Walking your dogs

RunToEarth said:
We are in arable Lincolnshire. It is beyond annoying that each weekend there are a lot of people out walking on the footpaths who think it is acceptable to allow their dogs to run through crops. I understand that not everyone understands about farming and winter wheat at this time of year can be mistaken for grass so we do have signs up. But today I had to explain to a chap why he couldn't just let his dogs run through the rape. "They're wild flowers aren't they". It's not on, and frankly it's infuriating. Knocking hedges about is also annoying but I've become quite used to everyone else thinking that is acceptable.
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I really think it is a lack of understanding on the part of many. Many people are so far removed from where their food comes from that they don't equate a crop field to the food on their plates. It is maddening. Schools should be trying to redress the balance (and I know many are) in teaching children about farming and the various seasons.

Many of our pregnant ewes are now in fields on the estate (with some still lambing on various hills) and we still get people with off lead dogs allowing their pets to run right up alongside fences where ewes may be thinking about giving birth or, worse still, have just dropped a lamb. Depending on the experience and mothering instinct of the ewe will often make the difference with her standing up to the dog or fleeing and leaving her lamb to become hungry, cold and possibly die. I think these walkers assume that because the sheep are in a field and behind a fence that their dogs won't upset them. Again, it is a lack of understanding and not done with any malice.
 
cinnamontoast said:
Mine are on lead only between car and park/woods. Two run free, one will be on lead if we're in the woods, he's very DA: he stays on until we reach the river where he goes off lead to do water retrieves if there are no other dogs around. They don't go anywhere that needs them to be on lead. I might pop Bear on the lead if other dogs look over friendly, he can be defensive, but he's pretty dog neutral.

This thread has me thinking, tho. I HATE people allowing their dogs to approach mine when I'm training, it's rude and they don't know if my dogs are friendly, yet I usually let my two friendly/neutral dogs roam round. If I see an on lead dog, I'll heel mine past.

There was a lady struggling with an on lead/muzzled very loud mastiff type in the woods the other day: I sent Bear away and past hers at a distance. I think there's an unwritten rule in the woods: only friendly dogs should go there and be loose. I accept its very difficult to allow a DA dog freedom to run/exercise properly.

I encounter very few cyclists: for horses, my lot are called in and made to sit in plain sight.
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Having owned a reactive dog aggressive dog, I can sympathise with others who struggle with theirs. There was a post on a local FB last year where some dog walkers with friendly dogs were berating a woman walking in woodland with her DA dog on lead and who got upset when the friendly dogs all made a beeline for her dog who acted defensively. They said she shouldn't be there with her aggressive dog. (I know that is now what you are saying CT). I believe that everyone should have control of your dog - whether it is friendly or not - and so they were the ones to blame for allowing their friendly dogs to invade the space of a fearful dog.
 
I sympathise with the farmer who Heras fenced every footpath on his farm.
People seem to lack any basic form of common sense sometimes, luckily where we live now we never see another dog, except locals who we know and the MILs. When we go up to Norfolk there is a community field you can walk your dog round, they all tend to have a great time, although our dogs ignore others they are happy to interact if anyone approaches them. Why would you take an aggreesive dog to somewhere like that? Set yourself (and everyone else ) up to succeed.
 
cinnamontoast said:
That would drive me nuts. A local farmer has become so fed up with dog walkers that he's sown a crop right up to the edge and left no footpath. Guess what? Some dog walkers have flattened a path round the perimeter! So rude! I've told off runners going over a crop before, pretty poor of them.
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Yes that is not on, but to be fair the farmer was in the wrong too (although I can completely understand his frustration). The Law is very clear on that

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/public-rights-of-way-landowner-responsibilities
 
Clodagh said:
When we go up to Norfolk there is a community field you can walk your dog round, they all tend to have a great time, although our dogs ignore others they are happy to interact if anyone approaches them. Why would you take an aggreesive dog to somewhere like that? Set yourself (and everyone else ) up to succeed.
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Agree with this entirely. There is some local woodland that is very popular with dog owners as it is safe to let dogs off lead. When I had a rescue dog who was unpredictable with other dogs (and therefore kept on a lead when out), I would never walk him in those woods as I knew the chances of meeting off-lead dogs was very high, and also in woodland you can't always see other dogs approaching. I also walked him in a muzzle to make doubly sure he could cause no harm. A little bit of common-sense is needed when you have such a dog.
 
WorkingGSD said:
Yes that is not on, but to be fair the farmer was in the wrong too (although I can completely understand his frustration). The Law is very clear on that

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/public-rights-of-way-landowner-responsibilities
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Its also very clear that once a dog leaves a footpath it is trespassing just as the owner would be if they left the footpath so there is no excuse for dogs running loose.Dont confuse it with the requirements to keep dogs under close control with livestock they are two totally separate sets of legislation.We have zero tolerance around here as we are trying to encourage grey partridge to nest.
 
