So very sad - and terrifying!

[matese]

I am always prepared, I live in a heavily wooded area, there are also many BIG breed dogs TIED outside behind wooden fences. There is a Rottweiler 3 houses from me, tied outside all day, I cringe when I have to pass that house, always watching to make sure that dog does not break loose and crash through his fence. Many dogs get loose for some reason or another, reason why I do not walk Cody on a daily basis, also he is not dog friendly. BUT, I do have to walk him only in the event should he get out of the house or yard he needs to know where he lives and hopefully will find his way back home. When we take our walks I have to watch the woods in case a dog darts out or a bear is not mosing about, I am always looking behind me to make sure a dog has not gotten loose and is following us (this has happened to me with my passed girl) I have to watch the sky for prey birds, I have to keep calm while doing all this checking, don't want Cody to feel any stress from me. I am always on guard and prepared. Isn't it a shame as small dog owners we have to fear ANY size dog. I was not raised to fear dogs, as a kid we had a beautiful Collie that was NEVER on a leash, my brother and I would take him to a pond near us and swim all afternoon with him, boy how times have changed. So sad.

[Jkpal]

I, too, am always checking for avenues of 'escape' or for safe places; I also run random scenarios through my mind as we walk...What if that slow moving car suddenly stops and someone tries to grab Pipe...What if a fierce storm suddenly hits, where could we find immediate shelter...You know, those kinda mind expanding what if's....!! Kinda crazy, but kinda interesting because sometimes I find myself in an area that has me stumped as to options. People are probably hiding in their homes watching that crazy lady walking down the sidewalk, turning her head every which and peering at front porches, open garages all the while apparently conversing with her little dog...Oh my, I scare me, too!

[Bamboo15]

Originally Posted by matese

If breeders check several generations back, know that parents, grandparents, great grandparents and so on were NOT USED for FIGHTING they have a good chance if they train their puppy socialization skills at a young age to NOT be AGGRESSIVE. But in all honesty if I OWNED one I would never take the chance of letting MY pit near any small animal. As much as I LOVE the breed, and as much as the ones that slobber me with kisses I would never let that pit near a small breed. My Cody is not dog friendly so I don't allow him near any dog let alone a pit. I have several friends that have Pits, they also have a poodle and a yorkie, and the two smaller breads command that home lol. That is NOT to say this is common, it all depends on the Pit and training it has had. Several years ago I read where a woman had two Pits, raised them as puppies,they slept in her bed with her, one day she had them in the back yard, she tripped, fell to the ground, one Pit started to attack her, then the other
joined in, husband and son came out, could not get them off her, they shot both dogs. Horror story for sure, it still goes back to the breeding parents and their history. We have a member or two that had pits, would be so nice if they offered up their experience. All in all, it is up to the buyer of a pit puppy to make sure they are buying from a breeder that has done their home work and checked generations back for temperament of all their breeding pairs. I am by NO means an expert on Pit Bulls, my passed 4 girls had wonderful temperaments, LOVED all animals, I would NEVER let them near a friends Pit Bull or any LARGE bred. They are ANIMALS and we never know what may trigger them off. Better to be safe then sorry. Always be a responsible dog owner, no matter what breed you own.

I think you hit the nail on the head. I've never understood why people are so insistent to say their dog is friendly and try to force interactions with a smaller dog when a. You never know how dogs are going to act when coming in contact with another dog. And b. Even if their larger dog is friendly their dog could hurt the smaller dog accidentally even just while trying to play. My last Yorkie used to bite. I was honest about that and always told people, pet owners, and kids that so they would know not to try and pet him.

[Jkpal]

When strangers inquired of my German Shepherd, "Does she bite?" I would often respond with, "Well, she hasn't so far..." buh-bye!!

[Lizchloe]

OMG!! I feel so sad for them what a tragic situation.

[Doodlebug]

Originally Posted by Bamboo15

I know a lot of people who have pit bulls that say they are friendly and love people. Even so, isn't it their instinct to kill small animals? Even if they are good with people I wouldn't trust them around my small dogs.

My next door neighbors have two pit bulls that they claim they got from a good breeder. They always gave me the "nanny dog" story and said that my LITTLE dogs are the ones you have to watch out for because they are notorious biters. I got lectures from them about how awful and scary little dogs are.

One day I heard that one of their pits jumped the fence and had another neighbor's dog on the ground and was at the dogs throat. They told me that their pit was just "playing" with the neighbors dog, but I didn't trust that dog. My husband heard the attack and said it was vicious. I spent a fortune and put up a 6 foot wood fence around my yard to keep them away from my yorkies. After I did that the "pit" Neighbors quit speaking to us. I didn't care, I feel it is my responsibility to keep my dogs safe.

