Dog owner - "this park isn't for you"

nandbytes

nandbytes

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I was at the Richmond park this morning which is a rather popular place for people to walk their dogs.
I was minding my own business (photographing) and a dog appeared at my side barked once (which startled me because I was not expecting it) and was growling which made me kinda freeze.
The owner asked the dog to knock it off and it obeyed which was nice.

The owner then made the comment - "if you are scared of dogs this park isn't for you".

I am not scared of dogs (we used to have them as pets before) but there are ones in parks that do not behave nicely and they do scare me a little sometimes. They chase after wildlife, bark at people and sometimes chase after people. I am especially concerned when I am out and about with my 3 year old. I know 99% of the time its fine and in general does not worry me a great deal and in all honesty I have nothing against dogs. Its the owners and their attitude that concerns me more because more often than not I see them being terrible at keeping control.

If my son went around hitting people it would clearly reflect up on me as a parent. Same way I see pets in similar light to children. It's really the their "parents" i.e. owners that concern me.

anyway rant done.... may be others here feel differently but having had a number of bad experiences I didn't really like being talked to like this.
 
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The dog owner sounds a bit insensitive and possibly arrogant.

As a dog owner myself I'm aware that not everyone likes dogs but has a perfect right to walk in the same park as me and my dog.
 
I sort of get what he’s saying. Though I think it unneeded and phrased very badly. It’s little wonder dog owners sometimes have a bad rep.

the reason I say that I get what he’s saying- one day last week I was walking my dogs (just north of roehampton gate), theywere minding their own business when a jogger began to scream and wave her hands around, apparently she was scared of my dogs ignoring her.I’m often spoken rudely to just because I keep dogs

anyway I’m sorry, it’s not acceptable to be spoken to that way
 
I like dogs but some owners less so.

In my local park there are areas where having dog leash is mandatory but people just ignore it. A dog was behaving badly so I politely asked if the owner could follow the rules and use her lead. For some reason that offended and she started shouting abuse at me!

So i am kinda used to this kind of behaviour but I guess incident kinda pushed me over the line a little bit to make me want to rant lol
 
I can only hope that dog owners who allow their pets to behave like this get a substantial fine and eventual confiscation and barring from future ownership for repeat offences. Dogs that ignore strangers are great, and those that 'smile' while asking for attention are ok, but dogs that might become aggressive or threatening must always be kept under control in public. There's no excuse for any human to be told a public place is not for them because dog owners use it too.
 
I think the "owner" was a prat and needs training as much as his dog.

We have a dog, quite a big one, and he is off the lead when my wife walks him in local parks, but he immediately recalls when necessary and is always put back on the lead when too many people and other dogs are around. Parks are for everyone and no-one should have to be careful in case dogs are around nor watch where they step because lazy-ass "owners" don't pick up the poo. I always walk him on the lead unless in an empty field, as whilst his recall with me is also excellent, I have slightly less trust versus his instinct.
 
No bad dogs, just bad owners. Sadly, it’s a very common thing where I live - dogs bounding around offlead, totally out of control while their clueless owners drag themselves off their phones for two seconds to squeak some halfhearted, ineffective attempt at recall.

My dog stays on her lead when being walked anywhere but the sports fields or the beach. She’s not allowed to approach other dogs before we ask the owner if they can have a play and our dog goes nowhere near children. She’s a friendly little Cavapoo who can get a bit over-excited so we keep her under control. She goes to a doggie playgroup once a week to ‘let off steam.’

The simple rules are, not everyone likes dogs and not every dog likes all other dogs. If your dog doesn’t recall then keep it on a lead.
 
nandbytes said:
The owner then made the comment - "if you are scared of dogs this park isn't for you".
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Too late now but the reply is "If you can't control your own dog you shouldn't be in this park with it."
 
JasonPC said:
No bad dogs, just bad owners.
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I'd say that dogs are a lot like children - they are shaped by their keepers. By the time they've grown up then it's much harder to re-direct behaviour, and there are definitely bad human adults around. IMO a dog may be bad because of the owner, but it's still bad.
 
