[nagdu] loose dogs

[The Pawpower Pack]

Tami, All of this is good stuff.  I'm actually much more calm now than I was several years ago.  And like you said, letting the lead out, allows for more natural body communication.  I have every confidence that Soleil will communicate very well— friendly with friendly dogs and will back down with reactive dogs.  
I have not met the same dog twice, so am not sure what is going on.  
 Accidents happen— gates and doors get left open and this has happened to me before so I don't want to lecture or threaten unless it is a repeated thing with a very angry or reactive dog.  
I do remember those in training days, Soleil is moderately dog distracted which is better than it was when I first got her.  Where she'd see another dog and her brains would fall out and she'd be a wagging, whining puddle of doggie joy. 
So she has improved in that area at least! 


 Rox and the kitchen Bitches: 
Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
Pawpower4me at gmail.com
Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 15, 2015, at 12:20 PM, Tami Jarvis via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Rox,
> 
> I've been having more of those here, too, recently, and a couple where there was no human around at all. I wonder if maybe it's just the good weather after bad and dogs that have slipped in their obedience during the winter or some such? They're friendlies, which is nice, but like you I don't appreciate the wondering how bad it's going to be until I figure out it's a friendly. In my current stomping grounds, I don't worry as much because of the dog culture. In other venues, that would be different.
> 
> Pretty much, I do what you do and let Mitzi communicate doggy style based on her assessment of the other dog. I can settle into my balanced stance and mental zen and just wait until we can move on. If the owner is around, they'll call the dog or come get it if it's not coming. They seem to be aware that their dog shouldn't interfere and apologize nicely, so I don't need to lecture them on it, which is nice. If there's no human around, the dog will slope off on its own once Mitzi has let it be known she is busy now and can't play, so then we can just move on. Whew! If I'm not careful, I may carry on with the what-ifs and all, but I've kinda learned to redirect my thoughts to something else. That also is easier here where the odds are strong that the dog is friendly from the get-go. Small town life is boring, but that kinda boring is good, I guess. :)
> 
> When Loki and I encounter loose dogs, it's a bit different, and I suddenly appreciate Mitzi a whole lot. /lol/ At 14 months, he's starting to be more dog distracted anyway, so we have plenty of opportunities to work on that. But the loose dogs stop us cold, since he has neither the experience or maturity to just maintain and convince them it's not play time. It's not always easy for me to convince him it's not play time, so ensuring I can keep hold of him means I can't use my cane, so there we are. I worry that he might misjudge the other dog or that I won't read his signals right if it is an unfriendly, so that's no fun. He has to learn to deal with these things, but I do find myself wishing people were more perfect about keeping their dogs contained and knowing where they are and what they're doing. Sigh. There was a new one the other day in a yard where there normally is no dog, and it kept barking at us into the next yard, although it didn't come onto the sidewalk. Loki wanted to play, then he would get back on track, then want to play when it came towards us barking again, so I did this fun little pirouette until we got to the corner and left it behind. At least it didn't try to follow us, so we could go on. It was still there when we were coming back, so I don't know if this is a new neighborhood nuisance or what. I'm pondering what to do in case it's an ongoing problem, but we'll see. We get barked at by gzillions of dogs behind fences everywhere we go, but the unfenced barker puzzles me. Urgh!
> 
> Anyway, I think you're handling it the best you can, maintaining your own safety while letting Soleil use her dog smarts until the owner can get the dog. Letting out the leash enables her to use more natural body language in the process, which I think is important. If things do get tense, she will be in a better position to take care of herself that way, too. I don't know what to do about that fear of attack. I only get it from second hand knowledge of the horrible possibilities, and that's bad enough. I think it's super important to stay calm and fearless, especially if there's possible tension from the other dog, which can be a bit of a trick sometimes. I also resist the temptation to try to grab the other dog's collar or something to try to get a sense of control. Even if I'm reading the dog as totally friendly, I could be wrong, and making a move towards its head and neck could set it off. I may speak to my dog or the empty air in my low, controlled voice, to emphasize that I am calm and under control and in charge, and I stay friendly towards the owner, too, even if by then I'm sure the dog is totally friendly and moreso if I'm not sure of it. The knowledge that there's nothing much I can really do beyond that is something I just grumble about later. Sigh.
> 
> Take care.
> 
> Tami
> 
> 
>> On 06/14/2015 08:46 PM, The Pawpower Pack via nagdu wrote:
>> I know we've talked about this before, but I'd like some ideas.
>> Recently there have been several loose dogs in my neighborhood.  Normally this is not an issue, but for some reason— maybe because it's nice out, and people are out themselves, there have been several loose dog encounters while Soleil and I are out.  In all cases, the owner has been outside, doing things like gardening or whatever and had their dog with them.  The dog sees Soleil and is off like a shot.  The owner calls them and the dog is not going to listen and just keeps coming.
>> I'm Deafblind, with some pretty severe balance and physical mobility issues.  I can see a little, and in a couple of the cases, I could see the dog coming, once it got close because it was a dark dog on the light colored sidewalk.
>> There is no working passed these dogs because they are literally up in Soleil's face or circling in front of her.  Soleil is a great dog communicator and is very friendly.
>> I have found that the best technique is to stop, let the leash out, and let her greet the other dog.  This allows me to plant my feet and get my balance so the other dog doesn't knock me over.  It allows the idiot owner time to get their dog who is now occupied with mine, and has stopped running away.
>> Is there a better way I could handle this?  I can't get between Soleil and the other dog because literally we are on an open sidewalk, and also if the dog knocks me down we will be in trouble.   I'm open to any suggestions.
>> I have had to retire a dog because of attacks before, and while things have been friendly up to now, in the back of my mind is the knowledge that the next one could be the bad one.  I have worked really hard with this dog and want to be her partner for the next 50 years, even if she is a weird lab with weird lab food issues!
>> Thanks for any ideas!
>> 
>>  Rox and the kitchen Bitches:
>> Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
>> Pawpower4me at gmail.com
>> Sent from my iPhone
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