Originally Posted by
CAT7RDR
I know my terrier will chase anything. It's genetic instinct and no amount of training will curb that instinct.
Don't fool yourself into thinking a trained dog will obey you 100% of the time.
My boy is always leashed on walks or in the park. He is scrappy and loves to chase and fight.
Know your dogs so you can protect him and others.
The problem is, every dog owner is just absolutely sure THEIR dog would never do anything like that. And then it does. And they say, "Oh, he's NEVER done anything like that!" Too late.
Leash laws aren't just to protect people from your dog. They're to protect your dog from other dogs. You don't know that stranger over there, OR his dog. And he doesn't know you or yours. When I walk my dog through one park near me - in a town with a leash law - I encounter people with their dogs off leash. They often come running over while their owner impotently calls their name. What if my dog attacked theirs? And there they'd be, all the way across the park, unable to pull their dog back.
You. Don't. Know.
As it happens, my dog is a retired Greyhound, and to adopt him I had to sign a contract stating I would never let him off leash in any area not fully enclosed. Which I wouldn't anyway, because he can reach 40 mph in 3 bounds. I'd never catch him.