Encounter at the Park Tonight

[carterM]

***Sorry up front for the wall of text...***

My wife and I decided to take our 2 year old son to the playground tonight after dinner. The playground is at a school nearby to where we live. As we were approaching the school, inside the fenced off area that makes up the schoolyard, a small dog that looked to be a min pin came running around the corner of the school, with about 20 feet of leash in tow and nobody attached to the back end. I was expecting to see the owner coming around the corner after their pet, but nothing.

Now my son loves dogs, so naturally the first question from him was if he could go pet the puppy. Not seeing the owner anywhere I told him to wait, while the dog continued to approach. I then told him to give the dog a lot of space. Luckily he listened. He stayed back behind me, but kept asking to pet the puppy.

Once the dog got to within about 10 feet, it started barking. Still not too concerned at this point. It's a small dog and from my experience, this is a pretty typical reaction upon seeing a person. When it started to growl at my son, that changed quite a bit.

At this point, I'm deciding if I should just punt the dog now, or wait for it to attack first... Luckily, it turned away and ran back towards the school. We continued to the park and at this point I saw the owner. A lady in her 40's I'm guessing, bent over picking up something from in front of a bench. The dog returned to her so I didn't bother to say anything to her.

I went with my son and started to play with him on the playground. At this point, a second group of kids came around the corner. The dog took off. Again...leash in tow and the owner not attached to the other end. I told her to "get her dog under control and if it growls at my kid again it's going to get kicked!".

She was agreeable, said "I thought he was tied up, I'll double knot it this time" as well as "Oh he won't bite". I informed her that people don't know that when her dog is approaching them barking and growling. She agreed with that too and took her dog back to the bench and tied it up. I noticed my wife talking to the woman.

I continued to play with my son for a bit and then my wife called me over. She asked me to apologize as the woman's granddaughter had heard the comment about kicking her dog and thought I was going to attack her dog. I said "no way" (adding an expletive as I was still quite angry) but did talk to the lady. I ended up admitting to her that I could have approached it better but my point still stood.

Anyway, my wife thinks I overdid it here. Admittedly, I probably could have gotten the point across without the comments regarding kicking her dog. I also feel bad about scaring her granddaughter, but if put in the same position again I would likely respond the same way.

I'm curious what others think about the way I handled this. Overreaction? Maybe a lack of tact? Justified?

Also...kind of a rant...

Carter

[connexion123]

Any dog not under control by their owner is liable to get a blade in the guts from me if it growled and came at my kid. Just my opinion.

[sns2]

She can explain to her granddaughter why the man got angry at the dog. Not your responsibility. I think you did nothing wrong at all. I wouldn't knife it, but may have kicked the uncontrolled dog if it growled at my kids when they were little. Don't give it a second thought.

[jtiwana]

Originally Posted by connexion123

Any dog not under control by their owner is liable to get a blade in the guts from me if it growled and came at my kid. Just my opinion.

[Hydro1]

The ladies fault completely. Not sure how your dog runs off twice while you think it's tied up.
If a growling dog gets within kicking distance they get kicked.
I would not apologize.
If you want to bring Foo Foo to the kids playground. Go in the middle of the night when no kids are around. No matter the temperament of the dog.

[purgatory.sv]

Originally Posted by carterM

***Sorry up front for the wall of text...***

My wife and I decided to take our 2 year old son to the playground tonight after dinner. The playground is at a school nearby to where we live. As we were approaching the school, inside the fenced off area that makes up the schoolyard, a small dog that looked to be a min pin came running around the corner of the school, with about 20 feet of leash in tow and nobody attached to the back end. I was expecting to see the owner coming around the corner after their pet, but nothing.

Now my son loves dogs, so naturally the first question from him was if he could go pet the puppy. Not seeing the owner anywhere I told him to wait, while the dog continued to approach. I then told him to give the dog a lot of space. Luckily he listened. He stayed back behind me, but kept asking to pet the puppy.

Once the dog got to within about 10 feet, it started barking. Still not too concerned at this point. It's a small dog and from my experience, this is a pretty typical reaction upon seeing a person. When it started to growl at my son, that changed quite a bit.

At this point, I'm deciding if I should just punt the dog now, or wait for it to attack first... Luckily, it turned away and ran back towards the school. We continued to the park and at this point I saw the owner. A lady in her 40's I'm guessing, bent over picking up something from in front of a bench. The dog returned to her so I didn't bother to say anything to her.

I went with my son and started to play with him on the playground. At this point, a second group of kids came around the corner. The dog took off. Again...leash in tow and the owner not attached to the other end. I told her to "get her dog under control and if it growls at my kid again it's going to get kicked!".

