Who is acting strangely?

[Trischie]

Ok, this is the situation...

We go walking around the fields at the back of our house. The only others who walk around there are doggy people.

Oscar is a year old (on sunday!) and is generally quiet shy of other dogs, although when he is on his lead, he'll do the growling and barking thing, like lots of adolescent dogs. he is often so scared of otherr dogs, that when we are walking along the tracks, he just won't go forward - a few times he has just turned and run back home.

Now there is a boxer which lives nearby. His own won't let him have any kind of contact to other dogs. I often see him off his lead, but when he sees another dog, he'll call him, put him on his lead and they strutt along together. If this man would be a dog - he would be a boxer too - they look identical, strutting along with their chests out.

When I've gone past with Oscar on his lead once before, he mumbled "keep your dog with you". The next time, Oscar just turned and ran home. Yesterday, he came along the tracks, Oscar wasn't on his lead, but I was proud that Oscar was walking on and not running off. We came to go past Boxer and Man - Oscar goes right round the dog, onto the field to go past, then creeps up behind Boxer to try sniffing his bum (very cautiosly) Boxer barks, Oscar jumps away - no problem.

Only the owner started making a fuss, asking if we have to act like that. I asked what he meant, and he said - does your dog have to come near mine. I said that my dog is scared of most other dogs upon first meeting them, and Oscar stayed well out of his way. He said that his dog does't know whether oscar is scared or not. At which point I just said,  that it is ok, Oscar went right around them both and now we'll just keep on walking. A few times, his boxer tried to jump aggressively, but he was capable of holding him.

So how am I supposed to act? If I call Oscar to me, and they walk past together, Oscar may act more adolescently and start barking more!

Who is the one with the dog who behaves wierdly? It's normal for dogs to sniff each other isn't it? I thought they checked out quite quickly who is friend and who is foe. Should I just put Oscar on his lead next time and quickly walk past him? Apparantly this dog is a guard dog, which is why it isn't allowed contact to other dogs (heard from a neighbour).

Thanks for listening, and letting me voice my worries...

Love Chris & Co.

[Rhona W]

Sorry but I think you are at fault here for letting your dog approach an on lead dog. The man obviously keeps his dog on a lead when other dogs are around for a reason. It could be for a variety of reasons. He may be aggressive, frightened or in training.
I leash Casper around other dogs as he has fear aggression and it really annoys me when someone lets their dog still come up too him, despite all my efforts to keep him calm and walking in the opposite direction. 

[PennyB]

Who is the one with the dog who behaves wierdly? It's normal for dogs to sniff each other isn't it? I thought they checked out quite quickly who is friend and who is foe. Should I just put Oscar on his lead next time and quickly walk past him? Apparantly this dog is a guard dog, which is why it isn't allowed contact to other dogs (heard from a neighbour).

Thanks for listening, and letting me voice my worries...

Love Chris & Co.

I would never let my dog sniff or go up to a particular dog if its been made known to me that the owner doesn't want them to for whatever reason --- not all dogs are friendly and some are fearful of other dogs because of lack of socialising, being attacked by other dogs, etc. and some owners don't want to put their dogs in a position where there could be a problem.

And also I won't let mine just go running up to dogs I don't know just because I don't know what that other dog is like and how they might react. At some point I may then realise things will be OK and the dogs can then meet

[happydog]

I agree. It is common courtesy to put your dog on a lead if you see another person leash theirs. You may not know the reason for it as Rhona says and to be honest it doesn't matter why. After all, if you want to keep Oscar on lead for example training him to walk to heel, would you want all and sundry let their offlead dogs approach him and distract him when you are trying to get his concentration?

[Mari]

I agree with the others here. I always call my dog and put her on the lead when we pass other dogs on the lead. Because it's polite, and because I don't want to risk  a fight (maybe the other dog is on lead because it's aggressive...) I prefer to ask the other owner if it is ok that I let my dog off the lead, or if we can both let them loose so they can play 

If you are training your dog to be more comfortable around strange dogs, you should probably find someone with a dog who likes to meet other dogs. Like you, I have never understood why someone would want to stop their dog from meeting other dogs. The more they interact the better in my opinion, but that is and should be a personal choice.

