Pepper spray for aggressive dogs?

I would imagine that any sort of spray would work, as it would scare the dog

A spray bottle filled with water would have a similar effect, they don’t like something being sprayed at them, but it’s completely harmless

Over friendly dogs will go away. Vicious dogs will be a problem no matter what

An air horn might do something similar

This would work.

Would a rape alarm be any good in such a situation?

Must admit that i am probably erring on the side of his wife as if a dog is attacking a woman out alone, i would deem a can of pepper spray to be well within the bounds of reasonable force. If that is illegal, well so is having a dog out of control and we have all seen how that argument goes around in circles on this website.

Not saying i want a dog hurt before anyone gets up in arms. But this woman does not deserve to be attacked.

Must admit that i am probably erring on the side of his wife as if a dog is attacking a woman out alone, i would deem a can of pepper spray to be well within the bounds of reasonable force.

Fair enough, most people would understand why she reacted to *being* attacked (however this wouldn’t stop her being prosecuted if the police were involved), however, she intends on using it if she *thinks* the dog might attack her…

Any dogs running up to her in an aggressive manner will get sprayed.

Which is, frankly, absurd and dangerous – not only could she antagonise the dog into actually attacking her, but she could also have the owner of said dog wading in too…

Which is, frankly, absurd and dangerous

yeah, the owners of those sorts of dogs should be reported to the cops.

Not to mention the fact that her husband has posted her intention to pepper spray dogs on a public internet forum.
There is no longer any legal scenario where pepper spray can be used by her in self defence.

TheLittlestHobo – Member
Would a rape alarm be any good in such a situation?

I think the dogs are trying to bite her, not mate with her.

Which is, frankly, absurd and dangerous – not only could she antagonise the dog into actually attacking her, but she could also have the owner of said dog wading in too..

This.

Education rather than escalation.

DOG INFO[/url]

Air horn

Could try canned air, air horn, rape alarm, ultrasonic dog repeller, loud whistle. Or similar first before resorting to illegal stuff.

That bite back stuff mantioned by on and on seems like the answer, I might even get myself a can

http://www.bite-back.net/

My wife once punched a dog on the nose which had caused her problems many times while out running. After that it learnt to keep its distance.

When I was in Banff (Canada) recently I noticed that dogs must be kept on a lead at all times except for in the fully fenced off-leash park. Seems like a sensible idea.

Sounds like she hasn’t got over the biting incident and her fear is making her see every dog as an attacker, meaning she feels she needs a weapon to win the “inevitable” fight.
Despite the fact that in countless occasions since she hasn’t been bitten or attacked.
Being armed isn’t going to improve anything.
She needs help getting over that incident that’s terrified her, ‘cos she’s not really thinking rationally about the situation at the moment.

For example, how does she see the situation playing out with her armed and a dog off it’s lead bounding up to her?
Spray the dog in the face “before” it bites her?
How about the dog screams/yelps in pain and terrified owner sees it as some nutcase out to attack animals with a chemical weapon?
Possibly lashes out with whatever is to hand – a chunky metal chain to the head most likely, at which point the dog takes its cue from the owner that she’s a serious threat and goes for her throat?
Is she prepared to use the spray on the owner too?

OP. please make her have a proper think about how she thinks a weapon will improve her situation.

She isn’t going to solve the problem by physically disabling any dog that comes up to her. For a start if the owners are that bad you have to wonder what the consequences will be following a successful counter-attack. I suspect it will end in court.
Most dogs aren’t aggressive (& I have actually been bitten so I know that isn’t always the case). Whilst it is the owner’s responsibilty to keep their dogs under control, the OP’s wife probably isn’t helping herself by being fearful of every dog. Easier said than done, but a more constructive way than pepper spray is for her to feel more comforatble in a dog’s presence. Do you have friend’s with dogs she can get used to?

robdixon – Member

As a dog owner I’ve consistently noticed that many of the runners in our local running club actually create the issues with dogs they then complain about

Our local runners constantly sprint right at dogs being walked on leads and make no effort whatsoever to slow down,

It’s often made worse by runners

I’m pretty sure running clubs use to train runners on how to handle dogs I.e.

