What Do You Say When You See A Dog Being Mistreated?

[hankdog]

Thanks Mrs RB that's a great summary. I'll print it out for all my acquaintances who have bull breed hysteria. Actually it's causing major upheaval in the family because there's disagreement on euthing the dog. It's one case that I do think it would be a kindness.

[YippeeGirl]

Our elderly neighbour kills her dogs with kindness. They have all been fat, poorly socialised, and have all had terrible manners.

Her previous dog was an under-socialised, backyard bred, dog aggressive, white boxer. The poor dog was grossly obese but whenever we mentioned it to her, our comments would be swept aside. Of course, she always thinks our dogs were skinny, so whenever she was babysitting our previous dogs, she would overfeed them. One of our dogs died of bloat while she was babysitting it, and after telling us she completely cleared out the fridge because our dog was sad, we do wonder if that had anything to do with it.

Her present dog is this mixed small breed who is overweight by at least several kilograms, has a multitude of fear issues that are never addressed, and has some sort of allergy that results in her almost constantly scratching herself raw. Her toilet training seems to have vastly deteriorated, and I think she also has a problem with her back end as she will often yelp if you touch her there.

This dog is certainly not mistreated in the sense that she is abused or neglected. But I would say that this is certainly not a very comfortable or fulfilling existence for her.

We are very good friends with this neighbour, and we have tried countless times to help with her dogs. We have purchased Applaws dry dog food (she is a pensioner) for her to try as the dog gets fed Beneful and human scraps such as buttered toast. But she always tells us her dog won't touch any 'proper' dog dry, most likely because she still continues to fill her up on scraps. When I was looking after the dog for several days, the dog didn't get any extra food but the dry I put in the bowl. She wouldn't eat it the first night, but it was gone when I came back the next morning, and in the days following that.

However, as soon as the neighbour comes back, the dog refuses to eat the food and is instead given human scraps and crap quality dog food. She also starts having accidents in the house again because the neighbour doesn't realise you stay out with the dog until it goes to the toilet.

We gave her a list of questions to take to the vet about the dog's allergies. She was given some tablets, and my mum had to give them to the dog because she would snap and bite her owner. In the end, it went nowhere and the poor dog still scratches herself almost non-stop.

The son and his family who also live with her, recently picked up a doodle looking thing from somewhere. When it came it was all cut and bleeding from being badly clipped. However, they haven't had it clipped since and every time I go over there I tell them that their dog needs clipping soon as she is going to start getting matted. I doubt they even brush the poor thing.

Sadly, some people just seem content to wallow in their ignorance. Nothing you will say is ever going to get through to them. I know I will never change my neighbour's mind. So I just don't talk about the care of her dogs any more.

I've never seen anyone being physically violent with their dogs while out. So I'm not sure what I would do or say in that regard. As a petite woman, I would probably be quite scared to confront a strange man or group of people who are abusing their dog in such a manner.

Sorry I did not realise my post was so long :laugh:

Edited September 1, 2014 by YippeeGirl

[hankdog]

It's one of the sad things about the easily bought soon forgotten poodle mixes that they need cost care that doesn't happen. I've been told before that because they're not purebred they don't need grooming.

[VizslaMomma]

its owner yelled its name and yelled NO BAD BAHHH BAHHH whilst pinning it to the ground and also whacked it over the nose

Guess who's had Bark Busters in... *sigh*

The last time I saw someone alpha roll their dog, I asked them if they'd like to try it on my Rotti/Pittie girl - with the warning that she'd tear them a new one if they tried it... they declined the offer, and stopped doing it to their own dog while I was there at least.

T.

I thought Cesar Milan did the alpha roll and it's barkbusters that chuck chains around and say bah. :)

Both I think nowdays. Have seen this from CM fans & Bark Busters clients.

Horrible, regardless.

Reminds me of the time years ago, a friend tried that with a new entire Mareema male that had just come out of quarantine.

We both know who got alpha rolled.

[BarbedWire]

Our elderly neighbour kills her dogs with kindness. They have all been fat, poorly socialised, and have all had terrible manners.

Her previous dog was an under-socialised, backyard bred, dog aggressive, white boxer. The poor dog was grossly obese but whenever we mentioned it to her, our comments would be swept aside. Of course, she always thinks our dogs were skinny, so whenever she was babysitting our previous dogs, she would overfeed them. One of our dogs died of bloat while she was babysitting it, and after telling us she completely cleared out the fridge because our dog was sad, we do wonder if that had anything to do with it.

