Dogs on Leashes?

[DukkhaWaynhim]

My dogs are terribly disobedient. I have tried very hard to train them well, but I have failed. I have just recently discovered the Koehler method for training dogs, and plan to institute the method in the next couple of months. So, yeah, I walk my dog on a leash. If they are unleashed they will run miles and miles away from me because they hate me.

I do not have a fenced yard, so I have to tie the dogs out on thirty foot leashes in the center of the yard if they want to hang out outside for a while. Well, it seems everyone in the neighborhood lets their dogs run free. There is this particular one that always comes over and harasses my dogs when they are tied out. Well, one day, my dogs pulled up their stake (probably because they were trying to get at the dog that always harasses them), and they were picked up by animal control because they were running around tied together at the stake. They told me that they wouldn't have picked them up if they weren't tied together like that, because they are familiar with the fact that lots of dogs run around untended in that neighborhood. Well, anyway, I ended up paying a $80 ticket because other people let their dogs run free.

I can sympathize with this. I have considered calling Animal Control on the neighbors who consistently let their dogs out off leash, which is a clear violation of our local leash laws. I have not done so, especially now that our yard is fenced, but we had a similar situation with tie-outs before the fence, and I find it *highly* annoying that a single accidental instance gets punished, yet the consistent offenders go systematically unpunished.
Myself, I would consider calling Animal Control on the dogs that harrass yours while on their tie-outs, because it puts your animals in danger to have them trapped while the harassing dogs run free.

dw

[Holsety]

Heh. A regulation followed so irregularly that, when followed to a properly scrupulous degree, seems more criminal than when it is not followed!

Since it is in fact (as we seem to agree) in place for a good reason, it's disappointing.

Forgive me for laughing at the situation but it appeals to my sense of irony.

[Bill Assumpcao]

How do Y'all,
My property is not fenced but I've trained my dog to not leave the yard. She is not allowed to leave the yard unless she's in a car or on the leash.
When we take her on walks, she is on the leash. If'n we walk her in "the woods", she's not leashed. We gots lottsa "woods" around here. One of the bennies of living on the edge of the world
BillA

[Cameraman Jenn]

I live in downtown San Francisco. Tons of traffic and pedestrians including a plethora of crazies, crackheads and pimp/prostitute pairings. Moose walks his night and morning walks off the leash. He is trained to stay with me and when encountering other dogs or people he stays in check. He is more obedient off leash than he is on leash. Off leash he usually stays by my heel and only greets people or dogs if I tell him to "go say hi." When we go to parks and beaches he runs like a maniac in the open and gets somewhat away from me but never out of earshot or eyesight and he won't approach dogs or people unless I again tell him specifically to "go say hi." On leash he seems more aggressive and will wander to leash max which he never does off leash in city situations. He is also more likely to approach people or other dogs without permission when on leash. We worked pretty hard for his off leash training so that is probably a part of it. He's actually most aggressive in the house but only when I am home. I guess I just don't have people over enough anymore.

[Shuram Gudatetris]

I can sympathize with this. I have considered calling Animal Control on the neighbors who consistently let their dogs out off leash, which is a clear violation of our local leash laws. I have not done so, especially now that our yard is fenced, but we had a similar situation with tie-outs before the fence, and I find it *highly* annoying that a single accidental instance gets punished, yet the consistent offenders go systematically unpunished.
Myself, I would consider calling Animal Control on the dogs that harrass yours while on their tie-outs, because it puts your animals in danger to have them trapped while the harassing dogs run free.

dw

Yeah, it is sorely tempting to call Animal Control on the other dogs (particularly Daisy, the worst offender, who lives across the street), but really deep down, the only reason I would do it is to be spiteful, not because I feel I am doing a service to the neighborhood or community. I think its bad karma, if you believe in that sort of thing, Instead, I just keep a closer eye on them (or ear, if you will) , , , I look out frequently, but more than anything, when I hear them barking, that is my cue to bring them in.

I had planned on having a fence up by now. It was part of the plan when I decided to get the dogs. But I was laid off for several months last year, and am still trying to get my financial situation back in order. I may not ever get that fence put up . . . I would rather move out of this house, if I can sell it, and invest in a fence at my next (much, much, much cheaper) house.