How’s this for an idea….train dog owners to train their dogs? If your dog can’t behave around humans step off the path and take your dumb animal with you. It might be a wacky idea but I think humans should have right of way.

fin25
This is a bad situation, but she could get in real trouble attacking dogs with pepper spray. don’t let her go out with pepper spray, a court will see that as premeditation.

So now she is attacking the dogs with pepper spray?? As opposed to defending herself 🙄

monde

if she successfully sprays the dog it will be in a world of pain, running around headlessly and if children are around then they could bear the brunt of an out of control dog. She will then have some serious questions to answer to.

Oh no. NOT THE CHILDREN. I can see the headlines now – “Malicious runner radicalises harmless dog which inadvertently slaughters child”

After having a rather large mutha leap up and cover my t-shirt in a dog shit/mud cocktail and its owner thinking that was acceptable I’ve taken to simply shouting

NO…!

at any dog that looks like it’s going to do anything similar whether or not it’s an aggressive or friendly move.

Worked out okay so far.

at what point does she intend to use the spray? Is it when a dog bounds over to her as she runs along, or after the bite. I think she’ll be asking for a kick in the slats if she starts spraying overly enthusiastic, but non agressive dogs.

Maybe send your wife on a course detailing when to use common sense? Actually when you find one let me know and I’ll suggest my wife enrols

if she starts spraying overly enthusiastic, but non agressive not under control dogs.

We have a perverted logic that allows domesticated animals to dominate public spaces with no control even when they cause personal injury

The sooner we head to the Banff model the better

If she wants to keep running in the same places then she will need to learn how to be assertive with dogs who chase/jump up etc. Can she go to some dog training classes as an observer and watch how the leader acts and handles other peoples dogs?

So now she is attacking the dogs with pepper spray?? As opposed to defending herself

Yes she is if she sprays a dog because it is running towards her as the OP says…

Any dogs running up to her in an aggressive manner will get sprayed.

Somthing like – http://www.crimepreventionproducts.co.uk/personal-alarms/trident-triple-action-personal-rape-alarm
Good reason to carry it. Would still think twice about using it unless dog is really agressive – last line of defence.

I have kicked dogs before and kneed jumping dogs in the chest. If the owner has seen it always ends in an argument and threats by them to call the police or do nasty things to me. Not sure I would have wanted my wife having those arguments alone. Time to take up running?

a more constructive way than pepper spray is for her to feel more comforatble in a dog’s presence

I disagree

Just to be clear – she doesn’t want dogs bounding up to her and jumping up at her (even if there intentions aren’t aggressive) I appreciate some dog owners seem to think that’s ok and they can let their dogs run about and jump up at strangers, but it isn’t. Dogs should be kept under control.

It’s not just a case of being fearful of being bitten again, it’s a case that she’d like to be able to go out for a run in a public place without being harassed by a dog.

We’ve established a pepper spray isn’t a good idea. Lets move on.

Since the dog owner can’t be relied on to control their dog, is there another way of deterring the dog as it approaches? Perhaps as mentioned above an ultrasonic repeller will be worth trying.

Not sure I would have wanted my wife having those arguments alone. Time to take up running?

Next few times out, I’ll go out with her, so it will probably be me dealing with the dog (and owner), but it would be good to get a solution.

two realistic suggestion so far – carry a water bottle, if the dog is close enough to get a squirt of water, the owner isnt likely to mind (the citrus element is neither here nor there)

run somewhere else.

other option is she goes running with a dog.

johndoh – Member

So now she is attacking the dogs with pepper spray?? As opposed to defending herself

Yes she is if she sprays a dog because it is running towards her as the OP says…[/quote]

No. She is jogging. If the dog runs towards her, or runs after her it’s the aggressor. So she is defending herself. If she runs around the park chasing dogs with pepper spray then she is on the attack. The difference is subtle but important.

run somewhere else.

Ahh, an open space where there aren’t any people out walking dogs. Where would that be? South Korea?

No. She is jogging. If the dog runs towards her, or runs after her it’s the aggressor. So she is defending herself. If she runs around the park chasing dogs with pepper spray then she is on the attack. The difference is subtle but important.

