You did what with the dog?

9436 Views 66 Replies 37 Participants Last post by timber, Apr 16, 2016

traciek88

Discussion Starter · Jan 27, 2016

I wanted to make a rant thread since so many people here encounter people that are...doing ill advised, stupid, dangerous or ridiculous things with dogs since we so often make posts about them!

Here's my rant today. Stella and I went to Petco and we saw this woman walk by with a cart. She looked at Stella and smiled and Stella wanted to approach so I said "She's friendly" as she went to pet her. Then she told me "Oh, I don't even ask anymore because I have 3 dogs!"

What? So you having 3 dogs means a stranger's dog won't bite you? I managed to hold my tongue that time, but wow!

Another time a few weeks ago in the same store I saw a woman strapping a just purchased nylon muzzle on her dog and I heard her say it was so she would stop barking. I was horrified and said "You know there are other ways to deal with that..." But she just brushed me off and called her dog a bad girl, saying she would learn this way. I kind of wanted to kick her or take the dog.

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TruckersMom

· #2 · Jan 27, 2016

Oh Boy, that's all I can say

revolutionrocknroll

· #3 · Jan 28, 2016

Here's one. I was doing dog walks at work the other day so I was driving to a clients house. I was towards the end of a busy road and this woman is walking her dog OFF LEASH. On the road. He ran in front of my car, I slammed on the breaks, he started barking at the car and running around it- in the middle of the road! The woman was calling him and of course he wasn't listening. And so she grabbed him and walked away down the road. Didn't put a lead on him or anything, just let him go further up. This wasn't in a rural area either- this was in VTs biggest city (though that's not saying much for those who live in real cities).

traciek88

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jan 28, 2016

That's terrifying. Why would anyone even want to risk their dog's life like that?! And you'd probably be sued if you'd run him over.

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StormyPeak

· #5 · Jan 28, 2016

I would have been on the phone, to 911 reporting a woman with a dog off leash creating a road hazard - imagine what would have happened if you had braked suddenly and there had been a large cargo truck or even a motorcycle behind you and they slammed into you. That woman's loose dog could have caused some major injury or even death...if say a person on a motorcycle ended up hitting you and the driver was thrown a ways and landed wrong.

She deserved a ticket for at least 'off leash dog' - but unless a traffic cam caught the dog running out into the road, it would be had for an officer to ticket her for causing a road hazard. Still it would be worth the try.

Glad you came out of that situation safe.

Stormy

Reactions: 3

TheAdventureK9

· #6 · Jan 28, 2016

Its really scary out there sometimes.

The amount of people I've seen running their dogs in closed mouth muzzles breaks my heart.

I've stopped people telling them then can buy basket muzzles so the dog can still temperature regulate. I think muzzles are a great thing but closed mouth muzzles should never be used for exercise.

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traciek88

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jan 29, 2016

This morning I went to go work a dog walking/sitting job and the neighbor let her young Pit Bull out off leash to go potty on the lawn. He had terrible recall and ran into the street over to me. I saw him bounding happily towards me and bend down to grab him when he came over. And of course his collar is way too loose and weak for a strong dog like that. It practically popped off his head when the owner pulled him back. And I was even more annoyed because this woman is really grumpy and has threatened to have my car towed because I can't park in the owner's snowed in driveway and there's nowhere else to park but the street. Maybe if she cared more about her dog's own safety and training he wouldn't run out in the street. And really, having a Pit Bull that runs up to strangers? Plenty of bully breeds have been shot dead for less.

squidwanda

· #8 · Jan 30, 2016

There is a girl who lives nearby me (who I actually used to be friends with) who walks her dog around the neighborhood with no collar or leash. She trained him to heel using a shock collar so he is too afraid to go to the bathroom or sniff anything. It is very sad to watch. He has gotten scared of things or excited to see another dog and ran away from her a couple times, but won't return to her unless he has the shock collar on. I have had to help look for him twice.

ToyDragon

· #9 · Jan 30, 2016

traciek88 said:
Another time a few weeks ago in the same store I saw a woman strapping a just purchased nylon muzzle on her dog and I heard her say it was so she would stop barking. I was horrified and said "You know there are other ways to deal with that..." But she just brushed me off and called her dog a bad girl, saying she would learn this way. I kind of wanted to kick her or take the dog.

