Nothing too important here, so I guess this thread could be deleted if deemed unnecessary, but perhaps it holds value for some.
Yesterday, late morning, my wife, two daughters and I were going to walk to the nearby park space to do some snow sledding. I always need to get Oji out for the first exercise of the day, so I suggested I bring him. My wife usually reacts quite negatively to that idea, because frankly he is a giant pain in most situations, and he definitely takes about all my attention. To my surprise, she quickly and willingly said okay.
We get all ready, and start the short walk to the park. Now, this park has been a very popular destination lately with the generous amount of snow we've had. It's got a great big hill. I figured it wouldn't be too busy yet on a Sunday morning. It wasn't overly busy, but still a handful of families were there.
Oji has shown that he gets quite wound up when my daughters sled down the hill. I have him on a heel-stay until they get to the bottom and stop moving; then I release him to run down there. This, when there is almost nobody else there. It was too busy for this yesterday so he was on leash and pulling and jerking me about. I found out he also gets very prey drivey and whiny and hyper about anyone else sledding down the hill.
I take him over to an unpopulated area of the park and let him run around off leash, e-collar on. This goes fine. I put him back on leash and move toward the main hill area where all the people are. After a few minutes, I decide I'm tired of my dog keeping me away from my family, who is at the bottom of the hill, so I walk us slowly down the big hill.
Get down there, and I realize I have to position us sort of behind some loose brush so we won't have people heading right toward us as they reach the bottom of the hill. Maybe this looked unusual, I don't know.
Oji is yanking me around a bit and being unruly and whiny of course. If I put him on a heel, he'll whine or yelp out of stress. If I put him on a stay, he'll whine, which I cannot allow and must correct. Basically, we're in an unpleasant situation for all involved.
Then, this man speaks up from a few yards away and says "Is he okay?" Knowing that this is often loaded language, I reply "What do you mean?" This instantly embarrasses my wife, who proceeds to try to make nice like she always does. The man indicates he was wondering if my dog is okay to be pet (by his kids). Oji has shown no inclination to bite or get nippy with kids, but in this instance I had to say no, explaining he is just too high energy and would be all over you (as I make a pawing gesture). The guy just doesn't seem to have a pleasant affect, but he accepts the answer. So, my wife is now mad at me for sure, where before it was a lower level irritation.
Subsequently, I decide I want some relief in the form of leashing Oji to a nearby small tree in among the brush. This always takes some stress off of me, as I am no longer being physically pulled and jerked around. He has his e-collar on, so I am able to give him the command to not bark. Phew.
Now, however, another man speaks up and says "Is he tied out?" We all know that tying a dog is a trigger for many people, so right away I feel very cautious about this interaction. My wife jumps in and handles this one, so I don't say anything; but I am later informed that I didn't have a nice look on my face. So, now I have a wife that is even madder at me.
Yes, the man might have genuinely thought that Oji was an abandoned dog and we were just standing near him; but equally as likely, he could have been being an animal rights do-gooder and protesting that I tied my dog out.
Soon, my wife suggests that I just take Oji home. Acquiescing, I put my hands up and leave, knowing I have a date with an argument.
So, folks, what would you write as the moral of this story? What can I learn? What can you learn?
Yesterday, late morning, my wife, two daughters and I were going to walk to the nearby park space to do some snow sledding. I always need to get Oji out for the first exercise of the day, so I suggested I bring him. My wife usually reacts quite negatively to that idea, because frankly he is a giant pain in most situations, and he definitely takes about all my attention. To my surprise, she quickly and willingly said okay.
We get all ready, and start the short walk to the park. Now, this park has been a very popular destination lately with the generous amount of snow we've had. It's got a great big hill. I figured it wouldn't be too busy yet on a Sunday morning. It wasn't overly busy, but still a handful of families were there.
Oji has shown that he gets quite wound up when my daughters sled down the hill. I have him on a heel-stay until they get to the bottom and stop moving; then I release him to run down there. This, when there is almost nobody else there. It was too busy for this yesterday so he was on leash and pulling and jerking me about. I found out he also gets very prey drivey and whiny and hyper about anyone else sledding down the hill.
I take him over to an unpopulated area of the park and let him run around off leash, e-collar on. This goes fine. I put him back on leash and move toward the main hill area where all the people are. After a few minutes, I decide I'm tired of my dog keeping me away from my family, who is at the bottom of the hill, so I walk us slowly down the big hill.
Get down there, and I realize I have to position us sort of behind some loose brush so we won't have people heading right toward us as they reach the bottom of the hill. Maybe this looked unusual, I don't know.
Oji is yanking me around a bit and being unruly and whiny of course. If I put him on a heel, he'll whine or yelp out of stress. If I put him on a stay, he'll whine, which I cannot allow and must correct. Basically, we're in an unpleasant situation for all involved.
Then, this man speaks up from a few yards away and says "Is he okay?" Knowing that this is often loaded language, I reply "What do you mean?" This instantly embarrasses my wife, who proceeds to try to make nice like she always does. The man indicates he was wondering if my dog is okay to be pet (by his kids). Oji has shown no inclination to bite or get nippy with kids, but in this instance I had to say no, explaining he is just too high energy and would be all over you (as I make a pawing gesture). The guy just doesn't seem to have a pleasant affect, but he accepts the answer. So, my wife is now mad at me for sure, where before it was a lower level irritation.
Subsequently, I decide I want some relief in the form of leashing Oji to a nearby small tree in among the brush. This always takes some stress off of me, as I am no longer being physically pulled and jerked around. He has his e-collar on, so I am able to give him the command to not bark. Phew.
Now, however, another man speaks up and says "Is he tied out?" We all know that tying a dog is a trigger for many people, so right away I feel very cautious about this interaction. My wife jumps in and handles this one, so I don't say anything; but I am later informed that I didn't have a nice look on my face. So, now I have a wife that is even madder at me.
Yes, the man might have genuinely thought that Oji was an abandoned dog and we were just standing near him; but equally as likely, he could have been being an animal rights do-gooder and protesting that I tied my dog out.
Soon, my wife suggests that I just take Oji home. Acquiescing, I put my hands up and leave, knowing I have a date with an argument.
So, folks, what would you write as the moral of this story? What can I learn? What can you learn?