How To Handle Situations With Off-Leash Dogs

[Padfootx13]

Hello All! I know that there are lots of people on here with experience in situations with small off-leash dogs and their leashed greys from the posts in Off-Topic, but I was wanting some advice on how to handle those situations. To give you alittle background about Padfoot and the specific situation (not the only one we've had, but the one that triggered writing this post)...

 

Padfoot has a low to medium prey drive. When we first adopted him the MSPCA said he was not small dog or cat safe. What we have found is that is partially true. We haven't put him in a situation with a cat, mainly because we wont ever have a cat due to my allergies and when we visit my in-laws we can keep him and the cat separated by an entire floor. As far as small dogs go, it ranges immensely-mainly to do with the introduction and the energy level of the other dog. In all situations I would prefer to have the dogs meet on neutral ground, take them for a walk, then enter the house together. That is not always possible, especially when you are living in an apartment complex that has LOTS of dogs. If the dog is calm and he has had a proper introduction he will let it share his bed (my parents 9 year old, 6 lb maltese--as white and fluffy as you can get), if the dog is excitable/barky but he has had an introduction he mainly leaves it alone--unless it "yells" at him to play then he runs away (my sister's 13 lb black maltese mix). The worst situations are like the ones we encounter on a weekly basis at our apartment complex. A small dog (in this case a 7 month old pomeranian) lives on our floor. The owners do not leash the dog at all times and there have been at least 4 instances since I met it a month ago that the dog was off leash on our floor with it's owners well out of arms reach. Only twice have I had Padfoot with me, thank goodness.

 

This morning I was walking back to our apartment with Padfoot and when I was walking past their door, it opened and the pomeranian shot out, towards us with absolutely no self-preservation. I am a fairly petite woman and while I am strong enough to hold Padfoot back from the dog, when I cannot control the Pomeranian, I cannot take up enough physical space to block the Pomeranian from scootching around my legs and jumping in Padfoot's face. Because of that what I tend to do is get down at eye level to them both and use one hand to keep the Pomeranian away, and another hand on Padfoot's leash. He is definitely over-stimulated when this has happened (staring with absolutely no concern for what I say). Once the owner collected the Pomeranian I walked Padfoot away, towards our apartment and he shook it off very quickly and fell back into heel position (2-3 seconds once his back was turned). When I opened the apartment door, Padfoot was staring down the hall in that direction and I see the Pomeranian charging toward us again-no owner in sight! He must have let the dog go thinking he would go straight back into the apartment. Again I got down between them-I didn't have enough time to get us into the apartment without the Pomeranian coming in too. The owner eventually approached (felt like forever!) and my husband came out of the apartment to help. During this second episode, it was the first time Padfoot actually snapped at the Pomeranian-no contact was made but I'm sure given the opportunity he would have, and I held my hand around his muzzle (his favorite way of being pet is actually all over his face/muzzle so he trusts my hands being there). Once we got inside he was jazzed up more than normal but still settled into his crate right away like usual.

 

We have contacted the apartment managers and told the man that he needs to keep the dog on a leash, but there are lots of dogs to monitor and I'm sure nothing will be done at that level. Does anyone have advice on how to deal with this? My primary concerns are 1) Keeping Padfoot safe, 2) Finding a way to handle the situation where he trusts me as a handler to keep him safe, and 3) Making sure that I am safe too so that I can continue to control the situation. As far as the pomeranian is concerned, I don't want Padfoot to bite it, but only because it would label Padfoot as "aggressive".

 

I'm sorry for the long post, but I wanted to make sure the situation was very clear to try to get the best advice as possible. Thank you for taking the time to read it!

[Houndmommy03]

Anxious to read the replies - I've had my own issues with off leash dogs.

[Guest BiggiesOwner]

Same here - just ran into 2 off the leash Newfoundlands last week (they'd escaped their yard apparently). Biggie was not happy about the two giant black monsters charging towards us - and I can't say I blamed him. My reaction to the 100lb+ dogs coming towards me with no owner around isn't printable haha

[scullysmum]

I know that my reply may not be popular but it's just my opinion and you can make of it what you will.

 

I have a saying "Small dogs and cats only live because big dogs and their owners let them."

 

If you have done all that you reasonably can to contain the situation and it stiil ends badly what more can you do? You are not responsible for other people (or animals) stupidity.