I’ve seen quite a few very good photos of deer ..especially stags, on here and I’m sure many were in Richmond Park..I don;t know the location though but I’d have thought dogs should be on a leash in that case.
 
Too many dog owners can't believe there are people who don't like dogs.

I hate them and seems the feeling is mutual, last one bit a hole in my joggers as it tried to chomp down on my leg.
In public places they should be on a lead, sick of hearing they won't hurt you.
 
This thread prompted to look this up...
www.royalparks.org.uk

Dogs in the Royal Parks

Dogs are welcome in the parks but there are some places where they aren't allowed or should be kept on a lead.
www.royalparks.org.uk www.royalparks.org.uk
.

If you scroll down for details of 'on lead only' areas and general guidance, it matters just where in the park the dog & its owner were for there to be any pushback if appropriate!

PS is the rut still happening.....if so, arguably the dogs should be 100% on leads at this time.
 
Up here in the frozen North, dogs should be kept under control at all times. Not necessarily on a lead. If that owners dog was not under control, then the park is no place for them, not a member of the public scaring no-one.....
 
Box Brownie said:
ThisPS is the rut still happening.....if so, arguably the dogs should be 100% on leads at this time.
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the rut is a very easy time to walk a dog, just cause the deer want to be seen and avoiding them is easy. Birthing season is much harder.,
 
tijuana taxi said:
Too many dog owners can't believe there are people who don't like dogs.

I hate them and seems the feeling is mutual, last one bit a hole in my joggers as it tried to chomp down on my leg.
In public places they should be on a lead, sick of hearing they won't hurt you.
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Reminds me of a mongrel i had, it hated other dogs and would scrap with any, the number of stupid owners who let their dog run over and shout it's ok he likes other dogs, then a hell of a squeal from it as mine floored it, with me shouting back mine doesn't that's why he is on effing lead
 
Out of control dogs are a nightmare on nature reserves
On my local one (Whixall moss) there are signs up telling owners to keep them on a lead because of ground nesting birds which is often ignored
So the put up no entry with dogs signs on the paths leading to the centre of the reserves where the birds were
The kennel club threatened to take them to court saying it was discrimination against dog owners so natural England had to close the centre of the moss to everyone
All because some people wouldn’t do the right thing
 
JohnC6 said:
I’ve seen quite a few very good photos of deer ..especially stags, on here and I’m sure many were in Richmond Park..I don;t know the location though but I’d have thought dogs should be on a leash in that case.
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They should be but its sad to say dogs chasing after deer is not uncommon!
Same goes for dogs chasing after geese, disturbing coots nests in small islands in my local park.

Box Brownie said:
This thread prompted to look this up...
www.royalparks.org.uk

Dogs in the Royal Parks

Dogs are welcome in the parks but there are some places where they aren't allowed or should be kept on a lead.
www.royalparks.org.uk www.royalparks.org.uk
.

If you scroll down for details of 'on lead only' areas and general guidance, it matters just where in the park the dog & its owner were for there to be any pushback if appropriate!

PS is the rut still happening.....if so, arguably the dogs should be 100% on leads at this time.
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It's at the end of the rutting season, they have started the cull so it coming to an end now.

I have been thrice in the rutting season and all three times it was the same i.e. plenty of dogs with no leads.
Forget the general park area I was also in near the Penn Pond area (picked up on a nice woodpecker doing its thing) where it is mandatory to have leads on. I was stood in a single place for some while and the woodpecker was getting closer (closest I have ever got) and I had blue tits and nuthatches around me too. Though I had hit the jackpot only for a free dog to come barking and chase them all away. That ended my visit lol

Though this time I saw the dog coming so I wasn't scared by any means. I wasn't pleased about losing my shots but whatever cest la vie....
 
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Off the lead, not under control and coming up to the deer rutting season when the stags can get a bit aggressive. I think the owner should have a look at the byelaws affecting the Royal Parks and the conditions applying to dogs.

This is a general excerpt from the rules and regs for the royal parks.

