Out today with the two dogs having a lovely lovely time in the sunshine. we only saw one other dog all the time we were out. as soon as she saw us, the lady put the dog on the lead. she was quite a distance away but even so, we stopped the dogs, and put them on their leads. To me, this is standard practice as the other person is indicating that she doesn't want it bothered by other dogs. We got close and she was incredibly friendly and said "oh you've got a youngster, are they on the lead because you're worried she'll run away?" she seemed genuinely bemused. I'm not wrong though am I? this is the way it's normally done? I just let them back off and sent them away from her but i always thought that this was for her benefit. :-\ if your dog doesn't like dogs and is on the lead then you'd prefer to know that the dog can't come near you as it's firmly attached to the lead. i do like to be polite and i like people to keep dogs on lead that may take a dislike to mine. saves vet bills.
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette I would have done exactly the same... and been bemused by her response too!!! Clare
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette Its always tricky isnt it ? I also try to be polite and call my dogs away from one on lead too , assuming that its on lead because it doesnt want other dogs around . But then , there is always the curved ball , this situation cropped up the other day , the lady with her young dog on lead explained that she had it on lead because she was scared it might run away . It was only a youngster , very friendly little spaniel so I invited her to walk with me and maybe let it off lead with mine, it was perfectly behaved
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette oh that makes me feel better. i should have been more forthright and explained; it wasn't what my dogs wanted and i did it out of courtesy. i researched dog etiquette because i was suddenly into a whole new world of expected behaviour. if she hadn't then i suppose her behaviour was normal but she must be wondering why no one lets their dogs near her!
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette I would've done the same too If I see another dog on lead, mine goes on lead, or we just keep well away. I assume that on lead means 'I don't want your dog to interact with my dog', which is fair enough.
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette [quote author=Oberon link=topic=4097.msg48118#msg48118 date=1390012849] I assume that on lead means 'I don't want your dog to interact with my dog', which is fair enough. [/quote] So few people think this though - I appreciate, of course, dogs will run up to other dogs regardless of whether they are on lead. It's a big problem for me now while I've got to manage Charlie with his injury, and it's my problem to cope with it, but I do wish other owners would at least try to get their dogs. My solution is to always have someone with me in busy areas, just to deal with the off lead dogs. The other night, we were getting Charlie into the car with the bench arrangement and two off lead dogs ran up. It was clearly difficult for us, but I still had to ask the owner twice to get her dogs. Sorry, bit of a rant!
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette I'll answer this as one that normally puts my dogs on the lead first. I have a very friendly Pointer who loves nothing better than to play and gallop with his doggie friends, however if an unknown dog arrives on the field, especially a boisterous puppy, he can be a little unpredictable. Most times he will instantly play but he will on occasion pin down a strange dog that bounces up and doesn't treat him with the utmost respect, never hurts them, but creates lots of noise. So to avoid any distress to the other dog's owner he goes on the lead. My Lab goes on the lead again when an unknown dog appears but only if they have a ball, he can be a pain for suddenly taking off and pinching the other dog's ball when it's thrown anywhere in his direction (training to leave still an ongoing issue). He knows not to do it with the regulars but a strange dog is fair game. So both my dogs are put on lead to keep them out of trouble, I personally don't expect other people to leash their dogs but do hope that they have the sense to keep their dogs away from mine.
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette If I see a dog in our local park that is on lead I will always call Penny away or put her on lead if I have to. I always assume an on lead dog means the owner doesn't want it bothered by other dogs though I accept there are many reasons for this - the most obvious one being that that dog is aggressive or unsociable towards other dogs, or it may be nervous, it could be in training etc. I feel it's just courtesy to respect that, for whatever reason, the owner doesn't want their dog bothered. On the other hand I also feel that if you have a dog that behaves aggressively towards other dogs then why do you take it to your local park where you can guarantee bumping into at least five other dogs, whatever the time of day. I'm not trying to start an argument here - everyone has a right to walk their dogs where they please but I've seen so many dogs brought into the rescues I've worked at for attacking another dog when the owner has known it is aggressive towards dogs but still insists on taking it to places populated with dogs and letting it off lead or just generally being careless.
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette I feel the same. If we walk towards unknown dogs off the lead, I assume they are friendly. If they are on the lead - Pops goes straight on her lead too. Simple.
Re: On lead / off lead walking etiquette [quote author=Penny+Me link=topic=4097.msg48502#msg48502 date=1390166919] On the other hand I also feel that if you have a dog that behaves aggressively towards other dogs then why do you take it to your local park where you can guarantee bumping into at least five other dogs, whatever the time of day. I'm not trying to start an argument here - everyone has a right to walk their dogs where they please but I've seen so many dogs brought into the rescues I've worked at for attacking another dog when the owner has known it is aggressive towards dogs but still insists on taking it to places populated with dogs and letting it off lead or just generally being careless. [/quote] I'm right with you but after honey dog got bitten by a dog they knew to be vicious, off lead, unmuzzled and in the grounds of the second most visited National Trust property in England on a nice sunday afternoon, I reckon you can't expect other folk to be intelligent. Cost me £100 odd that lesson and a dog with an infected mouth.
