# Some people just don't "get it"



## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

There is a lady who walks 2 BIG black labs through our neighbourhood. For some reason Pipper really does NOT like these dogs so when we see them coming I actually have to cross the street and make him sit and "look at me" until they pass because if not he freaks out at them. The lady sees me doing this every day but every day she keeps trying to bring her dogs over to "meet him" and every day I have to tell her "no" while still trying to be friendly but it's starting to get frustrating. Does she not understand that if Pipper ever lunged at her dogs we could possibly have both of them react and go after him? These dogs heads are almost the size of Pipper's whole body! I'm just frustrated with people who don't seem to understand when I say NO I mean NO.


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## Snuggle's Mom (Jan 3, 2008)

UNFORTUNATELY, some people just don't get it and what the word NO means!! Sorry that you have had to endure those experiences and hope for your sake that the owner finally understands that you do not want her to bring her Dogs to meet Pipper.


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## Madison's Mom (Dec 26, 2007)

Wow! Looks like she would finally get the message!


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## Pooh's mommy (Aug 31, 2014)

Kathy,
I believe that some people Absolutely do not know the meaning of "No!"
I'm sure you are very frustrated. 
Would it be possible...to leave Pipper inside and confront her and explain your reasons for being uncomfortable. At least then , he would be out of harms way. 
Some people just don't have common sense and it has to be spelled out for them. ..unfortunately!


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## LexiMom (Feb 7, 2012)

Kathy - it is ironic that you post this - I was walked Cassidy and Cooper with my daughter - they both do draw a lot of attention as I live in a neighborhood that is mostly large dogs - and everyone walking their dog/s as I was walking them wanted to come over and meet them and have the dogs meet - NO THANKYOU! my daughter and I had to keep picking Cassidy and Cooper up - come on people your dogs are 50+ pounds - mine are 5 and 7 pounds - common sense


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## Steph_L (Jul 20, 2015)

Some people just don't get it. I worry about Daisy starting stuff with bigger dogs because she likes to charge at any and all dogs/cats/bugs/strange people next door/etc. I know she would back down as soon as another dog did something but by then it would be too late. Ellie our Sheltie has problems with other dogs. She's picky about who she likes. For instance, she's never had a problem with Daisy or my inlaw's beagle, but got into a scuffle with our old pet sitter's yorkie once (over the course of a 3 week stay, so not bad) and cannot be left alone with my sister-inlaw's shepherd mix at all. They're fine supervised but get into scuffles all the time.


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## LOVE_BABY (May 5, 2015)

*Feels good to vent about this subject...sorry, long post*

OH. MY. ---GOOODNESSS!!! 

Don't you hate when that happens?! I have had numerous occasions that where the same scenario has occurred & worse. I have even explained to the other dog owners that my dog is 'afraid of other dogs'. People do not and will not get the hint regardless of how clear I am. 

They *don't say *to themselves _"gee, if I'm making this woman's little do afraid with my dog, maybe I should leave them alone." _These are only things I can only dream about having people say to themselves..... They also *don't say* to themselves _"gee, this woman looks uncomfortable and upset, maybe I should leave her and her dog alone."

_All too often other dog owners seem to take it personally and seem to even get insulted if/when I tell them "my dog is afraid" or even that "he doesn't like other dogs". Then as a result those peoples seem to set out on a mission to 'prove' to me that my dog will like their dog by trying to force their dog upon my dog despite my protesting. I am physically pulling my dog in the opposite direction to get away from these people & their dogs & these people still walk after me in pursuit.

This one particular incident that I had with my dog stands out to me the most & I'll never forget it. On one occasion I even had a woman {a stranger}, who had been letting her dog chase & terrorize the poor Canada geese in the local suburban park near the lake. She had her medium/large size dog on one of those retractable leashes. She would allow the dog terrorize those poor geese that have as much a right to be there as she did. After terrorizing the them, she came directly over to me & let her dog growl & bark & pull toward my dog as if her dog was going to attack! She just stood there visibly enjoying the 'drama' her dog was causing in the park & she wouldn't leave us! 