Her present dog is this mixed small breed who is overweight by at least several kilograms, has a multitude of fear issues that are never addressed, and has some sort of allergy that results in her almost constantly scratching herself raw. Her toilet training seems to have vastly deteriorated, and I think she also has a problem with her back end as she will often yelp if you touch her there.

This dog is certainly not mistreated in the sense that she is abused or neglected. But I would say that this is certainly not a very comfortable or fulfilling existence for her.

We are very good friends with this neighbour, and we have tried countless times to help with her dogs. We have purchased Applaws dry dog food (she is a pensioner) for her to try as the dog gets fed Beneful and human scraps such as buttered toast. But she always tells us her dog won't touch any 'proper' dog dry, most likely because she still continues to fill her up on scraps. When I was looking after the dog for several days, the dog didn't get any extra food but the dry I put in the bowl. She wouldn't eat it the first night, but it was gone when I came back the next morning, and in the days following that.

However, as soon as the neighbour comes back, the dog refuses to eat the food and is instead given human scraps and crap quality dog food. She also starts having accidents in the house again because the neighbour doesn't realise you stay out with the dog until it goes to the toilet.

We gave her a list of questions to take to the vet about the dog's allergies. She was given some tablets, and my mum had to give them to the dog because she would snap and bite her owner. In the end, it went nowhere and the poor dog still scratches herself almost non-stop.

The son and his family who also live with her, recently picked up a doodle looking thing from somewhere. When it came it was all cut and bleeding from being badly clipped. However, they haven't had it clipped since and every time I go over there I tell them that their dog needs clipping soon as she is going to start getting matted. I doubt they even brush the poor thing.

Sadly, some people just seem content to wallow in their ignorance. Nothing you will say is ever going to get through to them. I know I will never change my neighbour's mind. So I just don't talk about the care of her dogs any more.

I've never seen anyone being physically violent with their dogs while out. So I'm not sure what I would do or say in that regard. As a petite woman, I would probably be quite scared to confront a strange man or group of people who are abusing their dog in such a manner.

Sorry I did not realise my post was so long :laugh:

Thankyou for this Yippee Girl. This is what I was thinking of in my OP.

I was once at the groomers and a woman brought in a rotti to be washed. It was incredibly obese, must have been about 80 kg and the owner was so proud of it and seemed to think an overweight rotti was what all rotti owners want. I wondered how the groomers were going to manage such an enormous dog. They would have needed special lifting equipment and an enormous tub.

[BarbedWire]

It's one of the sad things about the easily bought soon forgotten poodle mixes that they need cost care that doesn't happen. I've been told before that because they're not purebred they don't need grooming.

Because of the marketing I think a lot of oodle owners think they are easy care which they interpret as meaning they don't need grooming. Having a matted coat would be so painful. It would be like having your hair pulled all the time.

[BarbedWire]

its owner yelled its name and yelled NO BAD BAHHH BAHHH whilst pinning it to the ground and also whacked it over the nose

Guess who's had Bark Busters in... *sigh*

The last time I saw someone alpha roll their dog, I asked them if they'd like to try it on my Rotti/Pittie girl - with the warning that she'd tear them a new one if they tried it... they declined the offer, and stopped doing it to their own dog while I was there at least.

T.

I thought Cesar Milan did the alpha roll and it's barkbusters that chuck chains around and say bah. :)

Both I think nowdays. Have seen this from CM fans & Bark Busters clients.

Horrible, regardless.

Reminds me of the time years ago, a friend tried that with a new entire Mareema male that had just come out of quarantine.

We both know who got alpha rolled.

It must be catchy because I say 'bah' to my dogs when they are about to eat something I don't want them to eat, such as other dogs' or cats' droppings. It's a good word to express disgust.

[tdierikx]

I use a growly "aarrgghh" with my girls... or "leave it!" in a deep growly voice.

I'd never try to alpha roll a strange dog... that would just be stupid IMHO. I knew my boy well, and knew he wasn't likely to bite me no matter what I did - but he needed to be stopped from being the pushy and obnoxious turd he was being at the time and nothing else was working... funnily enough, it must have been exactly what he needed in order to learn that mummy wasn't going to put up with his crap... I flipped him over and growled in his face, then let him go, that's it - pretty much the same way my girls did with obnoxious foster pups.

T.

[YippeeGirl]

Thankyou for this Yippee Girl. This is what I was thinking of in my OP.

I was once at the groomers and a woman brought in a rotti to be washed. It was incredibly obese, must have been about 80 kg and the owner was so proud of it and seemed to think an overweight rotti was what all rotti owners want. I wondered how the groomers were going to manage such an enormous dog. They would have needed special lifting equipment and an enormous tub.

