What is the problem with me asking you not to pet my dog? I’m trying to train her not to jump all over people; that’s why I had her on a short lead as you walked by. Yet you still did.
Your weak argument of: “Oh, it won’t make a difference,” means you sure as hell aren’t a professional dog trainer, because that’s completely contrary to what the trainer told me. While you probably didn’t ruin the all of training, you certainly gave her a setback.
When I ask you nicely not to do something, please don’t do it. It’s called manners. Just do as you’ve been asked. —Dog Walker
This article appears in Jun 24-30, 2010.
You don’t touch pregnant stranger’s bulging bellies, you don’t touch other people’s kids and you don’t touch their pets unless they give their assent through word or action. Common courtesy; common sense.
My friend had her hair touched by a stranger in a line-up once. When she asked the old lady what the heck she was doing, she said “I have never seen hair like this before! Isn’t it something! Here, touch this!” to other people in the line. (My friend is black and has puffy, very curly hair.) Needless to say, she was quite offended.
Don’t touch other people’s stuff unless you have been asked to.
I wouldn’t mind a little heavy petting now and then…but this would be welcome unlike the other situations.
don’t want dog touched, walk where there are no people. simple as that.
I thought it was common sense not to pet random dogs. You never know how the dog is trained or if the dog will bite you.
I always wonder how many dog bites are due to asshats petting random dogs then crying to animal control when they get bitten.
I learned my lesson about petting random animals when a CAT at a PETTING ZOO (that’s right, a fucking petting zoo) bit through my hand. Right through it. And then latched onto my arm and used his back claws to shred my arms to shit. This was likeeee 15 years ago and I *still* have the bite mark on my hand. They had to inject saline into it and the mofo swelled up so badly I couldn’t move it for two weeks.
THIS is why you don’t pet random animals. Ever.
koda, me either, but then, you might get some nutcasethat just wants to fondle you, oh yeah, that’s what i was looking for, ooooh.
Life Sucks and koda… any time kids, any time… Oh yeah and don’t touch animals if you’re told/asked not to. Not good form.
Walking where there are no other people can be difficult if you live in the city LS.
Wow, my dog was fully trained by 3 years old and not once did I scold a human for her behavior. The math just doesn’t work like that, as in, BACKWARDS. The whole point of training is to control the dog in a changing and uncontrollable environment that WILL involve human beings AND other dogs. Dog Walker, you should THANK this person for testing how well the training is going and then try it out on others. You will NEVER control other people, stop trying or go train for a badge.
Oh, train your dog to not jump up by catching the dog’s paw by the elbow then firmly put her on the ground with the word “down”. Keep her there until she submits. You may want to have a reward handy for the day you come home and the dog stays down. After that reward you should arrive home to a sitting, obedient dog very happy to see you or any other potentially treat-baring human being, children included (they got the best treats).
I’m no professional trainer and it was the very last naturally bad habit to disappear while training my dog but this approach worked really well for my pup. Patience, consistency and do not lose your temper, ever. Good luck.
Actually kay, having done this myself lately, the OP is right; the trainer I hired used the “no treat” method, which prescribes the attention as the reward for good behavior. Thus, the positive reinforcement was the person paying attention to the dog, and reinforced a negative behavior, and it would have probably undercut the owner’s authority. Using this method, it would be a significant setback.
It also doesn’t change the fact that the person felt it was completely alright to touch an unknown animal. These are the people that put their hands in a lion’s cage, then expect the lion to treat them warmly, then have the animal put down because it bit off their hand.
Just say “Don’t pet her/him. She/he is just getting over having had rabies.” Or “My dog eats small children.”
This should be common sense for strangers. You wouldn’t try to pet her pussy without permission.
Pussycat that is – get your mind out of the gutter people 🙂
Pets are for petting, hence the name “Pet”. If you don’t want people touching your dog, then donate it to the pound.
v.o.r., now you are reading my warped wittle mind, scarey.
scarey…. ?
wow.
that is scary….
Kitty,… what petting zoo had cats??? aren’t they supposed to have goats and llamas and sheep or ponies or something? who goes to a petting zoo to pet a cat????
How about my dog has ‘Sarcoptic mange’ .
I know that would keep me from going anywhere near you , it & your place of residence ~;)
I hate it even when company comes over and you tell them not to let the dog jump on them, because we’re training her. They say “oh, its ok, i don’t mind”, well guess what, I DO MIND! It makes it much harder to train my dog when you let her jump on you.
I feel your pain. I have a 5 month old female valley bull and I can barely go anywhere with her without being accosted by every retard on the planet who seemingly hasn’t seen a dog before.
I find coldly telling people as soon as they start their cooing to not to touch or call to your dog because you are training it will usually suffice.