Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Dogs
Elden was recently bitten by a dog. Chad has also blogged about this. In the past, I've noted my run-ins with dogs on my wife's blog. In any case, it's worth repeating - I'm not a big fan of being bitten by dogs. But much like being hit by a car, my reaction depends on the other party's attitude. If were to get hit by a car and then have the motorist get out and start yelling at me to get off the road or whatever, it could get ugly pretty quick. If on the other hand, they're sympathetic, that's a different story.
Similarly, if a dog owner is apologetic about their dog attacking, I can understand that. But at the end of the day, I have a pretty standard approach to a dog giving chase. If I'm riding and a dog chases me long enough and hard enough to get close enough to bite me, I operate on the assumptions that 1) the dog intends to bite me and 2) there's nothing the owner can/cares to do about it. With those two assumptions in mind, I kick the dog. Period. I'd expect someone to do the same if for some inexplicable reason Jesse decided to chase somebody down on a bike.
What about the dog owner? I don't really care - after all they're out with a dog that either they can't control or they don't want to control. And when it comes down to choosing hurting their feelings or risking a dog bite, I know which way I'm going.
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3 comments:
I believe your course of action is justified and I have no problem with it.
I've had good success squirting dogs with my water bottle. The two times I've done it the dog stopped immediately and looked stunned so I believe it is aversive and might possibly alter behavior (but I doubt one squirt is enough, just as one kick probably isn't either). And I can aim a water bottle and not crash. I'm not sure I could kick a dog and stay upright. Is there a technique to it?
There is a technique to it - I perfected it in Argentina. Once the dog has closed the distance, you kick down on his head (think leg extension). The dog is almost always at full speed at that point and you're basically pushing his snout down tripping him.
I'm glad I asked because I would have tried a swinging (at the knee) kick and I envisioned that to be hard to do while riding. I can see your stomp down method to be both effective and easier.
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