A dog running towards somebody isn’t being aggressive though is it?

johndoh

A dog running towards somebody isn’t being aggressive though is it?

Yeah, better to wait until your bitten by some random animal that’s out of control.

a more constructive way than pepper spray is for her to feel more comforatble in a dog’s presence

I disagree[/quote]

If she is not prepared to face her fears and become assertive with other people dogs who can’t be bothered to do it them selves then there is no alternative other than to escalate with aggression. This will result in either the dog backing off or more likely the dog becoming more aggressive and attacking properly. That’s ok if its a little Yorkie or something but even a medium sized dog could do a fair bit of damage. It really isn’t a great idea to substitute pepper spray with anything. Escalating to violence should only be a last resort if the dog has decided to attack you.

Yeah, better to wait until your bitten by some random animal that’s out of control.

Now you are just being melodramatic.

@jim – and a human running towards a dog isn’t construed as a threat by the dog or looking like they want to play.

OP – It may be an idea to run with her or follow her on the bike to see what’s going on – is it the same dog/owners every time? Are the memories of her being bitten before clouding her judgement? Have you spoken to other runners to see how they deal with dogs or checked a running forum?

Btw if your Mrs strikes a dog she may be in for a world of pain…

jolmes

@jim – and a human running towards a dog isn’t construed as a threat by the dog or looking like they want to play.

What the dog thinks, or how it interprets the actions of a human is irrelevant. It’s a dog. The dogs owner should have it under control in a public place, end of story. The owner is there to think for it and to tell it what to do, and what not to do.

It beggars belief that people will blame joggers for getting attacked by dogs. I must be old fashioned but I believe if you own a dog you should keep it under control. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the countryside, always had dogs and always trained them. Had I not taken the time to carry out this mundane task the dogs would probably have been shot by farmers and rightly so.

OP – It may be an idea to run with her or follow her on the bike to see what’s going on

I have seen previously what happens. It’s quite simple – occasionally a dog will run up to her and jump up at her barking. fwiw The same has happened to me occasionally.

Are the memories of her being bitten before clouding her judgement?

I don’t think so

Btw if your Mrs strikes a dog she may be in for a world of pain…

agreed, there is no suggestion that she will do that.

What the dog thinks, or how it interprets the actions of a human is irrelevant. It’s a dog. The dogs owner should have it under control in a public place, end of story.

agree 100%

I love threads about dogs, I don’t think any other subject polarises for forum as much as dogs do.

Agreed, Dark side, what is both amazing and frustrating at the same time, is how some people think that a animal should be allowed to negatively impact a person’s activities as though it has a right to.

As dog ownership grows in UK and with it the amount of irresponsible owners, I guess we’ll see more and more problems.

a more constructive way than pepper spray is for her to feel more comforatble in a dog’s presence

I disagree
I think yiou are missing the point. In an ideal world every dog would be under proper control , but sadly they aren’t. You will always get dogs running up to you at some point. ‘Attacking’ the dog in some way won’t actually solve the problem & is in any case the wrong mindset for your wife to have. If she sees each interaction as a confrontation, then that is what it will become. Although she herself isn’t the problem, the solution lies within her attitude to it.

I find attacking the dog works well. By which I mean run at it shouting and have a go at kicking it, not waiting for it and using a weapon. I haven’t actually connected seriously yet, the dog that used to bark and chase soon gave up though.

You will always get dogs running up to you at some point

Agreed, but there is no reason that should be acceptable or tolerated.

Forgetting my other half to one side for moment, I don’t want somebodies muddy mutt running up to me and jumping up. It’s totally unacceptable.

If a dog owner allows this, then how can it not be a confrontation? I’m not going to stand there and smile, accepting the situation.

Very different topic, but related I guess in terms of dog ownership. I live on a bridleway and looked out the other morning to see a Labrador coiling a big-un on the grass outside my front door. The owner was about 20yds away and waited till the dog had finished and then walks on, without cleaning up. Funnily enough I went outside, caught up with him and he we had a ‘confrontation’ 🙂

I don’t think any other subject polarises for forum as much as dogs do.

really, have you not been here long? We can pretty much argue about anything… 😆