Hi I would like a bit of advice really as am left shocked, confused and a bit gutted after what started as a normal and routine walk on our local beach. Now Sam is a 1 year old pretty hyper but what I always thought of as exceptionally friendly female.. She has never growled, acted dominant in an obvious way and just loves a lot of fuss but she will approach pretty much every dog if off lead.. in a submissive manner usually and go on to run and play with them. Today Sam approached a woman and small dog, I was some way away so been walking towards them meanwhile she picks up her dog and Sam begins to get excited and jumps up a few times at the woman.. She's really upset when I get there screaming at me to put her on the lead, that she's scared (didn't believe that) and Sam's a menace... ? she also said she was on horseback last week on the beach when Sam approached her horse and scared her.. my husband mentioned Sam going up to a horse but not in any way aggressively. Should I start keeping her on the lead on the beach?? This woman has really upset me and have never had such an encounter with anyone since we've had Sam as a puppy. Sorry for the long thread.
Sympathies! You'll get good advice here from people who know more than me about leads, but I just wanted to say welcome and you are not alone in coming across people who over-react to labrador enthusiasm. Of course Sam wasn't being aggressive, but some people do misinterpret. Personally I'd be inclined to ignore them, but you might be in a position where that isn't possible? Above all, don't let it upset you. You are the very lucky owner of a gorgeous, friendly, happy labrador - don't let any silly fool spoil that for you. Go give your girl a cuddle. Welcome to the forum!
Thanks so much for your kind words ☺I wouldn't want anyone to feel threatened by her but I think I'll try to avoid this woman in future!
Hello and welcome to you and Sam, from me, Poppy and Merlin in Germany. Of course Sam wasn't being aggressive, and this woman totally overreacted. However... personally I don't let my dogs run up to greet people I don't know, or their dogs, unless the person tells me it's ok. I don't like having dogs that I don't know come running up to me (have had a couple of bad experiences with my dogs being bitten), so maybe something happened to this woman in the past and she is frightened it could happen again... My advice would be to call Sam back to you when you see someone you don't know, and have her walk to heel until you know the situation is ok. Give her lots of treats or throw a ball as a reward for coming back.It's good practice for your recall and heel walking, too. But please don't worry that she was being aggressive... and don't let this ruin your walks!
Silly woman. Sam was excited - and picking a small dog up makes it doubly exciting! But Karen is right, I wouldn’t let mine run up to dogs, horses or people they don’t know. But don’t keep her on the lead - beaches are for free running! Just make sure you have an excellent recall, especially when other dogs are around. Total Recall is the best book for all things recall. .
I agree with Karen- Sam doesn't sound like she was being aggressive, but equally, it's probably best that she doesn't run up to other dogs until you know that it's safe for them and for her. I had a very leash-reactive border terrier who chewed the backside of a beagle once, and it's made me very cautious about off lead dogs approaching us, regardless of how friendly they are. My working cocker Bonnie loves to sniff when she's out and doesn't really approach other dogs (she's too busy). On a number of occasions we've had a young bouncy friendly dog spot her from across a field and come tearing across to say hi and it can be terrifying (for me, Bon not bothered and will tell them off if they persist). It does make me think twice about taking her places where we'll meet unknown dogs.
Hi and welcome. I agree with the others that Sam wasn’t being aggressive, but as labs are bigger dogs they can seem overwhelming to some people. I don’t allow my girl to run up to unknown dogs either as she has been attacked a few times and can now be reactive. If I see a dog I dont know I pop her on lead. I did this yesterday and a huge dog (never seen the breed before) came bounding up and having hoolies around us which made Harley stressed and she started growling and tried to chase him away and nearly pulled me over. We tried to walk away but he wouldn’t leave Harley alone. I quickly said ‘sausages’ and Harley and the other dog sat down immediately. I gave them both some sausage and they were fine with each other. It was frustrating as I had asked the owner to call his dog back when he first ran over to us but he didn’t. His wife was holding their other dog who is very reactive (he was on lead and wearing a muzzle so kept their distance). It was frustrating as they know how stressful it can be for their reactive dog, but allowed their other dog to harass mine even after I had asked several times for them to come and get him.
Great advice thanks very much.. we deffinately need to work on her recall when it comes to other dogs.. She is generally pretty good recalling and will stay close to me off the lead unless there's another dog around and she just wants to play! But I can see the point of another walker..possibly not used to the size of a lab who of course doesn't know she's harmless but it could be intimidating. Time to get some tastier treats to hand for our next trip to the beach
I think too that she was not aggressive! The woman lift the dog, so Sam interpreted that she (little dog)wanted to play. Also when children are afraid they put up their hands, for a dog a sign to play....
So, this afternoon Merlin did just what you've described - I was in the middle of giving a dummy training class, and OH and I got confused about who was in charge of him... A lady with a small child and a large black dog on a lead walked by - Merlin charged over to say hello, completely ignored my whistle, and wouldn't come back. The woman was pretty freaked, shouting at Merly. I ran over and got him, apologized profusely saying it was all my fault and that I hadn't been paying enough attention, that he is just a puppy and really friendly, but that that wasn't an excuse... We got chatting, and she explained her dog had been attacked and bitten a few weeks ago, and that she is very nervous now. All ended well, but as you can see @SamanthaC18, these things can happen to us all...
Gosh, when Luna was only a few months old I was told she should be put to sleep because she jumped up at a man - who had a dog, so he wasn't scared of dogs! It can be very upsetting but just chalk it up as one of those things, work on her not running over to people and it'll be a non-incident when you look back in a few months
Thanks for that I already feel better about the whole thing today .. obviously we've still got a bit more work to so with her!
It doesn't sound like she was being aggressive but as a dog owner of breeds that don't get along with other dogs I would be upset if I was walking my dog and a dog came running up to me. I took a lot of precautions when I had my pit bulls but there is not much I could do when other owners let their dog run free and come in contact with my dogs. I taught all my dogs to "leave it" and I never had anyone get hurt but it didn't make going for walks enjoyable.
Hi there, people can be very sensitive especially if they have a small dog themselves. It doesn't look like your dog was aggressive at all. My 21 month old lab used to get told off all the time by other dogs. Mainly adults. Not so much people but recently he is starting to get reactive towards other dogs. Not sure if it's resource guarding (protecting me!). I know I need to address this but don't know how. I feel like a failure as a dog owner if something happens. It is soooo difficult to read the signs or my dog's body language.
Just want to say hello and welcome to you. You have had some good advice don't worry about it. I don't let my dogs run up to other dog because the other dog may be aggressive.
I’ve been told by people who have never even met my dog he was aggressive and that he needed to be “fixed”. Also, when I had to leave him over night for surgery at the vet they asked if I had any special instructions, I said he may, given the circumstances, resource guard his food bowl. He’s done this maybe 6 times in 21 months. We are aware of it and are treating it. So next day we pick him up and the vet says that he growled at the nurse who fed him, and he’s never seen that happen before and I need to get him fixed when he’s better. I’m gonna leave the conversation that followed out of this story it’s a completely other topic. Lol. Anyhow, as time passes we go back for a check up and the person he growled at came to say hello, told us she loved him and how beautiful he was and mentioned that he growled at her when she pet his head after she gave him his dinner....... Now I just ignore everyone when it comes to my dog and will say that vets are not behaviourists and some surprise me with how little they know about handling. It sure Must be nice to have a “perfect” dog like all these peanut gallery commentators.
