# What to do if your dog is attacked?



## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

I think one of the biggest fears of small dog owners is-what's the right thing to do if my dog is attacked? I have though about it especially since getting a second dog. Riley can be reactive around big dogs so I am careful when walking them to either walk the other way or keep him on a short leash on the opposite side when passing. We were hiking yesterday when a husband and wife with 2 big dogs were passing in the opposite direction, before I even knew what was happening, the dog with the wife lunged and had Riley in his mouth. Turns out she had her dog on a flexi leash! He looked like he was about to shake him so I bent down and elbowed the dog as hard as I could in the head and scooped Riley up. The dog jumped on my back and even though I had Riley held tight to my chest with both arms, the dog was still holding Riley's whole body in his mouth trying to tear him out of my arms. As I was turning to get away, the dogs flexi leash wrapped around my body like a mummy and I could not even kick the dog away. It was the scariest few minutes of my life and that dog would have had to bite my arm off before I would let go of Riley. Riley is fine and this is him a few minutes later enjoying the view at the top of the mountain (truly living in the moment  ). I know this could have ended very badly. My groomer gave me a good tip-I should have stepped on his back paws and put my weight on it. I want to make sure I am prepared should this ever happen again. Does anyone have any good tips/suggestions on how best to handle a situation like this?


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

How terrible!!!! I am so glad he is ok. Good for you elbowing the dog in the face. Fred can be reactive with big dogs. This in turn, makes Scudder reactive. I am very careful with large dogs. I keep them close to me on the leash or I often pick them up if the trail is tight. I also carry bear mace. I will not hesitate to mace a dog…….If I couldn't get to the mace fast enough, I like to think I would kick the dog! We have to protect our babies

So happy he wasn't hurt!

Forgot to mention, when I see a big dog coming, I often shout out to the person letting them know my guys might react. They don't do it with small dogs, just certain large dogs.


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

What a frightening experience. I am glad you are both ok.


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

That is scary, glad to hear everything turned out okay. I posted a while back that I was, I guess, attacked by an unleashed pitbull mix that I kicked in the head before he got to my two. I had enough time to put them behind me and kicking was my first reaction. The dog whimpered and turned around and ran back to the stupid owner chasing it. Timmy is reactive to larger dogs too when we are out walking so I am on the alert most times. Some people are so stupid. :frusty: Oh and if I see someone walking towards me with a flexi-leash I normally go the other way, big dog or not. I only use flexi leashes at night when I take my two out back to do their business, I can't stand them for public use they unsafe for dogs and people.


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## Cody010414 (Mar 23, 2014)

How terrifying for both of you! It sounds like it happened in a flash. It makes me think that I should pick Cody up whenever we pass a big dog.


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## NickieTwo (Jun 17, 2013)

Did your vet check Riley? Years ago I took my first dog to training classes. There were about a dozen dogs of various sizes and I was careful not to get my dog, a siberian huskey, close to the several little dogs. She did great with both people and dogs, but... didn't want to take any chances. What I should have worried about was the doberman in class. It would growl at my dog any time we walked by and we did that as seldom as possible. The instructor insisted that either my dog or I were doing something to cause this. We weren't. The problem occured when we first had to do off leash recall. When my dog started to me, the dobe went after her and grabbed her which of course was "my fault". We then found out that the dog was "attack trained" and the owner was the instructor's best friend. We dropped out of the class and my dog continued to be very well tempered with both people and dogs. Months later our vet discoved a healed puncture wound on her head which he was sure was made by a tooth.


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## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

Thanks everyone, I didn't take him to the vet but maybe I should have. I will call Monday and tell him what happened. I took them to their groomer right afterwards and she checked him and found no injuries. I checked him again today and I didn't see any bruises. 
My friend talked me in to taking them on a hike again today and I'm glad she did. I don't want him (or me) to be afraid. I did take spray with me and Riley did great 

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

How horrible!! So happy things turned out ok.


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## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Ugh yeah it sucks when people aren't responsible with their dogs. I recently discovered we have an aggressive and reactive German shepherd in our condo building. He was lunging & barking at little Archer as we went into the elevator. Luckily we haven't run into them again. I won't automatically pick him up, as I don't want to make him more afraid, but when they are that out-matched I guess you have to be ready to. Lots of people around my neighbourhood have little dogs too, and other than the German shepherd they have been more reactive on the whole. People just tolerate little dogs growling and making a scene way more than bigger dogs I find...


