So... Who's Fault Is It?

[andrewang]

Hey guys,

I recently started letting Caesar run off leash in the park as his recall is getting pretty decent and running off leash helps him poop.

Today I let Caesar off leash and he ran towards a couple of dogs to say hi. One of the dogs started attacking, as in full on attack. When Caesar whines and ran away towards me, the dog gave chase and continues attacking. I was so close to kicking the dog when the owner of the attacker stopped him and apologies. She said it must be because Caesar got too near to his ball. She apologized again and went away while I was checking Caesar to see if he was OK.

Thank goodness Caesar was OK and he managed to walk off unharmed and continued playing with other dogs.

So I just want to know, in this situation, who's at fault and what should I have done?

[persephone]

Unless your dog's recall is much better than 'pretty decent' do not let him off leash.

I'm glad no one got hurt.It must have been tense for everyone, and scary!

If you are doing this merely to toilet your dog out of your own yard ... try teaching your dog to toilet on command ..and then he will do it on lead , and in places of your choosing when you're walking him.

It will take a little time, but isn't really hard to do , and the results are SO worth it :)

One of the dogs started attacking, as in full on attack.

perhaps not , as there are no wounds onyour dog ? It may have sounded pretty full on ... but a full on attack in my experience is grabbing onto and trying to rip throat out , etc .

Edited May 13, 2013 by persephone

[BlackJaq]

Was it an off leash park?

[andrewang]

Unless your dog's recall is much better than 'pretty decent' do not let him off leash.

I'm glad no one got hurt.It must have been tense for everyone.

If you are doing this merely to toilet your dog out of your own yard ... try teaching your dog to toilet on command ..and then he will do it on lead , and in places of your choosing when you're walking him.

It will take a little time, but isn't really hard to do , and the results are SO worth it :)

He does toilet on command, but it's "smoother" for Caesar if he has a run about the park first. I would definitely be keeping him on lead for the time being now.

[andrewang]

Was it an off leash park?

Yes it was

[kelpiecuddles]

Maybe run him on a long line instead for now.

[tdierikx]

Caesar is only a young fellow, isn't he? Many young dogs don't have great manners when bounding up to other dogs and wanting to play - and some dogs react badly to the lack of tact that an exuberant pup displays when looking for a game...

A long line lead might be a good idea to let Caesar have his run without any chance of other dogs getting testy with him... at least until his recall is much better...

T.

[juice]

I understand where you are comming from, dogs who are ball obsessed to the point of defending them shouldn't be in offlead parks imho.

If your dog has no wounds it wasn't that much of an attack, alot of noise often sounds scary.

Even at offlead parks its not good manners for dogs to charge upto others, try keeping him on a long line and say hello in a calm manner, if he gets too excited take him away ,walk around to calm him down and try again, he needs to know if he is not polite he gets removed .

The level at which other dogs will tell him to mind his manners will vary, some will tolerate it, others will give a very big "get lost" which can be scary.

Edited May 13, 2013 by juice

[minimax]

I understand where you are comming from, dogs who are ball obsessed to the point of defending them shouldn't be in offlead parks imho.

If your dog has no wounds it wasn't that much of an attack, alot of noise often sounds scary.

Even at offlead parks its not good manners for dogs to charge upto others, try keeping him on a long line and say hello in a calm manner, if he gets too excited take him away ,walk around to calm him down and try again, he needs to know if he is not polite he gets removed .

The level at which other dogs will tell him to mind his manners will vary, some will tolerate it, others will give a very big "get lost" which can be scary.

I was going to say pretty much exactly this. Even if he's only a pup, manners are important and a lack of leashes doesn't mean dogs can run up and jump all over other dogs.

Not all dogs recognise the puppy licence!

[Salukifan]

Hey guys,

I recently started letting Caesar run off leash in the park as his recall is getting pretty decent and running off leash helps him poop.

Today I let Caesar off leash and he ran towards a couple of dogs to say hi. One of the dogs started attacking, as in full on attack. When Caesar whines and ran away towards me, the dog gave chase and continues attacking. I was so close to kicking the dog when the owner of the attacker stopped him and apologies. She said it must be because Caesar got too near to his ball. She apologized again and went away while I was checking Caesar to see if he was OK.

.

And was he? Any marks?

A strange dog rushing up to others is going to produce a range of responses. If the dog that chased yours off didn't actually bite him, I'd count my blessings and consider that a lesson learned.

A dog in an offlead park won't necessarily want to play with others. Best to keep meetings more controlled.

Edited May 13, 2013 by Haredown Whippets

[Sandra777]

Your fault for letting your dog rush at another dog and not being able to stop (recall) him.

