Tails's First day out

So today was the first day that our little Tails was allowed outside. Lily and I had been counting down the days until we could go out because little Taiils has been getting more and more hyper and we felt he had a spot of cabin fever.

Anyway, things didnt go according to plan. We carried Tails to the park and as soon as we got there we got caught in heavy rain.. then poor Tails started to shake and whine... then a horrible scotty terrier came bounding over and started barking ferociously at Tails. I gave the situation a few seconds to turn out nicely but Tails was getting really distressed to I stepped in and came between them. Then the terrier's owner strolled over and announced "He'll have to get used to that!" then finally put his dog on a lead.

Then we went back home with poor shaking stressed out tails. Anyway, I went out again just now... when the rain cleared up and things went really well.. we walked to the park (its only 2 minutes away) and Tails was really good on his lead and very cheerful! But when we got to the park, this HUGE boxer/bulldog cross (it looked like a boxer with a bulldogs head... his paws were bigger than Tails's head!) came bounding over at 100mph... I didn't want to take any chances so I scooped up tiny Tails to safety. The boxer/bulldogs owner was just as dismissive as the man with the terrier and called him away (hardly even looking).

Anyway, things picked up after that and we both cheerfully trotted home.. Tails was not freaked out but I was.. now I'm worried how we will cope, there are so many big scary dogs in that park!!

Anybody else have this situation or helpful advice!? If not, it feels good to put my feelings down on "paper" at least!!

Thanks
James

hi
i only live about 2 minutes walk away from the open fields. but i only walk louie on the leader on the main paths of our village because if i go over the fields there are dogs that are running free with there owners in the distance
and i'm terrified he gets attacked

lindylou said:

hi
i only live about 2 minutes walk away from the open fields. but i only walk louie on the leader on the main paths of our village because if i go over the fields there are dogs that are running free with there owners in the distance
and i'm terrified he gets attacked

Click to expand...

Thanks so much for your reply! It helps to know I'm not the only one!

I went to the park again today with Tails and there were 3 labrarors tearing around and playing really rough with each other and their owners where miles away in the distance so I just left the park before they spotted Tails. I think I will just avoid that park until tails gets bigger and more able to look after himself. I really want him to meet other dogs as now I think he has a bit of a dog phobia... we met a nice dog yesteday afternoon who just came to say hello gently but Tails was really scared :-(

Hopefully puppy class will help next week!

Puppy class will help a lot..at least him dealing and feeling confident around nice neighborhood dogs. Dog parks are hard, always a hit or miss when it comes to off lead big dogs. It is a shame most owners aren't as responsible with off lead as others!

It sounds like that dog park might be a miss since you've already witnessed 2 stressful situations with the owners not around. I wouldn't take my Chloe to a dog park. Puppy class was great because she could interact there. I also like taking Chloe on walks in a people-park, because all dogs are on leashes there, and folks are usually happy to stop and let the dogs say hi to each other. That may be a safer way to go.

Just a wee word of caution. Try and not let you fear transfer to Tails. He will sense your anxiety down his leash,and be twice as fearful. He could end up very nervous of any dog because of this.

He needs positive experiences at his age, so if you know anyone with a well mannered dog I'd try and meet up. If he is scared even around well mannered dogs, don't pick him up or try and reassure him as his only serves to re-enforce his fear.

Good luck, and let us know how you get on


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Thanks guys for all your comments!! They really helped and I feel a lot better! I've decided that park is definately a miss.. at least for the time being.

Tails is soo confident around humans and Im sure that puppy class will fix his doggy phobia. I will post an update next week. Also a friend with a Jack Russell has offered to arrange a play date... I think that will help also... but I'm going to wait until after the puppy class!

Thanks s much!!!
James

It's sad that a lot of large dogs aren't really under their owner's control, and owners of these dogs don't appreciate that a puppy can easily get frightened and even run off never to be seen again!! Be very careful with a young puppy and only take to safe places until he has built up a bit of confidence. Also only very short walks as their bones are still developing.

It's always a good idea to be able to quickly pick up a dog if larger or aggressive-seeming dogs come tearing over -- you have no idea what they will be like. Bad encounters for a puppy can affect them for life (setting aside the actual physical risk) so it is really important that they have positive interactions with all dogs while young.

For a pup that young, a gentle walk of just 5-10 minutes or so, a couple of times a day, is all he should have anyway.

I'd also recommend a well fitting harness -- many puppies will squirm out of a collar especially if frightened (of course be sure he has tags on his collar as well and if he isn't chipped, be sure to plan to do that as he gets a little older (at time of neutering is often a good choice).

I'd avoid the dog park. The scotty owner was incredibly rude! Maybe they instead should have control over their dog. No dog 'has to get used to' a rude, out of control dog and rude owner!

Thanks Karlin and Davecav! We use a harness as Tails HATED having a collar and its a really good one that is secure and snug and doesnt bother him at all. Also we have a little tag and the vet chipped him after his second vaccination.

I LOVE your comment "No dog 'has to get used to' a rude, out of control dog and rude owner!" !!! I wish I had said that to the man... it's what I was thinking at the time!

SO I thought I would post an update anyway.. we went to the "normal" park today with Tails and met some really lovely dogs, firstly a shaggy spaniel type dog, then a friendly Papillon, then an elderly rescue dog, then a lab retriever, then a lovely bulldog. With each dog (all of them were nice), Tails gained confidence and by the time we got to the bulldog, he seemed to have completely got over his dog-phobia and he and the bulldog played and and sniffed and climbed over each other (very gently) then neither of them wanted to leave each other!! We were so happy that Tails had made a doggy friend after the horrible experience the other day!!!:c*t: