AIBU to scream and panic when knocked over in the dark suddenly?

Some people shouldn't be allowed dogs. I'm sorry but dogs should be kept on the lead and not be allowed to run free. Many times I've seen dogs harassing children other dogs etc their owners nowhere to be seen. It must have been a dreadful scary experience for you. I think because of the situation we are in we are all feeling a bit more vulnerable and fragile. A few weeks ago I got stuck in the lift at the complex l live in l absolutely lost it. I think if that had happened at any other time l would have coped with it calmly. Perhaps your partner can walk the dog at night until you feel able to go out after dark again. I hope you get your confidence back soon so that you can take your dog out and enjoy much needed exercise and fresh air. There must be something wrong with this person to accuse you of taking the dog. Why won't people take responsibility for their actions or at the very least apologize. I really hope you will feel better soon.

I hope you are feeling better now. I'm arthritic too and have poor balance and know being knocked over can be painful.

I love Lavazza Oro and Asda often have it for £3

Talking about dog owners in the way some people are on here would be totally unacceptable if you swapped colour, creed or race for the words "dog owners". As for the post by Phoenix, who quite rightly the defended majority dog owners, talking about ^ the little old lady with her spaniel/Yorkshire terrier/Labrador (whatever) is the same as the young lad with his collie/staffie/mongrel?^ is also stereo typing. I see lots of people of both descriptors and you get varying degrees of training, social responsibility and politeness from both.
Lavazza1st, (our favourite coffee too) I am so sorry you are going through a traumatic time. If you don't know what it is like for somebody to suffer PTSD, it can be difficult to understand the impact of what such an incident can have on you.
As for the dog owner, on the face of it, it was ignorant of him not to apologise or be "in charge" of his dog. However, he was probably panicking too and sometimes rational thought goes out of the window. For all we know, that dog might be the only thing he has to love in his life or maybe his kids' dog. Dog theft is so prevalent these days, especially if the dog was a particular breed, losing it might have left him equally overflowing with adrenaline.
Just for the record, I am a dog owner, I do pick up after him, he has been trained, I do get him back on lead when I meet people on our walks and I would be totally mortified if he hurt anyone in any way. However, I also meet loads of people who behave totally inappropriately towards my dog too. Parents who let their children touch him without asking, people who start grabbing their little dogs and shouting before he is anywhere near them and cyclists who whizz past us leaving a hair's breadth between us. If anything happened, somehow it would probably be "the dog's fault"!

It really doesn't help to start winding up the already defensive people by suggesting that the poster is false.
I would like to agree with the large number of people who have said that the dog was out of control and the owner irresponsible.

I too have suffered dogs jumping up and messing up my clothing; one of my children was terrified by a terrier, who was 'only being friendly' jumping up and nipping; I've been nearly knocked off my feet by a dog off the lead and received an aggressive response when I asked for an apology. I've seen a dog worrying sheep with a useless screaming dog owner standing helplessly by.

So many dog owners now don't know how to train dogs or that they have a responsibility to keep them under control and not a nuisance to others.
I'd report this to the police or the suggestion above about using a local Facebook group to make this public is a good one.

What a horrible experience Lava and it says it all that the dog owner was on his phone instead of watching out for the dog - so typical these days, I'm afraid. Hope you are feeling better.

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Maybe if you looked on your local Facebook page there may be some news about the dog still missing or hopefully found and that would give you piece of mind.

I hope you are not too bruised and shaken up.

What a very nasty experience, I hope you are feeling better.
Please don’t let this stop you going out. This must be a rare experience. I presume it has never happened before and the chances are it will never happen again. Do you use a stick when you are walking to give you a bit more stability?

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Lavazza I really sympathise, it must have been very frightening, you're not being silly. I hope you can recover from the fright and regain some confidence. Go well.

Maybe contact the dog warden? It might have happened before?

The possibility of the blasted dog being lost would have been the least of my worries.

I have also had experiences of out of control dogs jumping up at me, with the owners assuring me that ‘they are only being friendly’

You had every right to be angry with the owner.

Regardless of who should have been doing what, it is a good sound self-preservation instinct to scream when something unexpected and possibly dangerous happens. If there was no danger, no one has been harmed by your unnecessary scream. If there was, it might save your life. A dog owner can't really blame someone else for their dog running off. Maybe she should have had it on the lead or maybe she should have trained it not to run up to strangers (you might have been a dog hater with a knife) or maybe train it not to be scared of sudden noises and so on and so forth. Who knows. Anyway glad to hear no serious injuries involved.

Being a dog owner myself I really can't believe how horrible this man was to you. I would of been mortified and offered to get you checked over. I only have a small dog who is always on her lead. Who lets a dog loose especially in the dark, it could get hit by a car. I hope you feel more yourself in a couple of days and it doesn't stop you going for your walks. This man should be totally ashamed of himself. I lost my mum to a fall, a lady rushing past her knocked into her and she tripped, hitting her head, and got a bleed on her brain from it. The woman didn't even stop to check she was ok. Some selfish people about nowadays, no care for others. Take care of yourself.

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The possibility of the blasted dog being lost would have been the least of my worries.
Perhaps not for the owner though.
As Lavazza had her partner there to help her too.

I still can't get over the fact that the dog owner accused you of stealing his dog when you're prone on the floor!!
Where were you supposed to have hidden a large dog?

Moving the irresponsible dog owner aside, I had a husband who would spin around and blame anyone else for anything that went "wrong" - an example being when he was driving in thick fog with our young teenage son beside him and was hit from behind by another vehicle. As my (and he's now ex) husband got out to examine the damage the car behind backed up, and drove around him, off and away. And my son was blamed for not getting the vehicle registration number ...

Luckoldbeethoven
I've read and read the post by icanhandthemback which would be the one above mine but can't see where anyone is saying what you are accusing people of.

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What an awful experience for you. Its not your fault at all that the dog ran off nor that the dog knocked you over. What a very unreasonable, stupid, uncaring dog owner...not caring for the harm it done you and transferring the blame onto you regarding his lack of supervising his dog whilst out walking it.
I would think about reporting him to the Police...its obviously one of the owners dog walking haunts... he needs to be spoken too and warned about his attitude and to take responsibility for his horrible behaviour towards you and be told how it has affected you. Dont let him away with it...take back control which will help regain your confidence. No way are you to blame for any of this!! I hope you will start to feel better soon. xx