Dogs to be kept on lead.

My dog is a rescue and has never been off a lead and never will be. I have different lengths of leads to use, depending where we are and what I'm allowed to do. On holidays, some parts of beaches dogs are not allowed and I would never dream of taking her on them. The signs are there for a reason and it makes me so angry at dog owners ignoring them as it gives us all a bad name. My friend is frightened of animals and I see the state she gets into even with a bird, never mind a dog running at her. People need to understand not everyone is an animal lover and take responsibility for their pets.

'Something nasty in the woodshed' experience as a child excused her not making changes.

My grandson, who is on the Autistic spectrum is terrified of dogs and sometimes refuses to go to his local park because of this. A young girl was badly savaged in the same park a few months ago. Dog owners, including members of my family, are so selfish about this!

I have lost count of the number of times a dog has run towards me with the owner shouting, Don't worry, he/she is friendly. and I end up with muddy paw prints, slobber, snot or dog hair on my clothes or I have them sniffing around my pockets for food when all I have been doing is minding my own business walking to an appointment.

I'm petite and on one occasion I was knocked off my feet by a large, meaty labrador who ran at me head on and jumped up at my face.

I do nothing to encourage this behaviour. I don't make eye contact but it doesn't seem to make any difference.

I do not rub my muddy shoes, leave phlegm, snot or empty the contents off my hair brush onto your clothes so why do I have to tolerate this from your dogs? It's bad enough having to watch for dog shit on the pavement. Many owners still don't pick up or even if they do there's still residue on the pavement.

I don't actively dislike dogs but I don't want their attention either. What I dislike is indulgent owners who think everyone should love their dog and make a fuss of it. It's probably the fuss-making from their owners that makes them this way.

I am constantly amazed by owners who allow their dogs to run up to me and expect me to stroke and admire them. How am I to know whether a strange dog is being friendly or aggressive?
Dogs off leads ruin my walks in parks and woodland .

There seem to be a minority of incredibly stupid, selfish , rude and downright dangerous people who refuse to put their dogs on a lead, often big dogs, as though they have some right to behave as they wish without thought or consequences, these needs to be addressed by the authorities as people and dogs have been attacked and those morons walk away Scot free, totally unacceptable as is all the stupid idiots who are too lazy too take the dog poo bags home and leave them around the bin, on the floor,in the grass or hanging in bushes, disgusting

It is not unreasonable no, I have dogs and so does my daughter We always exercise off the lead as they trained to recall well. Wouldn’t dream of letting them off where the signs say no dogs off the lead or taking them to places clearly signposted no dogs at all and always clear up poo

In the USA the parks have doggy areas where they can play, have fun and poo. From what I've seen, the owners are very responsible and guide their dogs to the poo area, which has bins and pick up the poo. It is very annoying especially when a large dog is running towards you full speed and seems out of control and the owner just strolls along.

I don't think the original poster is being unreasonable at all.
If the signs say dogs are to be on leads then they should be on leads. There are too many people who don't follow rules these days.
I have a rescue Staffie from Battersea who was badly treated before she came to us and is very reactive to other dogs if they approach her, for this reason she is always on a lead. Far too often other owners allow their dogs to run up to her calling out, "They're friendly!", well mine isn't and she will lunge and bark if afraid. These people rarely have good recall for their dogs. Dogs are meant to be under their owners control and having your dog off the lead with poor recall skills is not having them under control. I have spent years and a great deal of money on a behaviourist trying to get over this issue, she is better now, but I think the problems are so deep rooted that she will never get over them.
Not everyone likes dogs, they don't want dogs running up to them "to be friendly". If I was with children I would be very wary of any approaching dogs regardless of size.
I had an incident in the car park of Scotney Castle last month, we were walking to the fields, when a woman let her gundog (pointer type) out of the back of her car not on a lead, the dog ran up to us, very big and bouncy so my dog reacted by barking, I did call out to the woman that my dog wasn't friendly but her dog was out of the car and bouncing around before she could stop it. She struggled to call her dog back and gave us a very judgmental look as if was our fault, maybe due to my breed of dog. Yet another person ignoring rules as dogs should be on leads at National Trust properties, also very dangerous letting your dog out in a car park not on a lead. This dog could have easily knocked over a child or an older person or someone with mobility issues.

Quaver22, I agree with you. They ruin my walk when I am out with my on-lead dog.

Sorry Bluebell Totally disagree, if there are no signs up dogs have as much right to exercise off the lead as humans ! Majority of dogs only get sufficient exercise when allowed to run free. Having said that if your dog is not well trained to recall, very anxious or in any way aggressive, then keep them muzzled and try and exercise them late at night or early in the morning ! Keep your dog, you and other people safe !

I'm not a 'dog person' but I don't dislike them (& I was very fond of DD's Staffie)
However, when I took my DGS1 (age 3 and unused to dogs) to have a picnic in the park - yes, lots of 'Dogs must be on a lead' signs - and a Jack Russell suddenly ran across our blanket and snatched his sandwich from his hand I yelled at the elderly lady who came wandering over the brow of the hill a few minutes later. She simply looked at me, sighed, said, 'He does that when he's hungry' and wandered off - leaving me with a hysterical toddler...! ??

Alioop

My dog is a rescue and has never been off a lead and never will be. I have different lengths of leads to use, depending where we are and what I'm allowed to do. On holidays, some parts of beaches dogs are not allowed and I would never dream of taking her on them. The signs are there for a reason and it makes me so angry at dog owners ignoring them as it gives us all a bad name. My friend is frightened of animals and I see the state she gets into even with a bird, never mind a dog running at her. People need to understand not everyone is an animal lover and take responsibility for their pets.

