MTB Hazards : Dogs

Does anybody understand the mentality of riders when they see an ss ?
Their default behaviour seems to be dither and then stop right in my path…
Other noted behaviours are
1) Chasing and yapping at back wheel (usualy short people)
2) Sitting down, not giving a sh1t (body armoured warriors usually)
3) Half noticeing me, but somehow it does not register so the threat of not moving out of my path is implicit in this behaviour. (most of them, most of the time).
Comments

even a cornered squirrel can be dangerous…

I can’t imagine a situation where I would ‘corner a dog’ when out riding my MTB though.
Dogs are nippy over short distances but they can’t keep it up.
Apart from grey hounds, and whippets.
In the US some mtb’ers have been killed by cougars.
Here we have badgers, I would not fancy cornering one of them.

I remember hearing a funny story about someone who hit a badger, and thought he had killed it, so stopped to check the body, however he had merely pissed it off 😉

Here we have badgers, I would not fancy cornering one of them.

Although after the ensuing battle you can take the defeated badger as a trophy to show your kids…

But some badgers are dangerous…look at this! A fat badger and no rider – obviously been eaten.

It doesn’t matter how big your dog is against a ninja badger…

Of course it’s ok! Why would you need extra thanks?

Basic courtesy?

Basic courtesy?

rubbish! You should be thanking them for not setting their killer dog onto you.

Warning hazardous dog

I hate dogs on bikes rides, they always seem to chase and bark at me, had a pack of about six chase me quite a way once, they all ran out from a farm yard onto the main road. Another which was actually whatever breed the dog that McHamish posted was really got nasty with me to the point where I thought it would have attacked me if the other half hadn’t belted it. We found out after it was an escapee rescue dog who wasn’t good with bikes.. it was lost and panicking either way, if I’d have had a means of scaring it off, i would have. As it happens, all I could do was cry.

I always carry badger with me

I used to ride with a guy who always got the attention from the dogs and he was scared of the damned things too, so we had to form a group around him to protect him. He was a butcher.

I’m all for courtesy, so fair enough. But it would be rude and discourteous to fail to slow to walking pace when passing a dog walker and dog…

But it would be rude and discourteous to fail to slow to walking pace when passing a dog walker and dog…

The pr1cks that fly past me and the dog without warning are just that, pr1cks..

Glen – why? I don’t slow to walking pace when passing pedestrians. Do you? I let them know I am there and slow appropriately. I might pass 20 dogs in a 2 mile stretch of path

As usual the dog lovers want us all to have to make allowances for their dogs whilst refusing to take responsibility for their dogs.

Do you both have a bell on your bike adn warn all pedestrians of your presence?

Do you both have a bell on your bike adn warn all pedestrians of your presence?

If that’s aimed at me, I don’t have to.

So you want us to alert you to our presence so not to scare the dog but you won’t give walkers the same courtesy?

they can hear his ego rattling around inside his empty skull long before he gets near 😆

The ruddy dog walker attitude don’t half get on my tits!

Just train it properly and keep it under control thus allowing me to go about my life unaffected by it. Thats what the law requires you to do. Its not rocket science

So you want us to alert you to our presence so not to scare the dog but you won’t give walkers the same courtesy?

TJ are you jumping to the wrong conclusion again?
1. I don’t often see walkers on the trails near me.
2. I slow down for them, when I do come across them, and give them a wide berth.
3. Always pass with a cheery ‘hola!’
4. Treat others how I would expect to be treated myself.
Why would I want a bell?
It’s not hard.

Do you both have a bell on your bike and warn all pedestrians of your presence?

Maybe should have been and / or for the hard of thinking.

As usual the dog lovers want us all to have to make allowances for their dogs whilst refusing to take responsibility for their dogs.

No, not really. Expecting you to stop acting like such an eejit the second you see “dog” written on STW is even too much. Wtf is it with you and ridiculous sweeping generalisations TeeJ?

wunhundred

DD – thats what all the dog owners on here are asking for.
Apparently we have to make allowances for their dogs but they will not do as the law states and keep them under control.

Oops! 😆
The 99th post doesn’t make sense TJ. The answer is clearly NO, there are usually pedestrians in Barcelona who wouldn’t be able to hear the bell! 🙄

Bad form to post twice to get the hundred 😐

Anyway, look, I’m not arguing this with you. Your entirely unilateral ridiculous position isn’t going to change soon. Just stop coming across as such an eejit. What ever happened to everyone just trying to get along?