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

I know some folks will carry an umbrella just in case (to beat the other dog).
I had a german shepherd come at us once from someone's backyard. I did my best to sound authoritative with a stern (and probably very scared NO). The dog eventually backed off.

Our hav's are extremely vulnerable to all predators.
We had a forum member whose hav did not make it after a pit bull attack.
It's just not as easy as picking them up - some of these on-attack dog will stop at nothing, whatever their motive.

It all comes down to being able to control your dog as a dog owner and there are some tiny 98 pound women walking big dogs and just can not, or don't want to, don't know how.


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## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

gelbergirl said:


> I know some folks will carry an umbrella just in case (to beat the other dog).
> I had a german shepherd come at us once from someone's backyard. I did my best to sound authoritative with a stern (and probably very scared NO). The dog eventually backed off.
> 
> Our hav's are extremely vulnerable to all predators.
> ...


Oh that's so sad.  I have a feeling this could, conversely, be more of a problem in more rural areas- in the city, there are tons of dogs we see and meet every day, and people are more likely to report off-leash problems or aggression problems to animal control. Also the dogs and owners in many cases HAVE to learn to cope... and we have access to lots of trainers and classes. I think in rural areas (esp where my parents live) dogs don't see each other as often, and there is less enforcement for breaking leash laws and so on. So could be easier to get into trouble. Don't get me wrong though there are scary dogs/owners all over the place.

Around here, I always worry about one of the many bald eagles swooping in! I would love to let Archer off-leash at a beach but I am very cautious about that!


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## Deacon Blues (Nov 22, 2013)

A spray can of Halt like the mailmen carry might come in handy (for all of us). http://amzn.com/B000E4Q7BS


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## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

gelbergirl said:


> I know some folks will carry an umbrella just in case (to beat the other dog).
> I had a german shepherd come at us once from someone's backyard. I did my best to sound authoritative with a stern (and probably very scared NO). The dog eventually backed off.


That is a mistake I made that I will remember if it ever happens again. I should have used a low authoritative voice and said "No" or "Off". I was screaming when the dog was trying to pull Riley out of my arms and I think that may have escalated the situation.

Someone else told me there are sensitive areas like the ears (twist as hard as you can), eyes and throat that may help make the dog release their hold on your dog.

Thanks for sharing all this great information.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Deacon Blues said:


> A spray can of Halt like the mailmen carry might come in handy (for all of us). http://amzn.com/B000E4Q7BS


We carry one regularly when walking Kodi, after we got mobbed by two loose yellow labs who took down my 6'2" husband last fall. The owners said they were "just playing"!


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## Carefulove (Mar 20, 2009)

I don't have any good advice, the two times my dogs (not my havies, but my previous dogs) have been attached, I have reacted on pure instincts and both times, I have been lucky not to get bitten.

The first time, a lab/Doberman mix (HUGE DOG) attached my Rocky at night, while I was walking him. In Cuba, people let their dogs roam free, and this dog (his name was Cacho) was always harassing people and dogs alike. I remember grabbing him by the side of his face and getting between him and Rocky, I then tucked Rocky under me and pushed Cacho away. That seemed to work since the dog (Cacho) knew me and backed off.

The second time, a friend of mine had a German Shepherd and we were at a beach house together. She had her dog, I had mine but we kept them separate since they did not get along very well. I had just walked to the beach when she showed up with her dog, her GS ran to Rocky and grabbed him by the neck, my instincts kicked in and I picked up the GS by the scruff of the neck and back and literally threw him about 5 feet up and away. He landed in the water, by the time he got his footing, I had scooped Rocky up and thanks God the GS did not pursue him any further, otherwise, he would have knocked me out, dog and all.

The best thing to do is being completely aware of your surroundings when walking a dog. Also knowing the signs of aggression in a dog is very helpful. If you see a dog coming, observe him for his reaction when he/she spots your dog. At the first sign of aggression, either take a different route, stop or scoop your pooch up and walk the other way.


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

Glad you and your baby are ok. What was the other dog's owner doing while all this was going on?


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## 1plus2havs (Jan 29, 2010)

Im glad you and riley are both ok.

