Dog owners are idiots
 

I finally got my '86 Raleigh Marathon set up to make me a little safer and more self reliant out on the road. I've mounted a rack for my tool laden trunk bag, rear light, mirror and even a bell. Ain't she just gorgeous?

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r...G_3912A580.jpg

My little 11 mile test ride today brought me to the epiphany that dog owners are indeed idiots. Selfish, stupid, non caring idiots.

I haven't always felt this way, in fact up until today I had the utmost respect for 99% of the dog owners I've come accross while cycling. Today must have been National Moron day.

Of the five dog walkers I passed one was freindly, aware of his surroundings, and in control his dog. Two were aware of me only because I came at them face to face. They were plugged into their butt, I know this because I could see the wires leading from their ears down towards their butts. Neither one of them even as much as smiled as I passed and said hello.

Down on the 3/4 mile long bridge accross the marsh a couple had their precious little yappers running free off the leash. No amount of commands, pleading, or yelling by these two morons could stop their precious little doggies from chasing me across the bridge. (Had either of them caught me. I'd have been tempted to throw the little beasties into the river :eek:)

The last walker was the only one I had approached from the rear. Her big lab was on one of those three mile long leads and was about 10 feet ahead of her. Rather than slowing to about 10 mph as I always do when passing face to face, I dropped it down to about 6mph. I proudly rang my brand new bell from about 10 feet behind her but of course she couldn't hear me as she too was plugged into her butt. The lab crossed dirrectly in front of me and of course I stopped in plenty of time 'cause I'm smart enough to expect the unexpected. Luckily the incident suprised and startled the crap of the dummy holding the leash and I got to ride away laughing to myself.

I wonder which of the idiots I saw today left the dog feces on the bridge.

O.K. So no, this is not nor has it been the norm. I generally come accross the nicest people when I'm out riding. The pet owners are quite responsible and very freindly. Today, for some reason, was a big exception to the norm. I fully expect that I'll ride the same route tomorrow and meet really nice people with well behaved pets. The dog droppings might even be gone by then. :)

The dude has vented, the dude feels gooder.

Oooo...nice rant.:thumb:

Oooo...nice bike.:love: (really nice bike)

Q. "I wonder which of the idiots I saw today left the dog feces on the bridge."
A. All of them.

Some bicyclists plug in as well.

I do but not at a level that cuts out my awareness on the road

DUDE-- I know your problem and this is one of the reasons I try not to use the MUPs.

I have no real objection to any other user of the MUPs providing they take care of other users. I sometimes come across that dogs that WILL take the commands from the owners but they are rare. I sometimes come across owners that realise they have a "Problem" dog and they make certain that they are under control by leash or by hand but they are rare. Unfortunately that still leaves a great number of dogs and owners that you have to take care with.

I'm a dog owner.

Thanks.

Some are, but most take car of their pets.
Yesterday on our club ride I passed by a farm house where there were two dogs running loose, I was in the middle of the bike group, I caught the attention of the dogs and they made a b-line towards me, I picked up the pace not knowing if one of them would attach to one of my leggings and pull me down. I could hear the owner yelling at the dog's and only one of them gave up the chase. I was going to turn around and head back in the direction of the dogs home but though this is probably the norm.

Lenny,

I hate those freekin long leashes, I'd rather the dog be running free - at least that way I won't get tangled up in the leash and the dog. Yesterday on m ride there were many dogs and owners - all were quite well behaved. In fact I took special note at the politeness of people, as I said "coming around" I got many "Thank you's" and when I thanked people for moving over I got many "have a nice day's". All the dog owners were nice, no extra long extendo-leashes and the couple of dogs off leash were well behaved and acted as if I was not even there. All of the smart dog owners must have relocated 150 miles east of Rachacha.

Do we get smarter when our dogs die? If so, I'm still waiting for my I.Q. boost since my last dog died four years ago. I have to fess up to my dog-owner dunce move. I tied my dog's leash to a chair in the garage while I was working on some bikes. For some reason, he forgot he was tied up and started to walk towards the sidewalk. The chair was rather light and followed right along, scaring the poor pooch. Since he was afraid of the chair that was chasing him he ran away... towards my neighbor's new car. As I was trying to decide if the damage to the car would go on my homeowner's policy or my car insurance the chair got snagged on a mailbox. Sometimes lucky is a fair substitute for smart.

It is a shame that your MUP's allow dogs. Down my way the MUP I use explicitly prohibits pets, and I really appreciate it. From the St. Tammany Trace rules:

Can I bring my dog to the Trace?
Please don't bring your dogs to the Trace. No pets are allowed. This is a rule. If you bring your pet you will receive a warning. The second time you may receive a ticket. Just because your dog is "sweet" to you, doesn't mean they will be the same towards the other people on the Trace. We want to make sure the Trace is as safe as possible for all our visitors.

