illeagle

Commuting to work through a residential area, three little ankle biter dogs gave chase, barking and growling as I rode by. This was the second such occurrence. Well their little legs couldn't quite keep up so I ever so slightly applied the brakes to give the nasty little creatures some sport. The lil dogs barked and growled in anticipation of bringing down the prey they sought as they began to gain ground, finally pulling up along my left flank. At this point I pulled my left Wolverine boot clad foot way up off the pedal, then simultaneously braked a bit harder and suddenly straightened out my leg, giving the pack leader a face full of boot tread. The noise stopped, the pack came to an abrupt halt and I looked back with a satisfied smirk at a bunch of worthless mutts with "WTF?" thought bubbles appearing over their heads.

I know some of you have stories of chases by dogs that are actually dangerous. How did you handle it?

Bob J

i start by not taunting animals that are just playing.

illeagle

Yeah I don't taunt playing animals either( I was merely riding by) but when animals are illegally allowed to roam at large, I don't mind taking a few seconds out of my commute to teach them to not chase vehicles in the road, not only for my safety but for their's.

When I was about 6 years old I was viciously pulled off my bicycle by a pitbull roaming at large so loose dogs are a pet peeve of mine. They need to know not to harrass bicyclists. Especially in residential areas where child bicyclists are plentiful.

Bob J

Best way for them to learn is through proper training, best way to ensure they get that is reporting the owners.

If they really bother you you can carry mace or try varying your speed. Slow down before you get to them, speed up once they notice you. By the time they noticed that you started going faster, you'll be past them.

CommuterRun

Cool.+1
No dogs, with the exception of police and military working dogs, should ever be allowed to chase a person. It's dangerous for the person being chased. It's dangerous behavior for the dog. It also leaves the owner wide open to liability, as it should. If an irresponsible dog owner allows their dog(s) to chase, then they leave it up to the cyclist to teach the dog(s) that chasing = pain.

Getting chased by dogs around here, or even barked at, is even more rare than dealing with harassing cagers. But if I thought I needed it, I would invest in a can of "Halt!". I was talking to my mailman one time, a much older gentleman, upon noticing that he carried "Halt!". He said he's never seen a dog it wouldn't stop, although he has also heard the rumors that "Halt!" won't work on a large, aggressive dog. In talking to him I found that he is also a cyclist, but when he rides he carries a .38.

vulpes

Real sweet. Better watch out for the SPCA. They'll get ya.

banerjek

+1 After the owners get fined a few times, training the dog doesn't seem like such a bad idea.....

Spreggy

Here's a case of someone's self-righteousness getting ahead of their judgment. I always love to hear of how some people justify kicking a dog. Did you try poking them in the eye with a stick yet? That'll teach em a lesson for sure. Obviously the right thing to do is circle back to the house with the ankle biters in tow, and let the owners know that there's trouble coming for their little roadrunners. Keep kicking them and they'll figure out how to top your defense.

b_young

I usually ride as fast as I can straight at them. It usually stops them in their tracks and I have enough speed to go past without any problem. I have a co-worker that uses Wasp Spray. I know that will not be popular on this site but he swears by it. He has had one dog that came close to biting twice. One hit with it and the dog stays on the porch now. I have not had to do that, the dogs on my route just like to chase and its more of a game with us. I am not in the city limits so no leash law.

Tadashi

They kill stray dogs in Japan. I've never seen a dog without its owner here.

CommuterRun

My wife is from Hakone (a couple hours west of you, near Mt. Fuji). I don't remember seeing any roaming dogs around that area either. However, when I was on Okinawa there were benjo mutts (medium size, brown, non-descript dog, as is common on all the islands on that side of the Pacific), all over the place, but they never chase. The only two times I ever got chased on Oki were by somebody's pets. One was tied and still came after me, but the owner was right there and immediately corrected the dog. The other was before daylight one morning, and that one only chased as far as the width of his front yard, (a big yard over there is tiny by American standards).