I was just thinking about this and decided that im going to bring a retractable metal rod with me everytime I'll walk my dogs. The reason behind my decision is because my friend who has a german sherpherd mix dog (Raki) was attacked by two dogs outside her house (a mastiff and a pitpull) just this monday. She was helpless and was not able to do anything. The mastiff got hold of Raki's right hind leg and the pitbull help by biting at raki's side. Apparently, the owners were not aware that their dogs got away. My friend was just about to take her dog for his morning walk when this happened. The poor dog was badly hurt . After a day at the vet, he was cleaned, stitched up and ended up going home with 3 drains from 3 different deep wound sites, it was really heartbreaking. My friend was not hurt but was deeply traumatized from the incident and kept blaming herself because she was not able to do anything to help her dog. The owners of the dogs are paying for the vet bill but what makes me so mad about this is that apparently this is not the first time that their dogs got loose in the neighborhood. They need to do something about it. What will happen next if those dogs got loose again and the next time they encountered a dog being walk by a child/teenager?!!! 

Sorry for venting, but I just needed that. I helped my friend and her family get raki almost 2 years ago from a local shelter, they dont have a lot of experience about dogs so they asked me to check raki for them. This incident, just made me so sad.


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## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

misstray said:


> Glad you and your baby are ok. What was the other dog's owner doing while all this was going on?


She was calling the dogs name and pulling on the leash but because it was a flexi leash and wrapped around me, all she was really doing was wrapping me tighter  She did eventually drop the leash and grab the dogs collar and pull him off.

Before this happened, I honestly believed I would be able to handle this type of situation. Now I realize that is not the case, this dog was stronger than me and it really scared me.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

1plus2havs said:


> Im glad you and riley are both ok.
> 
> I was just thinking about this and decided that im going to bring a retractable metal rod with me everytime I'll walk my dogs. The reason behind my decision is because my friend who has a german sherpherd mix dog (Raki) was attacked by two dogs outside her house (a mastiff and a pitpull) just this monday. She was helpless and was not able to do anything. The mastiff got hold of Raki's right hind leg and the pitbull help by biting at raki's side. Apparently, the owners were not aware that their dogs got away. My friend was just about to take her dog for his morning walk when this happened. The poor dog was badly hurt . After a day at the vet, he was cleaned, stitched up and ended up going home with 3 drains from 3 different deep wound sites, it was really heartbreaking. My friend was not hurt but was deeply traumatized from the incident and kept blaming herself because she was not able to do anything to help her dog. The owners of the dogs are paying for the vet bill but what makes me so mad about this is that apparently this is not the first time that their dogs got loose in the neighborhood. They need to do something about it. What will happen next if those dogs got loose again and the next time they encountered a dog being walk by a child/teenager?!!!
> 
> Sorry for venting, but I just needed that. I helped my friend and her family get raki almost 2 years ago from a local shelter, they dont have a lot of experience about dogs so they asked me to check raki for them. This incident, just made me so sad.


The spray is a MUCH better option. It can't do serious, lasting, physical ham to either dog or to a human and keeps the dog MUCH further away from you and your dog than any physical weapon. Once the dogs are engaged, it is very hard to hit the right one, and you can end up being bitten by either one if you get in the middle of it.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Pipersmom said:


> She was calling the dogs name and pulling on the leash but because it was a flexi leash and wrapped around me, all she was really doing was wrapping me tighter  She did eventually drop the leash and grab the dogs collar and pull him off.
> 
> Before this happened, I honestly believed I would be able to handle this type of situation. Now I realize that is not the case, this dog was stronger than me and it really scared me.


Well being wrapped up with him by a flexi couldn't have helped your position either! Some people are so stupid. I feel bad for both of you, and I'm glad you are both (at least physically!) OK!


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

Pipersmom said:


> She was calling the dogs name and pulling on the leash but because it was *a flexi leash and wrapped around me*, all she was really doing was wrapping me tighter  She did eventually drop the leash and grab the dogs collar and pull him off.
> 
> Before this happened, I honestly believed I would be able to handle this type of situation. Now I realize that is not the case, this dog was stronger than me and it really scared me.


These leashes are dangerous - try to stay away from people with them, many do not know how to use them correctly IMO.


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## Miss Rosa (Jan 22, 2014)

*Bring a spray of some sort-*

Wow I am glad your baby is okay. It is very dangerous to get in between two dogs in a fight because either of them could nip you if you do. This happened to my mother many years ago she ended up getting bit on her head and needed 5 stitches. I think it is a great idea to bring some kind of spray with you. We have to understand that animals are animals and do things instinctively. Be prepared and enjoy your walks.


