turbo1889

The advice you are getting about stopping and putting the bike side-ways between you and the dog is correct - spot on.

Unfortunately there are some highly dangerous and aggressive dogs who will continue to attack when you do this, you need to make up your own mind what you are going to do if that happens and how you are going to prepare for it. I personally have, unfortionatly, had to use lethal force against several dangerous vicious dogs while cycling. The first one was a fight for my life with my bear hands when I was a kid with the dog going for the front of my neck, since then I have made myself better prepared.

If you do choose to carry a gun to defend yourself if necessary which is your right then I cannot stress strongly enough the supreme importance of proper training in is effective, safe, and legitimate use and the very careful selection of both caliber and specific ammunition to do the job if necessary with the absolute least potential for collateral damage. Shock Fragmenting premium ammunition similar to what air-martials are issued for use inside air-planes being a decent choice if you can legally obtain it in your state, be warned even before the run on ammo that stuff cost over $100 for a box of only 10 shells but you shouldn't need more then one box for your entire lifetime if you really only shoot if you absolutely have to.