meriad wrote:Poor Billy - so horrid for him
Problem really though is the owners. Staffies with the right owner and right training are amazing dogs, but they are strong animals and faster and have more endurance than most people give them credit for.
My neighbours have an ancient old staffie female, as sweet as anything and even she isn't walked unless on the leash at all times
But I have an issue regardless of where you are about people having their dogs off the lead. I know they need to run around etc, but where I live we've had so many issues with dogs running off chasing ducks or swans by the lakes, chasing smaller dogs etc and the owners just don't give a toss. And the number of people that think it's OK to have their dog on a long extending lead and then merrily walk 1/2 way up my front garden before they pull them back - drives me batty!
Ria, bad owners are the reason why I make sure I'm out by 8am at the latest on weekend mornings, so that I avoid the weekend dog walkers whose overexcited dogs are probably shut in a kitchen all day during the week, have the minimum of exercise but on weekends are let loose to run wherever they like on the common and in the woods by owners who have very little control over them, or don't notice what they're doing because they're too busy with their phones. Another nuisance are professional dog walkers. There's one woman who walks 7 or 8 dogs off lead at a time, all bouncy big dogs like Dalmations and Boxers, and she has no control over them whatsoever.
Earlier in the day it's usually just the regular people that you see day in and day out, although sometimes we can walk for over an hour without seeing anyone.
