Witterings

This is true so YOU have to be the pack leader and the strongest and when you take that stance they back down ... it's when people are wary of dogs you send off the wrong signals and they will seem to be more aggressive than they are.

Dog's pick up on either positive or negative feelings and react accordingly so if you're happy and relaxed so are they, if you're wary / scared of them you send out a very different signal which they see as negative / threatening and hence why they may seem to be aggressive towards you as it's the best form of defense in their world.

This may start from their owner is boring and just taking them for a bog standard walk in the park ... someone cycles past ... hey that's a lot more fun I'd like to chase / go play with you ... you're going at much more the pace I like to play at and are much more interesting than my boring owner so I'll run next to you and bark because it's a new and exciting adventure ... person that's not used to dogs sees this as the dog is chasing me and threatening so they send off the negative vibe that makes dog feel uneasy.

I'm not saying this is 100% of the time but I'll bet it's true in at least 95% of occasions where the riders aren't used to / had dogs.
There have also been people in here complaining about dogs on MUP's .... wake up smell the coffee, they're MUP's which means the dog / owner has as much right to be there as you and unless there's a law against it they're allowed off the lead ...... If you don't like that cycle somewhere else because I've seen as many irresponsible cyclists that believe they own the MUP's as I have irresponsible dog owners .... riding at ridiculous / totally irresponsible speeds with absolutely no idea what may be on the next blind bend .... dog, young child or woman pushing a pram.

Maybe the parents with young children and dog owners should carry pepper spray to slow down the cyclist that is riding irresponsibly and spray them in the eyes as they approach ... after all it doesn't do them any harm and they'll recover from it after 2/3 hours so what's the problem.

For those that are about to jump all over me as it may seem I'm all about the dog ...... I'm not currently a dog owner but have been in the past and am probably 1st and foremost cyclist now.

There are some lovely rides near me down canals that are MUP's ... I avoid them in the summer months because I know there will be an abundance of walkers, dog walkers, people with young children, recreational cyclists who are often oblivious to what's going on around them and I don't sit and whinge because they have as much right to be there as I do but find other areas to ride where I won't be affected.