Originally Posted by
rm -rf
back on topic:
I would have stopped. It defuses the dog's chase instinct. And they can't run in front of my wheel, causing a crash.
Most every dog nip I've seen has been from dogs catching up to the rider from behind and biting the moving leg or foot.
Nothing works for every dog. These all work some of the time, but have no effect on different dogs: Yelling. Blasting an emergency whistle. Squirting water. Veering toward the dog, screaming. Stopping. Taking off sunglasses and staring down the dog! Pepper spray -- but that has to be easily accessible.
This dog wasn't chasing, it was ambushing. Watching the video, it's a matter of a second or two between when it becomes obvious the dog is unleashed and charging and when the pass actually occurs. Hindsight is 20/20, but every close call I've ever had with a dog has come out of seemingly nowhere leaving me little or no time to consider my reaction, let alone pull off a safe sudden stop while screaming, squirting, whatever. Honestly, if you did manage to slam on the brakes and put your feet on the ground, no way to tell if it would have turned out any better.
Last time I got chased, btw, it was by a Rottweiler who came at me from behind after I passed the hedges that were concealing him. I actually heard him before I saw him and he was basically just about a foot behind my leg. I did not want to stop and just kept pedaling as fast as I could. This turned out to be a very fortunate choice as when I turned back to take a second look, I realized he was a very old dog with arthritis. He tried to keep up with me for about a block, but I was about a half block ahead of him when he gave up. Literally, his only chance of catching me would have been if I had stopped or slowed. His strategy, assuming he had one, was to lie in wait behind the hedge and try to make contact immediately. Old or not, you really don't want to mess with the jaws of a Rottweiler.
Long story short--these things are extremely situational and Fido isn't always advertising his presence or intentions. I don't think we're necessarily disagreeing here, maybe it makes sense to have a default reaction, but be prepared to improvise when that strategy is obviously inappropriate.