Dog Community

Scared of MY dog?? No way! (Racial question)

g33

Posted : 3/26/2007 9:30:59 AM

I was walking Cole last week (6 year old black Labrador, within breed standard size) and came up upon a black man riding a bicycle, toward us, on the trail. Cole was walking very nicely, but had been barking at another dog just prior to me seeing this guy. The man got off his bike, walked as far off the trail as he could, and stared at us, clutching his handlebars with white knuckles! I said, "Oh don't worry, he's friendly!" and this guy was so mortified I thought he was going to pee himself! I felt really bad for him. I thought about offering to let him pet Cole, but seriously he was so terrified I thought it just best I keep going.

I have noticed this once before with some hispanic children who ran screaming in another direction when they saw us coming. I live in an middle to upper middle class suburban area. It's pretty diverse but there are more whites than any of the other races.

OK, now the question I'm scared to ask - really, I'm asking this question out of a heartfelt concern...I've just noticed that it seems that blacks/hispanics are more often terrified of dogs than whites and asians - is it a cultural/inner city thing (most of the folks who move out to my suburb are inner-city transplants) Or is this a black dog phenomena?

DPU

Posted : 3/26/2007 10:23:18 AM

Well, I can tell you that my sister has a pack of white GSDs, 2 cats, and many birds. She is terrified of black dogs because of an early experience.

paulaedwina

Posted : 3/26/2007 10:45:46 AM

I've noticed that urban kids tend to be more afraid of dogs than rural kids. Could it be that urban kids have a different kind of experience? And by urban I'm thinking lower socioeconomic class. It may have less to do with race and more to do with that. It would be an interesting study.

Paula

jode88

Posted : 3/26/2007 10:55:58 AM

I've had men and women stop walking toward us while I am walking my dog, but I can honestly say I've never tied that in with race.
Some people are just afraid of dogs or simply don't care for them. I used to not be a dog person either but that has changed.
When I used to go to my friends' house that had dogs, I always wished they had their dogs out back or in a different room. I could not stand it when a dog would sniff or lick me....I absolutely hated it. Now, I can't even believe I used to feel that way.
As for the race thing, I don't know what to tell you. I am Hispanic and grew up in some pretty poor conditions. We had countless loose dogs around. I can't tell you how many times we were chased or bitten by dogs on our walk to/from school.

Ixas_girl

Posted : 3/26/2007 11:18:11 AM

Our child hood dog, in the suburbs east of Cleveland, was an embarrassment in this regard: he always barked at black people. The area, in the late '70's, had lots of racial tensions, and, frankly, my family is still a real embarrassment to me in terms of their attitudes (aka bigotry) [:'(] So, I can only assume the dog picked it up at home.

Here in LA, the lower income Spanish speaking school kids I took into the local mountains for art/nature sessions always oggled the squirrels with anxious interest, not having had much contact with them! That always surprised me! If a dog walker came by the kids would go stiff; the girls, especially, often screamed.

In my very urban neighborhood just a couple of miles from downtown, the lower-middle income bracket whites/blacks/latinos tend to leave bored/lonely/upset/pissed off dogs in yards, where they whine/growl/bark/snarl/lunge. So, if these were the only dogs I grew up around, I'd be leary, too!

g33

Posted : 3/26/2007 11:31:22 AM

I think whomever suggested socioeconomic status nailed it - and this is probably just a coincidence with race. I think lower socioeconomic status people wouldn't have the time/energy/money to "invest" into a family pet, thus you get the loose dog issues, poorly socialized dog issues, (and perhaps some dogfighting??) so kids learn that dogs=mean.

So sad!

espencer

Posted : 3/26/2007 12:20:07 PM

ORIGINAL: g33

I think whomever suggested socioeconomic status nailed it - and this is probably just a coincidence with race. I think lower socioeconomic status people wouldn't have the time/energy/money to "invest" into a family pet, thus you get the loose dog issues, poorly socialized dog issues, (and perhaps some dogfighting??) so kids learn that dogs=mean.

So sad!

