Just had a nightmare walk with Jura . Right at the end of it we were headed back to the car when we turned the last corner to meet a couple with 3 dogs that I've had problems with before, At this point as we were heading down the last stretch to the car Jura was on lead. 2 of their dogs are fine but they have a young looking collie which they have admitted before has a problem with young bitches. Anyway the collie flew at Jura and nipped her. It's not bad, but this is the third time it has happened, and after it does Jura is always a bit spooked by collies for a while. Anyway the couple then got extremely verbally abusive, particularly the man. Telling me it my fault for having a dog on a lead who was obviously unsocialised, and dogs being aggressive was perfectively normal and I needed to train my dog . Stupidly I pointed out I was walking the final stretch back to my car towards a main road, and that was why she was on a lead - why I should justify having my dog on a lead I don't know, and maybe he should put the collie on a lead and the incident would never of happened. This then led to them blocking my path for 5 minutes while they screamed at me. Also gutted at having lost a really good walking place as am feeling too nervous to go back there. It's too quiet a stretch of woodland to risk meeting them on my own again, for Jura's sake and for mine.
Oh, that sounds horrible. You're right, you shouldn't have to justify yourself to anyone. It sounds like you were being nothing but responsible and he was being a complete twonk. If you do go back, take a pet corrector spray with you. Obviously, I'd ever use one on my own dogs, but I'd have no qualms about using one on a dog that I knew had bitten mine before.
That sounds like a truly horrid experience. You are completely in the right by having your dog on a lead as you walked back to your car. Some people who have reactive dogs, will blame others when their dogs are stressed, I feel sorry for his dogs. It is not unusual for us to become defensive as owners, so understandable that you went into justification mode! In this instance, just find some pals with socialised and calm dogs, to help Jura gain confidence. Or even try looking for organised opportunities in your area. Don't worry, try and brush this off and move on, I wouldn't give up on a nice walking area though, try and choose a different time, or take someone with you to help. If you think it might happen again, keep your distance, turn your back and stream high value treats to Jura with a happy, confident voice
Thank you for the support , it really shook me up this morning, and I'm still going between feeling slightly sick and flaming mad every time I think about it. I definitely need to take a deep breath and move on! I suspect given the completely over the top verbal reaction from the owners (and choice use of language!) that they have had problems with the dog attacking before. They were certainly keen to tell me that there was no point in contacting the dog warden as they had a right to walk their dog off lead and would continue to do so. They also made a point of telling me they knew which car was mine, and deliberately blocked my way to intimidate me. I think in order to calm the situation (and myself!) I will avoid the walk for certainly the next few days, at least until the OH can be there too. May try and arrange a walk at the weekend there with another couple we walk with sometimes and their lab. Thankfully as Jura does flyball she'll spend some time with quite a few friendly collies on Sunday at the last training session of the year which will help. I've also arranged a couple of walks with friends this week who have older calm dogs who she knows well. Fingers crossed the impact will be minimal.
Those people sound like they might pose a greater danger to you than their Collie to your dog. Yeah, I've changed a walking place because of people. Not fair but that's how it is.
I totally understand how you are feeling. I had a very similar issue with a collie and I did phone the dog warden. Unfortunately as Harley was also off lead (albeit sat right in front of me!) they couldn't do anything. The second time it happened we had spotted the collie and just before it got to me I got her lead on. I phoned the dog warden again. The owners were the opposite to the ones in your situation as they ignored what was happening and walked off!!! Harley needed a few stitches the first time. The second time she had a chunk of hair ripped out by her neck. The third time it happened my daughter had to kick the dog off. Again the owners ignored their dog! I know the dog warden has had words as they now walk him on lead. For ages I wouldn't go to this place which is a favourite of ours unless someone was with me. I'm now more confident and do go there, but at different times. My hubby and I were walking Harley there on the weekend and we spotted the collie who was on lead. We walked in the opposite direction. Several times we saw them walking towards us and we veered off the main path. It ended up with him following us at times. My hubby thinks he was trying to get Harley to react! Luckily she didn't. Some people really are ridiculous.
So sorry you had this horrible experience. I think you are wise to avoid it for a couple days, and when you do go back, go with someone else. Ugh. People can be so nasty sometimes.
What a horrible experience. There was certainly no need for them to be so unpleasant (perhaps that's where the collie gets its aggression from?!). I hope you can walk there again without such hassle in the future. Some people just go by their own rules. For two mornings running this week I've had to dodge someone walking their dog off lead in an area where dogs have to be on their leads!
