I hope I am in the right section. Last night around 9:30 PM I was walking Bob as I usually do at that time of night so I will not be approached by other walkers. As I left the house Iheard my next door neighbors dogs barking (she has a pit bull and a shitzuah small dog) I decided to go in the opposite direction so I would not pass her house. As I started I heard her yelling for the pitbull. I turned and saw him charging right towards us. I already had Bob on a short leash so I pulled him behind me and started yelling for her to get her dog . The dog was about 4 feet away I just stood there with Bob behind (who was trying to get loose) the neighbor still yelling for the pitbull when he suddenly stopped and turned around and ran back to the garage. She came out and said its okay he is in the house now. I told her if this happened again I would call the police as that dog should be on a leash.

We have all had our dogs get out of the yard at one point or another. What is the question regarding this particular situation?
I know if ours see a dog they really want to go meet it, I wouldnt put it past Tika to run towards it is she got out of the house for any reason.

~Kelly

Unless she just lets the dog hang out offleash infront of the house routinely, I really don't see the need to threaten her. Dogs get out unexpectedly sometimes, as most of us on here know. And it's only natural for it to run straight towards another dog, it doesn't mean that it's in attack mode.
Is it known to be aggressive? I worked with and did training for a pit rescue when I lived in AZ and though a lot of them were very vocal and barked like crazy, most of the time it was just a quirk they had and was harmless. I found a stray pit 2 weeks ago that when I brought it into the vet and into the humane society it was barking at people like it was going to eat their faces off, but was perfectly friendly when petted- just was obnoxious with it's bark.

But anyways, like Kelly, not quite sure what your "question" is as nothing was asked...

Is your question regarding what you can do? Well yes you could call animal control to report the dog getting out. But as Chris said it can happen to anyone, has this dog been a problem in the past, is it ongoing, or is this just the first time. Was the dog charging towards you growling and acting viciously. I would want way more facts before giving any advice. Remember not all pit bulls are mean just like not all goldens are nice.

Granted its a scary situation to have a dog charging at you and your dog, and I completely understand how it made you feel it would scare the heck out of me too. But perhaps just talking to your neighbor would be enough. If it continues you would have no choice but to report it.

My questions is why are you avoiding other dogs and walkers? If Bob struggles with interaction with people and other dogs socialization, or at the very least desensitization, would help with that.

Again not sure what your concern is with the pit bull. Is it because he is a pit bull so you assume he is mean? Be careful with this. Lots of people think husky's are a wolf mix and are mean. Don't blame the breed for one bad experience.

Is the neighbor always letting the dog out? Why immediately jump to calling the police? Is there a more neighborly way of handling the situation?

Just not sure what your concern is. More information is needed to help.

Sorry I guess I did not explain. This dog is next to my yard when I walk bob in the yard and we go near that side of the yard the pit bull is banging against the fence trying to get thru. The growling and snarling bothers me. Once that dog got out of his yard and went to my other neighbors yard his dog was in his yard behind a fence and that dog was trying to get past the fence. Yes I do know not all pit bulls are aggressive my son had one when we were in NY and he was the sweetest thing. However this one I get a bad feeling about it. She keeps it mostly locked up in the garage ( which can get very hot here in Florida) when she does let it out its mostly in the yard. Last night she was in the garage with the door opened when he came barreling out towards me snarling and barking well it Scared me to no end. I guess my question is did I do the right thing by standing my ground with my dog behind me or should I have done something else to negat him from attacking us.

I have also paid someone to repair her fence as it was starting to deteriate to a point where it would have fallen on her dog or mine. It was leaning over to the point it was almost to the ground. That is when she got in the habit of locking her dog in the garage instead of repairing her fence.

Regarding why I am avoiding other dogs right now, Bob goes bonkers when he see another dog not in a bad way but a good way. Right now he is on a short leash because of doctors orders because of his operations. No jumping, no running, etc. Until I see the doctor tomorrow I just do not want him to injure himself trying to meet other dogs . He will be give a series of exercies tomorrow and swimming therapy will resume on Sunday.

I think I am being over protective. Don't worry I did not call the police and will speak to her tonight when I get home. Maybe we can come to an understanding.

I remember her little dog ran into one of my other neighbors house and her great dane got a hold of her. She required stitches to repair the injury and after the great danes owner paid her vet bill, she asked if she could see if her dog had all her shots as the little dog bit her when she was trying to retrieve her from her dogs mouth. Well this dog has never been to the vet - even though the neighbor with the great dane paid the bill they got in a huge argument regarding her dogs and that night strangely enough someone threw eggs all over the great danes owner car.

