[nagdu] Blind Teacher's guide dog Attacked

Larry D. Keeler lkeeler at comcast.net
Tue Oct 4 02:19:28 UTC 2011


You also have to be accurate with pepper spray.  It does little good sprayed 
on a dogs head or side.  You have to get in the eyes, nose or mouth to work 
best.  Some of us are not that great an aim!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Julie J." <julielj at neb.rr.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, October 03, 2011 2:48 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Blind Teacher's guide dog Attacked


> Brenda,
>
> I've seriously thought about pepper spray.  In the end I decided to not 
> carry it.     I won't carry something that I don't intend on using.  It 
> wouldn't have any real deterrent effect if I was only threatening to use 
> it.  I'm not a very good actress, I think it would be obvious that I had 
> no plans of actually spraying the stuff.  Also only people who know what 
> it is or believe you saying what it is are going to possibly be threatened 
> by it.  A loose dog isn't going to know what it is or care.
>
> If I actually did spray it, I'd be very, very concerned of getting my own 
> dog or myself.  It's quite windy here.  Then I'd have to have it in my 
> hand and ready to go, which seems a bit like I'm looking for a problem, 
> which tends to lead to problems.  Or I'd have to dig it out of a pocket or 
> purse if the need arose.  The odds of me remembering where I put it, 
> getting it out, uncapping, aiming and spraying all in a timely and safe 
> manner are pretty slim.
>
> And last I'm not sure if pepper spray is considered to be a weapon here. 
> I doubt it'd be illegal to spray a loose dog, but threatening or actually 
> using it on a person is a whole other matter.
>
> So those are the reason's I decided not to use it.
>
> Now as how to handle dog encounters...each situation is a bit different 
> and how I react will be different.  Fortunately I have never had an 
> encounter where the dog was truly aggressive.  Those are the dogs that 
> will come at you quick and quiet, like the article.  You don't have any 
> warning.  Those are the really bad attacks.
>
> All of my encounters are of the barking, growling, nuisance variety.  I 
> did have one dog actually make contact, although Belle's skin wasn't 
> punctured.  Dog's that bark and growl are giving warning.  They are 
> usually protecting their yard, their person, food or another member of 
> their pack.
>
> If an owner is around, I will generally stop, put Monty into a sit, get in 
> between the other dog and Monty and wait calmly for the owner to collect 
> their beast.  If there is no owner around I try to put space between 
> myself and the other dog by crossing the street or moving out of the area. 
> If a dog insists on following I will typically stand my ground and try to 
> get the dog to go away.
>
> I had a service dog trainer suggest using an umbrella of the push button 
> pop open variety.  Usually it will scare the other dog away, while working 
> as a shield for yourself and your dog.  I've not tried it, but I think it 
> could work.
>
> HTH
> Julie
>
>
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