Yes it's sad. People always think German Shepherds (the breed I have) should be massive. However, usually I find they are either grossly underestimating their dog's true weight/size, or their dog is overweight.

There's no way I'd be alpha rolling a dog I didn't know. Our dogs don't care what I do with them, but there are some dogs I have known that would certainly take exception.

When we were at the vet not that long ago a puppy class in, and one owner of a very small dog was talking about how they were biting their puppy to show it who is boss. I almost died laughing on the spot.

[Yonjuro]

I really don't like saying anything to other owners, but I have done when absolutely necessary...

I had a minor incident at the fenced in dog park when a westie attacked my 24kg Husky. It was a bit vicious but my dog wasn't hurt, The man with the Westie, folded up his lead and was about to belt his little dog. I just said "DONT!" to him in no uncertain terms and he stopped. He later came in by himself and apologised to me.

There was another chap with a very nervous mid sized dog in the same off lead park and he had him on lead in the middle of the park and the poor dog would be in-between the owners legs and would snap at any dogs that approached. He slapped his dog on the mouth. I told him that this was not going to help his dog overcome the fear and he can either try a short period of off lead in this area or take his dog out. Bearing in mind this is purpose built off-lead enclosure. He was so over protective that the dog must have been super stressed out so he eventually left. I didn't really want to say what I thought, as it would have simply been, "leave the park - now" as it is not my place to order someone around and believe that giving them the opportunity to make the decision on what would be best for their dog would be more diplomatic :D

I really think that lots of owners will smack their dogs as a way of showing another owner that they realise their dog has done something inappropriate. It is a fine line between someone who just doesn't care and someone that cares but doesn't know what to do or how to react.

If my dog is rude...and on occasions he can be, especially being an early teenage husky, I will clip on his lead and take him to a far corner of the park and get him to sit, then drop to calm him and then let him off again. If he is rude again - I will repeat and say "If you are going to be rude, we will have to go home" - now I know he doesn't really understand this but it tells the others at the park that I am keeping a good eye on his behaviour. If he does the third misdemeanour - I will clip his lead on and say - "okay, lets go, no more play" again the words are more for those around us to know I won't just let him create havoc. Having said that if the misdemeanour is more than being 'a bit rude' he will get marched out immediately.

Again my thoughts are that I believe that there are quite a lot of owners who just don't know what to do - they are shocked, worried, embarrassed or perhaps nervous and they think a slap shows others that they know that their dog has erred

[BarbedWire]

I use a growly "aarrgghh" with my girls... or "leave it!" in a deep growly voice.

I'd never try to alpha roll a strange dog... that would just be stupid IMHO. I knew my boy well, and knew he wasn't likely to bite me no matter what I did - but he needed to be stopped from being the pushy and obnoxious turd he was being at the time and nothing else was working... funnily enough, it must have been exactly what he needed in order to learn that mummy wasn't going to put up with his crap... I flipped him over and growled in his face, then let him go, that's it - pretty much the same way my girls did with obnoxious foster pups.

T.

That's a good word T. If you say bah in a deep growly voice it sounds like a bleating sheep. :D

[BarbedWire]

Thankyou for this Yippee Girl. This is what I was thinking of in my OP.

I was once at the groomers and a woman brought in a rotti to be washed. It was incredibly obese, must have been about 80 kg and the owner was so proud of it and seemed to think an overweight rotti was what all rotti owners want. I wondered how the groomers were going to manage such an enormous dog. They would have needed special lifting equipment and an enormous tub.

Yes it's sad. People always think German Shepherds (the breed I have) should be massive. However, usually I find they are either grossly underestimating their dog's true weight/size, or their dog is overweight.

There's no way I'd be alpha rolling a dog I didn't know. Our dogs don't care what I do with them, but there are some dogs I have known that would certainly take exception.

When we were at the vet not that long ago a puppy class in, and one owner of a very small dog was talking about how they were biting their puppy to show it who is boss. I almost died laughing on the spot.

I hope the pup has had its rabies shots. :D

[BarbedWire]

I really don't like saying anything to other owners, but I have done when absolutely necessary...

I had a minor incident at the fenced in dog park when a westie attacked my 24kg Husky. It was a bit vicious but my dog wasn't hurt, The man with the Westie, folded up his lead and was about to belt his little dog. I just said "DONT!" to him in no uncertain terms and he stopped. He later came in by himself and apologised to me.

