Protection from dogs

hornet spray!
My mom had her sheep killed by the neighbor's dog in her own yard. She was scared to leave the house. Animal control told her to get hornet spray.

Am I the only one who's more afraid of little dogs than the big ones? I HATE strange little dogs. I've been bitten 3 times by those little jokers. One time I was bitten literally 2 seconds after the owner said, "She won't bite."

I think OP has gotten the advice she needs, so no need for me to add anything.

Oh Gawd, I am a jogger and an owner of a 10pound white, fluffy, biter of joggers.

It is extremely humiliating when we are in the backyard and he dekes around the house, through the gate, and across the street to bite a jogger passing by. He's done it twice in 3 years, and I have no clue whatsoever what is going on in his brain that particular day(s). My deepest humblest apologies to the two he's tried to take a piece of and yes, I do mean it when I'm racing across our lawn yelling ""KICK HIM!!"". Or mace, if you are carrying it.

I actually have a pic of him in my profile settings - I think because he looks so harmless people don't realize he means business (little business, but business nonetheless). Not sure how I would handle a pitbull pack - I would more than likely report and run somewhere else.

Yeah I was getting bitten by a little white dog once and the lady was prancing around acting helpless so I looked her dead in the eye and said..."He's about to hit skin, and before he does I'M GONNA KICK HIM!" For some reason her helplessness insta-vanished when I said that and she scooped him right up. Shoes and socks ruined. Skin, bone, ankle NOT. Kiddo however was watching through the window and was left with ideas about dogs that we must work around actually we are both sketchy since that happened.

I wish they would invent something people could put around the necks of their dogs when walking them to keep them close which would protect both passersby and the dogs. It could act as a tether and give the dogs a little freedom to roam within a safe distance.

I wish also there were specific parks designated just for dogs so people who own them had a place where they could let them roam free for a bit without worries of tussles.

If only...

I was almost bitten by THREE different dogs today. And its not an uncommon occurrence. Two of them the owners thought it was a bright idea to leave their garage door open (with vicious dogs) while they chatted with their neighbor. Then a great dane charged across the street after me the owner left their front door open while hauling groceries.

It's only a matter of time before I get bitten. Before anyone says to go walk/jog somewhere else, Im definitely not going to change my routine because of some irresponsible pet owners. They can have fun paying my medical bills.

really?

Oh Gawd, I am a jogger and an owner of a 10pound white, fluffy, biter of joggers.

It is extremely humiliating when we are in the backyard and he dekes around the house, through the gate, and across the street to bite a jogger passing by. He's done it twice in 3 years, and I have no clue whatsoever what is going on in his brain that particular day(s). My deepest humblest apologies to the two he's tried to take a piece of and yes, I do mean it when I'm racing across our lawn yelling ""KICK HIM!!"". Or mace, if you are carrying it.

I actually have a pic of him in my profile settings - I think because he looks so harmless people don't realize he means business (little business, but business nonetheless). Not sure how I would handle a pitbull pack - I would more than likely report and run somewhere else.

Yeah I was getting bitten by a little white dog once and the lady was prancing around acting helpless so I looked her dead in the eye and said..."He's about to hit skin, and before he does I'M GONNA KICK HIM!" For some reason her helplessness insta-vanished when I said that and she scooped him right up. Shoes and socks ruined. Skin, bone, ankle NOT. Kiddo however was watching through the window and was left with ideas about dogs that we must work around actually we are both sketchy since that happened.

I wish they would invent something people could put around the necks of their dogs when walking them to keep them close which would protect both passersby and the dogs. It could act as a tether and give the dogs a little freedom to roam within a safe distance.

I wish also there were specific parks designated just for dogs so people who own them had a place where they could let them roam free for a bit without worries of tussles.

If only...

Oh, and it would be awesome if they would secure them at their homes so they can't chase people on the sidewalks. That would be super nice.

I carry mace. It won't help with a pack of dogs, but it would probably help for one. At one point on a run I heard a dog barking aggressively at me, and ended up picking up a large stick just in case., totally prepared to use it. I love dogs, but if it's between me or the dog, I'm the one that's going to walk away.