Mine are walked mostly off lead, however if i see a cyclist or a family with younger kids, or anyone looking nervous, i'll call the dogs to me, have them sit in to the side, & allow the people to pass. If i see approaching people with dogs - if theirs are on leash, i put mine on leash (because i presume there's a reason for theirs being on leash), whereas if approaching owners appear happy to leave their dogs offleash, i do too. Anywhere near livestock, they'll be on leash.

TGM, i have a big reactive dog, who is always muzzled & wears a harness saying Do Not Pet ... still had one idiot asking if they could pet him & then proceeding to run their hand along his side even after being told no!
 
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popsdosh said:
Its also very clear that once a dog leaves a footpath it is trespassing just as the owner would be if they left the footpath so there is no excuse for dogs running loose.Dont confuse it with the requirements to keep dogs under close control with livestock they are two totally separate sets of legislation.We have zero tolerance around here as we are trying to encourage grey partridge to nest.
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Yes but the farmer sowing crops over the top of a footpath is against the Law - whether or not he has had loose dogs running amok or not. Two separate things. And both wrong.
 
Out of interest, what would everyone do if they came across a right of way over which crops were sown? There's a few serial offenders locally (had to resist the urge to pun there :p) and while I have walked dogs over, on leads, I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to take the horses over it despite double and triple checking on the map that it's a legitimate ROW.

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eatmyshorts said:
Mine are walked mostly off lead, however if i see a cyclist or a family with younger kids, or anyone looking nervous, i'll call the dogs to me, have them sit in to the side, & allow the people to pass. If i see approaching people with dogs - if theirs are on leash, i put mine on leash (because i presume there's a reason for theirs being on leash), whereas if approaching owners appear happy to leave their dogs offleash, i do too. Anywhere near livestock, they'll be on leash.

TGM, i have a big reactive dog, who is always muzzled & wears a harness saying Do Not Pet ... still had one idiot asking if they could pet him & then proceeding to run their hand along his side even after being told no!
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I don't expect a known reactive dog to be off lead when people or dogs are about, if I see a dog off lead I leave mine off to say hello and play not to get a telling off from a reactive dog
 
twiggy2 said:
I don't expect a known reactive dog to be off lead when people or dogs are about, if I see a dog off lead I leave mine off to say hello and play not to get a telling off from a reactive dog
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Perhaps i didn't make that too clear ... just to clarify, my reactive dog is NEVER off lead. The dogs i have off leash are all friendly, good with other dogs & people, & well behaved. They are walked in separate lots.
 
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blackcob said:
Out of interest, what would everyone do if they came across a right of way over which crops were sown? There's a few serial offenders locally (had to resist the urge to pun there :p) and while I have walked dogs over, on leads, I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to take the horses over it despite double and triple checking on the map that it's a legitimate ROW.

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If it's a right of way then I use it.
I have lived on farms and many of my friends are farmers/game keepers or have shoots of various kinds and only one farmer I know personally has an issue with dogs running on a crop,
When they are spraying or similar with flotation tyres on very large amounts of the crops are flattened- it recovers! Those with shoots or livestock obviously don't want dogs running loose around the livestock but non of them have issues with dogs running on arable fields.
In fact the last 2 farms I have lived on the farmers encourages walkers in the crop fields because they tend to act as an extra pair of eyes keeping an eye out for unwanted activities.
 
Those saying walk it - would you also ride over it? I ride and lead, two horses on a wet morning could do some damage. For the sake of clarity the one pictured is definitely a bridleway, not just a footpath.
 
Yes, if it was a ROW correct for my transportation I would use it. It is not possible (well, with our drill) to leave a 1m path so it all gets sown, then if people use it a path gets worn. If it isn't used it has to be topped or sprayed off (although OH does say if it isn't being used what is the point?).
When crops are low, like now, it doesn't do any harm for dogs to be on it, but when it is in ear they can flatten it, also we don't appreciate -as we had repeatedly with different owners last year - dogs hunting the partridge broods and leverets in the crops.
 
Your not allowed to over crop on a right of way so would expect it to be used as it should. Unless it has been ploughed and you physically cannot walk across it in which case it needs reporting.
 
As much for my dogs safety as well as not being a nuisance to others, I keep mine on leads in public places (ie foot paths) unless I'm pretty confident I'm not going to run in to anyone. In large enclosed parks I let them off, but again, only if I am not going to be mingling with other people, children etc. My dogs are well socialised and go out to plenty of things where they mingle - but not everyone at public parks and footpaths are exactly dog friendly.
 
Interestingly, there has just been a piece about dog walking and numbers allowed on the One Show. A Council in Hampshire (Gosport?) has reduced the number of dogs allowed per walker from six to four. This is apparently after complaints of out of control dogs and owners not picking up after their pets.
 
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