She appeared to be actually ENJOYING :aktion033::clap:seeing her bigger scarier looking/acting dog 'bully' my little fluffy lap dog. She was smiling away all of the while. Meanwhile my dog was in a terrified panic & fearing for his life! I honestly believe that if she had lost control of her dog that it would have tried to rip mine to shreds! Some people get off on other people and other dogs discomfort & fear. *I think dogs can be 'bullied' too if their pet parents allow them to bully other dogs. 
*
Love my parents. that being said, the worse thing of all though, is when you have your own FAMIILY MEMBERS such as parents that force their dogs upon your little Maltese. My father is constantly trying to 'force' me to 'force' my dog Baby, a Maltese to interact with his 90 lb. Golden Retriever. Baby is terrified :smscare2: & so I won't force him :no2:. My father hates this, he takes it personally and say's 'they are dogs, let them be dogs together'. My fathers Golden would never ever 'intentionally' hurt or harm my dog and I know that. However she doesn't know her own size and 'charges' at my dog knocking him over. This happened once and only once and after that I never let it happen again. My fathers Golden also unintentionally wacks my dog in the face with her very heavy tail when she is wagging it & Baby is on my lap. I have to protect Baby due to his size & my parents just don't get it. So when I visit I have to deal with their eye rolls over this


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

I'm so glad to hear you guys have experienced the same thing. Seriously, how can these people not notice the size difference. With these 2 labs I was talking about....the lady kept saying that her dogs just "want to be friends". Clearly can she not see that Pipper does not like these dogs and even if he did like them there is no way I would let him play with them. They are just too big and it's my responsibility to keep him safe.


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## Wemaltese (Aug 23, 2017)

pippersmom said:


> There is a lady who walks 2 BIG black labs through our neighbourhood. For some reason Pipper really does NOT like these dogs so when we see them coming I actually have to cross the street and make him sit and "look at me" until they pass because if not he freaks out at them. The lady sees me doing this every day but every day she keeps trying to bring her dogs over to "meet him" and every day I have to tell her "no" while still trying to be friendly but it's starting to get frustrating. Does she not understand that if Pipper ever lunged at her dogs we could possibly have both of them react and go after him? These dogs heads are almost the size of Pipper's whole body! I'm just frustrated with people who don't seem to understand when I say NO I mean NO.


No need to be so paranoid. I used to introduce my first dog (a pug) to large and small dogs alike. I swear two boxers were in love with her. We just made sure they just sniffed noses because boxers are big and rough and playful and they stay that way the rest of their lives. Labs are sweet dogs and unlikely to attack your dog.This might come as a surprise but sometimes it was the little ones who were pretty feisty like poodles but I even introduced her to a Rottweiller once. The only dog in my neighbourhood I knew to be dangerous used to go on walks muzzled up. It's good for your dog to meet other dogs larger than himself. You could approach cautiously but I can almost guarantee that the labs will be very friendly. The first dog I'll be introducing Lily to is my neighbour's dog and she is the size of a lab. She use to love my pug and actually I think sometimes my dog was a bit too much for her sometimes. I have spoken at length but that's my opinion. Dogs wagging their tail can be approached just be careful that's all. The problem with large dogs is their size. They might want to play and can hurt your little one just be supervigilant. I made many friends meeting people on walks with large and small dogs alike. Another thing small dogs if not intoduced to various dogs of all sizes and are always carried around develop the 'small dogor Napoleon complex' meaning they think they're top of the pile. They have to learn their place in the scheme of things.


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

Wemaltese said:


> No need to be so paranoid. I used to introduce my first dog (a pug) to large and small dogs alike. I swear two boxers were in love with her. We just made sure they just sniffed noses because boxers are big and rough and playful and they stay that way the rest of their lives. Labs are sweet dogs and unlikely to attack your dog.This might come as a surprise but sometimes it was the little ones who were pretty feisty like poodles but I even introduced her to a Rottweiller once. The only dog in my neighbourhood I knew to be dangerous used to go on walks muzzled up. It's good for your dog to meet other dogs larger than himself. You could approach cautiously but I can almost guarantee that the labs will be very friendly. The first dog I'll be introducing Lily to is my neighbour's dog and she is the size of a lab. She use to love my pug and actually I think sometimes my dog was a bit too much for her sometimes. I have spoken at length but that's my opinion. Dogs wagging their tail can be approached just be careful that's all. The problem with large dogs is their size. They might want to play and can hurt your little one just be supervigilant. I made many friends meeting people on walks with large and small dogs alike. Another thing small dogs if not intoduced to various dogs of all sizes and are always carried around develop the 'small dogor Napoleon complex' meaning they think they're top of the pile. They have to learn their place in the scheme of things.