Indeed, Louis got it. A nice rant.

However, being a dog owner, and having experienced a rather nasty crash with a dog on an MUP, not on a leash, that darted out of nowhere to chase a squirrel, I have a slightly different perspective. This particular accident may yet cause me the loss of vision in one eye as they continue to work to find ways to keep my retina from completely detaching. In any event, when I see dog owners being careless with their K9 companions on MUPs now (I would define this as walking them on the inside of the path, using a lead over 6 feet in length, not have the dog on a lead at all, or walking without full use of their hearing) I often stop and talk to them. The conversation normally goes like this: Me: "Hi, nice looking dog. You must be a proud owner." Them: Some stare blankly, a few frown, and some smile. I continue, "I wanted to alert you to something about your dogs safety, because I can see he or she (depending on which it is) means a lot to you." "Last Labor Day I almost ended the life of a beautiful young Labrador Retriever. The owner wasn't paying attention, didn't have the dog on a lead, and he darted out in front of me. I was riding a bit over 15 MPH and hit the dog broadside. The accident caused me to suffer a serious concussion, and partial detachment of the retina in my right eye. It almost killed the dog. If I hadn't jammed on the brakes as hard as I could, the dog would have died." Them: At this point some are listening and some are getting annoyed, and in one case the guy just started walking away (I'll tell you how I handled this in a minute). Me: "Well, anyhow, I thought you just might want to know how to keep your dog safe. Walk him on the outside part of the path and he's safer; walk him with the lead no more than six feet extended and he's safer. If you have to let him wander, stop, look both directions on the path, and stay in one spot so you can see what's coming in both directions." Them: By this point I find that I either have someone who is listening, or just waiting for me to finish. If they are listening, I'll ask them about the dog and chat for just another minute or so. If they've stopped listening, I simply say, "Well have a good day and keep that dog safe." Then I pedal off. I find that most dog owners don't want to put their dogs in danger. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to be the case for all. But I really think some of the behaviors we see are just general ignorance about how to behave correctly in an environment like the one an MUP creates.

OK, so on to the guy who just started walking away. I slowly clipped back into my pedals and as I pushed off I said, "Oh, and I've decided that next time I won't hurt myself by jamming on the brakes. So, if you want your dog cut in half... well, you know, just keep on doing what you're doing."

Out of curiosity, how many here have ever sprayed a a dog with Halt? Was the owner around or not? Reactions, both from the dog and the owner?

COD, I'm with ya, I've got the SAME problems with the "dog'ers" on the MUPS that I use!! It's got signs, DOGS MUST BE ON A LEASH, very few are and even then, there human handlers can barely hold some of them back from wanting to nip my shins!! After 30 years of riding motorcycles and several years riding bicycles, I do not like dogs in the least, I wish they were banned on MUPS and trails, except for "specific dog walk areas", that we have here in Colorado Springs, JMHO, YMMV.

Halt (and the other major brand formulated for dogs, Muzzle) will not be effective to stop all dogs. It must get in the eyes. Wind or rain can reduce effectiveness. It takes 3 to 5 seconds to work.

When evaluating what spray to get look at the OC% and the SHU level. SHU is how hot a pepper is in the spray. You want a level of at least 2 million for humans. Dog spray will be less. The OC is the percentage of active ingredient in the spray. The most important number is the SHU.

And for goodness sakes don't spray every dog that happens to chase you. The spray should be for emergencies. Stop first and judge their aggression. Use the tips I and and another poster gave in another dog thread. If you think that you may be quick to spray use spray formulated for dogs and stay away from the stronger stuff. Dog spray is not as strong as human pepper sprays because dogs are more sensitive. There are risks more risks to you with using a stronger spray. Blow back can be brutal! Bear spray can be even stronger than human spray, making it even more dangerous to you.

Some states, IIRC Wisconsin and Michigan, only let you have weaker sprays.

I still wish people would bring excellent treats to toss to dogs. Make love, not war, whenever possible.

A guy on the trail was riding in the opposite direction with his loose dog when it charged Gina nipping at her ankle then turned on me and charged me head on. Suprise! I gave the dog a quick swift kick in the head when he charged me. The dog took off yelping.

Guy went crazy and started shouting at me about how I could have seriously hurt his dog. NO biggie! Then he started after me when I was straddling my bike. I got off and started shouting explicits on how serioulsy his F'ing dog could have hurt my wife and headed in his direction as he was heading in mine.