 

As for exactly what to do ,you have to just "wing it " as every situation is different.

[Guest rarmstrong]

Maybe you could start with having a very serious conversation with your neighbor? Their dog will become lunch if they aren't more careful. And you are doing the courteous thing by having a scheduled conversation with them about it. They might be more inclined to listen. If not, they are making the conscious decision to allow their dogs bad behavior and should welcome the consequences of such.

[Saharasmom]

I've found yelling and stomping my feet at approaching dogs to be pretty effective. I would kick one if it got too close, as well. I say "No! Bad dog!" in an authoritative voice, and (knock on wood) it has stopped all dogs from getting too close. It also makes the owners hurry a bit more when you act like this. My borzoi gets into his high prey mode with some small dogs, so I don't want to risk a bite or worse if one of the dogs approach.

 

Our neighborhood has generally friendly, and sometimes territorial, dogs. If a dog was intent on attacking, I don't think yelling would make a difference.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

You need to notify the building management immediately. You need to establish a paper trail that shows that the pom is consistently off-leash and out of control, as well as it shows inappropriate behavior charging your hound. I would copy the owner of the dog the letters to the management as well. I would only try to stop the pom a few times. If it happens more than 3 times after I have notified the management, I would simply allow nature to take its course. I walk my hounds outside in my neighborhood and I have had one neighbor that let their little ankle-biter out off leash. The dumb little thing charged my hounds. My hounds didn't care a bit, but my foster did. I yelled at the lady to get her dog, she stood at the top of her driveway calling the dog. I gave it a nice boot in the rear and it went away with a yip.

[Charlies_Dad]

I know that my reply may not be popular but it's just my opinion and you can make of it what you will.

 

I have a saying "Small dogs and cats only live because big dogs and their owners let them."

 

If you have done all that you reasonably can to contain the situation and it stiil ends badly what more can you do? You are not responsible for other people (or animals) stupidity.

 

As for exactly what to do ,you have to just "wing it " as every situation is different.

 

Actually that is not entirely true. If your dog hurts or worse kills another dog, be forewarned you will have a discussion with Animal Control and depending on location, that can and will take your dog away from you. Some jurisdictions in the US will them determine whether your dog is 'dangerous' and the repercussions can be severe.

 

For the OP, the only thing that has ever worked is avoidance. I know it sucks and almost impossible to do in call cases however it's the only way to be sure you will not face such a confrontation. Similar to you we have had our run-in's with small dogs and one resulted in Lynn's pinky finger being severed. The owner of the loose white dog was not charged in any way even though there was a leash law in the area. The other thing to do is alway report a loose dog to AC if possible in case something does happen and/or they choose to enforce the leash law.

[Remolacha]

I've found yelling and stomping my feet at approaching dogs to be pretty effective. I would kick one if it got too close, as well. I say "No! Bad dog!" in an authoritative voice, and (knock on wood) it has stopped all dogs from getting too close. It also makes the owners hurry a bit more when you act like this. My borzoi gets into his high prey mode with some small dogs, so I don't want to risk a bite or worse if one of the dogs approach.

 

Our neighborhood has generally friendly, and sometimes territorial, dogs. If a dog was intent on attacking, I don't think yelling would make a difference.

This works pretty well with dogs that are either friendly, or simply have no manners. I used it just this morning with a neighbor's dog that had gotten out of the yard and came running across the street. Luckily, both my dogs stayed behind me and this dog was just young and bad mannered (a Basenji/terrier mix, energizer bunny on steroids, but smart) It won't stop an aggressive dog that means to attack.

 

My first reaction to your situation would be to drop kick the little furball down the hallway, but that probably wouldn't lead to very good relations with the neighbor. I have had, in the past, a very leash aggressive dog, so I know how that can add to the struggle. If you can talk to the neighbor and explain how letting their dog run up to another dog (not just yours, any other dog) is not safe for their dog, it might help.

Edited March 19, 2014 by Remolacha

[Brandiandwe]

It depends. I try to avoid as much as possible, retreating with my three, often shouting at the owner to leash their dog. I'm polite to start with and become less so as time goes on. Someone helpfully shouting that their dog is friendly, or just wants to play or whatever receives the response that mine aren't. But mine aren't like Padfoot with leash reactivity and prey drive so they often lunge forward to defend themselves and me from this thing. Two are muzzled, and are snarling and barking on the ends of the leash. I find most people tend to take things seriously when they look at what is happening.

