Runners - need advice on dealing with dogs!

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  • 2essie
    2essie Posts: 2,866 Member
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    You can buy compressed air in cans. When you give it a spray it makes a loud hissing noise which dogs do not like. They are used for training purposes and do not hurt the dogs. They can usually be bought in pet shops
  • natalie412
    natalie412 Posts: 1,039 Member
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    I have learned to stop and clap my hands and yell go home! Also sometimes walking or running towards them. I do carry mace, but have not had to use it.
  • kemmy45
    kemmy45 Posts: 59
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    If a dog runs after you, STOP. Dead in your tracks. Tell him "GO HOME" in a stern voice. If a dog chases you NEVER continue running. You are begging to be bitten in the *kitten* if you do! Even the best dogs will do that.
    It is a good idea to carry pepper spray and that is something I need to do and have not yet. Thanks for the reminder. Ordering now.

    Exactly... I have ran a shelter in the past and work with animals now, don't continue to run, stop and they will lose interest in you. It's the running that is capturing their attention. And yes dog treats is a great idea allot of times that will redirect their attention. Spraying them may help but they will chase you again tomorrow chances are.

    I have 4 dogs and there are times when I will let 1 or 2 out to go potty while i am outside with them without a leash, it's just as aggravating when someone sees your dogs out and runs right toward them and then keeps on running while my dogs are having a bark party. I always try to be aware when I do let my dogs out to do a quick pee and poop and they are super friendly but moving objects always captures the dogs attention. I live on the end of the block and the only place to go is turn around and go back or cross the street and go the other way. Either way just use your common sense and just cross on over or don't go those extra 20 steps and turn around. Sometimes when there are other options to avoid the dogs just take the safer and more secure route. But when you don't have a choice always stop running and bend down to there level your no longer a threat to them.
  • TM2794
    TM2794 Posts: 51 Member
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    All the dogs I see on the trails I run, which are not on a leash, are always well trained (so far). I have had some dogs run to their property line with some mean barks. But I have yet to feel threatend. I don't carry any protection with me when I run, but I would not hesitate to kick a dog in its chops if I felt I needed to protect myself. This is probably not going to be a popular answer, but my truth on the subject.

    this is actually one of the better answers. carrying treats might cause the dogs to get excited and more aggressive (but you can try it, just make sure you throw the treats in the opposite direction!) and pepper spray is CRUEL. i can't even believe some of you use that as an option; be more proactive and call a shelter. if i ever saw someone use pepper spray on a dog i would report them immediately.
    anywho! i used to work at a dog shelter and i was taught by dog experts that the best way to break up a dog fight is to kick the dog from under it's stomach. this is only to be done if the dog is becoming very agressive and you are being attacked! if it's not that serious, definitely stop running and like everyones saying order it sternly to "GO!".
  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
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    Get youself an even bigger dog, so they don't mess with you.

    Or perhaps a tiger.
  • runrockclimb
    runrockclimb Posts: 124
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    Probably already been said but the best way I've found to stop them/deal with them, is to stop dead in my tracks, turn to meet them and say loudly and sternly "GO HOME!" and point. Usually I only have to say it once, sometimes twice and they get out of my way. I think most dogs respond to authority pretty well. If thats not stopping them it might be time for a report to their owner or local authorities.
  • divemunkey
    divemunkey Posts: 288 Member
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    Who gives a damn if pepper spray is cruel when you got a giant maw wrapped around a body part? Get some pepper spray. Yes, it is the owner's fault, but you always want to prevent a bite rather than treat one. Spray the damned owner when they come out to see what all the commotion is.
  • wilberfamily
    wilberfamily Posts: 111 Member
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    I think you have gotten a lot of good advice but I would say to be careful with pepper spray. I am an animal control officer and I have been sprayed with it before and you do have to worry about the wind direction changing. I would suggest you call the police department so they can go out and talk to the owners. Here it is a $100 fine for menacing behavior for first offence and $400 for the second offence. Definitely stop running if they start chasing if you carry a cell phone call the police so they can come out immediately.
  • DawnVanSlim
    DawnVanSlim Posts: 10,471
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    Get youself an even bigger dog, so they don't mess with you.

    Or perhaps a tiger.

    LOL, I am so going to look into getting a tiger! That's bad azz!
  • ChaseAlder
    ChaseAlder Posts: 804 Member
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    This happens to me probably once a month. Sometimes it's a single dog, sometimes a pair, once it was a pack of like 6 dogs. Recently, it was a pair of dogs who pounced on the back of my legs while I was running in the pitch black (I nearly peed myself). Most of the time they taper off and go home, but one time the dog (a sweet dog) follow me over 4 miles. I had to call animal control and I felt awful, but there were no tags on his collar. He was clearly loved and well taken care of, he just got loose.

