Some people wind me up... Forums

damondunc

There does seem often to be tension between free running dogs and dogs on leads ,but i love to see loads of dogs off lead and playing,my 3 are lead aggressive but pretty meek and social off lead I go out regularly with 4 other dogs and apart from Skye the saluki x grey they are all off lead and the interaction is great to see ( Skye can now go off lead as the sheep have gone ) Laughing

Spooky ,i have put a link to a lurcher website on Pets,they often have walks so most of the dogs are greys or lurchers and the photos they post look as if its fun.
I appreciate your concerns with a grey having a lurcher.

Chris

takeaflight

I can understand the worry of letting a greyhound off the lead, if near sheep or roads then no way. However they just love to run, most mornings I take Charlie to a race course, even though I could go out my back door and walk across miles of countryside without seeing anyone. But dogs are pack animals and it good for him to mix and be allowed to be a dog at least for half an hour a day. At times I have counted upto 24 dogs chasing each other around the course and in all the years we have been going, there as not been any problems. Off the lead the dogs sort themselves out. The only time there as been any issues and its always been with the owners never the dogs is when someone comes on with their dog on the lead and then starts performing because some or all of our dogs goes to inspect the new kid on the block.
While I can understand their concerns having a load of dogs rushing up to them, if they don't wish for their dog to socialise with others then why not walk where dogs are on leads.
Greyhounds do have a mind of their own and may not come straight back when called, but 9 times out of ten if you turn your back on them and walk away they will follow, if you try going to them they think what a great game and go further away. I know from personnel experience, when we first had Charlie I would panic a little and chase after him, he would smile and go further away till he thought that the old boy was about to expire, and allow himself to captured.
I live in the country up a track some distance from a road and when Charlie was younger on occasions the red mist would arrive and no fence or gate would stop him. Once or twice I would catch him strolling up the main road of the next village, my heart would sink thinking about what could have happened. My wife was petrified that he could have been run over and wonted me to put him into maximum security for his own safety. I don't know whether I am right or wrong, but I felt that if anything did happen to him while it would be unthinkable, if I was Charlie I would rather had a shorter life but a happy one doing my thing occasionally than a longer life, in effect imprisioned.

bigfoot

I always kept my kids on a lead!! Now one is at university and the other has just joined the Police-see it works!!

sallytrafic · Southern Rally Co-ordinator

We have two rescue dogs

One, Jake, is a total softie but knows all about doggy body language so is adept at socialising with other dogs. He does have a stuborn streak and doesn't respond to calling back if there is something more interesting to do. He is more likely to go out of sight he doesn't run away but just slopes away when you aren't paying attention. He hasn't had the training that we have given our other dog. I often put him on the lead for reasons that will become clearer.

Lottie was probably never socialised with other dogs as a puppy and she is unpredictable with bitches and yappy dogs. If a dog submits she is likely not to realise it. That said she obeys commands and although she runs away she is seldom out of sight for more than a few seconds and responds to calls more or less instantly. Additionally she will avoid dogs rather than be confrontational. She is better behaved in this respect off the lead.

The two dog dynamic and the pack instinct have a great effect. Lottie is top dog (bitch) If both are off their leads and Jake approaches or is approached by another dog Lottie has to jump in as well. If the other dog is in any way threatening to her or us she tries to get her retaliation in first.

So when I am walking in an open area like a beach both dogs will be off the lead, if I see another dog on a lead I get Jake on the lead first and call Lottie to heel and put her on if we get close. My wife does it the other way around which usually results in Jake trying to meet the other dog! I often see owners with more than one dog doing similar. Two loose dogs constitues a pack and is far less predictable.

I also consider the other dog walker, if their dog is on a lead on an open beach I consider why. Did they see me first and put their dog on, or is their dog not reliable. Either way it signals me to get my dogs completely under control.

JLO

The reason I go to the beach is to let my dog off the lead so he can have a good run. However I can confidently say he is always under control, because I have trained him and more importantly to the dog I am the pack leader and what I say goe's, if I tell my dog to wait he waits, if he is running toward me and I tell him to wait, he stops and dosn't move till I say so, if only all dogs were the same, however he has been easy to train as I have had him since 11 weeks. The owners need training, then the dog.

Jacqui

spooky

patp

As with most others I think that a beach is one of the safest places to let a greyhound off lead. Go on Malc - be brave and do it. Believe me you will never look back. Of course allow for the fact that your dog will be VERY excited at first but after a while he will settle into a routine. Take some extra tasty tit bits (liver is good) to reward him for coming back (even if he takes a long time at first). Never chastise him for a slow recall - he will remember and not be keen to return in future. Most dogs hate to lose their owners so the above advice about turning and walking away is good.

I have had both greyhounds and lurchers. The latter have more stamina than greyhounds and so take longer to come back when the red mist decends!!!

Good Luck

Pat

highwayman

Please please please have a look around when you let your dog
loose on the beach. We live very close to our beach which the
dogs love walking along, however our boy hates other dogs.
I'm forever having to pull him away from unsupervised dogs
which the owners have let run without a thought as to why mine
might be on a lead!!! Every single day we run into the same problem,
a loose dog comes towards us, i go from the prom as near to the sea as
is possible so as to make room and the dopey owners just let their dogs
come down after us till i have to call to them to call their dogs away.
My dog is on his lead in a big wide-open space for a reason!!!
I wish some people would wonder-why once in a while.
ok rant-over

regards....nige

spooky