The other owner's fault for not being able to stop (recall) their dog any better than you could stop (recall) yours.

Hate off leash parks with a passion.

[Dame Aussie]

Your fault for letting your dog rush at another dog and not being able to stop (recall) him.

The other owner's fault for not being able to stop (recall) their dog any better than you could stop (recall) yours.

Hate off leash parks with a passion.

Agree with this.

[RiverStar-Aura]

Definitely keep him on leash for a while yet. The hardest thing to teach a boisterous pup is to NOT rush up to other dogs in the assumption that:

other dog = oooh friend!!

Try a long leash and see how that works, but try working on making your pup calmly approach other dogs.

[chuckandsteve]

Your fault for letting your dog rush at another dog and not being able to stop (recall) him.

The other owner's fault for not being able to stop (recall) their dog any better than you could stop (recall) yours.

Hate off leash parks with a passion.

Agree with this.

Also agree with this.

[chuckandsteve]

Your fault for letting your dog rush at another dog and not being able to stop (recall) him.

The other owner's fault for not being able to stop (recall) their dog any better than you could stop (recall) yours.

Hate off leash parks with a passion.

Agree with this.

Also agree with this. Except i like off lead parks

[corvus]

Long lines in dog parks require a fair bit of vigilance and pro-active management. You're probably going to be in more trouble if your dog ties someone up and trips them over and they break a bone than if your dog annoys another dog and gets told off. It's also quite easy for innocent bystanders to cop a rope burn on their legs/ankles.

Honestly, there are minor altercations in the dog park all the time and the vast majority of the time both dogs learn something and everything settles down fine. My dogs have been on both ends and I apologise to the other owner regardless of whose dog approached whom. It's just basic good manners to acknowledge that your dog may have upset them or their dog.

[Rosetta]

If you must use a dog park - which I think are dangerous places particularly for small breed dogs - perhaps you could only take him very early or late when fewer dogs are around. I agree that long leads can be more of a problem than a benefit in a dog park.

[inez]

Long lines in dog parks require a fair bit of vigilance and pro-active management. You're probably going to be in more trouble if your dog ties someone up and trips them over and they break a bone than if your dog annoys another dog and gets told off. It's also quite easy for innocent bystanders to cop a rope burn on their legs/ankles.

Honestly, there are minor altercations in the dog park all the time and the vast majority of the time both dogs learn something and everything settles down fine. My dogs have been on both ends and I apologise to the other owner regardless of whose dog approached whom. It's just basic good manners to acknowledge that your dog may have upset them or their dog.

If the poster is incapable of keeping their dog away from tangling someone then they really have a problem with both their eyesight and hands. I love the long lines, they are so easy to not only let the dog run but recall too in an emergancy. all you do is move your hand forward fast then press the button to lock the lead and move hand back to body and repeat. that shortens the lead by 3 foot at a time.

Although as others have said, I would never use an off lead park. Especially potentially deadly for toy dogs, as the headlines so love to banner when it happens.

[persephone]

I love the long lines, they are so easy to not only let the dog run but recall too in an emergancy. all you do is move your hand forward fast then press the button to lock the lead and move hand back to body and repeat. that shortens the lead by 3 foot at a time.

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:) What you describe is actually a retractable leash .

A Long line is just that .. a very long line with a clip at one end ..and maybe a handle/loop at the other , with no mechanics to wind it back in .

Controlling a dog ..esp. a large one is different for each of these tools ..and still boils down to the fact that the owner needs to have very good reflexes, and need to also be confident their dog will recall ;)

[megan_]

Why is everyone up in arms about Caesar's recall? He DID recall and came running back to his owner.

Andrew made the mistake of not recalling Caesar soon enough. As a rule I don't let my dogs run up to strange dogs, especially if they are in a group. I also never let my dogs approach dogs with resources to guard (eg balls or food). There are many silly owners who take resource guarders to an off leash park with the resource there. It is asking for trouble. Again, the issue wasn't so much that dog's recall (although it clearly needs work), but the dog should never have had a ball at an off leash park if it attacks dogs that go near the ball.

Off leash parks can be very useful places for dogs living in confined spaces in suburbia. Not everyone lives on an acreage and I strongly believe that dogs need to stretch out and RUN sometimes.

It all depends on how you use them. I only go to unpopular, unfenced ones and only my boy goes - my girl doesn't like rude dogs, and there are too many out there. I go at unpopular times and leave if certain dogs or breeds enter (breeds that I know don't have a playing style that suits my dog). I always play a game with him when I let him off leash so he looks at me rather than runs off when his leash clips off. I watch owners and other dogs like a hawk and only let him play with dogs that I can physically stop if I need to.