Daily Commute

Halt works. I haven't used it in years, but it worked the couple times I sprayed it. If you prefer less toxic solutions, I once used a spray from my water bottle to get a dog to stop chasing.

I agree with the others on another point, hurting a dog when you don't have to is just cruel. If the only reason a dog is close enough for you to kick is that you intentionally slowed down, that's cruelty, not self defense.

illeagle

FWIW, I don't think the dog was hurt. It didn't even yelp.

Oh, and I didn't kick the dog, it ran into the bottom of my foot. Kicking dogs is a lowdown dirty activity. IMO, better the tread of my boot than the tread of an automobile tire.

Is that .38 to be used on the unruly dog or the irresponsible owner.

Daily Commute

I hope you're right.

Originally, you said:

Now you clarify:

Your original sounds like "kicking" to me. Your, ahem, clarification, sounds like someone saying, "I didn't punch him. I just clenched my fist, extended my arm, and moved toward him. All of a sudden, his face was in my fist."

CommuterRun

He didn't say.

fish0n

When I see a dog roaming around I either go the other way, or if I don't have the option I will slow way down when I pass them and pretend like I'm ignoring them. You know how they tell you not to run from a Mt. Lion? And I believe if you stare at them looking frighten, that may entice a more aggressive dog. If they come after me I RIDE!!! This is what I have found works for me, I'm not giving instruction. I have though about mace, I would be interested in knowing where you would keep it handy while riding.

trickdog

I find that yelling at the dog with words such "Get off the couch", "Get the kitty", Where is the ball", "Get the ball" etc work great. The dog gets momentarily confused by this and gives you enough time to make your escape.

Bekologist

pepper spray if they are big and threatening. probably the last time the dog chases a bicyclist....

timthorn

I hate little ankle bitters, out of all the breeds there little yalp freaks me out and they do not play. Best bet is to drive on or go to their master's house and complaining citing that if they do not have their rats on a lead, you will call animal control (most cities have laws about dogs either fenced in or on a lead).

ItsJustMe

I would never try to run from a dog. Sounds just idiotic to me. That's an automatic "chase" trigger. If you slow down / stop you stop being a target for most dogs.

I've had dogs all my life, and when they come at me I slow down, get off if I have to (rarely), talk to them and tell them to knock it off and go home. I think it's possible that they sense that I'm not in any way frightened or intimidated by them.

If one actually tried to bite me I would of course get some kick/restraint practice. Not to be mean, just in defense until the thing let me continue. Then of course it would get reported and followed up on. This has never happened to me.

The only real problem I have is the really friendly ones that want to follow me. I've had trouble making them go away at times. I stop, they just wag and hang around, I can circle back to their place, they still just follow me. Then I'll try to lose them with speed, they eventually give up.

gholt

It's been a long time since I have had a problem. But today, there was a pit bull in chase. I don't really want to stop while a pit bull is in chase. So, I may have to add a water bottle for those times I need to slow them down. I know I will try to find out what house it is so that I can report it.

MikeR

+1

I have used both on my neighbor's mut. Neighbor has 2 labs. One wants to run along side, wag and bark - no problem. The other comes up behind and nips at my ankles. Twice I squirted him with the water bottle and he stopped in confusion to smell the wet spot and shake.

One time I had no water and gave him a shot of Halt. It was not as bad as I feared. He didn't howl of yip. He just stopped, shook his head and snorted. It was obvious that the Halt was not painful but annoying.

I haven't seen him since - but that may be coincidence.

biffstephens

My 2 solutions have worked for me pretty well.....

1) Yell stop!!! This has worked many time except when the dog stopped and was then hit by a car..

2) A good bit of Water or Energy drink in there face usually messes them up...if that doesn't then you better ride fast because they want a piece of you...

Gibbygoo

water stream in the face from my water bottle worked well.

CoffeeEater

Once I stopped dragging a T-Bone steak, they stopped chasing me.