Sco++

Had a ride this evening which taught me to never make any sudden moves near a doggie, even if he is under his owners control.

Man was checking his mailbox on my side of the road, accompanied by his (unleashed) German Shepard. The dog looked to be not much more than a pup, but he was one BIG pup...

Man sees me approaching on my bike, and gives doggie a command to sit. Doggie obeys perfectly, watching me approach all the while.

I raise my hand to wave and say "Thanks" to doggie's master. Bad move. My hand was about half way raised and I got "Tha..." out of my mouth before doggie made a move for me from about 10 feet. I swear, that dog moved like he was on a trip wire. BUT, being a well-trained doggie (lucky for me), master shouts "Halt", or "Stop", or something, and doggie freezes like he hit a brick wall. Made my heart monitor go off the scale.

Doggie may have been a true off duty Police Dog or something, I don't know. He seemed exceptionally well trained, as if he interpreted my raised hand as a threat to his master or something.

Watch out who (or what) you wave to...

partbug

Like you said Lucky for you

Dogbait

The two most common responses from dog owners:

before - "Don't worry, he won't bite".

after - "Jeez, he's never done that before".


Dogbait

Louis

"Everything was fine until you came along on that damn bike...so you must be the problem."

Grampy™

My riding bud,Milkbone, would say welcome to the club.

It sounded like you weren't certain what the guy said to his dog..... in our town the canine patrol dogs recieve their commands in Dutch. Not to many gang bangers speak Dutch.

NOS88

Oh, come on now. The poor little pup saw you and had visions of glory. He just wanted to be fast too.

jppe

Dogs are usually most aggressive on their own turf and particularly around their "family". They also have a natural instinct to chase.....

Sco++

Yeah, if I'm not dodging doggies, I'm swimming with...

bruce19

As a longtime Boxer owner, I really am a friend of dogs. But, after being chased about 100 yds. up a hill by one persistent mutt, I have to say I've copped an "attitude." In some of the more rural parts of northeast CT you really can be vulnerable to two and four legged threats. More than once I've carried my Keltec .32 because I am not going to be a victim to ignorance and bad acts.


bruce19

NOS88

Is that your pool? If so, how'd you get him out of there?

stapfam

As a dog owner, I still don't trust dogs or kids to do what they are told. I seem to have an affinity with dogs though. One word from me and they do what they like.

The smaller the dog- the easier they are to bunny hop over. Just think yourself lucky that this big dog had an owner that could control it.

Sco++

Yes, that is our pool. We have a fence gate we leave open, so he comes in and out of it. He's been here several times before, but this is the first time we've seen him. This time he showed up right at dusk (July 2).
Usually the only sign he's been around is the bent bird feeder brackets and the empty feeders. He is VERY quiet. We spooked him into climbing the fence to escape.

By the way NOS, he's a PA bear...

cooker

Around here it's mandatory to keep your pool gate closed in case small children wander in.

NOS88

That doesn't surprise me. PA bears are highly intelligent animals and always seek the "good life". Next, he'll want more than bird seed and be looking for a cold brew to go with it, and perhaps a sweet little thing to spread suntan lotion on his hairy back.

goaliedad30

I do a lot of riding on a wonderful MUP that for some reason has a ton of people who walk their dog without a leash. There are lots of runners and cyclists that use this trail, and I can't for the life of me understand why these folks don't have better control of their pooches. And I'm a dog lover!!

Louis

We're starting to get a few bears around here too. The newspapers claim they're wandering in from PA. Now I am thinking...if PA bears are intelligent--what the hell are they doing coming into Ohio?

centexwoody 

No leash law outside our city limits (where I typically ride). So the young dogs who've not yet learned their trade will run at you & BITE. My wife has been bitten twice. The old dogs just watch & yawn. Last year there were 16 dogs poisoned along one county road, dogs that ran in a pack & bothered everybody. This happens every few years to keep the rural neighborhoods sanitized. I have no sympathy for the dog(s) running loose and being aggressive - if the trucks don't get them, irate neighbors will...the cyclists just put on a burst of speed (at least those NOT on Giant Boulder knobby-tired MTB's).

Sco++

Good one! However, I believe Cleveland is pretty cool...R&R Hall Of Fame and such. Kind of a neat downtown, too.

Sco++

Louis,
A member of the Beat generation, eh?

Sco++

That's what I like about Texans. They don't mess around.

Louis

I'm about 35mi. south of Cleveland, don't get up there too often these days, but yes, Cleveland is great with it's diversity and music, etc.

Louis

There were so many great writers and poets from the '40's thru the '60's it was easy for me to become enlightened.

megaman

Riding a trike, I'm quite low to the ground. I've had several close calls with dogs running loose. I've always been able to outrun them so far, but I'm afraid I'm due to get chomped on. I now carry "Halt" dog repellant. If I can think fast enough and my aim is good enough and the wind is in the right direction and I don't drop the spray............ Gosh after all that I hope the stuff actually works!

tly

A couple of nights ago I was on a ride and going by a house where some appparently new folks moved into, two dogs came out as I was going by. On the first pass by, I was climbing and the dogs just came out to the road and barked which was no big deal.
. On the return trip, I of course was going downhill therefore my speed was quite a bit faster. On this trip, the dogs gave chase and seemed much more aggressive.
. I've observed over the years of being a telephone repairman that if you stand your ground, you're usually better off if the dog doesn't feel challanged (don't look them in the eye) but if you take flight, they become more aggressive. On my next ride by that house, I'm going to try and go slow both ways and see what they do.

Tom

NOS88

I want to say he was slumming it, but I've spent some time in almost all parts of Ohio; so, I know better.

He was probably lost from drinking too much brew at Sco++'s perpetual pool party.