    Anyway, I always stop dead in my tracks until I know what their disposition is, then I tell them to go home and resume my run. If they continue to follow me, I'll try to contact their owners (if they're nice dogs).
  • lyttlewon
    lyttlewon Posts: 1,118 Member
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    I would probably report them. I got bitten by someones dog here in the city. Pissed me the hell of. I wasn't running I was just walking on the sidewalk. He reached his head over the fence and bit my arm. It happened SO FAST. My son was running a few paces in front of me and the dog had been tracking him along the fence, didn't bark or act threatening. I reported it to animal control. The place where the dog bit me in the arm was the same height as my son's face. It could have been bad. They came by and asked what I wanted them to do and I told them I just want them to make sure the owners control their animal. I had no interest in the dog being hurt or punished. It was his owners problem not his.
  • nothingwithoutHim
    nothingwithoutHim Posts: 140 Member
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    BIGGEST, HUGEST pet peeve ever! There are so many dogs where I live, and I know for a fact that if I go running with my dog, they'll give a chase. Thankfully, my dog is HUGE, but still is scared of everything...LOL. Pepper spray seems like the best bet to me. All of the dogs around here live at houses with signs that say "BEWARE OF DOG", yet the dogs are never leashed or penned. Grr...I'm just mostly scared, not mad, but it's aggravating!
  • MelStren
    MelStren Posts: 457 Member
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    No matter what route I run from my house, there are at least a few areas where there are sketchy dogs to contend with. In two places in particular, 2-5 dogs come at me on the road as I am running by, barking, growling, and sometimes chasing me...until this point I have squirted them with my water bottle or a couple of times thrown rocks, but I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions for another method of getting them to back off. I am a little nervous using spray because with my luck it would get blown back into my face or something.

    I always carry dog treats or crackers with me. It never fails to win dogs over if you start tossing treats at them!!
  • lyttlewon
    lyttlewon Posts: 1,118 Member
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    Get youself an even bigger dog, so they don't mess with you.

    Or perhaps a tiger.

    Dogs don't respond to size as much as aggression. My 5 lbs miniature Dachshund dominates my friends 100lb yellow lab. The dope doesn't even know he could eat her if he wanted to.
  • grubb1019
    grubb1019 Posts: 371 Member
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    A friend of mine got bit while running while the owner was standing right there saying "Oh, she wont bite". It was a couple days before her first 5K, she was so mad. If a dog is really vicious I don't know how much throwing them a treat would help. I had a very big pit bull growl at me one day. I just turned around and went back the other way real fast. I don't go that way any more. I drive 4 miles to a trail and have never seen any dogs there.
  • bsharrah
    bsharrah Posts: 129 Member
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    When I am running, the last thing I want to do is stop and yell at a dog. I carry pepper spray. If a dog runs up to me, it gets sprayed, and without me ever stopping my run. If I have to stop, it gets sprayed twice.
  • DaveC29
    DaveC29 Posts: 232 Member
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    If you have ever taken a dog obedience class, you know that you have to be the 'Alpha Male' . This means that when you sternly say go home, you may even have to walk towards them as well to be the dominant one. Most dogs will immediately hang their heads and turn around. If you begin to WALK away and the dog turns to follow, turn back toward the dog and order it again to go home- pointing and a few more steps towards them.

    You can generally read the dog's posture too- if the tail is wagging and he is jumping and barking- he wants to play. You running, is playing to him and he wants to join in. Dogs with their heads low and hackels up are being defensive. Be sure to be extra stern with them and DONT corner them. Dogs instinctively want to please the dominant one and will follow commands if they feel they need to be submissive. This means you must be just as 'aggressive' with them if they appear to be threatening you.

    Remember, you have to think like a dog...

    I had a dog once I would chase for hours when he got out... took him to obedience class and learned it was the stupid owner causing all the issues. I was twice his size chasing and yelling at him- was he going to stop? Oh no- he was running for his life. The cure? Get the car, pull close to him and open the door- yell "lets go for a ride" and he was captured in seconds. Tail wagging and a happy owner!
  • blackjax007
    blackjax007 Posts: 52
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    This pisses me off to no end. I walk / run through two communities and almost daily a loose dog comes after my aussie. You have the owners that let their dogs walk around their front yards while they are busy cleaning their garage or cutting the lawn, or the owners who let their dogs out in the front yards to crap without being on a leash and then they jet across the street at my dog. My personal favorite is the little kid walking the HUGE dog that he absolutely cannot control. Morons... I agree the owners need to be pepper sprayed.

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