FlatFender

What does everyone carry to defend against dogs on their commute? I was bitten in the shoe about a month ago, and today I was chased by a 2 pit bulls, but thank god for a fast downhill that let me outrun them.
Pepper spray?
Frame Pump?
Boot to the head?
.45?

Elusor

knife

but i like the .45 idea

Iffacus

Just use it as interval training

Failing that I find a frame fit pump, swung near the head works quite well.

btw, were you going to use the .45 to persude the owner to keep their dog under control?

n4zou

A spray bottle filled with a 50% mix of ammonia and water. If hit with this mix the dog will hit the pavement and begin to drag off all hair and hide the ammonia is soaked into. If it's a busy or fast road a vehicle will run over them as there too occupied trying to get that horrid substance off. If they do survive they never, ever approach another bicycle and will yelp and hide if they see one. If they start chasing you just the smell of the ammonia drifting behind you will deter them. You could compare the effects of ammonia on the dog with that of mustard gas on a human.

simplify

This could have been a life-threatening situation. If you know what person or residence those dogs belong to, you should report them. It is unlawful for those dogs to be loose, in just about any city or town.

FlatFender

Yeah, I dont know where the dogs came from. Its kind of funny though, In my backpack I had a .45, OC spray, and lots of other goodies (Im a security guard on the weekends) but none of which I could get to. I was a little freaked, but once the adrenaline kicked in, and I was heading downhill I was alright. I have been wanting to get some pepper spray for dogs, but here in MI we cannot carry anything nore than a 2% concentration, and I really dont think that would stop a pissed off pit bull in his tracks.

nelson249

The saving grace about pit bulls is that they generally aren't too quick. But seriously, I agree with another poster in that you should report these dogs to authorities since they are a danger to everyone. I think pepper spray is the preferred option. I wouldn't try a boot to the head on the bike especially with two dogs around since you might so unbalance yourself that you would crash. Once you are on the ground you are easy meat. As far as the use of firearms, be VERY aware of the laws in your jurisdiction.

Frankly, I don't carry anything except my old Swiss army knife and there has only been one instance all this year where I had a problem with dogs.

FlatFender

I would NEVER EVER weild a firearm from a bicycle and try to shoot a moving target in a neghborhood. I put that in the first post as a form of comic relief.

SingingSabre 

Honestly, I've found many, many pit bulls to be some of the sweetest dogs ever. My personal experience has made me most wary of dobermans.

As for how to deal with them, I would use pepper spray (make sure it fires in a stream, not a cloud) or a squirt from a water bottle. Over that, I would prefer to just sprint the hell out of there. They're dogs, not cheetahs.

maximan1

Flame Thrower

Cheap way to make a flame thrower is spray some Axe (deodarant) through a lighter flame.
See if those dogs will ever bother you again.

newbojeff

Strong leg muscles hooked up to an excellent cardiovascular system.

KrisPistofferson

Last time I got chased, I yelled "Get off the couch!" in an authoritative voice, and Mr. Rottweiler got so confused he quit chasing me, which is cool because I was going up a steep hill.

maximan1

Haha you're smart

mlh122

ah but what if you got chased by a rabid greyhound? mostly the loose dogs in my neighborhood are labs that usually just want to play. one time i was chased by a lab and a wierd mix dog but i was near the top of a long hill so i couldn't go much faster, but once i left their territory they turned around.

Cyrus

Airsoft gun; They look like real guns too.

FlatFender

I think I will try mixing a small bottle of some crazy hot sauce and vinegar and give that a try.

godspiral

What's this amonia idea?
Can you spray part of your bike or shoes if you are going into dog country?

n4zou

It's not an idea! Ammonia works extremely well on dogs. Try smelling it up close and then multiply that by 1000 for the effect on the dogs since of smell. Dogs use there since of smell to a greater extent then their sight or anything else. What do people do when sprayed in the eyes with pepper spray? Ammonia is even worse for the dog than you with pepper spray in your eyes. OH! No need to spray it on your shoes or anything else, just the Ammonia in the bottle is enough if there downwind of you. The reason you mix it with water is to prevent it from eating up the plastic spray bottle as fast as full strength Ammonia would.

FlatFender

Id be too afraid of a child getting ahold of my bottle and drinking some ammonia...

I did see something yesterday that emits a high frequency sound that is supposed to repel them when you hit a button, but I dont remember where I saw it.

jstrick38us

I've ridden for many years on the backroads of the ozarks (redneck country) where everyone has at least a couple of large dogs and no one ever ties them up. Most people there think its funny when their dog chases a biker. Ha

That said, weilding a frame pump over their head and yelling a lot always gave me enough time to get the big gears going. I never was bitten, and I never even had to destroy the pump by actually hitting a dog.

The only exception was a house on a curve in the road where I usually rode by going uphill. They had four or five dogs (all mutts) that knew how to "hunt" as a pack, namely with one dog going out front and slowing down as the others closed in on the flanks. They respected the "stick" idea, but weren't really deterred by it. The dog that usually took the "point" duty seemed to have a lot of Chow based on the curly tail, and one day I kept my speed up, took careful aim and made firm contact between my front wheel and that crusty little bunghole. It was AMAZING how fast that dog moved out of my way and how loud he yelped! And, even better, he nor his pack ever tried that again - they barked, but stayed well off the road.

John

R-Wells

Amonia works pretty good,
I put it in an old 409 bottle or somthing simular that will squirt a long stream.
Plain water will work on some dogs but not all, My personal dogs would chase you just to get squirted by the water,
Nothing works all the time, I have hit a really nasty little pit bull straight in the eyes from 3 feet away and it didnt seem to faze him.
Loose dogs and stray dogs chasing me on a bike are a real pet peave of mine.
My wife and I are serious dogs lovers I have raised and trained and showed German shepherds al of my life.
The amount of money I have invested in my dogs over the years really makes some of the high end bikes look cheap.
I have a female pup right now that will end up costing me $7500.
I love dogs
But I go nuts when I see some big nasty tempered pit bull chasing my wife.

bmclaughlin807

....

Who the f*** would ever teach their kid that it's ok to take a spray bottle off a bike and try it to see if it's good to drink???? (or even a water bottle, for that matter!)

I haven't seen ANYONE recommend putting ammonia into a normal water bottle... YOU might be the one that got confused and drank from the wrong bottle!

SSP

Using ammonia is a pretty dumb idea. It can injure the dog, and it's not easy to deploy. It also requires some sort of separate container.

As for the ultrasonic devices (e.g., Dazer), they have generally been shown to be ineffective.

Much better is regular (cop-strength) pepper spray. It's easy to carry in a jersey pocket, and easy to use from the bike on an overtaking dog. It stops most dogs instantly, and they don't seem to suffer any undue pain or injury. It can also be useful in case of a confrontation with a two-legged varmint.

See https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/journ...oc_id=194&v=19 for more.

FlatFender

well, I know I did some stupid things when I was a kid, and I still wouldnt put it past myself to get cunfused either...lol

KrisPistofferson

Haha you're not.