How To Handle Out Of Control Off Leash Dogs

Ruby and I visited Konehete Park in Murphy, NC. Konehete is the Cherokee word for “valley”. The Valley River and Hiwassee River run through this beautiful park. It has baseball fields, kids playground, tennis courts and the Valley River Walk. Murphy, NC is 25 miles from Blue Ridge, GA and 20 miles from Blairsville, GA.
This video highlights the problem of off leash dogs. I’ve encountered this problem for many years and continue to hope that we all can work together to encourage responsible dog ownership.
Real Life Problems:
Dog owner unsnaps leash and as their dog charges shouts “he’s sweet and friendly”
Pack of dogs no human in sight
Pack of dogs, all have collars and tags, no human in sight
Dog owner walks one dog on leash and other dog off leash wandering around
Tips:
I recommend “pressure” on the dog owner if they are present by asking them to recall their dog. The dog owner is the responsible person for their uncontrolled dog. If they are unable to get their dog to recall I then asked them to walk over and physically get control of their dog.
If the owner of the uncontrolled off leash dog is present, I do not recommend shouting at the approaching dog “no, no, no”, waving your arms, or throwing rocks. This adds “energy” to the situation and ramps-up your dog and/or the approaching dog. Remain calm, stand your ground, and in a normal to moderate commanding voice encourage the dog owner to physically come and get their dog if it doesn’t recall.
Thank you for watching!
Mona
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Mona Cosse, RN, MSN, BS Psychology, Sit Means Sit Certified Remote Collar Traine
Dog With A View and Sit Up N Listen Dog Training
Blairsville, GA
[e-mail]
www.situpnlisten.com
678-800-1788

[@tord6712]

I was charged last night by 2 huge off leash dogs while I was walking mine and I stayed calm and started baby talking to them and they turned out to be friendly as can be but my dog was still scared

[@markschuette3770]

the other side of the coin- dogs need to let off leash a lot inorder to get experienced with other dogs! just like kids need to meet and deal with other kids. i have more problems with dogs on a leash! who are protecting their owner, or fearfull that they can't run or fight due to the restriction. its the owners are telegrafing fear into the dog with all that isolation and lease control.

[@DogWithAView]

Thank you for your comment. I agree, on-leash and off-leash dog problems are prevalent in our society. "Control" is not a word that is endeared by the public. It denotes a level of responsibility that one must own.
In my humble opinion, dogs only need to be off-leash if they have reliable recall. Key word reliable at 99.99%. One command "come" and the dog returns to the owner regardless of the distraction presented to the dog. Distraction training is what few dogs get in a training program to an advance level.
On-leash manners need to be as controlled and reliable as off-leash manners. Harnesses and retractable leashes are not tools that are helpful to people to assume a leadership position with their dogs. Dogs make decisions with these tools not people. And their decision is usually not the best decision.
As for mixing people and dogs together in a social environment. If you train a "release word" for example "break" this cues the dog they can go "be a dog" and meet other dogs and people off-leash. If the dog displays an unwanted behavior, for example, jumping on a kid then the owner has "control" with a reliable recall "come" then "sit". A really good dog owner can read their dog's body language to prevent the jumping event. In other words, you would recall your dog prior to your dog reaching the kid; thus, avoiding the jumping event.
This is what I'm seeing in today's dog community. Unfortunately, with the advent of technology tracking devices (i.e. Fi Smart Dog Collar, Whistle Go Explore, Apple Air Tag) I'm seeing more dogs left to roam the community until an event happens. Events include cars hitting dogs (medical and vet bills for both parties), roaming dogs becoming the responsibility of the community (food and water bowls left outside increasing rodent population), packs of dogs threatening neighborhood walkers and their dog on leash and off-leash. And, yes the list goes on.