To dog owners (again): I don't want your dog to touch me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm also in MoCo and everyone in my neighborhood seems to have a dog. I was mauled by a dog as a kid and while I will heart your dog photos, I will never be comfortable around them in person. I'm also surprised at how many people seem to think it's adorable for their dogs to jump on strangers or roam my front yard while they're out for a walk. The dog people are almost always distracted by their phones fwiw.

DP
That is a YOU thing. You need to adapt to the real world not expect perfection from outside forces. Dogs are individuals and so they will act in unique ways. Deal with it or stay home.

Actually, no. You are a pet owner. Back in the day, pets were expected to run around their own yards, and no dogs but city dogs "went for a walk." Dogs do not have an inherent right to be out on the street jumping on people. You and your dog are the ones who should "stay home."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you should wear a special shirt that says that so the dogs can read it and stay away.

DP: Why are being rude to this person? Your dog is on a leash, right? So it is your responsibilty to keep your dog away from other people, all other people, unless they ask you if they can pet the dog.

As with sexual assault, this is a "yes, means yes," not "no, means no" situation. Your assumption should be that you don't have consent to set your dog on someone, unless they expressly tell you it is OK.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm also in MoCo and everyone in my neighborhood seems to have a dog. I was mauled by a dog as a kid and while I will heart your dog photos, I will never be comfortable around them in person. I'm also surprised at how many people seem to think it's adorable for their dogs to jump on strangers or roam my front yard while they're out for a walk. The dog people are almost always distracted by their phones fwiw.

DP
That is a YOU thing. You need to adapt to the real world not expect perfection from outside forces. Dogs are individuals and so they will act in unique ways. Deal with it or stay home.

Actually, no. You are a pet owner. Back in the day, pets were expected to run around their own yards, and no dogs but city dogs "went for a walk." Dogs do not have an inherent right to be out on the street jumping on people. You and your dog are the ones who should "stay home."

Now you’re just making up nonsense. “Back in the day” dogs would run the whole neighborhood freely. I know that for a fact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly this is something YOU have to get over. You are clearly not well mentally and while I feel sorry for your history, you do live in a society where people have pets and children, etc and there will be interactions with them. Most mentally healthy people find these interactions pleasant and fulfilling even, but clearly you do not. That is not typical and the world should not be required to adjust to your extreme hypersensitivity. Try meds, therapy or consider in patient treatment. I wish you well

I absolutely hate entitled people like you. Keep your dog away from people. What gives you the right to impose your dog on unsuspecting strangers?

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm also in MoCo and everyone in my neighborhood seems to have a dog. I was mauled by a dog as a kid and while I will heart your dog photos, I will never be comfortable around them in person. I'm also surprised at how many people seem to think it's adorable for their dogs to jump on strangers or roam my front yard while they're out for a walk. The dog people are almost always distracted by their phones fwiw.

DP
That is a YOU thing. You need to adapt to the real world not expect perfection from outside forces. Dogs are individuals and so they will act in unique ways. Deal with it or stay home.

Actually, no. You are a pet owner. Back in the day, pets were expected to run around their own yards, and no dogs but city dogs "went for a walk." Dogs do not have an inherent right to be out on the street jumping on people. You and your dog are the ones who should "stay home."

Nobody is talking about "street jumping." OP believes she's entitled to have dogs nowhere near her on a public street, and that everyone should move away when she comes by.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you should wear a special shirt that says that so the dogs can read it and stay away.

DP: Why are being rude to this person? Your dog is on a leash, right? So it is your responsibilty to keep your dog away from other people, all other people, unless they ask you if they can pet the dog.

As with sexual assault, this is a "yes, means yes," not "no, means no" situation. Your assumption should be that you don't have consent to set your dog on someone, unless they expressly tell you it is OK.

Brushing past a dog or getting a quick sniff is not on any level equivalent to sexual assault. Talk about insane!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you should wear a special shirt that says that so the dogs can read it and stay away.

DP: Why are being rude to this person? Your dog is on a leash, right? So it is your responsibilty to keep your dog away from other people, all other people, unless they ask you if they can pet the dog.

As with sexual assault, this is a "yes, means yes," not "no, means no" situation. Your assumption should be that you don't have consent to set your dog on someone, unless they expressly tell you it is OK.

