I love dogs. But, if your dog is closing in on me while I'm riding, he's going to get sprayed, or kicked in the head with a carbon fiber shoe, or both if need be. (Note: I always first yell at them, which works most of the time. Also, I'm well aware of dog's body language and would never spray one that's just curious or playful.)

It's up to dog owners to control their pets and make sure they're not running around in the street causing problems. If you can't do that, your pet is likely to die anyway from being hit by a car.

FWIW, I've used full strength pepper spray on dogs at least 6 times, and I've never observed them to be in any sort of undue pain. They do stop chasing, and they generally find some tall grass to rub their muzzles in. But, they don't whimper or cry, or roll around like they're in pain.

So, pepper spray is not "overkill". Shooting with a handgun would be overkill...shooting with pepper spray is "proportionate response".