She was agreeable, said "I thought he was tied up, I'll double knot it this time" as well as "Oh he won't bite". I informed her that people don't know that when her dog is approaching them barking and growling. She agreed with that too and took her dog back to the bench and tied it up. I noticed my wife talking to the woman.

I continued to play with my son for a bit and then my wife called me over. She asked me to apologize as the woman's granddaughter had heard the comment about kicking her dog and thought I was going to attack her dog. I said "no way" (adding an expletive as I was still quite angry) but did talk to the lady. I ended up admitting to her that I could have approached it better but my point still stood.

Anyway, my wife thinks I overdid it here. Admittedly, I probably could have gotten the point across without the comments regarding kicking her dog. I also feel bad about scaring her granddaughter, but if put in the same position again I would likely respond the same way.

I'm curious what others think about the way I handled this. Overreaction? Maybe a lack of tact? Justified?

Also...kind of a rant...

Carter

You would be correct in any decision.


The dog was not in control.

Unfortunately I like fire.

[jvillads]

:

Originally Posted by sns2

she can explain to her granddaughter why the man got angry at the dog. Not your responsibility. I think you did nothing wrong at all. I wouldn't knife it, but may have kicked the uncontrolled dog if it growled at my kids when they were little. Don't give it a second thought.

x2

[nelsonob1]

Originally Posted by connexion123

Any dog not under control by their owner is liable to get a blade in the guts from me if it growled and came at my kid. Just my opinion.

??

[connexion123]

Originally Posted by nelsonob1

??

If a dog approaches my kid or any kid aggressively, that dog will suffer dearly.

[ak77]

Your wife should've stood by you. Family (as a husband and a wife) should come as a unit, single decision - no "sorry my hubby overreacted a little, but you should agree your cute little doggy was yapping a little too loud". If you said the mutt is getting a kick, she should've said "I'll hold his hat while he's doing it".

[Jamie]

Originally Posted by ak77

Your wife should've stood by you. Family (as a husband and a wife) should come as a unit, single decision - no "sorry my hubby overreacted a little, but you should agree your cute little doggy was yapping a little too loud". If you said the mutt is getting a kick, she should've said "I'll hold his hat while he's doing it".

No, sometimes the other half makes up for us.

The wife was right. the husband was right.

The OP has a Great partner there.

[KegRiver]

First, I love my dog and I'm a bit overprotective of her.

But I'm also a parent. My kids are grown and have kids of their own now, but I do remember what it's like to be responsible for them.

Nothing wrong with you wife disagreeing with you but she is wrong.

It's your responsibility to protect her and your kids. You can't do that if you second guess every decision and you are not doing it by not being prepared to use force to stop an immanent threat.

You can't know that that dog wouldn't bite and neither can the owner.

As for telling the owner what you would have done had the attack continued, you gave her fair warning, it was the right thing to do.

If no one told her there is a good chance she would have no idea what might happen to her dog if the behavior continued.

You did her a favor, if she heeds the warning.

The only way it would be wrong for you to tell the owner the truth is if your intent was to hurt her in some way.


That's my opinion and it's the way I conduct my life.

[abenaki-warrior]

A dog is a dog. And you never know how it will react towards you or a kid. There is a saying that the dog that barks doesn't bite. My saying is the dog that barks is warning you that he might bite.

I respect the dog! I work as a security gard in the town as parking enforcement and park surveillance and some times whe have to go on dog barking complaints and its not always a a purse dog that in the yard or house. The dog is home and your not. He has the upper hand or jaws.

[abenaki-warrior]

People always say he's a good or nice dog and he's not mean. But how many times d these nice, not mean dogs attack and disfigure kids and or bite people? I don't understand it's not his temper. But it happens and when it does it's too late cause it's done.

[Ranch11]

You did nothing wrong. You'll never know if a dog won't bite until it's too late.

[sprinklerdog]

Don,t sweat it. Sometimes it takes an expletive for some people to realize the seriousness of the subject.
I don't know about your area but here in Calgary it's illegal for a dog to be on school property. Big or small, tied or loose, simply illegal. It really peeves me how people ignore that. I love dogs but theres a reason for that ban. Simple health and safety. I'll stop before a rant starts.

Geo

[trooper]

In a rural setting and if a dog was chasing livestock on private land, the owner of said livestock has every right to shoot that dog. Same thing here. If that dog attacked a family member or was perceived as a threat, there would be a dead dog. Women tend to be too diplomatic in my view.