Because sidewalks are narrow, and accidental touching with people (even sexual assault victims like myself) happens in crowded places. That's not the same as letting your dog jump all over some unsuspecting person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As usual, dog owners display a tramoundous amount of entitlement and cluelessness. The reasons why someone doesn’t want to interact or be touched by your dog are irrelevant. The default should ALWAYS be to keep your dogs on a tight leash until someone tells you it’s ok for your dog to approach them. Anyone who doesn’t know this should never have a dog.

This. It is so obvious that is is unbelieveable that it has to be explained.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As usual, dog owners display a tramoundous amount of entitlement and cluelessness. The reasons why someone doesn’t want to interact or be touched by your dog are irrelevant. The default should ALWAYS be to keep your dogs on a tight leash until someone tells you it’s ok for your dog to approach them. Anyone who doesn’t know this should never have a dog.

This. It is so obvious that is is unbelieveable that it has to be explained.

I think everyone may be talking about different scenarios. The dog fear people are imagining a dog jumping on them while the dog walkers are imagining a passing person who is sniffed by the dog while passing and then continuing on. Those are two very different things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly this is something YOU have to get over. You are clearly not well mentally and while I feel sorry for your history, you do live in a society where people have pets and children, etc and there will be interactions with them. Most mentally healthy people find these interactions pleasant and fulfilling even, but clearly you do not. That is not typical and the world should not be required to adjust to your extreme hypersensitivity. Try meds, therapy or consider in patient treatment. I wish you well

DP. NO. You and your dog do NOT have the right to physically. touch a human being without permission. It is YOUR job as the owner to keep your dog from teaching other people.

The pp has a point though. OP is hyper aware of dogs due to trauma and needs treatment. OP I am sure it is very hard to go through. Good luck to you

That is irrelevant to PP dog owner's assumpttion that keeping yoru dog off of other people is adjusting to extreme hypersensitity. No, it's normal, civil dog owner behavior toward everyone, not just OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly this is something YOU have to get over. You are clearly not well mentally and while I feel sorry for your history, you do live in a society where people have pets and children, etc and there will be interactions with them. Most mentally healthy people find these interactions pleasant and fulfilling even, but clearly you do not. That is not typical and the world should not be required to adjust to your extreme hypersensitivity. Try meds, therapy or consider in patient treatment. I wish you well

DP. NO. You and your dog do NOT have the right to physically. touch a human being without permission. It is YOUR job as the owner to keep your dog from teaching other people.

The pp has a point though. OP is hyper aware of dogs due to trauma and needs treatment. OP I am sure it is very hard to go through. Good luck to you

That is irrelevant to PP dog owner's assumpttion that keeping yoru dog off of other people is adjusting to extreme hypersensitity. No, it's normal, civil dog owner behavior toward everyone, not just OP.

What assumption? The situation was described in clear detail. The OP has personal issues and should probably do what she can to handle them herself since obviously expecting perfection from the outside world is not reasonable.

[Anonymous]

This thread has either a troll or an idiot who thinks this is about incidental interaction between a dog and a person on a very crowded sidewalk. No one is talking about that.

This is about allowing your dog to go up and sniff and interact with a person who has not only not indicated they want to meet your dog, but is clearly signaling (by moving away, saying no thank you, or putting their arms out to keep the dog away from their body) that they don't want to meet your dog. This is the ONLY situation OP is talking about.

When someone comes on here and complains about the time a dog accidentally brushed against them on a crowded sidewalk and nothing happened because the dog was on a leash and well behaved, you are welcome to come back and call that person over sensitive.

But it's not the topic here. Incidental contact in a crowded place is not the issue. Unless the "crowded place" is a grocery or retail store or Union Market in which case get your dog out of there you entitled $hit, that's not where dogs go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the responses. I am in Montgomery County. I think the weather has been nice, and folks are walking around with extended leashes in pleasant conversation. This while not realizing their pets are coming close to strangers. I stay away, I will cross the street, and I will give clear signals. Still, if a human touched me, it is 2nd degree assault. Unwanted touching is not acceptable.

I am the ex-wife of an AF veteran who is now in a powerful gov position. I had to deal with his BS. I do not want to deal with your dog. I want to get a coffee and get to work.

