I live in a very pet-friendly apartment complex. That’s great — otherwise, I wouldn’t have a place where my dogs Moose and Lally are welcome. The complex welcomes dogs of all sizes… I’ve got a St. Bernard living to the right, a lanky hound of some kind across the way, and a ton of other four-legged neighbors.
It’s not the dogs I’m worried about so much as the owners.
I’ve had a few run-ins with a couple that owns a pair of sleek little brown dachshunds. Every time the dogs see us, they start lunging and barking. The owners will stop and watch (and sometimes laugh) as their little dogs act very aggressively… and while I try to drag Moose and Lally off in another direction.
For the love of Rex, people! Don’t just stand there! Turn around and walk another way.
This morning I was out with the dogs and we saw a young man with a pair of dogs off to the left. Rather than turn right (as I had intended) and have them following us, I chose a different direction.
Unfortunately, the young man decided that he and his dogs would follow us. I went straight, so he turned to follow us. We turned right. He turned again. I thought it was pretty obvious that I was trying to avoid a confrontation between his dogs and my dogs… and yet he kept following us.
I don’t quite understand this. Why would you encourage and pursue situations that make your dogs agitated? The young man’s two dogs were barking at us, and Moose and Lally were barking back. I don’t want them (and me) upset. I just wanted a nice quick walk in the rain.
I go out of my way to avoid situations that might agitate the dogs. I don’t take them out when the kids are heading to school or when school lets out for the day. If I see another dog coming, I try to go a different way. We avoid kids on bikes, skateboards, and scooters because it scares Lally. I even pick up other dogs’ poop because I care about having a clean place to walk.
Some days, I feel like the only responsible dog owner in town.