Recognizing freedom is a privilege and knowing which dogs are capable of redeeming it is critical.
A few weeks ago we were at a park not far from our house, playing ball and having a good time with the big boys. Waylon, especially, likes to have a large space, clear of obstacles to run and chase the ball, so we were in the back corner of the park. We noticed a man arrive at the park with a small black dog and immediately upon entering the park, he took the dog's leash off. I wouldn't think anything of it, except I'd seen the man at the park before and noticed some alarming facts. The chief among them, his dog does not listen to him at all, therefore, every time he calls his dog to come back to him, the dog blows him off. This particular day, since there were lots of dogs at the park, we knew it was a recipe for disaster. Mike put Ahab back on a leash and I stayed back with our boys, while he started walking towards the other side of the park to try and help - already sensing trouble.
Before he made it a quarter of the way across the park, the scene began unfolding like something out of my (personal) worst nightmare. A lady was at the park with her young female dog. She hadn't had the dog long and (we later found out) the dog was terrified of other dogs. When the unleashed dog started running towards her and her dog, she began screaming to the man "NO! NO! NO! GET YOUR DOG, PLEEEASE!" Her panic and desperation were palpable, unfortunately for all involved, it did not register with the man. Without even heading towards her, he simply yelled back "he's friendly". She continued to scream and finally the man called his dog, then repeatedly called him, but as I witnessed during his previous trips to the park, his dog did not listen. The lady picked up her dog and held it in the air, managing to get a hold of the black dogs leash, but the mans lackadaisical approach meant she was left dealing with the situation alone for longer than she needed to. When he finally got close and she handed him his dogs leash, she moved away from them and set her dog back on the ground. I have no idea whether it was on purpose or an accident, but the man dropped his leash and his dog bolted right towards them again. The lady freaked out, her dog freaked out and in the scuffle with the other dog she lost control of her dogs leash.
Even as I type this it feels like I am describing events that transpired over the course of an hour, when realistically this all happened in less than a minute. Both dogs ran into the street and bolted. She eventually got hers to come back and continued to sob as she secured the little dog in her car. The mans dog just kept running down the block with the man chasing after it (angrily yelling at the dog) and being ignored.
Has there ever been a one-minute block of time better suited to be a here's what NOT to do for a dog owner?
Being off leash is a freedom and a privilege that must be earned by your dog. A dog must have a solid, fully vetted recall, first and foremost, to even be considered for such a privilege. Not only that but the dog must have socialization skills (see prior post - for the true meaning of socialization) that allow for that type of behavior in such a setting. In addition, your dog must be taught boundaries before being given that level of freedom. If your dog cannot be respectful of other people, their dogs, their kids, their food, and their space, then they should not be allowed off leash yet.
My own ire was definitely raised when he started chasing his dog down the street; he was incredibly aggressive and calling the dog many names not fit for this post. Ironically, the person he should have been angry with was himself. He set the dog up to fail every step of the way and became angry when the dog did what came naturally.
Even though I feel so much empathy for this woman; her choices made the situation infinitely worse. It can be difficult to keep your cool when rattled by a situation, but you must understand your dog looks to you to be their leader. If you panic and scream, and let your emotions rule the day; your dog will definitely feel all of your anxiety and it will ratchet up their own. Also, picking up a small dog and holding them in the air, when another dog is trying to get at them, spirals up the other dogs frustration and makes a bite much more likely to happen.
Being a responsible dog owner means training your dog and then giving your dog the correct amount of freedom for what they can handle. There is no shame in that.
For our boys, Waylon stays on a long leash line most of the time, because he has a tendency to get lost in smells - especially in new places - and sometimes its hard for him to break out of that focused mindset to hear us call him. Otherwise he has amazing recall, but he isn't quite ready for that level of freedom outside the house. Ahab is the total opposite and could be off-leash anywhere and still be one-hundred percent focused on us and what he is supposed to do. They are each different and it's okay to live where they are as we continue to train towards the future.
Please don't let a situation like this happen to you. Invest in quality training, know your dog's level of capability, make good choices that set your dog up to be safe and successful and be respectful of others.
- Good vibes everyone!
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