There was another chap with a very nervous mid sized dog in the same off lead park and he had him on lead in the middle of the park and the poor dog would be in-between the owners legs and would snap at any dogs that approached. He slapped his dog on the mouth. I told him that this was not going to help his dog overcome the fear and he can either try a short period of off lead in this area or take his dog out. Bearing in mind this is purpose built off-lead enclosure. He was so over protective that the dog must have been super stressed out so he eventually left. I didn't really want to say what I thought, as it would have simply been, "leave the park - now" as it is not my place to order someone around and believe that giving them the opportunity to make the decision on what would be best for their dog would be more diplomatic :D

I really think that lots of owners will smack their dogs as a way of showing another owner that they realise their dog has done something inappropriate. It is a fine line between someone who just doesn't care and someone that cares but doesn't know what to do or how to react.

If my dog is rude...and on occasions he can be, especially being an early teenage husky, I will clip on his lead and take him to a far corner of the park and get him to sit, then drop to calm him and then let him off again. If he is rude again - I will repeat and say "If you are going to be rude, we will have to go home" - now I know he doesn't really understand this but it tells the others at the park that I am keeping a good eye on his behaviour. If he does the third misdemeanour - I will clip his lead on and say - "okay, lets go, no more play" again the words are more for those around us to know I won't just let him create havoc. Having said that if the misdemeanour is more than being 'a bit rude' he will get marched out immediately.

Again my thoughts are that I believe that there are quite a lot of owners who just don't know what to do - they are shocked, worried, embarrassed or perhaps nervous and they think a slap shows others that they know that their dog has erred

What a wonderful post Yonjuro. So much wisdom, especially the bolded part.

[tdierikx]

I bit a poodle once... but it had bitten me first! It's owner thought that biting strangers was acceptable behaviour from his unleashed dog... he soon learned to leash his dog to "protect" it from strangers that bite back... lol!

T.

[Yonjuro]

I really don't like saying anything to other owners, but I have done when absolutely necessary...

I had a minor incident at the fenced in dog park when a westie attacked my 24kg Husky. It was a bit vicious but my dog wasn't hurt, The man with the Westie, folded up his lead and was about to belt his little dog. I just said "DONT!" to him in no uncertain terms and he stopped. He later came in by himself and apologised to me.

There was another chap with a very nervous mid sized dog in the same off lead park and he had him on lead in the middle of the park and the poor dog would be in-between the owners legs and would snap at any dogs that approached. He slapped his dog on the mouth. I told him that this was not going to help his dog overcome the fear and he can either try a short period of off lead in this area or take his dog out. Bearing in mind this is purpose built off-lead enclosure. He was so over protective that the dog must have been super stressed out so he eventually left. I didn't really want to say what I thought, as it would have simply been, "leave the park - now" as it is not my place to order someone around and believe that giving them the opportunity to make the decision on what would be best for their dog would be more diplomatic :D

I really think that lots of owners will smack their dogs as a way of showing another owner that they realise their dog has done something inappropriate. It is a fine line between someone who just doesn't care and someone that cares but doesn't know what to do or how to react.

If my dog is rude...and on occasions he can be, especially being an early teenage husky, I will clip on his lead and take him to a far corner of the park and get him to sit, then drop to calm him and then let him off again. If he is rude again - I will repeat and say "If you are going to be rude, we will have to go home" - now I know he doesn't really understand this but it tells the others at the park that I am keeping a good eye on his behaviour. If he does the third misdemeanour - I will clip his lead on and say - "okay, lets go, no more play" again the words are more for those around us to know I won't just let him create havoc. Having said that if the misdemeanour is more than being 'a bit rude' he will get marched out immediately.

Again my thoughts are that I believe that there are quite a lot of owners who just don't know what to do - they are shocked, worried, embarrassed or perhaps nervous and they think a slap shows others that they know that their dog has erred

What a wonderful post Yonjuro. So much wisdom, especially the bolded part.

Thanks very much Sarsaparilla, I really appreciate it :)

[louise6616]

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Edited September 3, 2014 by louise6616

[BarbedWire]

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Edited September 3, 2014 by sarsaparilla

[louise6616]

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Edited September 3, 2014 by louise6616

[Guest crazydoglady99]

I'd like to think i would say something appropriate.. but it always happens so quickly!

Generally people aren't receptive to advice anyway, unless it comes from trusted source.

[BarbedWire]

I'd like to think i would say something appropriate.. but it always happens so quickly!

Generally people aren't receptive to advice anyway, unless it comes from trusted source.

I agree about the right timing, and some people just have an air of authority about them don't they? I'm a hothead who lets fly first and then later I regret it so I achieve very little I'm afraid. That poor kid I refer to in my OP probably did not know what had hit him. I felt bad later.

Welcome to DOL. I think this thread has probably just about run its course, but I did not want to leave your post unanswered since it is your first. :)