I was wondering if this is normal or not but recently I've been taking my 4.5 month old dobie to the park so she can have more interactions with dogs. I saw this couple who had 2 show dobermans and they came up and asked if she was mine and then judged her and felt her body and stuff and then walked away and started talking amongst themselves. It was a really uncomfortable experience since they didn't ask for permission or anything to touch my dog and my dog isn't a show doberman and is obviously not meant for show. Has this happened to anyone else?
Person with show doberman judging my dog
- Thread starter Romnabear
- Start date
How completely uncalled for from them! Even with my doberman who I do show I wouldn't want complete strangers touching my dog without my permission. So sorry this happened to you. That was incredibly rude of them!!
I would be careful going to the dog park. They work for some but most often they are an accident waiting to happen if the wrong dogs come in. At the tender age your pup is at, one bad experience can make her fearful or dog aggressive for life. Surprisingly dogs don't need to interact with other dogs past leaving their littermates. They learned all they need to staying with mom and siblings. Now you want her to be near all sorts of sights and sounds to socialize her but be focused and playing with you. You will end up with a balanced pup that is attentive to you in all scenarios!
I would be careful going to the dog park. They work for some but most often they are an accident waiting to happen if the wrong dogs come in. At the tender age your pup is at, one bad experience can make her fearful or dog aggressive for life. Surprisingly dogs don't need to interact with other dogs past leaving their littermates. They learned all they need to staying with mom and siblings. Now you want her to be near all sorts of sights and sounds to socialize her but be focused and playing with you. You will end up with a balanced pup that is attentive to you in all scenarios!
Didn't know that about dogs actually! I won't take her as often then, maybe a once in a while but I do work hard to desensitize her to all sorts of things. Thank you for your feedback
LifeofRubie
Active Member
Welcome to the world of Weird Dog People!
Without the intent of offending anyone on this site, some folks in the dog world are downright odd. You got a taste of it at the dog park (second what @Rits said about them, though). If you do ever get into any sort of dog sport (agility, barn hunt, obedience, rally, nose work, dock diving, Fast CAT, etc.) you will come across people with loud mouths and strong opinions.
Three of my favorites:
At a CPE agility trial, a woman spent nearly an hour getting a crate set-up and ready but apparently had no dog to speak of. She putzed and puttered around and loudly declared "Don't buy the dog biscuits! They put Marijauna in them!" to my Brother in Law and his girlfriend who had shown up precisely 5 minutes before to watch us run. Spoiler alert; there were no Marijauna dog biscuits.
An older gentleman at a Fast CAT trial who swore up and down there was something 'wrong' with the track because he had the fastest shelty of all the shelties and they need to fix it and his dogs times were too far off for it to be correct, etc., etc. My dogs ran just fine that day.
Overheard at an AKC agility trial: "If you can't get your novice title in a weekend, what are you even doing competing?" Because ribbons and titles are nice but so is having fun with my dogs and challenging ourselves?
Don't worry about your interaction but focus on being an advocate for your dog. If you don't want people to touch her, tell them. If someone has anything negative to say about her, ignore them. My Doberman isn't show quality which is why... I don't show her!
Without the intent of offending anyone on this site, some folks in the dog world are downright odd. You got a taste of it at the dog park (second what @Rits said about them, though). If you do ever get into any sort of dog sport (agility, barn hunt, obedience, rally, nose work, dock diving, Fast CAT, etc.) you will come across people with loud mouths and strong opinions.
Three of my favorites:
At a CPE agility trial, a woman spent nearly an hour getting a crate set-up and ready but apparently had no dog to speak of. She putzed and puttered around and loudly declared "Don't buy the dog biscuits! They put Marijauna in them!" to my Brother in Law and his girlfriend who had shown up precisely 5 minutes before to watch us run. Spoiler alert; there were no Marijauna dog biscuits.
An older gentleman at a Fast CAT trial who swore up and down there was something 'wrong' with the track because he had the fastest shelty of all the shelties and they need to fix it and his dogs times were too far off for it to be correct, etc., etc. My dogs ran just fine that day.
Overheard at an AKC agility trial: "If you can't get your novice title in a weekend, what are you even doing competing?" Because ribbons and titles are nice but so is having fun with my dogs and challenging ourselves?
