Dear Pet Parent,
I’m glad your dog is friendly. I’m glad your dog comes when you call him most of the time. And I’m glad you like going for a walk with your dog on a nice day.
But please, when you’re in a park where the rules are clearly stated on signs in at least three different locations, can you put your dog on a leash?!
My dog comes when I call her most of the time, and I love going for a walk with her on a nice day. But she isn’t friendly.
And no matter how friendly your dog is (or you think he is), it won’t make any difference to my dog.
Because when she sees a dog racing toward her full speed ahead, she reacts. All the training and hard work we’ve done for years goes right down the drain. She’s afraid, and your dog charging for her face makes all those fears and anxieties kick right back in.
She growls, she barks, and she yanks so hard on the leash that I feel like my shoulders are being ripped out of their sockets.
And here’s the thing: While she’ll never be happy having any strange dog approaching her, she has learned to tolerate (not like, but tolerate) a strange dog who approaches her appropriately. In the dog world, that doesn’t mean you run directly at a dog’s face and try to jump all over them when you get there.
Pet Parent, your dog may be friendly, but your dog is definitely NOT appropriate. I don’t know of too many friendly dogs who’d appreciate being approached the way your dog does it and my dog will never be mistaken for a friendly dog.
And when you combine that kind of in-your-face, explosively energetic welcome with a reactive dog … well, the results aren’t good.
Even worse, you undermine what I’ve been trying to teach my dog for the past decade, that strange dogs are OK. They won’t hurt you.
Your dog is sending the message to my dog that yes, you’ve been right all these years — dogs are very scary creatures! Red alert! Red alert!
I’ve taught my dog to look at me when she sees a strange dog up ahead. I’ve taught her to stay by my side as we calmly move away to give her a distance where she feels safe. I’ve taught her to touch my hand with her nose, giving her something else to focus on other than the dog ahead. And she’s been doing all this beautifully for years.
But I can’t fight deeply rooted fears, and when your dog charges her, she’s once again back to being an anxious, frightened dog who will do anything to protect herself from the perceived threat your dog is posing.
Pet Parent, it doesn’t help that while your dog is racing toward us, you’re shouting, “Don’t worry! My dog is friendly!” It doesn’t help my dog relax (not only are dogs nonverbal creatures, they really don’t speak English) and quite honestly, it doesn’t put me in a Zen state, either.
And I have to ask: Aren’t you a little bit concerned about the kind of reception your friendly dog is going to receive from a dog who is snarling, growling, lunging and air-snapping? Doesn’t it worry you just a bit?
So please, I’m asking you politely to simply follow the rules in the park. That’s why I’ve chosen this park — because dogs are required to be on leash. If you dislike walking your dog on leash that much, go to the dog park. There are a bunch of them in the area, and your dog can run around off leash to his heart’s content.
But I’m guessing you don’t like the dog park because everyone tells me they’ve had bad experiences at one time or another, and that dog parks are “dangerous.” (No argument here!)
Well, that’s what you’re turning my leash-required park into, a dangerous place for my dog.
All I’m asking is that you obey the rules. Keep your dog on leash and under your control (and you don’t get a pass if you use a retractable leash. Letting your dog walk 15 feet away from you is not having him under your control.)
Thank you for listening.
Sincerely,
The Person with the Dog Who Isn’t Friendly
P.S. To the man I politely asked the other day to please leash up his dog, and who replied angrily with, “I’m just trying to enjoy a nice walk with my dog!” … I get it. I really do get it.
Because you know what? So am I.
What do you think? Are the points here valid? Let us know in the comments section below.
DogsHome: Providing shelter, training and love
I am with you 100% may have met the same person. Go to the dog park for off leash fun or have a dogbovervto play with yours. Not all dogs like to be played with. My dog is scared of other dogs and only likes ones smaller than him. He was a research dog and does not understand wrestling and biting as a game. He wants to tug and run. I choose his playmates please understand some of us are doing our best with dogs with issues. Follow the rules please
That’s exactly why I’m leery about taking my dogs to a dog park. If your dog has issues, maybe an off leash park isn’t the place to exercise them.
You make great, totally valid points. My dog Oliver is the star of the dog park – loves all dogs! Put him on the leash – completely different reactions to other dogs approaching him. My dog Sadie wants to be greeted appropriately, which means a respectful approach and sniff of the back end, not the face, not licking the face, not jumping around near her face. Respect, people!
So if a leash is required, use the leash. Those rules protect everyone and exist for a reason.