 

People who have been repeat offenders get sworn at, all while I'm working to keep my dogs way from theirs, by spinning keeping me between their dogs and mine. This is hard but shouting at the other dog tends to send mine forward. So, the owner gets told to catch their dog. Repeat offenders also notice the aggression level of my dogs increasing as they get sick of the rudeness.

 

What has worked ultimately for me has been people noticing my dogs aggression increasing and my marked decrease in friendliness. People stop making excuses for their dogs (except one woman who insists that her dog is fine. I avoid her and interact as little as possible. And wonder why she insists on running her off leash in a leashed area). So some social shaming. People have also watched their small fluffies end up under a car, whose wheels missed it by inches as their dogs raced across the road to get to mine - all of a sudden this crazy greyhound lady shouting about the importance of leashing made sense. This has happened on two occasions. Finally, others have realised that, if they control their dogs,mine ignore them. And that I work in every instance to keep interactions pleasant and to contain my dogs. But that if their dog starts carrying on, so do mine (mine reflect the energy back at the other dogs, like yours) but that it is definitely possible to control things. I think it sobers them to realise that I control three big dogs and redirect energy and stop barking immediately where they cannot contain one maltie-poo.

[krissy]

My dogs are generally friendly and are low (Summit) and low-moderate (Kili) prey drive. Other dogs are never seen as prey. Even outdoor cats are generally seen as friends. Summit does not like Huskies though and if another dog were to act aggressively he would most likely respond in kind. But even if I'm out with just Kili, I do not like being approached by an off leash dog. If there is no owner with it I generally catch them and take them home with me. But first I stop any dog approaching mine so that I can get a read on its intentions, its personality, and the reaction of my own dogs... and also to see if there is an owner with the dog.

 

I have found that we haven't met with such an aggressive dog yet that couldn't be stopped with just yelling. If a dog comes running at us I stand up tall, put my dogs behind me (as much as Kili will allow since she's generally like "WHOOOO! FRIENDS!" at this point) and bellow (bellow is the best... no high pitched screaming... you want a deep voice, from the belly or chest) at it "GET! Get out of here! Go away! SCRAM!" and I generally actually walk TOWARDS the dog since that is somewhat threatening. This may not be the best idea if the dog is really outright aggressive. It works well on friendly, curious, or scared dogs. I wouldn't recommend challenging a truly aggressive dog, especially if it is a larger breed. I've found that the dogs stop where they are and sort of try to figure out what they are going to do. During that time I look around for an owner to come get their dog.

 

Also, if the problem is more that you are worried YOUR dog might attack (prey drive etc.) and the approaching dog is just friendly or curious... throw a handful of treats away from you and retreat as the dog eats the treats. This obviously doesn't work in the scenario I worry about, which is an aggressive dog that wants to attack me and mine. But for your hallway Pom... might be just the thing.

[scullysmum]

 

Actually that is not entirely true. If your dog hurts or worse kills another dog, be forewarned you will have a discussion with Animal Control and depending on location, that can and will take your dog away from you. Some jurisdictions in the US will them determine whether your dog is 'dangerous' and the repercussions can be severe.

 

For the OP, the only thing that has ever worked is avoidance. I know it sucks and almost impossible to do in call cases however it's the only way to be sure you will not face such a confrontation. Similar to you we have had our run-in's with small dogs and one resulted in Lynn's pinky finger being severed. The owner of the loose white dog was not charged in any way even though there was a leash law in the area. The other thing to do is alway report a loose dog to AC if possible in case something does happen and/or they choose to enforce the leash law.

I said it was my opinion and as i live in the UK it applies here. Most of the dogs I meet every day in open spaces are off leash.

[gracegirl]

This makes my blood boil. Who on earth thinks the leash laws don't apply to them. Ugh.

 

Is your apartment complex all rentals and professionally managed? If so, I bet there is something in your lease about leashing and picking up after your dog.

 

If it were me, I'd take that page, highlight the leash rules, write a letter to management and provide your neighbor with a copy. I'd request that management keeps you informed of the contacts they have with your neighbor. No requesting. Insisting.