Animal behavioral experts will tell you that wagging tails do not always mean that it's safe to approach a dog. This is just one of many sites with information about that. Why Do Dogs Wag Their Tails? | Dog Behavior | Animal Planet 

Approaching any dog you do not know can be dangerous. Some dogs have been punished into not showing "warning signals" such as low growling when they are stressed. Approaching one of these dogs - regardless of size - can be a serious mistake. Also if you have a dog who is not good at reading the body language of other dogs, that can be a serious mistake as well. Even labs - because of the terrible breeding practices and conditions in which they have been raised - can be risky if you don't know the dog. 

The OP is absolutely correct. Too many people think "oh my dog is friendly" but they are tragically unaware of the subtle body language cues their pet is giving off that things are not OK. As pet parents, we must be aware of what is going on around us and only allow our dogs to engage with others we know well for many health and safety reasons. One of my dogs simply loves to engage other dogs and sadly isn't very good at doggy body language. If we don't know the dog, we don't engage.


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

Wemaltese said:


> No need to be so paranoid. I used to introduce my first dog (a pug) to large and small dogs alike. I swear two boxers were in love with her. We just made sure they just sniffed noses because boxers are big and rough and playful and they stay that way the rest of their lives. Labs are sweet dogs and unlikely to attack your dog.This might come as a surprise but sometimes it was the little ones who were pretty feisty like poodles but I even introduced her to a Rottweiller once. The only dog in my neighbourhood I knew to be dangerous used to go on walks muzzled up. It's good for your dog to meet other dogs larger than himself. You could approach cautiously but I can almost guarantee that the labs will be very friendly. The first dog I'll be introducing Lily to is my neighbour's dog and she is the size of a lab. She use to love my pug and actually I think sometimes my dog was a bit too much for her sometimes. I have spoken at length but that's my opinion. Dogs wagging their tail can be approached just be careful that's all. The problem with large dogs is their size. They might want to play and can hurt your little one just be supervigilant. I made many friends meeting people on walks with large and small dogs alike. Another thing small dogs if not intoduced to various dogs of all sizes and are always carried around develop the 'small dogor Napoleon complex' meaning they think they're top of the pile. They have to learn their place in the scheme of things.


I have no doubt the labs were friendly but my fear would have been if Pipper lunged at them, (which he might have done because he didn't like them) then just out of reaction they may have lunged back. I will never let him play with larger dogs, even if he does like them. He could be hurt too easily and I would never risk that.


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## Matilda's mommy (Jun 1, 2005)

Oh my gosh Kathy I so understand your frustration I remember when we stayed at RV parks I was constantly picking Matilda up, :blink: then some would actually say oh my dog won't hurt your dog:angry: how do they know. It only takes one time . My hubby frustrates me sometimes because he doesn't get it.


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## The A Team (Dec 1, 2005)

....with Ava....I worry about the big dogs. She's a terror!! :w00t:

There is a HUGE mastiff down the street from us, but he's afraid of everything. He is afraid of Ava lunging at him...:blink:

Ava goes after all the big dogs...she's such a bully. I need to protect her from herself.


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## Dream Brandy (Aug 20, 2017)

Wemaltese said:


> pippersmom said:
> 
> 
> > There is a lady who walks 2 BIG black labs through our neighbourhood. For some reason Pipper really does NOT like these dogs so when we see them coming I actually have to cross the street and make him sit and "look at me" until they pass because if not he freaks out at them. The lady sees me doing this every day but every day she keeps trying to bring her dogs over to "meet him" and every day I have to tell her "no" while still trying to be friendly but it's starting to get frustrating. Does she not understand that if Pipper ever lunged at her dogs we could possibly have both of them react and go after him? These dogs heads are almost the size of Pipper's whole body! I'm just frustrated with people who don't seem to understand when I say NO I mean NO.
> ...