I would put the dog on the lead when passing the boxer. You can use the situation to train your dog to walk by without growling. Bring plenty of treats and give him rewards continuously when you walk past (as long as he behaves of course ) It is a good opportunity to give him good associations with other dogs at a comfortable distance. Good luck!

By the way I like the description of the man and the boxer strutting side by side, I can picture them and I think I know the type

[Rhona W]

Like you, I have never understood why someone would want to stop their dog from meeting other dogs. The more they interact the better in my opinion, but that is and should be a personal choice.

In my case, Casper has had several bad experiences with other dogs which have left him fearful of them and reactive. I leash him so that we can safely pass at a distance and I can reward him for not reacting. We are making slow progress, which is totally undone when someone allows their off lead dog to approach him.

[Trischie]

Thanks for your honest answers, everyone.

We are practicing walking on leads and good recall etc. As usual, Oscar is perfect at training school, but less obedient when we are out by ourselves  . This morning, I took him off his lead, when I saw that no dog was coming, and practiced recall while no-one was around.

The next time we are out,  I will put Oscar on his lead when we see him coming and practice walking past other dogs nicely.

I clipped him for the first time today - but that's something for another topic...

Love Chris & Co.

[Coco]

BE VERY CAREFUL!! I work from someone's home and they have a boxer. He is the sweetest, softest thing until another dog is around. He would try to kill any dog he sees (he lived with his mother for 6 years and was ok with her). He has had two dogs before, one when there was a gap under the gate and another I think he jumped over the gate. Fortunatly both survived but it was touch and go with one of them. The owners live in fear, a constant anxious state when he is in the garden though obviously they have proofed it as much as possible.

The boxer you met obviously isn't so bad but it is in the nature of the dog, they are fighting, hunting dogs. Plese be very careful, I would hate to think that anything could happen to your baby or that the Boxer and owner had to go through the consequences of it.

[Mari]

In my case, Casper has had several bad experiences with other dogs which have left him fearful of them and reactive. I leash him so that we can safely pass at a distance and I can reward him for not reacting. We are making slow progress, which is totally undone when someone allows their off lead dog to approach him.

I am sort of in the same situation, only my dog fears people, not dogs. So I know exactly how frustrating it is when someone approaches my dog without asking. That type of training takes ages, and the progress is so easily ruined. That is part of the reason why I don't let my dog run up to dogs on the lead. You have a good reason to keep your dog at a distance and I totally understand that. But some people keep their dogs from interacting with other dogs on principal, they feel it is unnecessary. I was referring to those dog owners, I just expressed myself poorly, sorry, English is not my first language as you can probably see

We are practicing walking on leads and good recall etc. As usual, Oscar is perfect at training school, but less obedient when we are out by ourselves  . This morning, I took him off his lead, when I saw that no dog was coming, and practiced recall while no-one was around.

Sounds like me and my dog She has perfect recall almost every time, and we practice every day. But it does happen from time to time that she pretends to be deaf. Selective deafness is a widespread phenomenon in family dogs Anyway they are still young, we'll get it right

[*jean*]

Thanks for your honest answers, everyone.

We are practicing walking on leads and good recall etc. As usual, Oscar is perfect at training school, but less obedient when we are out by ourselves  . This morning, I took him off his lead, when I saw that no dog was coming, and practiced recall while no-one was around.

The next time we are out,  I will put Oscar on his lead when we see him coming and practice walking past other dogs nicely.

I clipped him for the first time today - but that's something for another topic...

Love Chris & Co.

also take some really delicious treats with you something your dog will only get when doing a recall so reward is so good the recall is worth it in the dogs eyes.. something like hot dogs or smoked sausage. and keep it only for recalls. then you can use it to distract your dog and keep his attention on you and the treat not the boxer!
good luck!

[Rhona W]

You have a good reason to keep your dog at a distance and I totally understand that. But some people keep their dogs from interacting with other dogs on principal, they feel it is unnecessary. I was referring to those dog owners, I just expressed myself poorly, sorry, English is not my first language as you can probably see

I think your English is excellent.  No need to apologise. I was just giving an example of why some people choose not to let their dog mix. Actually it is more Casper's choosing than mine.   

As you say Chris, next time I would take it as an opportunity to practise walking calmly past other dogs while on a lead.  (Which incidentally is what I am working on with my other dog. He is loads better now,  but still reacts to black dogs.  )