Please leash your dog - Vent

[Tuffcookie]

OP, I haven't read all the responses to your thread so if someone has mentioned this, I apologize.

Whenever I take my 2 dogs for a walk ( 1 is a small Shihzu, the other a Lab) I always carry a small air horn with me. There have been times when a dog on the loose has started to approach us. When they get too close for comfort I give a quick blast from the air horn. It catches them off guard and they immediately run off.

TC

 

[Scurvy]

If it's a law or campground/park regulation, dogs should be on leashes. Period.

Yep. If the law or regulation states that owners must have control over their dogs, then voice control is good enough. If the law or regulation states that dogs must be leashed, then it doesn't matter how well trained your dog is - it needs to be leashed. If someone who thinks their dogs is too well trained to be leashed doesn't want to comply with the rules, then they don't have to take the dog to places that require leashes.

 

[jrmasm]

That is actually not true.

Depending on the breed, which is the majority of breeds, a well trained dog is just as reliable on voice control as a leash.
All you have to do is watch a police dog demonstration to know that. A dog can be in full attack mode and upon command will drop to the ground in a down stay. My 4-h teacher years and years ago used to train police dogs. It made such an impression on me when I watched Argos, this gorgeous GSD, leap into the air to attack and then land on his feet and drop to his belly because while in the air, the trainer had issued a second command to stop.

It made an impression on all of us preteens on how important it was to make sure your dog was properly obedience trained.

My breed, Komondor, and most of the Livestock Guardian Dogs, cannot be used for police work due to the fact that their desire to please and work for man has been bred to a minimum. They are independent thinkers and while they can be obedience trained, this group of dogs are never 100% reliable. They should never be off leash. In other words, you may see the sanitation worker as somebody desirable taking your trash away. Your dog views it as a thief stealing the owner's property. The dog was bred to make independent decisions, so may ignore you and protect your garbage.

The problem is that most dogs are not truly well trained.

 

[Scurvy]

The problem is that most dogs are not truly well trained.

I have noticed that most of the people I've seen who refuse to leash their dogs because "they are so well trained" actually don't have very well trained dogs. The people I know who have the best trained dogs all follow the regulations for wherever they happen to be, even if they don't personally think the leash is necessary for their dogs. Maybe it's because they don't feel the need to show off how much control they have over the dog. Or maybe it's because they know enough about dogs to realize that even the best trained dogs are still animals, and animals can have unpredictable moments especially in an environment like a park with other dogs and kids running around. Or maybe they are just smart enough to realize that they don't want the additional legal hassle that would arise if another dog attacked their unleashed dog. Whatever the reason, the best dog owners respect the rules when out with their dogs even if they aren't the ones the rules were made for. I wish the other dog owners would, as well.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I have noticed that most of the people I've seen who refuse to leash their dogs because "they are so well trained" actually don't have very well trained dogs. The people I know who have the best trained dogs all follow the regulations for wherever they happen to be, even if they don't personally think the leash is necessary for their dogs. Maybe it's because they don't feel the need to show off how much control they have over the dog. Or maybe it's because they know enough about dogs to realize that even the best trained dogs are still animals, and animals can have unpredictable moments especially in an environment like a park with other dogs and kids running around. Or maybe they are just smart enough to realize that they don't want the additional legal hassle that would arise if another dog attacked their unleashed dog. Whatever the reason, the best dog owners respect the rules when out with their dogs even if they aren't the ones the rules were made for. I wish the other dog owners would, as well.

Absolutely! Once in a blue moon, I'll encounter a dog off leash and I'll think "OK, that dog is well trained". There's a guy who sends his dog to the same dog daycare my dog goes to. He walks the dog to and from with the leash lying across the dog's back, but not actually holding it. This is along very busy city streets with no grass strip between the sidewalk and road. When he crosses our path, he steps to the side and the dog automatically sits between him and the building, so we can pass without my dog getting touched, sniffed, or even looked at.

If your dog will heel for miles, even with other dogs around, and things to smell. If he'll down on command anywhere, so that if he's across the path and you see a bike speeding towards you you can call out "down" and he'll stay there perfectly. If you can guarantee that he'll never get within touching distance of another dog, or send "dominant" signals to another dog, or brush against someone who might be allergic or scared or just not feel like having dog hair or slobber on them.

And, if you're focused fully on my dog so that you see that look of panic in a child's eyes, or the bike in the distance, or whatever earlier than they see you. Then maybe I'll reconsider judging you.

If your dog is running towards my child, and takes even one more step after you say his name. If he touches me with his nose, or gets close enough to my dog that I have to block him away. If he makes my child cry, or mud or hair or slobber on me. Then no, he's not "well trained".

 

[goofy!]

The problem is that most dogs are not truly well trained.

I agree 100%.

I was just commenting on this statement:

There is NO controled dog without a leash know matter how well trained

Well trained dogs, while a rarity, do exist. They are beautiful to watch.