MMMmmmm i dont think it has to do with race either and i agree is more about socioeconomics but only here in USA, in Mexico there is a lot of street dogs and kids play around in the streets with dogs walking by 30 or 40 feet from them, also i know a lot of poor families that own a dog, his diet consists on human leftovers and thats it, the dog can come and go to the street as he pleases and those families invest nothing on training or grooming, probably they vaccine their dogs with free rabies shots but thats it

Of course here in USA you dont see as many street dogs as in Mexico kids are not expose as much and since you poor families cant own a dog in the same way they could in USA then that might be the answer, lack of socialization of kids with dogs

jeano

Posted : 3/26/2007 12:21:43 PM

Nope. It was quite common not too long ago for ignorant racists to train their dogs to attack black people. I personally know folks who had this happen to them, and as racism is still something some people still adhere to, I am sure that there are still dogs who attack non-white people.

That being said, I think your fellow on the bike was just totally afraid of dogs. I say so because of the white knuckles and sweating. His reaction sounded like a personal one based on fear, not a social one. But it is a sad but true fact that some people hate other people enough to train their dogs to attack them. [

]

g33

Posted : 3/26/2007 12:31:12 PM

I guess what struck me about him was that there were many other dogs on the trail that day. We happened to be the only ones walking toward him at the moment, but he would have had to pass at least a dozen leashed dogs. I wonder if it was because Cole had been barking, or because Cole is a black dog. I wish I could have done something to reassure him but he was really quite fargone.

rwbeagles

Posted : 3/26/2007 12:33:36 PM

Also if you consider that socioeconomics also has tied in with it...a thug lifstyle at times which includes owning a tough dog....
If the only examples of dogs in your world, are those owned by thugs that might think their dog chasing you is hilarious....there ya go! Not so much color or race...but environment and opportunity to have positive interactions with dogs or any animals for that matter.

Xerxes

Posted : 3/26/2007 12:51:30 PM

An experience I had when Xerxes was a puppy brought this to reality for me. We were walking through the apartment complex (keep in mind that Xerxes is about 5 or 6 months-no more than 30lbs) and this guy runs-at a dead sprint- to the door and hides behind the door. Being a sighthound, Xerxes is watching this guy run quite intently. The guy says that he's frightened of dogs. I tell him that Xerxes is friendly and won't bother him, I pull X in close to me and the guy then clinging to the door, zips inside and pulls the door shut, and is holding it shut.

That's the first person I've ever met that was deathly terrified of dogs.

zircon

Posted : 3/26/2007 1:03:32 PM

Another possible aspect is that urban areas tend to consist of apartments. Sure, there are people in urban areas who own large dogs and who make sure that they are well-exercised and well-socialized. But the large dogs who live in rural areas have an easier time of it because at the very least they have a large yard to run around in.
So the chances of running into a poorly socialized, even aggressive large dog might be higher in an urban area than in a rural area.

denise m

Posted : 3/26/2007 1:06:23 PM

ORIGINAL: jeano

Nope. It was quite common not too long ago for ignorant racists to train their dogs to attack black people.

There is an interesting movie called "White Dog" based on a story about a man in small town USA who tries to rehabilitate such a dog.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 3/26/2007 1:53:59 PM

I have a friend who is very afraid of dogs. Even tiny little puppies bother her. I have to make a conscious effort not to walk too close to her, when I have a dog with me. The dogs that she's known (by her own telling of it) were not treated like my dogs are treated, and weren't nearly as nice.

My mom is also very afraid of dogs. She has a dog, and she isn't scared of Teenie, but she is scared of Emma. The reason that she is afraid is because I was attacked by a dog, as a young child, and she hasn't trusted dogs ever since. She and my friend move out of the way, step behind walls, deviate from paths, etc to get away from dogs.

jeano

Posted : 3/26/2007 2:01:01 PM

Denise, I think we are the only two willing to admit that this exists. Not that the others don't have good points, but my black friends have had dog sicced on them. Their parents told them about having dogs sicced on them as well, and passed on a fear of dogs because of their horrible experiences. It's awful.

I hope it is a thing that is passing.