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Miss Rosa said:


> Wow I am glad your baby is okay. It is very dangerous to get in between two dogs in a fight because either of them could nip you if you do. This happened to my mother many years ago she ended up getting bit on her head and needed 5 stitches. I think it is a great idea to bring some kind of spray with you. We have to understand that animals are animals and do things instinctively. Be prepared and enjoy your walks.


Miss Rosa - it was entirely inappropriate to include a link to Piddle Place when this thread has nothing to do with potty training. This is a thread about dogs being attacked so you trying to market a certain company's product to Havanese Forum members is not OK.


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## Miss Rosa (Jan 22, 2014)

This story I told about my other is true and I'm sorry if I stepped out of bounds but my mother bled a lot because it was on her head. The dog that bit her was a Doberman trying to chew up her little black dog. Sorry about the inconvience,


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Miss Rosa said:


> This story I told about my other is true and I'm sorry if I stepped out of bounds but my mother bled a lot because it was on her head. The dog that bit her was a Doberman trying to chew up her little black dog. Sorry about the inconvience,


You went to the trouble to go to the advanced settings page to include a hyperlink to a site to sell a specific product, which is something you do a lot. Your action was very deliberate, so even though potty training methods have nothing to do with your mother's injury or dog attacks, you still tried to covertly market/sell something to HF members. This is what I object to. My guess is you make money if we click on that link; otherwise, why else would you put it in all your posts, over and over and over again?


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## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Had the German Shepherd lunging & growling at me & Archer again recently. Decided to speak with the owners non- confrontationally if I get an opportunity where the dogs aren't around. Also got approached by an offleash pitbull on a dark street at night, that the owner tried to verbally stop and was unable to; and the owner yelled at me for picking my dog up (The owner was uh, for lack of a better term, an undesirable). I need to order spray shield. I had no idea how much conflict having a dog invites! It invites interaction; 85% positive by 15% bad because of irresponsible owners. Maybe this is why I want to get into dog training. So I can artfully manage these situations, but also make the world better a little bit at a time... 

There is basically no leash law enforcement that I have seen in Vancouver, and many people walk on the city streets with their dogs off-leash. I have no idea why people do this. Bad training, they don't want to teach a dog to walk properly on leash? Arrogance... Think their dog is better than everyone else's dog? Disrespect to people with service dogs or anyone else having the right to their personal space? So frustrating...

Thanks, needed to vent- it has been stressful dealing with reactive and offleash dogs in my neighbourhood and it isn't a stress I had before so I need to learn a new skillset to cope with it. Can't stand the thought of my little puppy love who I have worked so hard on training and socializing, having a bad experience or worse getting injured or killed...


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Sorry for you and Archer… The stories I hear on a daily basis plus my own experiences absolutely astound me. 

Even today at an agility trial… For some reason someone was in the middle of the parking lot (not attending the trial) with a large standard poodle. they seemed to be fitting a no-pull harness to the dog, and it seemed that one person was instructing the other how to fit it and use it. Sounds like everything is under control, right? I walked Kodi past to potty. But NOT close AT ALL. We were a good 15' away at a minimum. The idiots have the dog on the no-pull harness and a FLEXI!!! The huge but barely past puppyhood dog came gallumphing over toward Kodi. I got between them, but was wary of getting tangled in the line. The person that I THOUGH was instructing the other one says, "Oh, get her back over here." in a wishy washy little voice. Sheesh!

The dog meant no harm, but just her size was a danger to my little dog, and that darned Flexi could have sawed off his leg if the two of them got tangled.


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## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

krandall said:


> The idiots have the dog on the no-pull harness and a FLEXI!!! The huge but barely past puppyhood dog came gallumphing over toward Kodi. I got between them, but was wary of getting tangled in the line. The person that I THOUGH was instructing the other one says, "Oh, get her back over here." in a wishy washy little voice. Sheesh!
> 
> The dog meant no harm, but just her size was a danger to my little dog, and that darned Flexi could have sawed off his leg if the two of them got tangled.


Thanks for the empathy Karen- I mostly find it all quite interesting to observe and learn from as I go about my day but once in a while it just feels like there are more irresponsible people than not and that is a frustrating feeling, especially when the safety of my particular little furball is on the line. I like that this is a little corner of the internet where there are mostly like-minded folks who understand!