Often times people have their dogs off leash where I run, but I've been fortunate that they have all been under great voice control. The owners tend to call them over and make them sit while I go by. Just in case, I tend to walk past them. Dogs can react differently to joggers than they do to people who are walking.

Postal carriers have mace. Is there mace for dogs? I would carry that.

Small dogs tend to be my problem, and I've turned around before and swung out at them with a kick. Pretty clear by how quickly they quit that I'm not the first person to kick at a snippy dog (worst thing is that it's a house right on my street). And a majority of where I walk, people either keep their dogs on tieouts that are properly put in (there's a house that has two akita/chow mixes and a cur mix, none of which are very friendly) or in yards with fences they can't escape from (house has two GSD mixes and another has a pointer and dobe). IF dos are out, other than the above mentioned snippy dog, they're all either strays or pets that will tag along for a block then go home (but never give any trouble). But it's never the big dogs that are the problem. It's people letting their tiny dogs out and not watching them.

I do know though that a fellow walker carries a pretty good stick with him when he goes out. And I've picked up a good stick from time to time if there's a dog that does concern me (and I'm thankful for the years my dad had me playing softball, so I've got a pretty good swing on me still). In the end, if it's me leaving with a bite in my leg from an unknown dog or a dog getting whacked on the head, I'm going to take a swing at a dog.

If you aren't willing to use lethal force, you need to avoid the situation. A medium to large aggressive dog on the attack IS lethal force. Maybe a different route, running in a group, or using a treadmill. I know I sound really p*ssy and cold, but but getting bitten is really bad news. My wife got nailed on the hand, by accident, while attempting to stop our female GSD from putting a beat-down on her younger brother. It took weeks for the wound to heal, and even longer for the pain to subside and for her to get the full function back. An attack by multiple pits could easily be far worse......................

one of those loud air horn blasters that hurt even human ears.

Yeah, those things scare the **** out of most dogs, and was going to be my suggestion. If you are bitten, absolutely do not let them pull you to the ground, and if you do need to resort to blunt force, aim for the eyes, nose and underside of the chin.

Please for the love of god do not get a gun for this reason. It's highly unlikely that you'll practice enough with it to become competent enough for it to become useful AND it's a real pain in the *kitten* to jog with if you want to run in normal clothes (unless you're going to use a drop-leg holster).

Pepper spray isn't perfect, but it's better than a gun.

attacked by 3 pits is your friend alive? I saw nothing in the news. When was it?

A treadmill ;-)

Glock just released a .380 that offers a little less recoil in a small package. I wouldn't trust mace to stop a big dog, or a pack of pit-sized dogs. Myself, I have a Sig p290 and I'm in the market for a Glock 19 for more capacity. For all the mysticism and fear surrounding guns, they aren't hard to carry and use. There are plenty of options for conceal carrying safely while running (provided you don't live in a nanny state).

I wouldn't recommend wasp spray. The label contains a warning that "it is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling". In addition, you are essentially poisoning the dog by spraying it with wasp spray, which is also illegal. You can take your chances and hope the dogs don't have owners, but you can bet in our fun litigious country any dog owner would sue the pants off you for using wasp spray. In addition, I would check your local laws. Some places explicitly forbid anything but pepper spray to be used for self-defense.

Moral of the story--the law is on your side if you shoot and kill a threatening animal, but not so much if you spray it with wasp spray.

I have spray called SABRE RED Police Strength Pepper Spray - Runner Model. I bought it from Amazon and it works really well. I have had to use it twice, and it stopped the dogs in their tracks, and they ran off the other way!

I have a problem with loose dogs mobbing my dog and I when we walk. Some have suggested hairspray - since pepper spray is illegal in some places - it's light. My only concern with hair spray is it is a less direct spray and you don't want to accidentally get yourself (or in my case, my own dog). I have had very good luck with pulling "the crazy lady". I SCREECH, stomp my feet, shout at them to go home. Make myself big and scary OR just crazy enough that they don't want to mess with me/my dog. It has worked well on a couple of occasions. On others we have gotten mauled. Another mechanism of self defense is next on my list.