Don't worry about your interaction but focus on being an advocate for your dog. If you don't want people to touch her, tell them. If someone has anything negative to say about her, ignore them. My Doberman isn't show quality which is why... I don't show her!
LifeofRubie
Active Member
Adding: MOST people, though, are very kind and helpful and always ready to answer questions**** I have had way more positive interactions than negative ones but the negative ones are always the ones that stand out 
Yeah, that was pretty ignorant for them to just grope and man handle your dog without even asking.
Being "show people", they should know better then that. I can understand what they might have been looking at, but still ... approaching and just going over the dog without permission is a NO-NO.
As @LifeofRubie said... there are some odd folks out there!
Being "show people", they should know better then that. I can understand what they might have been looking at, but still ... approaching and just going over the dog without permission is a NO-NO.
As @LifeofRubie said... there are some odd folks out there!
This would be irritating for sure! It is one of my pet peeves to say the least when anyone tries to go over my authority with my own dog. It reminds me of one day that I had my first Dobe in an obedience trial in Tucson. It was hot and sunny. We were next to go into the ring, so I had my boy at a heel. He was extremely well trained, but hated the obedience ring – stressed out, which stressed me out greatly. We didn't like anyone or any experience to mess with us. We had a routine (which yes, in the later stages of going for our titles, included me brushing his teeth as we sat and waited for our time to approach – so, I could have probably been seen as one of those dog weirdos that Rubie talked about 
) But back to this day in the desert sun as we waited, next in line to go into the ring: Up walks a woman with a bowl of water and she offers it to my Dobe. She was just going to foist the water upon my dog without asking me. Clearly she, and probably her friends, disagreed with me having my Dobe out in the sun as we waited, instead of in the shade. That ticked me off so bad, I tell ya.
Anyway, I'm curious how you knew these folks were dog show people? Again, it was totally inappropriate, weird and rude for them to place hands on your Dobe. Standing there and judging your Dobe would have been bad enough.
I'm also reminded of, with my current Dobe, Oji he was still pretty young and I walked him to the pet store to buy food. There was this, also young, Dobe that was clearly from conformation (show) lines. It was much larger, more filled out and more impressive looking than my working Doberman. I didn't get any real direct interaction with the fancy car driving man who owned the Dobe, but I did feel his eyes upon us, and I just knew that he was thinking I had a scrappy meager excuse for a Doberman. Truth is, though, my Dobe without a doubt was way stronger, faster, could bite better and more close to what a Dobermann was actually meant to be than his was.
Yes, people are weird about dogs.
) But back to this day in the desert sun as we waited, next in line to go into the ring: Up walks a woman with a bowl of water and she offers it to my Dobe. She was just going to foist the water upon my dog without asking me. Clearly she, and probably her friends, disagreed with me having my Dobe out in the sun as we waited, instead of in the shade. That ticked me off so bad, I tell ya.Anyway, I'm curious how you knew these folks were dog show people? Again, it was totally inappropriate, weird and rude for them to place hands on your Dobe. Standing there and judging your Dobe would have been bad enough.
I'm also reminded of, with my current Dobe, Oji he was still pretty young and I walked him to the pet store to buy food. There was this, also young, Dobe that was clearly from conformation (show) lines. It was much larger, more filled out and more impressive looking than my working Doberman. I didn't get any real direct interaction with the fancy car driving man who owned the Dobe, but I did feel his eyes upon us, and I just knew that he was thinking I had a scrappy meager excuse for a Doberman. Truth is, though, my Dobe without a doubt was way stronger, faster, could bite better and more close to what a Dobermann was actually meant to be than his was.
Yes, people are weird about dogs.
Doberman Gang
Hot Topics Subscriber
1) never go to dog parks
2) nobody needs to touch your dog, especially without your permission.
3) don’t give a shit about what people say or think about your dog. You just love and enjoy every moment you can.
4) you can acclimate your dog to outside stimuli by going to places with other people then teaching them to ignore people and play with you. All things good come from giving you attention. That is how you socialize your dog.
2) nobody needs to touch your dog, especially without your permission.
3) don’t give a shit about what people say or think about your dog. You just love and enjoy every moment you can.