Dogs are welcome in all the Royal Parks although there are some places where they are not allowed or should be kept on a lead. These are clearly indicated within each park and are usually ecologically sensitive sites, children's play areas, restaurants, cafes and some sports areas.

When walking your dog in the Royal Parks please respect the wildlife as well as the other park users by keeping your dog under control. Ground nesting birds are particularly sensitive to disturbance by dogs and people. Please observe the warning signs displayed during the nesting season. In Bushy Park and Richmond Park you should keep your dogs away from the deer.

The Royal Parks are for everyone to enjoy. Please make sure you don't spoil someone else's day and pick up after your dog. Dog waste should be placed in a tightly sealed bag and taken home or deposited in the bins marked for dog waste or general bins. Dog fouling alters the nutrient levels of soils and can affect the survival of rare flora and fauna.

The Royal Parks licenses commercial dog walkers to operate in the parks.

There are more conditions applicable to all parks, google Royal Parks Byelaws.
 
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people struggle to follow the law let alone the byelaws. see so many people speeding inside Richmond park where its always been 20mph. in fact once someone started honking at me for following the speed limit! (And yes there are police sometimes with speed cameras there also deer that venture on to the road sometimes and even kids!!)
 
nandbytes said:
people struggle to follow the law let alone the byelaws. see so many people speeding inside Richmond park where its always been 20mph. in fact once someone started honking at me for following the speed limit! (And yes there are police sometimes with speed cameras there also deer that venture on to the road sometimes and even kids!!)
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Do what I do. Stop the car, get out and ask them what the problem is.
 
Way back in March when we were going for regular long walks, we came across a number of dog owners, most were OK. One evening we could see a guy with a young girl approaching and they had a staffy type dog off its lead (which should have been on its lead - loads of signs). We went into the field because it was obvious he wasn't interested in any sort of social distancing. The dog then ran towards us, snarling and barking, showing its teeth. I said to the guy - "could you keep your dog under control mate". His reply - "you ought to mind your f****g attitude mate".
There are some people who should never be allowed to own dogs.
 
first off to the OP I find the phrase EFF OFF you ladies sex organ ,often works best .

we have trouble with dog owners up here on the beaches ,some cretins tend to find joy in letting there dogs chase flocks of waders at rest and on purpose to . as a dog owner myself I simply cant understand there mind set and put it down to either inbreeding or a willy waving in public attitude .you cant cure stupid ,covid has proven that
 
darkroom12 said:
Off the lead, not under control and coming up to the deer rutting season when the stags can get a bit aggressive. I think the owner should have a look at the byelaws affecting the Royal Parks and the conditions applying to dogs.

This is a general excerpt from the rules and regs for the royal parks.

Dogs are welcome in all the Royal Parks although there are some places where they are not allowed or should be kept on a lead. These are clearly indicated within each park and are usually ecologically sensitive sites, children's play areas, restaurants, cafes and some sports areas.

When walking your dog in the Royal Parks please respect the wildlife as well as the other park users by keeping your dog under control. Ground nesting birds are particularly sensitive to disturbance by dogs and people. Please observe the warning signs displayed during the nesting season. In Bushy Park and Richmond Park you should keep your dogs away from the deer.

The Royal Parks are for everyone to enjoy. Please make sure you don't spoil someone else's day and pick up after your dog. Dog waste should be placed in a tightly sealed bag and taken home or deposited in the bins marked for dog waste or general bins. Dog fouling alters the nutrient levels of soils and can affect the survival of rare flora and fauna.

The Royal Parks licenses commercial dog walkers to operate in the parks.

There are more conditions applicable to all parks, google Royal Parks Byelaws.
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Not good for deer but catastrophic for ground-nesting birds. I assume the park is an oasis of green and trees serving a highly populated area. Almost sounds like cars and people in narrow streets..they don’t mix well.

I assume there aren’t any wardens to enforce the by-laws,then.
 
JohnC6 said:
Not good for deer but catastrophic for ground-nesting birds. I assume the park is an oasis of green and trees serving a highly populated area. Almost sounds like cars and people in narrow streets..they don’t mix well.

