Dog Community

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:10:08 PM

ORIGINAL: cyclefiend2000

i am not looking for a fight, just trying to point out that maybe you are being a little... overly cautious.

they were just kids for craps sake.

Okay, I lied I'm responding one more time. [

]Kids? They were older teenagers- 3 of them and each one of them was larger than me. My theory is that the best defense is a good offense, so kind of like a barking little Chihuahua I attempted to make them leave.

ORIGINAL: ark3

She was vernting. When she said sympathy she was was reponding to that person's post. Her post itself was not to solicit sympathy necessarily. [/size]

It's her business if she wants to involve the police. If they followed her and she felt uncomfortable she has every right to call the police. FYI: Calling the police does not mean that it has to be a dire emergency. The police are there to provide protection and safety to citizens. I'd might err on the siade of caution too.

EXACTLY. I was venting and just looking for people to understand. Who knew that people here would be ready to jump in and criticize. [&o]

Luvntzus

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:13:04 PM

ORIGINAL: mrv

Sure the kids could do with some better hobbies, however maybe they would be good at photography. What about asking them to actually take photos of your dogs?

Because I didn't WANT them to take pictures of my dogs. I was minding my own business and wanted to be left alone! It isn't my job to work with kids and try to "train" them. [&o]

RoyallyYours

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:14:09 PM

Tamara, with all due respect, I don't see where you've been jumped on. I've seen where there have been differing opinions, but nowhere have I seen anyone get nasty to you. I also don't think saying "I don't understand..." is criticizing.

Anonymous

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:17:28 PM

ORIGINAL: mrv

One option no one has considered, try being nice to the kids. Kids will target folks if it gets a reaction. Kids will be oppositional for the fun of it on ocassion. If an individual is riled or flustered by someone, there is a chance that reaction will positively reinforce the behavior.

Sure the kids could do with some better hobbies, however maybe they would be good at photography. What about asking them to actually take photos of your dogs?

The toughest kids in the book will often respond to geniune interest and conversation. If you want kids to change their behavior, it is far more efficient to change your own first.

And readers, I do this (working with kids who have issues) for a living, it works.

mrv,

Thanks you for posting this. It makes sense to me and I think it shows a great example of CONSTRUCTIVE critism. [

]

fuzzy_dogs_mom

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:17:40 PM

ORIGINAL: Luvntzus

Thanks for the um... sympathy, but they were following me and basically harassing me.

Just my [sm=2cents.gif] but there is a world of difference between finding yourself accidentally in the background of someones picture and having that person turn around and follow you with the camera, trying to take more pictures. Ever see one of those segments about stalkers on TV where they have a whole room covered in pictures of their victim?

Joyce

Luvntzus

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:18:31 PM

ORIGINAL: TylerToo

I am not sure why being in the background of a picture upset you so much. It sounds like they followed you because you were giving them dirty looks. They should not have followed you. What does this have to do with dogs?

The story about a guy lunging at your dog does not make sense. The conversation you had shows that he was being friendly not lunging or being aggressive. It sounds more like he wanted to pet your dog. He should know better then to do that without asking though. Your dog was probably reacting to your nervousness as much as the person approaching.

Because I didn't WANT to be in the picture and moved away. I didn't give them dirty looks until they had followed me twice and attempted to photograph me a THIRD time.

And for goodness sakes, just because PART of my post doesn't relate to dogs *content removed*

Rachael

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:27:48 PM

Tamara, don't let a few bad apples ruin the bunch (overused...ok, I admit it)...take what you like and leave the rest behind. [

]

Those who can read, understand the situation and can comment with support, encouragement, an anecdote of their own, or otherwise offer constructive criticism. Those who can't can and should ask questions nicely. Otherwise, its probably not worth the energy to get upset over [

]

Just my .02

Luvntzus

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:31:37 PM

Thank you Animal Lover, that's good advice. [

] I tend to take everything to heart; I could benefit from letting things roll off me like water from a duck's back. [

]

Well, I'm off to see the new Harry Potter movie, that should be fun!

TylerToo

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:31:51 PM

Sorry if you felt insulted by my post. I think you have to understand if you post to a public forum that not everyone will agree with you. I think the section of your post that has to do with dogs brings up a good issue.

denise m

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:33:06 PM

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marynh

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:43:47 PM

I am not sure what the unfavorable reation was. If your dog is aggressive towards people who look at her then you should avoid taking her out in public until you can correct this behavior. We can not expect others to know about dogs. It is the dog owners repsonsibility not to put their dog in a situation that could cause a problem.

How do you propose correcting a dog's fear of strangers w/out getting said dog used to being around people? It's very difficult to do such a thing by making a dog sit at home all day doing nothing. No dog parks here....My responsiblity is to ensure people's safety by not allowing them to get close to my dog and having her under my control at all times.
And how we do we from someone venting about how teenagers made her feel threatened and a stranger lunging at her dog....

marynh

Posted : 7/17/2007 2:47:11 PM

Tamara...just for the record - an incident I had this weekend closely related to your camera incident (but this isn't dog related).
I live in the sticks....virtually crime free save for the infrequent gas drive offs. I was going to meet someone this weekend in our state's largest city. I drove by this person's house and from viewing the people sitting on her porch I would not go there. I would not leave my car, unattended in the neighborhood without a guard dog sitting on the hood.
There's a lot of crime in that section of this particular city (I don't know the city well and didn't realize what area she lives in). I haven't been exposed to that on a day-to-day basis in my life.
I'm saying I can understand your concern w/that incident. One never knows what a group of people/kids intend to do.

TylerToo

Posted : 7/17/2007 3:03:48 PM

How do you propose correcting a dog's fear of strangers w/out getting said dog used to being around people? It's very difficult to do such a thing by making a dog sit at home all day doing nothing. No dog parks here....My responsiblity is to ensure people's safety by not allowing them to get close to my dog and having her under my control at all times.

Very good points and I agree with you. I was repsonding more to a general attitude that others should know how to act around animals. If someone looks at a dog and is attacked it is not the person looking at the dog who should be slapped in the head. It is the owners responsibility as you stated.

DumDog

Posted : 7/17/2007 3:33:54 PM

you need a bulldog [

]

Kaydee keeps creeps like that at a distance... even without using her "GrrFace"

janet_rose

Posted : 7/17/2007 5:04:41 PM

Tamara, I am glad that the teenagers were just pulling a prank. Sorry, that they scared you. Young males sometimes have a hard time understanding just how threatening they can be to females - especially when they gang up.

I was held up at knife point by a young man in his early 20's, so three teens following me would have made me nervous, too. I would have pulled out a can of pepper spray and asked "Are you just being annoying children or do I need to use this?" [sm=devil.gif]

Anyone who thinks that you were overreacting should consider the fact that "Three teenagers are following me and I am scared" is not something the police would treat lightly. They see too many cases where the situation is not the least bit funny.

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