Little dog/Big dog people

the first thing they think is that the "little dog" person just assumes the big dog is going to attack

Yeah, i'll be the first to admit this is what comes to my mind. I guess i'm so used to it. My neighbors will go inside when i come outside with Kaiser. Everyone assumes because he is a GSD is ready to attack at any moment. And yes, if i could and i felt my dogs were threatened, i'd pick them up. When Wyatt was young he was attacked at a baseball field by a pretty big dog. I lifted him up over my head and basically got mauled until the owner pulled him off of me.
 
cita- yeah, i think if the owner said something like, "sorry, my dog is feisty" or even smiled at me, it would make it much better. I just can't stand someone walking past me with a scowl.
 
And i usually step out of the way for people...i'm on a walk to exercise not for a meet and greet. My dogs never have enough slack to be able to touch or get close to another dog. I guess i'm just sick of people thinking large size=mean dog. especially since i've really worked hard to make my dogs very social and friendly

Do the small dog owners who pick up their dogs when a large dog approaches realize that they're often exacerbating any potential problem? They've now made their animals all the more interesting, less able to communicate their dog body language (because they're held up), and as a by-product, made the human even more of a target in any potential interactions btwn the dogs?

ORIGINAL: miranadobe

Do the small dog owners who pick up their dogs when a large dog approaches realize that they're often exacerbating any potential problem? They've now made their animals all the more interesting, less able to communicate their dog body language (because they're held up), and as a by-product, made the human even more of a target in any potential interactions btwn the dogs?

Thank you for mentioning this.  Out of my two dogs, Jack is more prey driven.  When someone picks up their little dog his brain snaps from "Oh BOY--a dog!" to "WHOOOOAAAA--what is THAT?  Is it a stuffie?  OMG--is she going to throw it for me?  Is she?!?  Is she!?!"

ORIGINAL: sillysally
Thank you for mentioning this.  Out of my two dogs, Jack is more prey driven.  When someone picks up their little dog his brain snaps from "Oh BOY--a dog!" to "WHOOOOAAAA--what is THAT?  Is it a stuffie?  OMG--is she going to throw it for me?  Is she?!?  Is she!?!"

That may be true, but on the ground they're totally defenseless.

Also, there are plenty of dogs that ALREADY see small dogs as prey when they're on the ground. Think about it, dogs go after cats and squirrels all the time and they usually aren't in somebody's arms. [] I see these dogs on a regular basis- their tail is high, their ears are up, their body is tense and they're 100% focused on my dog. Both times I was close to a dog with that body language, they lunged for my dog.

I definitely also realize that I'm putting myself in the middle of a possible attack. But I would rather have a chunk taken out of my leg than have my dog killed or seriously injured.

I am a medium to large dog person, but have absolutely nothing against small dogs. I've owned all different sizes.
 
I completely understand why somebody might want to pick up their small dog when I walk by with my larger dogs. Mine are under control and wouldn't attack their dog, but they don't know that, and in all honestly there are far more prey driven dogs with irresponsible owners/owners who don't know how to control their dog out there than there are controlled dogs with well experienced and responsible owners (if that makes sense?). Small dogs are defenseless if somebody else's large dog decides to lunge at them, really. I've seen a large prey driven dog shake a Papillon around like a squeaky toy. Not a pretty sight. Sure, when the dog is picked up it definitely peaks my dogs' interest in that dog, but not overly.

I have both large and small dogs, and I like dogs in general, not dogs of particular sizes. I own my dogs because of their personalities, not their size.   My small dogs are expected to behave the same as my large dog is. They're all housebroken, expected to behave, walk nicely on leashes, etc. I don't pick my small dog up when we see a leashed large dog, simply because I don't let my small dogs close enough to be in harms way should the owner not have control over their dog. I don't let them sniff and 'say hi' etc. But, I also don't let my large dog do this.  They don't need to 'say hi' and I don't want to have to worry about how the other dog will react. I know how my dogs will react, I don't know about the others.  Will that dog take offense at how my dog looks, smells, holds his tail? However, if a large dog runs up to my small dogs offleash, then yes, I will pick them up.  With Legend, I would bodyblock. (I'd probably pick him up were it possible[])  Even a rowdy large dog paw placed in a misplaced romp could seriously injure my 11 lb dog, let alone a bite.   I would likely pick them up were a small dog running at them too, though.  I do let my small breed dogs play with large breeds that I'm familiar with. We often have playdates at the dog park.
 