Edit – fair point DD

Missed the hundred anyway 🙁

Its the selfish attitude of the dog owners that gets to me.

Access rights extend to cycling. Cycling on hard surfaces, such as wide paths and tracks, causes few problems. On narrow routes, cycling may cause problems for other people, such as walkers and horse riders. If this occurs, dismount and walk until the path becomes suitable again. Do not endanger walkers and horse riders: give other users advance warning of your presence and give way to them on a narrow path. Take care not to alarm farm animals, horses and wildlife.

Its the selfish attitude of some cyclists that annoy me

I’d like to disassociate my comments from those of GRF above and let TeeJ know that I’m only ribbing him really 🙂

Jeez I cant believe you lot are still arguing about dogs on trails .

I cant wait for this perfect world to arrive when everyone obeys the rules 100% of the time

TJ have you got the ITS THE LAW on a sticky key or something
and do you never ever over step a LAW whether on foot / Bike / Motorcycle / or Car

Nowt about dogs there falkirk mark? Thats perfectly reasonable advice in the code and what we should all do. If riders are not doing that then they are in the wrong.

Also in the code is a requirement to keep dogs under control at all times and under close control if there are farm animals about

DD – Nae worries

Edit – apologies trout. Its the attitude of the dog owners just gets my goat. Aparantly we have to make allowances for their dogs but they don’t have to keepo the damn things under control. 🙄

You are right TJ nowt about dogs, my point being that when you do that for the owner then the owner will be puting his/her dog on a lead. I am also familiar about the bit on dogs being a dog owner and cyclist

TJ. Of course I slow right down for walkers. Don’t you ever go walking yourself? It’s much more pleasant when riders slow right down. Sounds like you slow down too, so I can’t really see what your point is, apart from being a big girl about dogs. 😉

If i hear a bike coming or notice it i get the dog to come to me. Thanks is nice but often not forthcoming. The same as pedestrians get from me when i ride near them.

As for riding with the dog he only barks when i’m not going fast enough and damn him if he doesn’t short cut the switchbacks. He always takes the berms high though and overtakes on the right but has no bell to let slower riders know he’s coming through.

they will not do as the law states and keep them under control.

said it before and will keep saying it, show me the law, not a guidline and not a code but a law with an example of a single person who has been prosecuted for this hugely commonly broken law you ramble on about.

From Natural England:

By law, you must control your dog so that it does not disturb or scare farm animals or wildlife. On most areas of open country and common land, known as ‘access land’ you must keep your dog on a short lead between 1 March and 31 July, and all year round near farm animals.

You do not have to put your dog on a lead on public paths, as long as it is under close control. But as a general rule, keep your dog on a lead if you cannot rely on its obedience. By law, farmers are entitled to destroy a dog that injures or worries their animals.

Thankfully most of the dog walkers that I come around up here are pretty cool. I slow down when I see them and make my presence known and they watch their dogs to make sure they are under control.

One breed of dog I do not understand is West Highland Terriers 😕

Do they suffer massively from wee dug syndrome? Most of the ones I come across will bark very aggressively when you go past them. Some of the male ones seem particularly nasty. Horrible wee things.

But as a general rule

Seems highly legal to me 😕

Any convictions for somone having a dog that caused inconveniance to cyclists?

First part mentions law the second seems to be “advice”

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1991/65/section/3

all I can find, so I’ll ask again who has ever been prosecueted because their dog didnt lie down when a chippy cyclist wanted it to?

But it would be rude and discourteous to fail to slow to walking pace when passing a dog walker and dog..

Why yes, it would.

I partially agree with TJ here. Dog owners should not let their dogs impinge on anyone else.

However in my experience the VAST majority of them don’t. A few people struggle to control them but they are making the effort, so far enough.

However the c*nt that laughed as his dog did a massive sh*t right next to my caravan on which I was working at the time was not nice.

And people have been prosecuted afaik for not keeping their dogs under control, when it escalates into a mauling.

I always slow down for People, horses and dogs, it’s only common sense and courtesy. You’ve got to realise that a dog out in the open is probably enjoying it’self as much as you are and is in it’s own little world. Even the best trained dog will take time to react to others or it’s owner, you’re suposed to be the superior being so use that enormous brain and just slow down.