A while after that the same pit jumped the fence again and tore up their other dog, black lab. The dog was in very serious condition and barely survived. The owner of the pit had the nerve to tell me that the attack was the labs fault because he came from the "country" and didnt know how to PLAY with a city dog. I could not believe that she was really saying that.

All 3 houses surrounding my house have 2 pit bulls in their yard. That's 6 of them. Every one of them attack the fenceline when my dogs are out. I never ever let my dogs out unattended and I know a pit can jump a 6 foot fence with little trouble.

I believe that every dog no matter how well trained can be unpredictable, even mine. But I wish that the pit bull owners that live around me would realize that and quit making excuses and blaming everyone else for their dogs when their dogs attack another dog.

I don't mean to offend anyone who has pit bulls but I just wanted to get my two cents in. One of the nastiest tempered dogs at the park was a chi so there you go. I am careful around all dogs no matter what size.

Sorry for the long rant.

[Bamboo15]

Originally Posted by Doodlebug

My next door neighbors have two pit bulls that they claim they got from a good breeder. They always gave me the "nanny dog" story and said that my LITTLE dogs are the ones you have to watch out for because they are notorious biters. I got lectures from them about how awful and scary little dogs are.

One day I heard that one of their pits jumped the fence and had another neighbor's dog on the ground and was at the dogs throat. They told me that their pit was just "playing" with the neighbors dog, but I didn't trust that dog. My husband heard the attack and said it was vicious. I spent a fortune and put up a 6 foot wood fence around my yard to keep them away from my yorkies. After I did that the "pit" Neighbors quit speaking to us. I didn't care, I feel it is my responsibility to keep my dogs safe.

A while after that the same pit jumped the fence again and tore up their other dog, black lab. The dog was in very serious condition and barely survived. The owner of the pit had the nerve to tell me that the attack was the labs fault because he came from the "country" and didnt know how to PLAY with a city dog. I could not believe that she was really saying that.

All 3 houses surrounding my house have 2 pit bulls in their yard. That's 6 of them. Every one of them attack the fenceline when my dogs are out. I never ever let my dogs out unattended and I know a pit can jump a 6 foot fence with little trouble.

I believe that every dog no matter how well trained can be unpredictable, even mine. But I wish that the pit bull owners that live around me would realize that and quit making excuses and blaming everyone else for their dogs when their dogs attack another dog.

I don't mean to offend anyone who has pit bulls but I just wanted to get my two cents in. One of the nastiest tempered dogs at the park was a chi so there you go. I am careful around all dogs no matter what size.

Sorry for the long rant.

Yes, exactly! I always get the "little dogs are more likely to bite" from people too.

[Hermione]

One of my biggest fears when walking my two little Yorkies is that they get attacked by some dog. I don't trust any dogs near mine. Jake was actually attacked by another little Yorkie when he was 10 months old and I had to pull them apart. Jake was always a friendly dog before that incident, nowadays he barks at every dog he comes across. If I happen to see a dog without a leash on my walks, I usually sweep up my Yorkies into my arms, and defend them as best I can. When I was around 10 years old my mother sent me off on a walk with my little dog which was attacked by a large dog. I was helpless and just watched and cried. Now in my 60s I still remember that day with great sadness.

[fanatic4yorkies]

When my dogs are around other dogs, I always have them in my arms. We recently took them to a dog swim event at a local pool, and I ended up holding them almost the entire time. One time when my little one was on the ground, a pit bull came up from behind and gave her a big sniff. The dog was very sweet, but I shudder to think what could have happened in that one second. I looked at the other dogs having fun and romping, and it made me sad to think my fear is being felt by my dogs and is making them nervous. Anyone else have this problem and, if so, how do you not pass the fear on to your dogs?

[matese]

Several years ago on a camping trip. I was walking my 17 lb yorkie girl, I saw a HUGE Husky playing Frisbee with the owner and a couple other guys, cars blocked my vision but I kept my eye on that Husky, because of the cars I lost track of that dog, the next thing I hear is SCREAMING, it was MY DOG, this Husky came behind my back to sniff my dog startled my dog who was then on her back in a submissive position SCREAMING out of fear, I swept her up,turned my back to this Husky who still wanted to sniff my dog, my dog is still SCREAMING, and I am screaming someone get this dog. That camp ground you HAD to keep dogs on leash. My dog was traumatized. The owner comes to get his dog saying the dog is friendly, my dog is still SCREAMING, I tell the guy I don't give a F what your dog is, look at my dog, she is traumatized, my dog does not know yours is friendly all the time my girl is shaking and SCREAMING. I walked about 200 feet away to a picnic table all the time my dog is SCREAMING and shaking, 15 minutes later I finely got her calm, she was never the same after that. All the walks we had she always looked several times behind her. This insane screaming could have set that Husky into attack mode, thank god I swept her up as fast as I did. She was appox. 4 yo when this happened she left me at 17 yo, but she never forgot and always looked behind her on every walk we ever took. People don't realize, they may have the friendliest dog in the world, but strange little dogs don't know this and may have the same reaction my dog had, the fear my dog showed and her SCREAMING could send a friendly dog into attack mode. After that incident when ever I saw a BIG dog I would cross the street stand behind a car out of view and pick my girl up until that dog past us. I never wanted to see her traumatized like that again, however, we did have another incident 2 years later here where I live with a HUGE Belgium Shepard, same reaction, big reason why I HATE to walk Cody here.