My thoughts on the 'ill mannered little dog' subject is that an owner who allows a small breed to get away with being aggressive, jumping, not being housebroken, and in general being a terror, would likely allow a large breed to get away with the same nuisance behaviors.  I've met many an uncontrolled small dog, and just as many medium and large dogs who are. As a vet tech, I've been snapped at, pulled down the hall, and in general worn out by pets of all sizes.  I think it's an owner issue, not a size of dog one.
 
 

That may be true, but on the ground they're totally defenseless.

why can large dog owners "step off the curb, stop/wait, give extra wide berth", but small dogs "need" to be picked up?  Why can't you turn the opposite direction, create the safe space, cross the road?  (Off-leash dogs bring a whole host of additional facets to this, so we're talking exclusively about on-leash approaching large dogs.)
 
And I don't doubt you encounter dogs that see yours as prey, but picking the dog up only heightens the interest and elevates the situation to a new level.  From a dog who is TRULY going to attack your pup, they are going at it in your arms or on the ground.  For the dogs mildly interested, this thing now looks more like a cat and requires further investigation. 

definitely peaks my dogs' interest in that dog, but not overly.

and yours is a dog who would leave the small dog alone in general.  Apply that "piqued interest" to a dog who WANTS to approach, investigate, whatever that little animal...

ORIGINAL: miranadobe

That may be true, but on the ground they're totally defenseless.

why can large dog owners "step off the curb, stop/wait, give extra wide berth", but small dogs "need" to be picked up?  Why can't you turn the opposite direction, create the safe space, cross the road? 

I should have mentioned that IS my first protocol. After the time where a dog lunged at mine when we were passing it on the trail, if I see a dog coming towards us I turn around and walk the other way. I give other dogs a wide berth, etc. I pick my dog up if we're in close quarters or the other dog is off leash. I did that with two loose Jack Russells the other day. Even small dogs can do damage if they just run in and attack.

And I don't doubt you encounter dogs that see yours as prey, but picking the dog up only heightens the interest and elevates the situation to a new level.  From a dog who is TRULY going to attack your pup, they are going at it in your arms or on the ground.  For the dogs mildly interested, this thing now looks more like a cat and requires further investigation. 

[color=#660033]I still think that they're more defenseless on the ground. That was my experience the time Gingerbread was on the ground and a GSD swooped in on him. I pulled him up by the harness OUT of harm's way. After he went after him again with me holding him I jerked away and turned my back. By holding my dog high and close to my body, I'm able to keep turning my back to the other dog and use my knee also to keep him off us. If there's a serious attack that continues, well then that was going to happen on the ground too and my dog wouldn't have stood a fighting chance. (no pun intended)

Edited to add that when we move to our new house at the end of this month I'm only going to be going on walks with my husband. I think there's a much higher incidence of loose dogs in suburban neighborhoods (and in the country too, but anyway lol) Maybe some direct stop would be in order too... Basically I take me and my family's safety seriously. You can't control everything, but I do what I can to keep us safe. I think these days you have to.

[blockquote]

ORIGINAL: Bawb2u

I like dogs that are big on the inside. I'm not too wrapped up in the outside package as long as they have a big heart.

 
That made me smile.  I tell Beau he's my little dog with a big heart.  [/blockquote]

I work with dogs of all sizes and honestly love all dogs but as a constant companion, my heartstrings definitely pull toward large breeds...even large horses, like Drafts.
 