You sound like me Alioop! So many irresponsible dog owners around.

The PSCO won’t do anything unless there is an attack and if it’s dog on dog you’ve no chance unless you’ve money to throw at it.

There is signage but some of it is piss poor and folks don’t see them to begin with.

Mine are leaded when folks approach or other dogs not that I don’t trust mine but others as I’ve had people slap mine as they walk past shouting they are to big to be there. I’ve a giant breed.

I’m WTF and have had show downs or the dogs attacking mine. We now time our visits out or we use a secure field sadly

I live in the countryside and notice that here when people approach you with a dog they will put the dog on the lead out of courtesy. In towns and cities it doesn't appear to be the same.

My dog has bomb-proof recall and as she's 12 now she plods around harmlessly at snails pace. Despite this I would always put her on a lead where it is required or where there are people, dogs or other animals.

It would be very sad and bad for some dogs if all dogs had to be on the lead at all times. There are many places where it's possible for dogs to be free and fulfil their doggy natures to their heart's content without being harm to anyone.

Alioop

My dog is a rescue and has never been off a lead and never will be. I have different lengths of leads to use, depending where we are and what I'm allowed to do. On holidays, some parts of beaches dogs are not allowed and I would never dream of taking her on them. The signs are there for a reason and it makes me so angry at dog owners ignoring them as it gives us all a bad name. My friend is frightened of animals and I see the state she gets into even with a bird, never mind a dog running at her. People need to understand not everyone is an animal lover and take responsibility for their pets.

There is secured fields for this so they can run free.

grandtanteJE65

Never ever advocate leaving a dog alone overnight in a car ! There are many dog friendly cafes, hotels and B&Bs in this country and I think if you don’t like this then don’t visit these places, don’t outlaw then for those who love their dogs as much as their family

As a long term dog owner, I’m frequently appalled by the behaviour of some owners who don’t pick up after their dogs or fail to muzzle dogs known to bite. I agree that dogs should be on leads around children. All problems to do with acceptable/unacceptable behaviour in dogs stem from their owners and as another poster has stated, their lack of respect/consideration for others. My only caveat about dogs always being on leads is that a well-behaved, well-trained dog should be permitted some off-leash exercise. I’m fortunate to live in a semi-rural location with direct access to countryside walks where my Labradors are only leashed if children or unfamiliar dogs are present, or if I have to walk on a road with traffic. Those who live in urban areas should have access to free exercise space for their dogs and I have seen designated ‘free-exercise’ areas for dogs in local country parks. Surely more designated areas such as these is the solution?

Since there is signage, no you are not being unreasonable. However, signage is virtually useless if there's no official about to enforce it - whether that's a warning or fine.

You were brave to challenge these dog owners, some would be very abusive even if they’re in the wrong but there again others will conform. People need to understand dogs are wild animals even though they may be trained sometimes like people they have a bad day. Parks and recreation areas should be respected for dogs on leads or not at all, after all who wants to go home with dog muck on their shoes or clothes. Plus people don’t like strange dogs running up to then, sometimes jumping at you .
Also as I found this morning an owner may have a friendly dog, but the other dog may be very aggressive and fortunately was kept on a lead.

If there is a designated space for dogs to run free, the owners who ignore this are just plain ignorant. It’s so hard to convince people -some dog owners, some cyclists, some joggers - that sharing means making way for pedestrians and children.

It’s highly unlikely that the police would take action, sadly.

I suffer from Cynophobia and can’t use my local park as dogs run freely all over the place. There was signage but it’s disappeared !!

Cossy

Sorry Bluebell Totally disagree, if there are no signs up dogs have as much right to exercise off the lead as humans ! Majority of dogs only get sufficient exercise when allowed to run free. Having said that if your dog is not well trained to recall, very anxious or in any way aggressive, then keep them muzzled and try and exercise them late at night or early in the morning ! Keep your dog, you and other people safe !

Totally agree! Don't tar responsible dog owners with the same brush as irresponsible ones. Unless you are in an area where it specifically states dogs should be kept on a lead, I don't see what the problem is. We are lucky enough to live in an area where our back gate leads straight into fields and woodlands and our dogs have rarely been walked on lead. They've been trained to walk to heel without a lead and to recall.
Oh, and grandtanteJE65, I can't believe you would advocate leaving a dog in a car overnight! That's the height of irresponsibility. No dog should really be left alone in a car for any period, never mind overnight. Would you leave a child alone in a car?

I can see everyone's point of view here especially the jumping up. A friend was out walking with a group of friends when a labrador ran into her leg. She has suffered with knee pain ever since. Until my daughters large dog did the same to me I didn't understand what my friend meant by the level of pain. I felt sick and faint but luckily for me I suffered no long term difficulties

I have a small dog and am amazed by what I see sometimes. People who walk on the beach with their dog but don't rein them in as they approach toddlers walking with their families.

I am lucky where I live now as most dog owners round here are very responsible. You rarely see waste on the pavement and the local council have sensibly put in lots of poo bins that are emptied regularly.

Caleo

Elless, not all dogs are perfect Goldens! Not all owners are intelligent!

What I was trying to say is that a good owner should train their dog properly otherwise it should be kept on a lead. Before my Golden I had two British Inuits (look like wolves) these were even better behaved, they looked aggressive but were bred to be submissive and because of the way they looked I had to train them well.