I assume there aren’t any wardens to enforce the by-laws,then.
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Relativley few ground nesting birds and large areas of the park protected from both dogs and people during nesting. The parks are a bit of a wasteland for wildlife (except managed herds of deer and a few invasive species)
 
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boyfalldown said:
Relativley few ground nesting birds and large areas of the park protected from both dogs and people during nesting. The parks are a bit of a wasteland for wildlife (except managed herds of deer and a few invasive species)
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Ok..thanks. Doesn’t sound so bad as my first impression.
 
boyfalldown said:
I sort of get what he’s saying. Though I think it unneeded and phrased very badly.
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I also get what he was saying and as we wernt there we dont know if it was said light hearted or menacingly....

maybe the OP is the one being sensative ? just a thought :)
 
darkroom12 said:
I have a better place, it is called the North Pennines. Otherwise known as MAMBA country which translates as - Miles and Miles of Bu**er all! Just open spaces with very few people and cars.
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Maybe, but this has the advantage (for me) that I can leave home and be there in 10. The north Pennines lack that advantage
 
mikew said:
Reminds me of a mongrel i had, it hated other dogs and would scrap with any, the number of stupid owners who let their dog run over and shout it's ok he likes other dogs, then a hell of a squeal from it as mine floored it, with me shouting back mine doesn't that's why he is on effing lead
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We’ve had two retrievers ...separately...and whilst my wife would love taking them for walks..runs,really. I didn’t. She’d get back home and tell me she’d met a lovely..whatever breed and what it’s name was. I never did enjoy taking them in the local area unless it was somewhere fairly remote and for the very reason you mention. Other people and their dogs. As you probably know young retrievers are very sociable and will run to people and pretty well 100% of the time ours were welcomed. I’d keep well away from other dog walkers but retrievers have a mind of their own and can see other dogs and people quite a way off but if Inseee them I’d put his lead on until we were away from them. I recall taking Hamish..(Scottish wife..lol) along the top of the Malverns and he ran from one resting bench to the next getting a great welcome at each. So..locally I’d have to go to the other dog walkers to ..er..retrieve...him..lol..and invariably they would be patting him and leaning down to him asking him what his name was. ‘What’s your name,then..oh...aren’t you a handsome boy”..lol. My answer to that was always that we've been trying to get him to talk for a long time but he doesn’t seem to show any inclination to do so. Titters all round. Lol.

Another aspect I really didn’t like was when they’d run to four or five walkers..usually women,who’d met up and were chatting and they‘ d greet them knowing their name. They know the names of each others’ dogs. Of course the dogs are chasing each other round,some aggressively so you get all this shouting by the owners telling their dog not to steal another dog’s ball or telling it not to be so nasty...lol. It was a case of ‘get me out of here’. I always kept our dog on a lead when going past football playing fields,which was somewhere quite a few allowed their dogs to run on. It should be banned never mind putting up ‘clear up your dog poo’ signs...and enforced. If kids fall on it and then rub their eyes they could get toxicarialis and at worst be blinded.

When my wife finished work we decided not to get another dog because we had joined the National Trust and liked to holiday abroad. They are great companions but can be quite a tie . We didn’t like putting them in kennels. We dId it once and the dog caught a nasty rash. He was in a cage with another dog. In a cage..? They had their own room at home...lol ..When we collected him my wife said ‘never again’.
 
KIPAX said:
I also get what he was saying and as we wernt there we dont know if it was said light hearted or menacingly....

maybe the OP is the one being sensative ? just a thought :)
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It wasn't menacing, it was more just a passing by comment.

I am generally not sensitive. As mentioned above its just a bunch of things piling up over time and this bit pushed me over line to make me want to rant about it.
 
I wish all dog owners who let their dogs off the lead would think, when they see a dog on a lead, why it is on a lead.

It might have poor recall, its prey drive might be so strong the owner could not guarantee recall, it might be aggressive to other dogs, it might be frightened of other dogs.

There will be a reason that might well not be helped by their dog running up to it.