Thanks to the dog owners who realize not all humans want to be approached by dogs.

Get mental health treatment. Walk on the other side of the street. Easy to avoid dogs.

DP: If that is your response to this thread, you are the one who needs mental health treatment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly this is something YOU have to get over. You are clearly not well mentally and while I feel sorry for your history, you do live in a society where people have pets and children, etc and there will be interactions with them. Most mentally healthy people find these interactions pleasant and fulfilling even, but clearly you do not. That is not typical and the world should not be required to adjust to your extreme hypersensitivity. Try meds, therapy or consider in patient treatment. I wish you well

I managed to own a dog for 15 years, living in an apartment in urban areas, without him touching a single person on our walk who didn't specifically ask to pet him. Most people do not find a strange dog they don't know touching them without a clear affirmative consent "pleasant and fulfilling". They find it invasive. The fact that you think that's "extreme hypersensitivity" is bizarre.

There is middle ground here. I am a dog owner. I absolutely hate off-leash dogs, and I never intentionally bring my dog to someone without them expressly inviting it. But also if you're walking on a city sidewalk, my dog might turn around to sniff you and might even boop you with his snout because there just isn't a lot of room to pass and my dog isn't perfect. The interaction won't be long because I keep his leash very short when we pass someone, but I can't guarantee perfect.

Shorten your leash or don't have a dog if you cannot walk them without it touching other people or invading their space

I grab dog’s leash so he’s right up against me. The sidewalk is like 6 feet wide or less. Two people plus a dog means we’re all coming in close proximity.

So when you’re coming into close proximity with someone who is indicating they want to avoid your dog, stop, put yourself between your dog and the other person and make your dog is secure. If shortening the leash can’t assure your control, then hold the collar, use both hands, sit on the ground with the dog in your lap while you hug it, pick it up altogether, step off the sidewalk so the other person can pass, hire a dog walker who can control the dog, take it some place where there’s no chance of it being too close to others who don’t welcome interaction, or leave the dog home altogether. The fact is that every single human has the right to use the sidewalk without being accosted by a dog. Dogs are extended the privilege of sidewalk access only when the owner’s control insures they don’t inconvenience other people.

This is san insane take and you know it. If three PEOPLE pass on the sidewalk, there's a good chance your arms will brush up against each other even though you have a "right" (a limited right) to not be touched if you don't want to. My dog is not out of control, he simply takes up space and might turn his head. He's not aggressive, he's not trying to jump on you. He just has a body that moves (and he had a stroke so is a little bit clumsy, but fine). Of course, if someone says, "I really don't like dogs," I'll make every effort to step off the sidewalk if I can safely do so. But I'm not doing that for every single person I pass in my urban neighborhood. It's neither safe nor necessary.

But a person someone passes on the sidewalk is less likely to bite them than a random dog. They are also unlikely to sniff someone so closely that they make contact, although if they do, I’m sure the sniffee would object.

No one wants you or your dog to put yourselves in danger, but you should at least be able to position yourself between the dog’s head and an individual who has indicated they have a problem with dogs, and keep your dog relatively still and contained for the few seconds it takes someone to pass.

I don’t have a problem with dogs. If your dog seems friendly and you indicate that it’s okay, I’d probably hold my hand out for the dog to sniff, and then (assuming they still seemed friendly) proceed to pet them a minute while I chatted with you. But that’s my choice to make.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread has either a troll or an idiot who thinks this is about incidental interaction between a dog and a person on a very crowded sidewalk. No one is talking about that.

This is about allowing your dog to go up and sniff and interact with a person who has not only not indicated they want to meet your dog, but is clearly signaling (by moving away, saying no thank you, or putting their arms out to keep the dog away from their body) that they don't want to meet your dog. This is the ONLY situation OP is talking about.

When someone comes on here and complains about the time a dog accidentally brushed against them on a crowded sidewalk and nothing happened because the dog was on a leash and well behaved, you are welcome to come back and call that person over sensitive.

But it's not the topic here. Incidental contact in a crowded place is not the issue. Unless the "crowded place" is a grocery or retail store or Union Market in which case get your dog out of there you entitled $hit, that's not where dogs go.

OP or some other PP has made it abundantly clear that they DO think this is about an accidental interaction where a dog sniffs you while passing on the sidewalk.