So when should dogs be on a lead then??

I have also seen many a scenario...where dogs have chased whilst of a lead by others also off a lead and out of the area or onto a road...a dog running blind through pure fear is not a nice situation..and it's only natural that another dog will chase making the situation even worse.
 
ok i havent read all of this but, one i think if your dog is on a lead because it is aggressive it should be muzzled in public, two i have found with most dogs they act up more on the lead than off as they feel vulnerable. a couple years back i used to drive my car back up a private lane from doing the horses and let my collie run at his own pace behind, he would never stray and would always stay behind, until one day we passed a GSD who is known for aggression towards dogs and people on an extendable lead, this dog shot out while my dog passed a fair distance away and bit him, mine did not retaliate and had to be stitched up, now you could say it was my fault as he was not on lead, but it was the other one that was on a lead out of control so we claimed half the bill from the owners. that dog should have been on a tight lead and muzzled what if it had been a child running past????and for that reason i dont do it anymore. i will always grab my dogs when another struts up to them as one being a rottie if anything happened he would get the blame, countless times owners have let thier dogs come and have ago at mine and then wonder why mine want to rip their heads off???mine would never instigate a fight but they will def stand their ground. so i think if your not gonna have dog on lead make sure you have control of it as the dogs on a lead may be so for a reason.
 
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You could also try some training and brain games for them. Exersise isnt the only thing that will wear them out
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i totally agree mental stimulation is just as important to dogs i play games all the time with mine even at home drop a ball into long grass walk away then send them back to find it incorporate a word as they get close and watch them runaround using their noses to find it learn it in a secure place first but they soon get the idea and will love the challenge
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you say your dogs are young and hyperactive which isn't unusual but now is the best time to make your self pack leader if you don't they will always be unruley even when trained find yourself a good dog club and go training not only is it fun and social for both you and your dogs (if you find a good one) but it will give you more incite in to all kinds of dogs and their different personalitys and the wealth of knowledge from other owners and trainers is invaluable i think you've grasped the dog walking rules from other posts but its still important and the law to have your dogs under your total control whilst of the lead
 
Thanks for your replies guys.
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I've been paying close attention to how my dogs approach other dogs in general today and their recall etc.

Star the pointer is actually really good!! We didn't see any dogs on leads but she does come back strait away, and if she does approach other dogs she kind of goes a bit sideways, and is very slow and submissive. So I really can't see any problems there.
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Alfie (border terrier) doesn't really approach new dogs that much although they ended up playing with a greyhound, he was chasing it (and yapping!) and we couldn't get either of them to come back for ages.
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Little fecker!
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So if anyone has any terrier training advise it would be good!!
 
I haven't read the whole post but just wanted to say i think it is important to consider why some dogs may be on a lead when out for a walk. When Bes broke her leg she was not allowed off the lead in any circumstances and i did not appreciate other dogs running up trying to play with her because it wound her up and i was supposed to be keeping her calm for obvious reasons (which can be hard when a dog has done very little exercise in 3 months). I tried to avoid places where i would meet other dog walkers but it's not always possible, especially as i tried to vary the places so she was at least mentally stimulated by new sights and smells. If those dogs had of been put on the lead when they saw me approaching we could have avoided each other and therefore reduce the risk of her injuring the leg again.

I just think it's common courtesy to put you dog on the lead if an approaching dog is also on the lead, and if my dogs are off the lead and i see another dog off the lead i will always keep a close eye on the owner and dog just to make sure they are happy for the dogs to say hello.
 
First time for everything, bear that in mind in case you become liable for something

Do you pick up your dogs poo?, I always that its the loose dog owners who in the majority don't seem to bother.
 

Do you pick up your dogs poo?, I always that its the loose dog owners who in the majority don't seem to bother.

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I certainly do and it irritates me when I see so much of it where I live on the pavements. I live in an area where mainly older people live and they cant bend down to pick up their dogs poo!

My springer has been taught to poo/wee on the roadside of the kerb, is this a good or bad thing?

Leo is off the lead at the beach or parks, he never goes up to other dogs first and if he sees another dog coming, he'll pick up his ball and walk near near me. He did tell a dog off recently only because the other dog came bounding over and bumped into him.

I will certainly take on board the comments about putting your dog on a lead when others are. I havent done this before as Leo is a soft dog but you never know.
 
I dont think you should be letting them run amock, you need
to definately work more on your recall, which I thought you
were going to do after the last time you posted about this.
He is your problem and if your happy to end up with a dead
dog either in an RTA or being chewed up by another then
thats entirely up to you.
 
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I am struggling to get my head around where you are coming from here. Have you ever witnessed a dog fight? It sounds like you haven't - I have, a number of times, and death was the outcome twice, and a good deal of damage was done at other times. You're right about one thing, dogs WILL sort out who they wish to play with and who they won't; let's hope your dogs don't come across those who don't.

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No I haven't. Why would I have? You seem to have the idea that I let my wild aggresive dogs run rampage and attack other dogs for the sake of 'sorting out their differences' for themselves. That's not what I said or what I meant. But I do think if a dog is aggresive or nervous enough to kill another dog then on or off the lead it should be muzzled. What if a lost dog or a child approached the nervous dog that could turn and kill as you have witnessed twice? I'm not so irresposible that I would let my dogs run up to a muzzled dog but when walking in open spaces I like to see the dogs mingling, socialising. playing, letting off steam and being dogs. That's all.
 