I have met more than one person that has used a muzzle to stop a barking dog.

Many of them still barked, it was just a muffled woof since they couldn't open their mouths.

thecurlyone

· #10 · Jan 30, 2016

I used to drag my dog along on walks, literally dragged because she hated walks and I couldnt figure out how to get her to walk normally. After a while I started taking hot dogs with me and every time she pulled I called her back to me and gave her a piece of hot dog. We're slowly building up the amount we walk but it's a slow slow process. She has mild arthritis and can't walk too far without being sore but at least I learned to no longer force her into a situation she's terrified of.

Samson5261

· #11 · Jan 30, 2016

traciek88 said:
I wanted to make a rant thread since so many people here encounter people that are...doing ill advised, stupid, dangerous or ridiculous things with dogs since we so often make posts about them!

Here's my rant today. Stella and I went to Petco and we saw this woman walk by with a cart. She looked at Stella and smiled and Stella wanted to approach so I said "She's friendly" as she went to pet her. Then she told me "Oh, I don't even ask anymore because I have 3 dogs!" What? So you having 3 dogs means a stranger's dog won't bite you? I managed to hold my tongue that time, but wow!

Another time a few weeks ago in the same store I saw a woman strapping a just purchased nylon muzzle on her dog and I heard her say it was so she would stop barking. I was horrified and said "You know there are other ways to deal with that..." But she just brushed me off and called her dog a bad girl, saying she would learn this way. I kind of wanted to kick her or take the dog.

There is a guy at the dog park I go to that had his dogs vocal cords cut because he is very vocal. His bark sounds like a dieing cat now. Its really sad&#55357;&#56866;
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annageckos

· #12 · Jan 30, 2016

I use to know a guy who rescued Great Pyrenees and it was sadly common for dogs he got to have their vocal cords cut. If you can't deal with a dogs bark and don't want to train your dog then you shouldn't have one.

Larkspur

· #13 · Jan 30, 2016

Sadly, though it makes sense if you think about it, if someone's dog is loose and gets hit by a car, the driver can take legal action against the dog owner for damages to the vehicle... the owner can't really do anything against the driver because, yeah they should be paying attention, but in the end the owner has to be in control of their dog (and I'm sure we've all had that terrifying moment of being fully attentive while driving and out of nowhere some animal pops put in front of us).

I had a client who used both a badly-fitted prong AND an e-collar on his dog at the same time... I can't even. I eventually told my boss I couldn't see that house anymore because while I was totally willing to work with the little giy, the owner was clueless and one of those guys who wouldn't listen to advice or follow up on anything... and I was tired of having an excited little BBM run up and bite my arms repeatedly every time I walked through the door.

I also had a client with an alleged Corso mix. He was a rescue, but a surrender because the original family couldn't keep him. He was so fearful... it took a week for him to let me take him out without his owner with us (he actually took off work for that first week to help Bru adjust). The poor thing was afraid of everything... small children, squirrels, people walking on the other side of the street. I did a great job working with him on that and he was really improving... then there was one week they didn't need me to walk him and when I came back it was like he didn't know who I was... tucked tail, emptied his bladder on the carpet, and ran downstairs. I cleaned up, couldn't get him (and really why force a terrified dog into a situation), and left a message with the owner... and he called us back to yell at us. Yeah, sir, don't want to know what you possibly did with your dog that week I wasn't around...