Okay I am rambling too much I apologize I guess I will step back and rethink whats going on.

I don't think you have many other options than standing your ground. Only your dog could outrun another dog so it is not like running is an option (doubt a dog would run anyways). Pulling your dog close is the best option as it serves to protect both of you the best. Pit bulls are an intimidating animal being nearly all muscle and if one was full charge towards me and my pup I would be ready to protect by any means. Things you can do when a dog is off leash and charging your way:

Shouting at the dog a simple "go home" and standing ground can often work, backing/running away triggers prey drive to kick in and prolonging any "attack"
If things get physical I think the best thing to do is protect your dog the best you can if they are the target. This means kicking/hitting with hands or grab a good stick and striking to there nose or back of the neck. A dogs skull is very tough and would probably only aggravate an enraged dog.
And who knows maybe your dog has a good fighting prowess and can help you fend off an attack from another dog.

Oh and for the excitement towards other dogs I would take your dog to a dog park when she is ready. Find a good enclosed park they can run around, my pup is 5months and was the same way but after a good number of visits to the park she can care less about another dog unless she sees one she knows. Good to give them some supervised freedom here and there.

Thank you Wolvensight - maybe that is why he ran back to the garage when I was yelling for her to get her dog and not moving. I just wanted to know what to do in case it happens again.

I was talking to a friend of mine here regarding her husky and mine. As soon as bob is 100 percent we are going to meet at a local dog park. Hope it wont be too long. Will find out tomorrow.

Has anyone heard of Adequan?? The Vet mentioned that last week.

I think you did all you could do. That's what I would have done. Stood my ground and put my dogs behind me as much as possible.

However, I would be very careful labeling pitt behavior as snarling/aggressive unless you know for sure the dog has attacked others. Pitts have been PTS for less and to me, it's no different than someone telling me Koda and Hailey are aggressive because of the way they play.

It doesn't sound like there would have been a need to call animal control unless the dog was regularly out off leash.

I think the fact that the dog stopped is a big factor here. Yes I think you did the right thing by placing yourself between them, but given the nature of this situation, the barking etc might have been simply vocalising. he stopped most likely because of the body language you showed, which is great, but he returned home, and I think that is the most important thing to remember here.

If this dog was intent on an attack, he would have kept running towards you. I would be very careful of pushing a dog away or in any form becoming physical unless it is a very serious and evident attack. People constantly think ours are getting hurt or are too riled up because of the way huskies play. If someone were to come and touch my dog to get it away from theirs, without evaluating the nature of the interaction, I would be in full attack mode myself. Touching someone elses animal in an agressive way is a very dangerous thing.

Once Bob is doing better, the dog park is probably an excellant choice. You also might consider introducing the two dogs so that they arent only ever seeing each other from other sides of the fence. It might help to know this dogs personality and temperment before you worry too much about his behaviour. He might be just SUPER excited to meet Bob and frustrated that he's not allowed.
thank you for the clarification, I hope that you and your neighbour can talk and figure out how you can best get the dogs to interact or ignore eachother if necessary.

~Kelly

Oh and I meant to say that I hope Bob is doing better, of course you are protective he is your baby!

shirl51 wrote:

Has anyone heard of Adequan?? The Vet mentioned that last week.

Yes. I can't remember why though. It's a pain killer commonly used on both dogs and horses. Someone I know has used it for dogs without issue-- I just can't remember who!

And for what it's worth... there's no issue with being protective over what is yours. However, I always try to advocate clearly assessing the situation before acting out of protectiveness or fear. I think back to the issues we have debated on this forum with police officers reacting too quickly and would hate to see us having learned nothing from it. It's quite hard to do, but being protective isn't an excuse for just reacting blindly. That is not to say that anyone has in this case, but I would hope everyone takes that away from these discussions.

Just my

Bob, has been thru enough .........pack heat next time.

As you notice I'm not a pit fan, though I'd fight to prevent breed bans. I'm sure I would have a hell of an adrenaline rush if a pitty came charging me, being stalked once by one was enough to last me a life time.

shirl51 wrote:

Regarding why I am avoiding other dogs right now, Bob goes bonkers when he see another dog not in a bad way but a good way. Right now he is on a short leash because of doctors orders because of his operations. No jumping, no running, etc. Until I see the doctor tomorrow I just do not want him to injure himself trying to meet other dogs . He will be give a series of exercies tomorrow and swimming therapy will resume on Sunday.

