with strangers.
There are many reasons we just don’t want to say hi. Right now, for instance, I have tendonitis in both of my hands and holding tight will hurt like anything should my dog bolt and accidentally injure a small dog.
And, my dogs and I have lots of dog friends and human friends that we meet and greet on a regular basis. We really don’t need strangers to fill any social void. We’re not being rude just because we aren’t interested in saying hello to strangers and their dogs. In fact, when I’ve got the ninety pound Springer, we’re trying to be considerate when we pass by a five or ten pound dog.
What is rude, I fee, is rushing into another person and dog’s space. And it doesn’t get any less rude by shouting “is he friendly” to the other dog owner as a dog at the end of a Flexi-lead lunges forward. Friendly has nothing to do with it. I don’t trust any dog not under the walker’s control.
Please don’t force us to be rude dogs by having to ask your dog to KEEP BACK 200 PAWS.
For more information, check out this article by Suzzane Clothier of The Flying Dog Press “He Just Wants To Say Hi”