Dave
 
KIPAX said:
I also get what he was saying and as we wernt there we dont know if it was said light hearted or menacingly....

maybe the OP is the one being sensative ? just a thought :)
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I'm a dog lover myself but I do realise that quite a lot of people who aren't haters as such are nervous of them. Maybe not to the degree that they think they're about to be savaged to death (although some clearly are worried about this) but definitely nervous. The fact that dog owners seem utterly oblivious to this and seem to believe that their dog should be allowed to run amok in any public place has always phased me.

If you have a dog you should be responsible for it, ensure that it doesn't frighten or harrass people or other dogs and preferably not kill the local wildlife in front of horrified onlookers too. Oh and for Gosh sake pick up the poop and do not hang the poop filled bag from a tree.

If dog owners won't or can't do these basic things they really should not have the dog. It shouldn't be up to other people to remind unthinking, uncaring or incapable dog owners of their responsibilities.
 
Tringa said:
I wish all dog owners who let their dogs off the lead would think, when they see a dog on a lead, why it is on a lead.

It might have poor recall, its prey drive might be so strong the owner could not guarantee recall, it might be aggressive to other dogs, it might be frightened of other dogs.

There will be a reason that might well not be helped by their dog running up to it.

Dave
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Also if a dog is frightened of other dogs and cannot run away, is this not a form of cruelty, another reason why dogs that cannot be controlled should be always on a lead at all times. Then of course there is the Dangerous Dogs Act!!!!
 
I had a rescue GSD, lovely friendly boy just didn't like other dogs running up and jumping all over him.
he would turn aggressive, but once properly introduced was fine.

Lost count of the number of times people would just shout as there dogs came running over that the dog was fine !!
I had to intervene and catch their damn dog to take back to them, whilst I got my boy to lie down and stay
One woman had the cheek to tell me he shouldn't be off hos lead if I couldn't control him, hmmm who's dog had no recall?

I loved in a small village where it was a few minutes to open fields and woodland without crossing roads, so rarely had
him on a lead as that ruined him into a demon, but he was perfectly under control, I spent a great deal of time training him,
we even did agility
 
woof woof said:
I'm a dog lover myself but I do realise that quite a lot of people who aren't haters as such are nervous of them. Maybe not to the degree that they think they're about to be savaged to death (although some clearly are worried about this) but definitely nervous. The fact that dog owners seem utterly oblivious to this and seem to believe that their dog should be allowed to run amok in any public place has always phased me.
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The sentence in bold represents my feeling towards them perfectly.
If its a dog I know then its fine but any others make me nervous, even still I don't mind as long as they mind their business around me. But those that start barking and growling while running at me makes me nervous and more so if I have my three year old with me.

And then for some reason I am the one getting shouted at or told where i should and shouldn't be and so on. :facepalm:
 
I love dogs. Many years ago I trained them for obedience competition and we competed at championship level. Later, I became a very successful problem dog trainer.
I gel with dogs in every way, nearly all of them like me and we understand each other instantly.

But, if people want to take them for walks in public places (or on farmland etc) then it's their responsibility to ensure that they don't trouble other people, other dogs or other animals. I don't like to come across loose dogs in public places and my view is that if people want to allow their untrained dogs to exercise off-lead then they should own their own land on which to do it.
 
I too like dogs but some more than others, but that is a different story. In my youth I was a dog handler when I was in the army and you soon got to know which of the other dogs other than your own, who you could reasonably trust. Some were just outright unpleasant. The one I spent a 3 yr tour in Cyprus with was 110 pounds of stupidity. A huge GSD but with a temperament so gentle that you could take him anywhere, but when he was working - watch out!

Recall, no problem. He always came back and the one time when I had to let him off 'in anger' I didn't have to chase of call him, he trotted back with a shoe in his mouth presumably from the person who had strayed into the restricted area and ignored my challenge. He was anybody's friend for a Polo Mint. The only time he lost control of his behaviour, was if a feral cat strayed into the compound.

I don't have a dog now, principally because I know that I cannot give him the exercise a pup would demand (A rescue dog doesn't appeal) so I take next doors 18 month old GSD/ Border collie cross out a couple of times a week.
 
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