Metaliant
Gatchamaniac
I am an Eagle.
0 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 06-06-2005
Posts: 3595
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06-04-2006 11:23
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Ronin
Exalted Member
0 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 04-09-2004
Posts: 244
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06-04-2006 11:35
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gatchgirl
Babbling Loonie
I am a Condor.
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Registration Date: 08-03-2006
Posts: 2444
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08-04-2006 21:48
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CricketBeautiful
Forum God
I am a Zark.
0 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 04-04-2004
Posts: 1211
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Truth be told, I was terrified of the entire situation, only conscious thought was to escape. So, no credit at all for self-control (other than not racing to the car, not buckling her in, and not causing an accident while escaping).
In hindsight, maybe I should have reported it as a dangerous animal. They keep track of such things here, with progressively stronger action for each occurrance. Yeah, the owner wouldn't understand why we're persecuting her dear little Fluffy who wouldn't harm a fly / is just misunderstood.
In all my time here, I've only seen two dog / owner combinations I didn't like. One was a 10-year-old who, seeing terrified kids (trust me, it's obvious they're terrified, no clue what started it, but by now it's an ingrained habit) didn't shorten the leash at all on the dog that was a bit too strong for him (and got a few words about common courtesy), and this one, who seemed to think it was mildly embarassing but not out of the ordinary -- like gas in public. The rest of the owners know their dogs, and usually go out of their way not only to restrain their dogs so my kids aren't scared, but to offer a chance to pet it.
__________________
Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.
- Viktor E. Frankl
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02-05-2006 13:44
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meridianday
Galaxy Girl
I am a Devilstar.
0 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 27-06-2001
Posts: 1640
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Can't say I like dogs much.
When I was a child my family had a dog they inherited from a relative who emigrated to Australia. The dog was a small white poodle, and I was very fond of her. She was a bit of a character, and didn't suffer fools gladly. I would get nipped regularly for stuffing her basket full of my toys while she was trying to sleep in it - more fool me for not learning to leave her alone when she was trying to sleep.
When she was being walked, children would of course want to stroke the dog. My father, knowing that the dog was temperamental, would tell them not to stroke the dog as she didn't like it. The children's parents would say, "oh don't be silly, it's such a cute little dog", or the children would stroke the dog when my father's back was turned. They'd go for her floppy ears or her sensitive tail and the children would get nipped. Note nipped not bitten, she didn't break the skin.
While I adored her, she wasn't a dog who liked children. And she didn't like her ears or her tail to be touched, which, unfortunately for her since she was cursed to be born a poodle, were the bits children would go for because they were all fluffy and unusual. Having floppy ears left her susceptible to ear infections, and maybe her tail was so sensitive because it'd been docked. But she'd never run up to people and attack them, or even jump up at them in that overly curious way than many dogs have, and she'd never do anything to people who left her alone, or at least didn't go for anything she didn't like to be touched.
My grandmother also owned a poodle, which was a far more unpredictable creature. I recall being quite frightened of him because, even though he never nipped me, he'd always jump up at me. I suspect he was the dog that left me nervous of other dogs, and a couple of experiences with other dogs after that turned that nervousness into dislike.
During my teens, when I was out with my much-younger sister, we met a boy with a dog that she wanted to stroke. He said yes, and as soon as she started to get close to the dog it started growling and warning that it was going to bite. So I dragged my sister away, but it was odd that there was no hint of malice about the guy while his dog was so obviously unfriendly.
My daughter, of course, always wants to stroke dogs. She knows to always ask the owner and to not go near a dog if she can't see the owner. But if the owner says no, she looks like a kicked puppy, no matter how often I explain that the owner is saying no because their dog would bite her, rather than because they just don't want her to stroke the dog. She's only had one bad dog experience, when we were on a caravan site and she wandered off to stroke a jack russell, that turned out to be guarding the caravan's territory. It growled and chased her for about 10 feet, and she was very shy of all dogs for a few weeks after that. I think it's helped her remember the "if there's no owner don't go near the dog" rule.
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 Mallanox : "My mother was Irish and my father was an alien. I was an only child and I dress funny."
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04-05-2006 07:34
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Elvin Ruler
Forum God
0 fics uploaded
Registration Date: 09-01-2003
Posts: 1097
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Children aren't the only ones who touch without permission. My little Pekingese had a slipped disc in his back (eventually causing him to need to be put down). As a result, he did NOT like being picked up unless being aided onto furniture. A woman picked him up without asking at all. So he, of course, growled and snapped at her. He was branded as being tempermental when the truth was he was a very sweet dog with a condition that was painful if he was picked up improperly.
I almost always ask before petting a dog I don't know. The only exceptions would be when dogs on campus specifically run up to me for attention. For me, if a dog approaches me with friendly intentions, I'll go for it. It's always important to ask the owner before approaching a dog, however. I've known tempermental/aggressive dogs to be sweet to people they've been introduced to. The owner just standing there doesn't count, especially if the dog is aggressive.
On the other side, however, my collie LOVED children. We'd have parents warn us when dropping the children off that they had dog phobias. By the end of the day, they were often playing with him. It's a weird experience to watch. At some point, he kids like to go outside, whether to play with cats or whatever other animals we had running around. If he sensed they were afraid, he would go off and lie down a ways back, as low as possible. He'd then inch up closer and closer. Eventually, he'd get up to them and nudge them with his nose. He'd then back off. He repeats the process until he has a new best friend.
Aaaaaaand I'll stop gushing about my dogs now. *sigh* I miss them so much.
__________________
What if there is a spoon? 
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04-05-2006 19:01
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me. 
GOOD DOGGIE!!!!