Speaking of flexis- saw someone yesterday walking a lab with a prong collar and a flexi-leash! I can't really think of a good reason for flexi-leashes in public places at all- the only really good use I can think of is letting your dog out for a rest stop if you are travelling, or other similar scenarios. I walk Archer in our parks and trails with the long line. The long line, of course, requires that you be attentive to what your dog is doing and where they are going, and how quickly. To me, that's desirable if you are training a dog, but probably seems undesirable to people who would rather do their own thing and not need to pay attention, just wanting to know their dog is somewhere around them. It is hard meeting other dogs on the trails with flexis on as they really do have the potential to be dangerous quickly and wrap around the dogs. I usually try to avoid, and if I can't do that, I keep the interaction very short.

In fact I almost can't decide if having no leash is worse than a flexi! But I think off-leash in non-off-leash areas bothers me more.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Naturelover said:


> Thanks for the empathy Karen- I mostly find it all quite interesting to observe and learn from as I go about my day but once in a while it just feels like there are more irresponsible people than not and that is a frustrating feeling, especially when the safety of my particular little furball is on the line. I like that this is a little corner of the internet where there are mostly like-minded folks who understand!
> 
> Speaking of flexis- saw someone yesterday walking a lab with a prong collar and a flexi-leash! I can't really think of a good reason for flexi-leashes in public places at all- the only really good use I can think of is letting your dog out for a rest stop if you are travelling, or other similar scenarios. I walk Archer in our parks and trails with the long line. The long line, of course, requires that you be attentive to what your dog is doing and where they are going, and how quickly. To me, that's desirable if you are training a dog, but probably seems undesirable to people who would rather do their own thing and not need to pay attention, just wanting to know their dog is somewhere around them. It is hard meeting other dogs on the trails with flexis on as they really do have the potential to be dangerous quickly and wrap around the dogs. I usually try to avoid, and if I can't do that, I keep the interaction very short.
> 
> In fact I almost can't decide if having no leash is worse than a flexi! But I think off-leash in non-off-leash areas bothers me more.


The interesting thing is I'm NOT a totally non-Flexi believer, and while I believe that people should follow the rules for using leashes where they exist, I also am fine with loose UNDER CONTROL dogs. And that's the crucial difference.

Many (if not most) pet people who use Flexis don't know how to use them appropriately, and allow their dogs to endanger others or themselves. Flexis are a useful tool if they are used properly.

Likewise, dogs should only be loose if they are TRULY under control of the handler, and then only far away from roads and other dangers. If your dog can't be trusted to come back to you reliably, even with the temptation of other dogs, people or other distractions (no matter HOW "friendly") they might be, they should not be off leash... For their safety as well as that of others.

Kodi spent many months on a long line... Just as you are doing with Archer. i also had the extremely valuable "training help" of another, older, reliably trained dog for Kodi's first couple of years of off-leash trail outings. We would call the dogs and both would come running together.  now, Kodi is actually playing the same role for a friend's younger dog.


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## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Yeah, I believe if used properly they could be great, but I have yet to encounter someone using it properly, so I tend to assume the person on the other end is not going to use it properly as opposed to that they are using it properly. And technically, Vancouver leash laws say 2.5 meters is as long as a leash may be, so... flexis don't actually fall under that when extended, although we have essentially no enforcement here.

Same with off leash dogs. If you have an extremely well-controlled dog that is good with verbal commands, I don't have an issue. But I still have yet to encounter one of those either. And if someone is willing to flagrantly ignore leash laws, what other things do they think they don't need to pay attention to, you know? The people whose dogs are well-behaved and well-trained typically obey the leash laws as well and seem to be more conscientious overall. I'm learning who those folks are in my neighbourhood now, and learning to kind of "size up" people and dogs from a distance before I allow Archer to interact.

One member of our community garden, whose wife has lost her vision over the last couple of years, made a very good point about off-leash dogs even in our garden. Aside from the risk of trampling plants, if off-leash dogs run up to a service dog who is working, it could result in an accident or other serious issue for the individual and their dog, and that is putting a person who is already disadvantaged in a really hard situation. While we don't see that many service dogs around here, I believe it's important to be respectful of your neighbours, their kids, their dogs... not everyone wants a dog running up to them regardless of how well-behaved or friendly the dog may be.