 

Keep following up. In person if you have to. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

 

My apartment complex in Portland had an aggressive boxer. The owner walker him with a prong collar and a flexi lead. The first incident the owner dropped the leash. I reported them. The second incident the owner intentionally had the dog off leash. The dog ran across the road almost causing an accident with a motorcycle, jumped on me scratching me, I fell on the poop bag and was covered in crap. The owner laughed. I walked straight to the office with the motorcycle driver as a witness, still covered in crap. I pulled down the neckline of my shirt showing the scratches and asked for immediate resolution. The gentleman was asked to move out as he had a paper trail of reports. Just think, if no one else ever reported him for those incidents, he'd still be laughing.

[PatricksMom]

This won't help when you're out with Padfoot, but I suggest taking a picture every time you see the dog off leash and you safely can, and send it to your rental office. We had to do this and it helped, plus you'll be creating a "paper" trail if you do have to kick the dog to keep Padfoot safe or if there is an encounter.

 

I'm sorry you're dealing with this. Off leash, aggressive dogs make our work with Leo so much harder, although he's still doing remarkably well.

[cleptogrey]

i would try the nice neighbor talk first. knock and offer some treats for the pom and explain that the little pom is the same stimulant as the mechanical rabbit on the track. since it's loose and barking it priming your dog for a good chase, which you don't want. explain that in nature a small yapping critter is also dinner to a dog be it terrier or hound. but a screaming animal represents a fearful animal who is weak and needs to be exterminated, that's animal nature.

 

remind them that your dog is on leash and in control, but if this little adorable critter jumps and approaches your LEASHED dog he's presenting himself as dinner. suggest a baby gate at the door, tell them you want to stay on good terms but that pom must be under control.

 

if there is a nasty response then it's in your bally-wick. management can be contacted as well as animal control since you need to protect your innocent dog.

 

if nothing works there is always a good swift kick, a whistle, a plant spray. but hopefully words will be mightier than the sword. be patient, be firm and be proactive. some people are just jerks, find out their schedule if worse comes to worse, been there....oh, mace also works.

[Padfootx13]

Thank you everyone for your helpful and understanding responses! It's so nice to have a group of people to be able to come to and ask questions when you are feeling at your wits end. There are definitely times when I just want to say "to heck with it" and try not to get in between them, but I would much rather I get bit by either one if it came to that than Padfoot get hurt or be labeled aggressive, just for standing up for himself.

 

Based on everyone's responses my first action will be to have a talk with the owners one-on-one to explain the situation and why is it destructive to their dog and Padfoot. The scary thing is I know of at least 2 other dogs on our floor that are dog and/or leash aggressive so they really aren't looking out for their pom at all. Also, from the situations I have seen where the owners try to call the dog back, it's recall is NOT strong to the point of obsolete. That being said, we are working on Padfoot's but that is why we never let him off of his leash, even in our building. If we are out the door of our apartment, his leash is on. So frustrating that other people don't think that the rules apply to them.

 

That being said, I will only give them one more time of the dog not being on leash before I actually report them to management. I emailed them today asking for the protocol regarding if we do see a loose dog, and it was taken quite seriously to my surprise. We are managed by a large company so there are penalty fees associated with having your dog not on leash when you are outside of your apartment and the woman I emailed said we should let them know "right away" and, like some of you above, she also mentioned taking photos for evidence if possible.

 

I will definitely take pictures if I see the dog not on leash again and I plan to talk to them tomorrow so we don't have another run-in.

 

And to those of you who suggested foot stomping and low bellows to scare the Pom away specifically, thanks. It's something that should have been common sense for me, I think, but in the moment I never even think of it. Hopefully with your reminders I will. We definitely have a gamut of just aggressive to excited/friendly off-leash dogs here, but the Pom is an excited/happy one (I think, it's hard to see much behind all that fur) so stomping would be probably work great to scare it back home.

 

Thank you everyone again!!

 

 

 

I'm sorry you're dealing with this. Off leash, aggressive dogs make our work with Leo so much harder, although he's still doing remarkably well.

I feel the same way about Padfoot! When we adopted him in October he would be very intent (pulling then just staring) on other dogs we saw whether they were high energy or not, on a leash or not. Now he can walk by calm dogs or dogs running around, on leash and continue walking in heel position without more than a couple glances over. It's taken lots of treats and work but to see how far he's come in such a short amount of time is amazingly rewarding.