 There are so many things wrong with this statement. First do NOT generalize a breed yes labs are known to be friendly but so are Golden retrievers and they're not they bite and are aggressive due to so many years of bad breeding the breed is just not trustworthy as whole anymore and this is coming from someone who worked in a golden retriever rescue for years but everyone will automatically assume they are friendly like any breed labs can be aggressive. Large dogs who are not raised with small dogs can be a threat. Second dogs should not be forced to meet face to face that can be taken as a threat by one of the dogs. Third wagging tails mean nothing in my local schutzhund club the dogs wag their tails when they are in full on attack mode it just means they are confident and sure of themselves. I have seen German Shepards and Rottweilers full on attack with tails raised and wagging do NOT be fooled. Forth dogs who are carried do not develop Napoleon complexes that comes from being babied and not properly disciplined when they are misbehaving. I'm a firm believer if you do not know a large dog and it's background or the owner and their level of knowledge in dogs it's better safe than sorry to avoid interactions with your small dog. It takes less than 2 seconds for a dog fight to happen and toy breeds are already fragile one bite and they can die or come very close to dying. Most owners are not aware of their dog's body language and often do not know when enough is enough and the dogs are starting to become agitated.


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

Dream Brandy said:


> There are so many things wrong with this statement. First do NOT generalize a breed yes labs are known to be friendly but so are Golden retrievers and they're not they bite and are aggressive due to so many years of bad breeding the breed is just not trustworthy as whole anymore and this is coming from someone who worked in a golden retriever rescue for years but everyone will automatically assume they are friendly like any breed labs can be aggressive. Large dogs who are not raised with small dogs can be a threat. Second dogs should not be forced to meet face to face that can be taken as a threat by one of the dogs. Third wagging tails mean nothing in my local schutzhund club the dogs wag their tails when they are in full on attack mode it just means they are confident and sure of themselves. I have seen German Shepards and Rottweilers full on attack with tails raised and wagging do NOT be fooled. Forth dogs who are carried do not develop Napoleon complexes that comes from being babied and not properly disciplined when they are misbehaving. I'm a firm believer if you do not know a large dog and it's background or the owner and their level of knowledge in dogs it's better safe than sorry to avoid interactions with your small dog. It takes less than 2 seconds for a dog fight to happen and toy breeds are already fragile one bite and they can die or come very close to dying. Most owners are not aware of their dog's body language and often do not know when enough is enough and the dogs are starting to become agitated.


This is exactly what I've been trying to get the lady with the labs to understand. No means NO *always*, so she needs to quit asking if they can meet because I'm not going to change my mind.


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## Dream Brandy (Aug 20, 2017)

I'm sorry she is not giving up I've had this happen many of times I stopped letting my small dogs walk I just carry them and just put them down to potty or if I'm absolutely sure there's no other dogs around I'll let them walk. I also carry a taser for safety so just incase if a dog was to charge the sound usually will stop them in their tracks and if heaven forbid if the dog was lunging and trying to try bite I can defend my dog. A lot of people just do not understand they always want to believe their dogs are harmless and just the sweetest babies and when something does happen they want to be in shock and just can't understand how their dog could do something like that when all the warning signs were there. I know this one neighborhood this young couple owns two Great Danes they never have them on leashes if someone skates by or rides a bike past them their male will take off chasing them and the couple will only call the dog a few times and start yelling that he's friendly and only wants to play now remind you this dog is HUGE he's growling and barking showing teeth hair raised on his back full on drooling there's no doubt in anyone's mind that if he was to catch someone he would full on attack animal control has warned them twice and they still haven't learned if this was a Rottweiler or Pit bull animal control wouldn't have hesitated to take the dog. I no longer go in that neighborhood even though they have one of the best parks around I don't want to risks running into those Great Danes.


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