ORIGINAL: miranadobe

Do the small dog owners who pick up their dogs when a large dog approaches realize that they're often exacerbating any potential problem? They've now made their animals all the more interesting, less able to communicate their dog body language (because they're held up), and as a by-product, made the human even more of a target in any potential interactions btwn the dogs?

I don't know if this is true but this scenario kind of played out yesterday in the park/woods.  A woman approached with three small dogs, saw me coming with my three large dogs and scooped them all up.  Her dogs were not yapping or mis-behaving and neither were mine.  What she didn't expect was as she got closer I asked my three to sit & wait off to the side which they did until she passed...when she passed we proceeded on our walk.  She yelled out a thank you.
 
This area is known to be off-leash.  I will always ask my dogs to sit & wait, to the side of trail, when there are leashed dogs approaching and remain there until they've passed us (doesn't matter size).  If the dogs are not leashed, then I let them do their own thing...it's always been a good interaction with others that are off-leash.
 
Interesting topic! []

I really don't see why it's offensive to pick up a small dog around a strange dog.  [&:]
 
I don't know your dog, nor do I know you.  How do I know your dog is under control and well behaved?  Where I live most people seem to have poor leash walkers.  It's just not a risk I want to take walking my little guy in close proximity to a stranger's dog.  It's not that I think your dog is going to attack, it's just that I don't know and I'd rather just play it safe.  I've known little dogs that have gotten attacked by larger ones and the outcome isn't pretty.  One papillon was grabbed by a borzoi at a dog show!  Little dogs can just set off the prey drive easily.  If it comes down to potentially my dog's life or the feelings of the larger dog's owners then I guess I'll just have to hurt their feelings.
 
Try to think of it from the small dog owner's perspective.  Your dog is much bigger than mine is.  If they got in a fight, it'd be bad.  I pick up all of my dogs if possible.  Another reason I pick up Trey is that he's extremely shy.  He gets scared of dogs- whatever size.  I pick him up around kids and other dogs, no matter the size.  It's because of him and not because of the big dogs. 
 
I think it's kind of silly to get offended at.  I'm not offended when people pick up their toy dogs around Trey or Nikki on a sidewalk or when a dog owner walks to the other side of the street to avoid coming in close proximity to my dogs.  I just see it as they want to avoid any potentially dangerous situation.  I don't automatically assume they think my dog is ill behaved or going to attack- that's just silly.  I actually tend to assume it's because they know their dog and they know how he'll react.
 
Oh, and if I could have picked up my GSDX when we had him, I would have. 

Just giving space to a dog that wants to attack is comical if you have been run down from blocks away and attacked.  You have to pick up your dog if you want them to survive an attack. That is the only reason my poodle survived, I barely picked her up in time, she was still punctured terribly, horrible. We barely made it, only the owner was able to pry that dog away from us.  Happens even in a vet office. If you do not learn from attacks, you cannot protect the dog and that is your job. So preventing something horrible is just what we have to do for our dogs.

Really I love animals. I've had lots of bad experiences with untrained dogs. For a long time I considered myself a "cat person." I thought dogs were dumb animals. Then I had some really good experiences with well trained dogs. I don't think the difference is whether a person prefers a small or large breed. I think the difference is between people who are responsible dog owners and people who aren't. I chose my big dog because I read up on dog breeds and found the one that I thought was a good match. I'm sure most people who own small dogs feel the same way.

I really don't see why it's offensive to pick up a small dog around a strange dog.

 
Do you all pick up your dogs around ANY large dog...like, even a golden retriever or other "friendly" breed dog? Or is it only rotts, pits, GSDs, etc...dogs that are "mean"
I've seen people not pick up their dogs when they passed my neighbor's huge old english sheepdog, and some will let their pugs meet with GRs...but i walk by with my german shepherd and ridgeback (who most think is pit bull or bullmastiff)....up they go! I'm pretty sure the OES is larger than both of my boys!
 
maybe i get overly defensive, but i feel like i can't even go in a pet store without getting some kind of comment about my "mean" dog.