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traciek88

Discussion Starter · #14 · Jan 30, 2016

Samson5261 said:
There is a guy at the dog park I go to that had his dogs vocal cords cut because he is very vocal. His bark sounds like a dieing cat now. Its really sad��
Posted via Mobile Device

That's disgusting. I'm pretty forgiving and I know this phrase is thrown around arbitrarily but if you f**king remove your dog's VOCAL CHORDS you don't deserve to have one, or any animal.
@Larkspur Did the Corso owner do anything else make you think he was abusing the dog? Or is it just that he was a really fearful animal the owner forced into scary situations? I'm just curious

Larkspur

· #15 · Jan 30, 2016

@traciek88
Aside from that first week when he was at home helping the dog get used to me, I never really associated with him. He was rather one of those super macho "don't take no bull from nobody" kind of guys... I mostly remember the dog himself. It just seemed so strange to me. At the rescue, he was apparently a very loving and friendly dog. Of course, it's common for perceived personalities to change around after being taken home. It took a whole lot to get Bru to come out with me alone... for the longest time I wasn't able to even attempt to pet him without the poor thing flinching back horribly. Took a lot of treats and time and we were making great progress... to the point where he was starting to really relax and enjoy walks and not try to pull my arm off whenever he saw anything moving. It just seemed very odd to me that I would leave for one week (as far as he let me know, the owner never did any training with the dog, everything was me) and come back to a dog that was 10x worse than when we started... backsliding is possible, but that's just... wow. And to yell at me and tell me I should have just chased and grabbed him and forced him outside. Like, dude, if that's what you do no wonder the dog is super freaked out at everything... again. I sometimes wonder how he's doing now...

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traciek88

Discussion Starter · #16 · Jan 30, 2016

Wow, that's really sad. Guy probably got the dog just to show how tough he is. But sounds like he'd run away from a playful kitten. I know someone else who adopted a terrified Mastiff mix with fear issues but he's a nice guy who went through a dog training course with me. For god's sake even Caesar Milan is gentle with fearful dogs and doesn't force them into things cruelly like that. Let's hope he gave him away because he wasn't tough enough.

Cynna

· #17 · Feb 1, 2016

The other day we were out walking and a woman with a small dog was ahead, and stopped to wait to introduce her dog - that's fine. As we got close I noticed it coughing. And coughing. And coughing.

I asked about his cough and she said he'd been doing that for a while but don't worry about it, come meet him. Um...no. She was a bit aggressive about the dogs meeting and I didn't want to get into a 'take your dog to the vet' situation, so I just said my dog wasn't friendly right now with new dogs - eep, not like me to do. But it was sounding like a colicky baby - who doesn't get that checked?

RaiderBaider

· #18 · Feb 1, 2016

My husband said something the other day that made 100% to me. To be a good dog owner, you must love taking care of dogs as much as you love dogs.

And this is me and i feel safe to say everyone here. The general populace has no inclination to learn how to co-exist with their neighbors, never mind their dog. :/

I feel it's up to us to educate people that their dog isn't just a piece of property, but a living, breathing, thinking, AND feeling being who have basic needs that must be met in order for them to have a healthy life, and help make living with a dog easier. It's ridiculous how simple this is. Give your dog exercise. Train your dog. The BIGGEST thing most dogs are lacking, in my observations, is not physical exercise but mental exercise. People don't understand that "dog owner" ACTUALLY means "dog TRAINER". Dogs never stop learning about their environment-- that's survival.

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mathilda

· #19 · Feb 1, 2016

annageckos said:
I use to know a guy who rescued Great Pyrenees and it was sadly common for dogs he got to have their vocal cords cut. If you can't deal with a dogs bark and don't want to train your dog then you shouldn't have one.

why would anyone get such a dog when they don't want a dog that barks.
they're there to keep people/animals away form their territory and family/herd...how should they do that when they wouldn't communicate.
this is common sense! I just don't get it...
it's like getting a hound breed and then being angry when it shows preydrive.

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RaiderBaider

· #20 · Feb 1, 2016

People like the looks of certain dog breeds. Beyond that, they do zero research on them. This is also the organization's problem (be it breeder, rescue, shelter) for not screening potential buyer/adopters for appropriate homes. But then if they did. A lot less dogs would be adopted. It's a vicious cycle I think

I have family with a coonhound that they are treating like she is their deceased beagle. Which she is NOT. They refuse to walk her. They feed her human food and she's already proven to be a resource guarder and has bitten my aunt. She has severe seperation anxiety. She destroys things. All because she lacks her basic needs. It's sad. They have to return her to the rescue who don't have space to take her and asked them to foster her for a while which they shouldn't be doing. They can't provide the basics. It pisses me off actually.

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