Sounds like your doing exactly what I would be in this situation. Your OP just wasn't clear on the reason you were avoiding other dogs and I thought the answer might impact the advice you receive.

shirl51 wrote:

I guess my question is did I do the right thing by standing my ground with my dog behind me or should I have done something else to negat him from attacking us.

Yes I think you did the right thing. Everything I have read on how to avoid dog attacks says not to make direct eye contact with the dog and when you begin to leave a situation if the dog is still present you should not run or turn your back but rather back away slowly on a diagonal to get away. Just some tidbits to keep in mind.

I hope the talk with your neighbor helps to keep the situation from escalating. Good luck!

Tika wrote:

You also might consider introducing the two dogs so that they arent only ever seeing each other from other sides of the fence. It might help to know this dogs personality and temperment before you worry too much about his behaviour. He might be just SUPER excited to meet Bob and frustrated that he's not allowed.
~Kelly

Kelly makes an excellent point here. There is a white lab a few houses down from ours that is restrained by an invisible fence. When Sabaka and I walk by, she is snarling and lunging and sometimes I even hear her collar warning her that she is getting too close to the invisible fencing! I do NOT like her! A couple weeks ago, my husband and I were walking Sabaka together and before I knew what was going on Bob is walking down into her driveway with Sabaka and she is acting all happy to see him...falling over...showing belly!! (No lectures... my husband is the out-of-control neighbor who visits all the neighborhood dogs...) Evidently, he met her owner and found out she's all bark and no bite. Now Sabaka and Bob have to stop and say "hi" to her when they are on their walks!

We have no leash laws in our county, so most dogs we meet are loose and running full force at us. It is a little unnerving, but none of them are mean. It is true that the most unsocialized ones (the ones kept behind gates or in the house) are the most dangerous if they get loose.

You probably did the right thing by standing your ground and yelling forcefully at him. Yelling "Go Home" really means nothing to a dog since even the most trained dogs probably don't know that command. Yelling "No" or "Sit" or "Leave it" or something more likely to have been taught might be best.

I know how you feel Shirl! I carry mace with me now. The last dog to charge me and Kale was a Rottweiler that was off lead, barking furiously, all the while the owner is yelling that he is friendly...ummm... if he was friendly, he wouldn't be foaming at the mouth barking at me and charging like he's gonna kill us. I told her politely that I carry mace and I'm not afraid to use it; THEN she got up off her butt and got her dog (that nipped at her when she grabbed him). All this within about 10 secs. I thought Kale and I were gonners...

Sorry to hear about the pit getting out and coming after you and Bob. People need to be more responsible but thats never ending. You did what you felt was right and it was. Doing something is always better than doing nothing. When I walk my dogs, I conceal carry. I had someone stalking cali and I once and I don't take chances anymore.

Well not all pit bull are the same. My neighbor's pit is really nice though Titus doesn't seem to like him. It is intimidating to have one coming after you. Yesterday I was in a fenced dog park with Titus and Lycan. Titus always have a problem approaching dogs. He doesn't mean anything but he charges towards the other dogs to meet them. There was a Pit Bull X Staffy there. Titus was running towards him and all of a sudden the Pit Cross had its teeth on Titus throat. Whoa! I almost went crazy there. But luckily Titus react fast to that. Somehow slipped of the teeth grip and put the Pit Cross down with his paw. At this time I'm really happy that Titus is 68lbs and we always play 'loser on the ground' game with him! The Pit cross is only slightly smaller than him but a lot older and experienced. The Pit Cross owner look at me with disgust, like my dog is the one that started everything. My partner says he look like the kind of guy that uses dog for fight. I checked Titus neck and luckily there isn't a bite mark there. Only an indentation.

I would like to thank everyone for their help. I did go over last night and spoke to her regarding her dog and she said she understood why I was upset. I also apologized for the "threat" of calling the police. I thought we had an understanding regarding the dogs. Well I took bob for this walk about 9 pm and as I was returning up the hill there was the pit bull in front of her house barking and snarling at us no one else around. My other neighbor just pulled up and she saw what was going on and called to the neighbor to get the dog. I cannot get into my house without passing hers. Neighbor came out and again apologized and chased her dog into her home. I don't know how this dog is getting out I know its not in the backyard as their gate is broken into pieces.

Again my apologies for reacting the way I did in the beginning. I am just so over protective of bob its not funny. The Vet was glad at the results today and decided Adequan is not needed. Showed me the exercise to do raising him up on his hind legs and rocking side to side after that put a cold compress on the hip then a warm compress for a few moments. Continue therapy. He said there was a big improvement from last week.