I love dogs. I've owned 3 in my 31 years and all have made for great pets. I had a cockapoo for 17 years (Rocky) and two huskies. One (Tasha) had to be put down last November, unfortunately and the other - Tara - is 11, but still acts like a puppy.
Keeping that in mind, I really wish my neighbors (generalizing here) would keep a closer eye on their dogs. Now, Tara is as friendly as a dog can get. She's never snapped at anyone or anything before and I honestly can't see her every doing that. She's nothing but love (and weirdness). When someone does something to her she doesn't care for (like brush her, wash her, etc.), she licks them, as if to say, "Please stop. Please..." A year or two ago, as I was walking both she and Tasha around the neighborhood, a dog from two houses down came charging at her. Tasha was the bigger of the two - kind of the mommy figure - and stepped right in front of Tara and barked. The dog backed off a little bit. Tara, meanwhile, was still wagging her tail and crying, like she wanted to play with this aggressive dog. Like I said - not a vicious bone in her body.
Well, in the past couple weeks, something went wrong with the next-door neighbor's invisible fence, so their dog has been roaming free - going into people's yards, following Tara and I around, etc. The thing is, this dog has growled at Tara through our fence and Tara is afraid of him. This kind of thing happened again on Sunday. I took Tara out and almost right as we stepped out the door, the other dog was on the loose and followed us around. Tara's tail went between her legs and she then started walking back toward home. It was sad to see. I tried to keep between them and wound up taking Tara back home, because she was so frightened. On our way back home one day, she wouldn't even walk past the neighbor's house, fearful of their dog. I actually had to carry her home for the final couple of houses. She weighs a good 50-55 lbs. So, I had a brief chat with the owners and they claim that the fence will be putting in again soon, but I'm not placing any money on that.
Then two Sundays ago, as I was walking Tara a little further down in the neighborhood, we walked past a house, where 3-4 people were standing outside the garage. Tara just stood there, with her ears perked up, out on the street near their mailbox and their dog just started charging at her. This dog - Casey - headbutted Tara, bit her and then when I stood between them, started growling at her. One of the owners - the mother - came down to get Casey and seemed to think nothing major just happened. Tara, meanwhile, just stood there in shock, obviously frightened and not really sure what was going on. As I walked her back toward home, the father in that family drove up beside me and asked how Tara was doing. He soon made it apparent that he wasn't at all concerned about Tara's well-being - just about whether or not he could get sued or have his dog taken away, because he asked if "they bit each other". When I responded that Tara had been bit, but didn't bite Casey, and that there was saliva around her neck, the man said, "It's wet outside. She's wet elsewhere. How do you know she was bit? That's just water." I explained to him that it was underneath the collar and wasn't wet previously after he had gotten defensive. He then said that he's seen me walk my dog around the area several times and this is the first time this kind of thing has happened. Yes, he's right on both accounts, yet that was the very first time I ever saw his dog, so his dog is batting 1 for 1 as far as opportunities to charge/attack and charging/attacking my dog are concerned. I then found out yesterday from a neighbor of his that his dog bite theirs as well and the man said they'd put a muzzle on the dog.
This really bothers me. Most people in the neighborhood have been responsible with their dogs, by having them on a leash or enclosed with some kind of fence/gate. There are a couple here and there whom have not owned up to that kind of responsibility and in my opinion, they shouldn't be dog owners. How is it fair to the responsible dog owners in the area to have to constantly be concerned about the well-being of our dogs while going for walks because a minority of neighbors are not being responsible in their dog-owning duties?
Keeping that in mind, I really wish my neighbors (generalizing here) would keep a closer eye on their dogs. Now, Tara is as friendly as a dog can get. She's never snapped at anyone or anything before and I honestly can't see her every doing that. She's nothing but love (and weirdness). When someone does something to her she doesn't care for (like brush her, wash her, etc.), she licks them, as if to say, "Please stop. Please..." A year or two ago, as I was walking both she and Tasha around the neighborhood, a dog from two houses down came charging at her. Tasha was the bigger of the two - kind of the mommy figure - and stepped right in front of Tara and barked. The dog backed off a little bit. Tara, meanwhile, was still wagging her tail and crying, like she wanted to play with this aggressive dog. Like I said - not a vicious bone in her body.
Well, in the past couple weeks, something went wrong with the next-door neighbor's invisible fence, so their dog has been roaming free - going into people's yards, following Tara and I around, etc. The thing is, this dog has growled at Tara through our fence and Tara is afraid of him. This kind of thing happened again on Sunday. I took Tara out and almost right as we stepped out the door, the other dog was on the loose and followed us around. Tara's tail went between her legs and she then started walking back toward home. It was sad to see. I tried to keep between them and wound up taking Tara back home, because she was so frightened. On our way back home one day, she wouldn't even walk past the neighbor's house, fearful of their dog. I actually had to carry her home for the final couple of houses. She weighs a good 50-55 lbs. So, I had a brief chat with the owners and they claim that the fence will be putting in again soon, but I'm not placing any money on that.
Then two Sundays ago, as I was walking Tara a little further down in the neighborhood, we walked past a house, where 3-4 people were standing outside the garage. Tara just stood there, with her ears perked up, out on the street near their mailbox and their dog just started charging at her. This dog - Casey - headbutted Tara, bit her and then when I stood between them, started growling at her. One of the owners - the mother - came down to get Casey and seemed to think nothing major just happened. Tara, meanwhile, just stood there in shock, obviously frightened and not really sure what was going on. As I walked her back toward home, the father in that family drove up beside me and asked how Tara was doing. He soon made it apparent that he wasn't at all concerned about Tara's well-being - just about whether or not he could get sued or have his dog taken away, because he asked if "they bit each other". When I responded that Tara had been bit, but didn't bite Casey, and that there was saliva around her neck, the man said, "It's wet outside. She's wet elsewhere. How do you know she was bit? That's just water." I explained to him that it was underneath the collar and wasn't wet previously after he had gotten defensive. He then said that he's seen me walk my dog around the area several times and this is the first time this kind of thing has happened. Yes, he's right on both accounts, yet that was the very first time I ever saw his dog, so his dog is batting 1 for 1 as far as opportunities to charge/attack and charging/attacking my dog are concerned. I then found out yesterday from a neighbor of his that his dog bite theirs as well and the man said they'd put a muzzle on the dog.
This really bothers me. Most people in the neighborhood have been responsible with their dogs, by having them on a leash or enclosed with some kind of fence/gate. There are a couple here and there whom have not owned up to that kind of responsibility and in my opinion, they shouldn't be dog owners. How is it fair to the responsible dog owners in the area to have to constantly be concerned about the well-being of our dogs while going for walks because a minority of neighbors are not being responsible in their dog-owning duties?
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