[gemy]

Originally Posted by fanatic4yorkies

When my dogs are around other dogs, I always have them in my arms. We recently took them to a dog swim event at a local pool, and I ended up holding them almost the entire time. One time when my little one was on the ground, a pit bull came up from behind and gave her a big sniff. The dog was very sweet, but I shudder to think what could have happened in that one second. I looked at the other dogs having fun and romping, and it made me sad to think my fear is being felt by my dogs and is making them nervous. Anyone else have this problem and, if so, how do you not pass the fear on to your dogs?

I am not sure but, what tensions you feel are transmItted down the lead, your dog knows when your breathing rate changes, so maybe try out some calming breathS, or visualization techniques to start to de sensitize you.

[matese]

Originally Posted by gemy

I am not sure but, what tensions you feel are transmItted down the lead, your dog knows when your breathing rate changes, so maybe try out some calming breathS, or visualization techniques to start to de sensitize you.

This is exactly what the obedience trainer told me, also I am so use to wrapping a 6 foot leash around my hand and hold my hand across my waist, the trainer told me to always have my arm straight down along my side. The way I was holding the leash I was giving vibes of fear to my dog.

[Bamboo15]

Originally Posted by Hermione

One of my biggest fears when walking my two little Yorkies is that they get attacked by some dog. I don't trust any dogs near mine. Jake was actually attacked by another little Yorkie when he was 10 months old and I had to pull them apart. Jake was always a friendly dog before that incident, nowadays he barks at every dog he comes across. If I happen to see a dog without a leash on my walks, I usually sweep up my Yorkies into my arms, and defend them as best I can. When I was around 10 years old my mother sent me off on a walk with my little dog which was attacked by a large dog. I was helpless and just watched and cried. Now in my 60s I still remember that day with great sadness.

So sorry that happened you.

i also pick up my dogs if we come across dogs that aren't on a leash. Thankfully the big dogs we come across in our neighborhood are usually always on a a leash.

We have a house in our neighborhood with a Chihuahua and a Pomeranian that are always loose and running around without a leash. From what I've observed the Pomeranian is generally friendly while the chihuahua is not but it is tiny, around 3-4 lbs. I have seen fox in my neighborhood and an Akita that is just tied up outside with no fence so I'm not sure why my neighbor thinks it's a good idea to let his two small dogs roam around unattended. I would also be afraid they could get hit by a car. Or pick up a scent and take off.

[fanatic4yorkies]

Thanks, Gemy and Matese, for the recommendations. On a walk, if there is a dog anywhere in sight, I scoop them up in my arms. I get nervous even THINKING about other dogs coming near them . . . and the more I hear about dogs attacking other dogs (just recently happened to two people I know), the worse I get. Also doesn't help that I volunteer at a humane society as a dog walker, and many of the dogs are dog-aggressive. Can anyone say paranoid????

[gemy]

I have only scooped razzle up once and that was when a rottie came out to attack two off lead Yorkies, And my big boy magic went out to the end of his lead and roared at him. Razzle was going crazy in defence as well. I scooped him up because if a fight ensued razz man would not fair well. Thankfully the rottie turned and ran away, a BRT in full roar is an awesome sight.

Never again have I walked my Yorkie and a brt together. I cant effectively both protect.Razzle and help out in a dog fight!

I know so many toy breed owners think they are doing the right thing with holding them up in their arms, but that is a dangerous situation. You are off balance with only your legs to defend you both. I have posted in a few places some ideas.

1. Keep distance. You see a dog coming, short haul in still on a loose lead your dog, maybe even to one foot away from you.

2. If a dog any dog walks on a flexi lead avoid them like the plague. Especially med to large dogs.

3. Learn situational awareness, scan your surroundings. No pressure it becomes routine after a time.

4. Never hesitate if a dog is coming in agresiVely to use your feet to push that dog away!

5. Know what actions and or dog breeds or people trigger your dog, the you make sure you create the space while you work on your. Dogs behaviour.

6. And finally truly get to know your dog and their body language. And I will tell you here small dogs darting running and other beghaviouRs will incite prey drive in most dogs, and in particular breeds that have an in built prey drive"