I guess he figured I wasn't scared of his tough guy accent so he turned around and headed off calling 911 rambling on about "A BIG YELLOW MONSTER ASSAULTED HIS DOG". I shouted back, "Yeah, tell them your unleashed dog tried to attack two riders".

Dog owners don't like it if you take a chance at injuring their dogs. But IMO, causing serious injury to a human (my wife) is far more uspetting than injuring any animal. You don't want your dog hurt, put it on a leash so that it doesn't attack anyone. IMO, the owner was more stupid than the dog but I'm still defending myself. ;)

Sounds like you need to campaign for a bike path that is not for people out having a leisurely time. You need laser focused people with mirrors on their head so they can be uber-alert if you happen to be coming down the path.

Most of the dogs I encounter when riding or walking are poorly trained and completely unruly. Many of the owners think that everyone loves their animals, so don't mind letting their dogs come up to you, sniff around you, bark at you or jump on you. I rarely come across a dog who pays any attention to the commands of its owner. I like dogs well enough, though I believe dog owners should keep their dogs leashed and quiet. I'm no fan of being barked or growled at when I ride or walk by a dog whether the dog is in a fenced yard or walking along with its owner. don't people who own dogs get tired of listening to their pets barking at everyone who walks or cycles by their yard?

All the trails seem covered so far this year. People don't give a crap? :) Don't let the nice warm weather go to your head crank, this was last week.

http://i825.photobucket.com/albums/z...ude/spring.jpg

Well.....aaaa.....ummmm.....OH!

Last week is history.

Here's a shot from this week just up on the bluff above where your river picture was taken....

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r...G_3874A580.jpg

....and next week may never come.

I'll relish the warmth of today knowing full well that cold winds are just over the horizon. :)

The Dude has spoken!

Think about it. Car owners think the same thing about you when you are on the road. Not all areas require dogs to be on leashes. Frankly, I don't think that should be required. I would rather use more care & see the dogs off leash. The dogs & their owners enjoy it much more. I don't find it an issue slowing down as much as I need to or coming so a stop. Besides, then I get the opportunity to meet the dog. Makes my ride enjoyable.

Sprayed two, missed four in another pack. The two I hit went down fast; fell over their front feet, then staggered off and gave me no more problems. The pack seemed to know what was going on; they knew exactly how far the spray could go, and backed off six inches further whenever I waved it in their direction. No owners in sight.

You can actually see the spray from Halt, so it's almost like shooting a steady stream with tracers. You can correct your aim, real-time, and get the dog in the face pretty quickly.

Now it's spring, the dogs are out, where'd I put the Halt handlebar holder?

Dude.... (80s jargon) that is one beautifull ride!
btw..I love them 4 legged critters..it's the 2 legged ones I usually have trouble with.
As for being 'plugged in'
Try "on Your Left" when the walkers in front of you don't understand a word of english..

Yeah, right.... The last time I tried that tactic, and it was the LAST, it turned out that the animal in question had been trained to go ballistic on anyone offering it food. I did manage to locate the owner, and the local authorities were veeerry interested to now why and how the dog had been so conditioned.

In any case, I like dogs as much as the next guy, maybe more, but in the face of a credible physical threat, the gloves come off. Period.

-Bert

Yes she is Gorgeous!

I have a very similar 1985 Raleigh Olympian that I bought new. My new 2011 Trek 4.5 Madone is superior in every way, but I still love to ride that old Raleigh.

I was on our trail yesterday when 2 friendly dogs were roaming around unleashed. 3 women were with the
dogs. They were coming in the opposite directions as me. When I got up to them I had to completely stop. They
had the leashes in their hands while walking not being used. I am not a dog lover. But wasn't afraid of these dogs. And I didn't
want to bring up any sorta of fights with the owners. I didn't smile just waited for the dogs to get out of my way.
It is a law here they are to be on a leash. I figure the bike riders who go alot faster than me would be on their
case.

I am seriously thinking about getting a video camera so it can be on all the time. I will just e-mail the pictures to the law enforcement around here to show them what is going on. I had a camera on me but I wasn't going to take their picture and start a war.

I also saw a 10 year old riding a motorize go cart down the trail which is also illegal. The camera would of been nice for that too.

Police drive the trail every day and volunteers ride bikes with bright green safety shirts on. But we have 26 miles
to ride and they won't be there when needed.

We have idoits here too in Ohio. Every time I am on the trail I have a story to tell.

It is possibily still up your ass where the dog owner stuffed it.
You sound like a complete coward and jerk.
Does the ill treatment of dogs make you feel adequate ?
Have you had similiar exploits with children ?