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I think it comes down to rural vs suburban vs urban. There are people out here who let their dogs run loose on their own property, acreage, because they are farm people. The dog/s is out with them all day. They wander alone. It's part of their lifestyle and I think they don't believe animals should be penned in or chained up.
I would never use my approach in a developed neighborhood. And I would probably have a dog I could put in my purse. LOL
A friend who lives on a ranch in South Texas shoots any dogs he doesn't know. His own dogs are not leashed, buit do not go very far and have excellent recall.
Same here. If I'm in my neighborhood I certainly have her on a leash but if we're on one the many hiking trails up in the mountains near where I live then she's off the leash. She chased after a deer once but came back after about 20mins. That's the only issue I've had.
In a neighborhood there is no excuse for walking one's dog unleashed, but it's great if we can give our dogs the opportunity to run once in a while, follow scents, and "be dogs." In SoCal we take our dogs to the dog beaches where they can run off leash to their hearts' content, but we do keep an eye out for dogs that show signs of being less socialized.
In our other home in North Idaho we have 5 wooded acres, but we're actually more reluctant to let them off leash up there. They're sensible, mature dogs of 10-11 years of age, and Little Guy (Jackhuahua ) sticks around, but he would be just a tasty snack for all the predators--cougars, black bears, Golden eagles, Horned owls, wolves, coyotes--and Tribbles (Shepherd-Sheltie) goes deaf and forgets that she is supposed to be under voice control when she catches a scent of some interesting critter--deer, raccoon, wild turkey, rabbit, squirrel, whatever. And off she goes. She has always returned after 30 minutes-1 hour, but a lot of bad stuff can happen in the meantime, including moose encounters. So no more off-leash roaming for our dogs at our own property in Idaho. Too bad, because our 5 acres are really heaven for dogs. Besides, up there dogs risk getting shot if they are trespassing and/or perceived as harassing wildlife, so we don't want to take any chances.
Our Nextdoor neighborhood chat is littered with lost dog posts, and lately, gofundme pleas to help with vet bills for dogs that got hit by cars while roaming around.
Our Nextdoor neighborhood chat is littered with lost dog posts, and lately, gofundme pleas to help with vet bills for dogs that got hit by cars while roaming around.
Our Nextdoor neighborhood chat is littered with lost dog posts, and lately, gofundme pleas to help with vet bills for dogs that got hit by cars while roaming around.
Ridiculous.
Agreed! Our local pages also have a lot of "lost dog posts". Then we see the "These dogs have run through my property every morning at 8am, does anyone know where they live?". Inevitably someone will reply "They live on XYZ and don't worry, they'll be out about 3 hours then they'll go home." These are in nice residential neighborhoods with acreage. Apparently if they dog(s) go home easily it's ok that they roam
I'm curious — why are there even two "sides" to this? Leash laws are leash laws.
Edit: I don't think there's anything all that wrong with your particular approach, but most who let their dogs run free in areas covered by leash laws aren't so conscientious.
My town: Dogs must be leashed or under verbal command..........
I'm a Doberman guy, I've owned several and all were off leash trained. To what level: Imagine a squirrel coming off a tree at eye level to the dog 5 ft away and the dog is sitting/watching/shaking with excitement of a soon to be chase. Dog is trembling with excitement but still sitting waiting for the "go" command. I do own a recent rescue that IS NOT off leash ready, he may never get there and therefore he is never off the property without being leashed.
My last house I lived there for 20 years. Had 3 black Dobermans that were legends in the neighborhood. It would catch new owners off guard initially. One guy didn't realize that one of the dogs had passed and this was indeed a different dog (but the training/behavior was identical). He couldn't believe it, I said they don't "come" this way......its work to get them trained.
Best compliment: Older guy, new to the neighborhood was chatting up a group of small dog owners on the corner (they hung out every morning for 15-20 mins). He made a comment about the "loose Doberman" the group laughed and repeated my dog's name and said no leash/no shock collar and that dog will not leave the property without a command. The story was repeated to me by one of the owners and the hesitant owner actually stopped and introduced himself to me, admiring the dog and said he had never seen anything like that. I had to show off at that point: I sent the dog after a squirrel 150 ft away, dog had no chance to actually get it but loved to try. I whistled and the dog spun, raced back and sat at my feet. Guy stood there in awe, his scruffy little dog puzzled that my dog didn't even look at it.
I recognize the dog can be intimidating but on private property its my decision. On public property I need to follow the rules and take steps to be sure the dog is on his/her best behavior.
I recognize the dog can be intimidating but on private property its my decision. On public property I need to follow the rules and take steps to be sure the dog is on his/her best behavior.
You can do whatever you want on your own property, but you're responsible for making sure your dog does not cause anyone any harm, 100% of the time, when out in public. Causing harm isn't limited to biting or attacking - simply scaring people counts, too. People don't know that/if your dog is well-behaved and most will assume that an off-leash dog is not. Especially if it's a dog of a breed that, deservedly or not, "has a reputation".
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) sticks around, but he would be just a tasty snack for all the predators--cougars, black bears, Golden eagles, Horned owls, wolves, coyotes--and Tribbles (Shepherd-Sheltie) goes deaf and forgets that she is supposed to be under voice control when she catches a scent of some interesting critter--deer, raccoon, wild turkey, rabbit, squirrel, whatever. And off she goes. She has always returned after 30 minutes-1 hour, but a lot of bad stuff can happen in the meantime, including moose encounters. So no more off-leash roaming for our dogs at our own property in Idaho. Too bad, because our 5 acres are really heaven for dogs. Besides, up there dogs risk getting shot if they are trespassing and/or perceived as harassing wildlife, so we don't want to take any chances.