4) you can acclimate your dog to outside stimuli by going to places with other people then teaching them to ignore people and play with you. All things good come from giving you attention. That is how you socialize your dog.
Kaiser2016
Well-Known Member
Definitely annoying, but I agree that people can be odd about those things. At a minimum, I would have wanted to hear what they determined from their examination 
Or maybe not lol. Being a Dobe owner, you need to learn to be an advocate for your dog and keep them safe from others. There are many occasions where people just cross the street when they see us, but there are those that always want to pet the dog too, like if you walk them through a store. I would learn to say no to such interactions. Most animal bylaws can cause problems for your dog if an incident happens with a human, so it is better to be proactive about this.
Or maybe not lol. Being a Dobe owner, you need to learn to be an advocate for your dog and keep them safe from others. There are many occasions where people just cross the street when they see us, but there are those that always want to pet the dog too, like if you walk them through a store. I would learn to say no to such interactions. Most animal bylaws can cause problems for your dog if an incident happens with a human, so it is better to be proactive about this.They were actually practicing with the female doberman that they had brought that's how I could tell, but honestly the dogs really stood out as well with how beautiful and elegant they were. I was admiring their dogs a lot so it's a little disheartening to think they were judging mineThis would be irritating for sure! It is one of my pet peeves to say the least when anyone tries to go over my authority with my own dog. It reminds me of one day that I had my first Dobe in an obedience trial in Tucson. It was hot and sunny. We were next to go into the ring, so I had my boy at a heel. He was extremely well trained, but hated the obedience ring – stressed out, which stressed me out greatly. We didn't like anyone or any experience to mess with us. We had a routine (which yes, in the later stages of going for our titles, included me brushing his teeth as we sat and waited for our time to approach – so, I could have probably been seen as one of those dog weirdos that Rubie talked about
Anyway, I'm curious how you knew these folks were dog show people? Again, it was totally inappropriate, weird and rude for them to place hands on your Dobe. Standing there and judging your Dobe would have been bad enough.
I'm also reminded of, with my current Dobe, Oji he was still pretty young and I walked him to the pet store to buy food. There was this, also young, Dobe that was clearly from conformation (show) lines. It was much larger, more filled out and more impressive looking than my working Doberman. I didn't get any real direct interaction with the fancy car driving man who owned the Dobe, but I did feel his eyes upon us, and I just knew that he was thinking I had a scrappy meager excuse for a Doberman. Truth is, though, my Dobe without a doubt was way stronger, faster, could bite better and more close to what a Dobermann was actually meant to be than his was.
Yes, people are weird about dogs.
. I shouldn't have referred then as dog show people because I'm not realizing how it could come of as rude, I just didn't know how to refer them as I am not familiar with dog shows I apologize
LifeofRubie
Active Member
@Romnabear I would say were all pretty well equipped with a sense of humor on this site! And really, don't worry about their opinion on the looks of your dog. Doesn't make her any less of the a good girl and great companion for you.
May I recommend the movie Best in Show for a somewhat satirical demonstration of Dog Show People?
May I recommend the movie Best in Show for a somewhat satirical demonstration of Dog Show People?
Ravenbird
$ Forum Donor $
I love that movie! No offense at all to the Conformation folks here, it's just a great funny movie. I briefly worked at a show horse barn and when that movie came out it was exactly what I observed in the show horse people. So yeah, watch the movie and pick out which characters those Show Dobe people you met represent and you'll get even more laughs.
Oh, not a problem at all!
Kswoodssue
Jr Member
”marijuana dog bisquits”
Ukesox
$ Forum Donor $
Reminds me of an inexplicable experience I had. As part of Luna’s socialisation I used to sit on a bench near a moderately busy road with lots of road & pedestrian traffic. The aim was for her to sit calmly, watching & taking the different sights and sounds in. All of a sudden a car pulls up, the driver gets out, takes something from the trunk, marches up to Luna & without a word to me or her gives her a couple of dog biscuits, gets back in the car & drives off.
To this day I still shake my head in disbelief
To this day I still shake my head in disbelief
Wow maybe the though was generous but I always want someone to ask me before offering a treat. Our trainer is very to the point and when someone approaches wanting to pet Phoebe she says "nope she's in training but you can pet Selleck".
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