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Do you pick up your dogs poo?, I always that its the loose dog owners who in the majority don't seem to bother.

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You get just as many people leave it when lead walking as you do when loose walking!

I leave mine if it's not on a footpath, we have lots of cow/crop fields to walk around and when the dogs go in there or in hedges there's an extremely small chance of someone treading in it. However, should I be in a park, on a footpath, beach or somewhere where there is a large number of people then I always pick up after my dogs. And I don't care what any of you think about that.
 
I used to do the same as you and not bother picking up poo when walking across fields. But a friend in farming told me that dog muck in silage can actually cause problems for cows so I always pick up in fields now, unless it is under a hedge,(although I should add that I don't walk in silage fields once they start growing as I don't think its fair).
 
Echodomino, dog poo that finds it way into silage causes abortion in cows. Why should farmers be out of pocket due to your carelessness.

In my experience off lead dogs tend not to stay by owners side which is when the poo is missed.
 
My dog is never allowed off lead. Her recall is non existant if she sees something interesting (another dog, a bird, a plastic bag, a piece of paper...) and although she wouldn't know how to be aggressive, she can be boisterous which can worry other dogs.

Unless your recall is perfected, then IMO your dog shouldn't be allowed off lead around other dogs. On several occasions I've had other people's dogs come bounding over to my girl, only to decide they don't like her and to try attacking her. I'm just lucky that my dog never retaliates (sp?), because if she did, then we could have had a serious fight on our hands.

Be responsible and ensure you are in control of your dog, be that on or off lead.
 
My dog always goes on the lead when we see another dog unless it's one we know - as an entire male that has been attacked several times I find it easier to just put him on the lead and pretend he's aggressive so people stay away from us. There are always a few people who can't get their dogs to come back to them and I always worry what would happen if their dog decided to chase a dog across a road or something
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On city streets. *Definitely*. Goodness knows why, but it's a trend among many people in Manhattan to walk their dogs off leash in areas of fast-moving traffic, tourists etc. Admittedly, I rarely see a problem, and most of them are big plodders, but four rat terriers chased Stella and tried to bite her last year--all four of the bloody things out of control beside a main road
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Stella is not a bold dog. If we're at the park, then yes, there'll be 300+ dogs off leash and she'll try and say hello to as many as possible. If in rural woods and we meet an unfriendly/timid dog on leash, she won't even cast them a glance. So no need for the leash--she's always four steps behind me.
 
I very rarely walk my dogs on a lead because they come to the yard with me and have the run of the farm estate. The horses' field is on a bridlepath so quite often I'll be leading anything up to 5 horses when we meet strange dogs coming the other way. My dogs aren't really interested in others (black lab with low self esteem and an elderly yorkie) and tend to walk straight past completely ignoring the strange dog. If I can see that the owner doesn't want mine to bother theirs then I just tell mine to 'leave it' and they do as they're told and carry on walking. It wouldn't make a blind bit of difference if they're on a lead or not because they know that at all times they must do as they're told, and the only time they would approach another dog would be if it looked calm and friendly because they're a pair of wimps.
 
I personally think this is down to manners. My cocker spaniel is an asbo dog! She is a typical cocker, so very fun and pretty boisterous! She is not aggressive at all, but pretty annoying and I guess she would love to run around and play in the park with other dogs. Her recall however, is appalling, so she stays on a lead. I would hate for her to run up to a child in a park and knock it over. If she did, it would be my fault for not controlling my dog.

I do let her off the lead in an enclosed space where she plays with other dogs, but I wouldn't in a park. There are not only dog walkers to think about but other people and I would not want my dog to cause a child to be frightened of dogs.

As for poo, I always pick it up and have been known to find a plastic bag in a bin when I have forgotten mine. if you can't cope with picking it up, you shouldn't have a dog!
 
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I think I'm one of the irresponsible dog owners people keep posting about on here, because my dogs are always off the lead unless we are on/near a road or near sheep. They do run up to other dogs and if the have them on the lead and look pissed off then I call them away, and I'm afraid I am guilty of saying "They are only being friendly"
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But they are!!
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I wouldn't blame someone if their dog snapped at mine or whatever... so I don't really see what the big problem is??
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Obviously I don't want to annoy people who are worried about their aggressive/nervous dogs though, so is it best just to get your dogs back on the lead if you see another dog on a lead??

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I loathe people who let their dogs run loose, having been at the receiving end of several pratts not in total control of their dogs.

Sorry, but I think you are totally irresponsible, your dog, whilst running loose can cause havoc, not only with other dogs, but with people, horses and other people's pets. I have been chased and run at by loose dogs with ineffectual owners whilst hacking, and the 'He's only being friendly' line does my head in. I have had a foal, goose and numerous chickens mauled by other people's loose dogs so sorry, I am very anti dogs off leads.

I do have 4 jacks, who very rarely go on a lead, they run around our 6 acres for excercise. If I take them anywhere else - they are always on a lead, but then that to me is the responsible dog ownership.
 
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