[Sambuca]

I find that a very loud, firm "no" in as low as voice as I can get, works wonders. Especially if repeated. I put my arms away from my sides and lean into the direction of the dog. The only dog that's ignored that was an over friendly happy go lucky golden. Unfortunately I was walking an extremely dog aggressive pit bull. I kept the pit on a short leash and kept throwing myself between them. It was horrible.

[Guest jetska]

Muzzle Padfoot ? Would keep him and the pom safe.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

Muzzle wont keep the greyhound safe, it will put the greyhound at a disadvantage should the little ankle biter decide to take a bite. Imagine if the hound has his nose down at the level of the pom, what is covered and what is exposed? Mouth covered, eyes exposed.

[Guest Amber]

Try to put your greyhound right behind your legs and send the loose dog packing by shouting at it to back off in a very stern voice. This is much more difficult with small dogs than bigger ones however, as the small ones dart about all over the place, so it is IME more difficult to body block them. Leaning far forward towards them with your hand out in traffic cop stop sign and saying NO in a very firm voice can make them think twice. But if you also fear your grey may grab them that does add extra stress to the situation. I agree with reporting the owners fir having their dog off leash.

[Fruitycake]

I would not delay in reporting the pom being loose. They have let it loose multiple times already, and apparently seen you and your husband fighting it away from you and your dog and apartment, and they still don't understand the rules. A gentle talking to, and telling them about the chase instinct, makes your dog look like it's out for blood and IT is a danger. Not that the neighbor is putting their own dog in danger. Let the management company deal with it, it is their job. What happens if the little thing runs after a kid and trips them, or gets underfoot of someone using a walker or something? What if the little Foofoo gets out of their apartment and the outside doors just happen to be open and it gets out of the building?

 

Don't make it look like your dog is aggressive or a danger by claiming that little Foofoo is at risk if it runs up. Yes, it might be true, but you're putting ammunition in Foofoo's owner's hands to claim that YOU are the one with the dog that should be in trouble, since it could "hurt little Foofoo!"

[Guest jetska]

Muzzle wont keep the greyhound safe, it will put the greyhound at a disadvantage should the little ankle biter decide to take a bite. Imagine if the hound has his nose down at the level of the pom, what is covered and what is exposed? Mouth covered, eyes exposed.

 

Muzzle will keep Padfoot safe from 'the authorities' if he wants to eat the pom! Mum/dads boots will easily keep Padfoot safe from pomeranian teeth.

[CharlieRhea]

Unfortunately i've run into this situation also. Seems a lot of us have. I'm doing the avoidance approach now as Charlies Dad mentioned. I don't like it but for now it is my best choice. I have a good relationship with the animal control officer in my town luckily. I met her where i work, i always thought she was abrupt and mean for lack of a better word. Now i understand because of what she sees in her position. I have contacted her about loose dogs when i walk, we have a leash law here. She said if my dogs hurt another dog it would not be my fault but i do not want that to happen so i avoid for now. I have a GSD, Rhea, who is almost 12yrs old and Charlie my Greyhound who is four as of the other day.

Charlie was attacked almost a year ago by and off leash Chow mix and now Charlie is reactive with strange dogs where he never had been. I actually tried to get in between the dogs, as stupid as that might have been but it was my instinct to protect my dog. Charlie is powerful and lunged forward at the Chow who backed off. Then the idiot owner ran down to retrieve his off leash dog who it turns out attacked a person jogging 2 months prior. My husband said i sounded like a long shoreman, which i did. When the owner said sorry my blood boiled as sorry wasn't good enough! It should not have happened in the 1st place. The dog officer came down hard on the owners of the Chow who is never off leash now. Now i have to work at Charlie not being reactive. I'm a little nervous about this and will go slowly. After this episode Charlie saw another dog and went into a frenzy. He redirected it at me and bit my inner thigh. OWWW. I'm thinking i may muzzle him just so I can be less anxious. What's everyone opinion on that? in the meantime i continue to avoid where i once happily walked him around the neighborhood.

[Brandiandwe]

I muzzle two of my three because that's the law here, so if it stops you from being bitten, that's a good thing. I've also trained one of my dogs to redirect her prey drive onto me, or specifically the treat I am holding whenever we see another dog. See another dog, get a treat. It seems to work.

[CharlieRhea]

Thank you greyaholic, your advice is what i plan soon. Been a long hard winter here. i was going to try the click and treat practice but have

yet to do it. Soon,very soon. Charlie is such a love. You truly are a Greyaholic with three! lol Bless you and thank you!