[Kim473]

Next time if there is one, just leave out the kicking part. But a warning that if the the dog comes at you and your kid again, the dog and owner will regret it.
A dog is a dog and you don't know if they will bite or not.

The bad part of this is, if the dog did bite and you did kick the dog and it had to go to the vet. In a court of law, the judge would probably make you pay for all vet bills etc...

[bang_on_sk]

The only time I've ever been bitten is by small dogs. They tend to get away with things no big dog would even consider.

I'm much more worried when my toddler is around a yappy little rat dog than a bigger dog.

[Winch101]

Here in Okotoks parks ....this is a problem . Irresponsible owners
And goofy dogs ....When I first got the griff we lived on Fish Creek
Park ....what a zoo .....had a couple of bleeding encounters ....fortunately
Not my dog . I fashioned myself a 40" walking stick out of a hard wood shovel handle . Stray dog and owner deterrent .
Whether you were discretionary in your comments isn't the issue .....
Protecting your family good ....dumb ass owner not good .
And by the way women are the worse in Control area .

[Grizzly Adams]

Originally Posted by connexion123

If a dog approaches my kid or any kid aggressively, that dog will suffer dearly.

Surprised more people don't carry dog spray.

Grizz

[silverdoctor]

Pin owner here.

Yep, they can bark, they are small and the rest of the world is very big to them.
Yep, most people with kids want to show their children how to deal with dogs - the parent being the teacher.
Yep, many kids develop a phobia of dogs.

Little bugger got tuned in yesterday by a 2 month old female lab. Funny as heck to see.

Yep, you flash a blade at my dog, you better be prepared to use it -- and not just on the dog.

[Slash8]

Originally Posted by connexion123

Any dog not under control by their owner is liable to get a blade in the guts from me if it growled and came at my kid. Just my opinion.

I actually laughed out loud when I read this.

I would not tolerate a dog acting aggressively toward my kids either and could possibly warrant a "blade to the guts" or a swift kick. There is no need for that BS and if she was upset about her granddaughter hearing some explicit language...... oh well, keep your FN dog in check and you won't have to worry about that sort of thing.

[bobtodrick]

I hope the poster if this http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showthread.php?t=260498 see this post.
Too many dog owners seem to feel that their little darlings are on equal footing with people (children especially) who may, because of past experiences have dog issues. As well children to not get the idea of staying away from a dog they don't know until assured by the owner that the dog is good with children.
In just about every serious dog attack the owner claims afterwords that the dog is really 'just a big gentle mutt'.
In truth, if it was my child (I have two young boys) a kick would have been the least of my options. If a dog does bite...yes, the blade will come out.

[Zulu9er]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqejYgs0l7Q

[artie]

I have a large lab/chessie who is so friendly that he likes to run up to people to get petted. But the people he is running up to do not know he is friendly all they see is this large brown dog running up to them. So I have to be very careful when I have him off leash. But the other day down in the pass he went running down the driveway to see another dog and scared the crap out of some people. It was my fault for not having him on his leash but I was lax as he was with me and came right back I soon as I called him. yes you never know what a dog is going to do.

[Mackinaw]

Originally Posted by silverdoctor

Yep, you flash a blade at my dog, you better be prepared to use it -- and not just on the dog.

Most ridiculous comment made on this forum.

A dog has its place and an owner should know where that is.
Mack

[silverdoctor]

Originally Posted by Mackinaw

Most ridiculous comment made on this forum.

Mack

You pull a knife in a public place in defense of self - you just committed a crime. You pull a knife around me, and threaten to use it on my dog - you'd better be prepared to defend yourself with it.

Maybe I should pack a knife and start using it, would be plenty of dead or bleeding dogs around.

[Sporty]

While the woman was wrong in not ensuring the dog was tied up, she rectified the situation, agreed that she was at fault and seemed to be contrite over what happened.

You on the other hand, knowing that a child was a little afraid of your comments and demeanor you decide to further swear angrily to get your point across. So, the dog scared a child and you scared a child, not sure how that's any better. At the end of the day, only you are responsible for how you choose to react to a situation.

People are so over reactive and hypersensitive these days, the woman made a mistake, she wasn't intentionally allowing her dog to ravage children at the park. What's the big deal of apologizing to a little kid?

[Mackinaw]

Originally Posted by silverdoctor

You pull a knife in a public place in defense of self - you just committed a crime. You pull a knife around me, and threaten to use it on my dog - you'd better be prepared to defend yourself with it.

Maybe I should pack a knife and start using it, would be plenty of dead or bleeding dogs around.

For one I don't need a knife

For two it was still a ridiculous statement

But you may Internet warrior on if you must

You and your dog have a great day

Mack