I have learned SO MUCH in the last 8 months! I'm much better at reading dog body language now, and also at quickly sizing up what type of training/control methods people are using on their dogs, from a distance. That kind of tells me if the dog is likely to have behaviour problems or is likely to be frustrated or not. For example, a guy alpha-rolled his lab in the dog park after she had grabbed a glove from someone. Obviously grabbing gloves is not a good behaviour, but when I saw that method of dealing with it, I knew that wasn't a pair I wanted my dog to be interacting with.



krandall said:


> The interesting thing is I'm NOT a totally non-Flexi believer, and while I believe that people should follow the rules for using leashes where they exist, I also am fine with loose UNDER CONTROL dogs. And that's the crucial difference.
> 
> Many (if not most) pet people who use Flexis don't know how to use them appropriately, and allow their dogs to endanger others or themselves. Flexis are a useful tool if they are used properly.
> 
> ...


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## VictoriaClark (May 31, 2014)

I just read your story about Riley. Wow! I'm so glad everything turned out well for you! My story does not have a happy ending...I lost my havanese mix, Sophie the day before Mother's Day this past May. My husband took our dogs (I have a 5 year old yorkie also) outside that afternoon to do their business in our yard . I was working in the kitchen with the screen door open since it was such a beautiful spring day! I heard screaming and thought at first it was the television, but I was watching the Italian cooking show! What could she be screaming about! I then rush out the back door in horror and see my (new) neighbor running through my yard. His bloodhound, that is usually in his fenced in back yard had snuck out of the garage and jumped through our tall tree lined bordered yard and attacked my girl! He shook her like a rag doll. My husband screamed and ran to get Sophie out of his mouth. He dropped her, she ran to our porch, then collapsed! We drove with in minutes to our vet's office. He met us there! She had no broken bones and no ruptured organs! However, she went into shock and her little heart just couldn't take it . She died in my arms that day!  Long story short...neighbors are extremely horrified and so sorry for what their dog did. Changes in daily living for all of us has happened. I have new Hav now.I am extremely "over" protective when approaching any dog larger than my pups. We had our new girl, Sadie , attend puppy K for social skills and take her on walks in "public" places. I think I'm more anxious than my dogs and i worry that they sense that. I will get the spray can of "halt" ! Perhaps that will help me feel more empowered, however, I will never let my guard down!
RIP Sophie Girl...1/28/10~5/10/14


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

Your story just breaks my heart. So very sorry for your loss.


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## VictoriaClark (May 31, 2014)

Thanks....everyday is a new day! I have a new girl to love and snuggle! I have to say this forum is helping me heal and grow! Looking forward to good things and hopefully Ill be able to help other too!


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## LeleRF (Feb 18, 2021)

@Pipersmom
How absolutely terrifying! Thank goodness everyone is ok, mostly because of your quick thinking. I have seen some pretty scary encounters and thankfully managed to avoid them mainly because I know my dog, though small in stature, was a bit unpredictable so I made very wide paths near other dogs. I had retractable leashes and after getting wrapped up and burned (ouchhh!), I stopped using them outside of my own backyard very rarely. Just not enough control with those when out walking.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

LeleRF said:


> @Pipersmom
> How absolutely terrifying! Thank goodness everyone is ok, mostly because of your quick thinking. I have seen some pretty scary encounters and thankfully managed to avoid them mainly because I know my dog, though small in stature, was a bit unpredictable so I made very wide paths near other dogs. I had retractable leashes and after getting wrapped up and burned (ouchhh!), I stopped using them outside of my own backyard very rarely. Just not enough control with those when out walking.


Yeah, retractable leashes are an accident waiting to happen if there are other dogs (or people!) around. But I would say that even if your own dog is COMPLETELY even tempered, you should ASSUME the other dog MIGHT be a problem in all situations. I never EVER let my dogs greet other people's dogs or touch noses on leash. This is asking for trouble. (as well as a GREAT way to spread disease!)

We have controlled play dates with dogs I trust in situations where I can keep things from going wrong.


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## BoosDad (Mar 8, 2020)

krandall said:


> Yeah, retractable leashes are an accident waiting to happen if there are other dogs (or people!) around. But I would say that even if your own dog is COMPLETELY even tempered, you should ASSUME the other dog MIGHT be a problem in all situations. I never EVER let my dogs greet other people's dogs or touch noses on leash. This is asking for trouble. (as well as a GREAT way to spread disease!)
> 
> We have controlled play dates with dogs I trust in situations where I can keep things from going wrong.


I totally agree. There are so many careless pet owners out there.


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