Comments on: ‘I’m really over dog owners’

By: Kell

Kell — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 02:03:46 +0000

Last summer we spent a weeks holiday at the beach. We loved every minute of it but could not get over how many people had unrestrained dogs at the beach. Every few minutes, dogs were running up to our small children. It did make us feel a bit on edge, after all, we don’t know these dogs and we don’t know how they are going to act. Having said that, most of the dogs we saw looked like they were having the time of their life and we laughed about how much fun our four dogs would have at the beach. I just think it is responsible to keep your dogs under control.

By: Sas Battine

Sas Battine — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 01:18:58 +0000

I feel much the same way about children.

By: Jay

Jay — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 01:14:00 +0000

Train your dog, train your children. If you hate dogs/dog owners stay away from them. If you hate children/parents stay away from them. Don’t push your opinions on someone else. We are all different and all like/dislike things for our own reasons. I’m really over people hating others for no seriously good reason.

By: Ziggy

Ziggy — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 18:40:00 +0000

But you shouldn’t go up to ‘strange dogs’ without the owner’s permission. I don’t care if you feel cofmortable with it; the dog might not.
The dog might be in training, or have anxiety around strangers, or the owner might want the dog to be focusing on them at the time, not passer’s by.

I HATE it when people approach my dog without asking. He’s a 9 month old pup and Im training him important manners when out and about, and don’t want anyone and everyone coming up to him and getting him ramped up every 5 minutes, encouraging him to jump up at strangers or think every passer by is something to get hyper over. People are welcome to come and pet him, but only if they ask first.

People need to remember that just because THEY like dogs and don’t have a problem with anything a dog does, the owner might not want your intrusion at that point. Someone’s dog isn’t public property and people, and children, should learn to ask before they come up and mess with them, like they would anything else that doesn’t belong to them.

By: Ziggy

Ziggy — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 18:05:34 +0000

While I hate irresponsible dog owners as much as the next person, I have to say that, as a dog owner, we sometimes get just as peeved by parents who don’t control their kids around our dogs.
I have a 9 month old dobe pup, and you would not believe the amount of kids who think its ok to just run up and ‘hug’ him, or get in his face, or bark at him and generally harrass him, and the parents stand there like ‘isn’t that cute?!’ making no effort to control their kids.

My dog is soft and gentle, but many aren’t, and many nervous dogs would react with a nip or growl if a strange child ran up and flung their arms around them. How do these parents know my dog is friendly when they happily send their kids off to bother him? And if he had nipped through fear, it would be MY fault *rolleyes*
No parent should EVER allow their child to approach a dog they don’t know; our dogs are our family, not toys for passing kids to mess with.
I also think that in my house, my dog should not have to be put outside for the benefit of others; this is his home. I don’t demand that people put their kids in their room when Im around because Im not a fan of children. I respect its their home, I should put up or get out.
Same with my dog. If people come over, they are dog people. If they’re not dog people, I don’t know why they’re round mine…..

So yes, people who don’t control their dogs are a pain in the arse, I agree as another dog owner who has to put up with their dogs bothering mine. But people who don’t raise their kids how to behave and be respectful around dogs are just as annoying.

By: J-dog

J-dog — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 05:42:14 +0000

I’ve heard people bemoan modern-day dog-owning culture here saying that because all dogs have to be on-lead all the time that they never learn any social skills. So basically leashing dogs contributes to causing the problem it’s meant to be solving.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 05:37:56 +0000

Not everyone who gets bitten by a dog wants it put down. There was a boy in Kalgoorlie or Northam (country WA) a few years ago who had his head bitten very badly by a dog in a pub. He had loads of stitches. But the parents came out in the news saying that their son shouldn’t have approached the dog and asked for the dog not to be destroyed. Good on them. Not everyone can be so big. Most people just want to blame. Dogs will be dogs. It’s our responsibility to respect that.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 04:38:41 +0000

Absolutely! Owners are charged with the sole responsibility of their dog’s behaviour but it would help to keep both people and dogs safe if people learnt how to behave around dogs.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 04:36:49 +0000

Maybe they thought telling your daughter the dog didn’t like being touched was enough of a warning to all of you! I wouldn’t let my children touch the dog after hearing that. In fact I don’t let my children touch any dog until we’ve asked the owners. Then you can talk about the dog being e.g. old and cranky, before anything can happen. And I stand next to my child, not a metre away, to watch for signs of aggression. Dogs give warnings before biting, like growling and snarling. And I remind my child to touch in ways that the dog doesn’t read as aggressive, and not to stare.

By: Kat

Kat — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 04:02:31 +0000

If you have a child, be considerate, not everyone loves children. If you have a dog, be considerate, not everyone loves Rover. It’s really that simple.