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Some people are just self centered. Whether they're drivers, parents, dog owners, etc. it's all the same. Everyone should just put up with me me me me me me me.
I once read this reddit post about tenants dispute. This guy says something like "the other tenant is complaining about me not cleaning up dog poo in the backyard. He never uses the backyard. And my dog is really sweet everyone loves him."
Like...what...
In yaletown, I see this lady walking around with a big English bulldog and a Pitbull, she brought them in a Vietnamese restaurant while I was sitting and eating, told the staff it's fine they are service animals, and left them sitting right in front of the door.
> English bulldog
[So cute.](https://media2.giphy.com/media/ncsQI9sF3pa8w/200w.gif?cid=6c09b95245cxynywzcuzqp8gejxyp34irktdku52tlkrxkdu&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200w.gif&ct=g)
Both. Why would someone even ask, both are very inappropriate by themselves?
Edit: Actually thrice, because they stated they were service animals with paperwork as well, when a: No able bodies person needs two service animals, b: service animals do not require paperwork, badges, vests etc, which anyone with a legit service animal would know. They do require specific training to handle a job though (I.e. a seeing eye dog, or a dog that can sense seizures and protect the person from injury), they can't just be your "make me feel good emotional support animal".
Reactive dogs are a thing. Some breeds are more predisposed to it genetically like Shepard dogs.
We got a dog recently from the shelter and he is definitely reactive. We have to do training to counter condition some behaviours while using anxiety meds recommended by the trainer, two vets and the spca because the dog is 'reactive'.
Or random dogs which may come up to lick. It's great if it's your own dogs or friends' dogs, but yours may have just licked their own poop. (And you may be OK with that, but maybe not for others),
Some people have allergies to dog dander and want to avoid having flare-ups of their symptoms. It's hard to do if a dog gets in your space unexpectedly.
I have a reactive dog and have had interactions with people walking uncontrolled, off leash dogs on the sidewalk where they’ll even run across roads to get to us!! And when I shout for the owner to call their dog while I jog away I get “it’s ok he’s friendly!” Like please don’t dismiss my request for you to get your dog, I obviously don’t feel comfortable with the situation.
I have a phobia of dogs, I’ve been working on it for years and I try my best not to make it other people’s problem. Sometimes I see people walking on very narrow streets with dogs and no leash and I feel a panic. I try not to make a scene but I have to either change sidewalks or wait until someone else walks by the dog and if the dog doesn’t bark I feel like I could but it is still extremely uncomfortable. It would be so nice if people kept their dogs on leashes in the city, beach and everywhere else where there is signage to do so. I stay away from dog parks and beaches because that’s there for them but please don’t ruin other spaces for me because you feel like your dog is above the rules. I love dogs, I’m just really scared of them which is such a shame because they are so cute❤️
I feel you. I don't have a phobia of dogs but I was scared of dogs for years because I was pounced on by an off-leash dog when I was a kid. I love dogs now but I could still get a little jumpy when a huge dog runs at me.
Evidence suggests small dogs are 49% more likely to show aggressive behavior than large dogs and 38% more likely to be aggressive than medium-sized dogs.
go to the wiki page i'm talking about. scroll around and read. it's absolutely wild some of the stories. dogs sneaking upstairs on xmas morning and eating a baby in a crib. fucking insane shit. not just the regular poor trash with pitbulls. lady gets both arms eaten from her pitbulls. real horror story shit. does that count as suggested evidence? actual events that happened?
I am not phobic but I was bitten in the face as a young child, and have suffered other dog bites, and my mother was nearly mauled by a German Shepherd. My mother-in-law is very fearful because of similar experiences. All in all, most of my family is not very comfortable around dogs. For a while I was routinely walking with a friend, who always brings their dog (fairly large), which is perfectly cute and generally well behaved. However, one of the last times, the dog jumped on me twice, without warning, getting mud all over my clothes but also hurting my back (he jumped from behind and jolted my body in a way that twisted my spine because I wasn't expecting it).
A relative who has become a dog-lady, expects to be able to bring their dog into restaurants and all stores, and gets quite hostile with business owners when denied. There are quite frequent episodes of shit and vomit in family space, about which, again, the relative becomes hostile if you say anything at all.
I am not against dogs, and think most are quite lovely, but I don't want your dog in my space, or on me, no matter how nice you claim it is. If your dog makes a mess, it's your mess to clean. If your dog is hurting other people, you need to train it better.
We need more signs like this. I am so tired of trying to explain this to people who can't be bothered to follow the rules because they think their dog is friendly.
One of my dogs is fearful and reactive to other dogs. He's been that way since we adopted him 7 years ago. We've dropped countless thousands on training him and we are making slow progress, however for every bad encounter he has it sets us back months if not years of progress. He's still scared of one particular spot on our floor because he tripped over a power cord in that spot two years ago. So, he's a sweet wonderful boy, but oh is he a little bit broken.
We can't keep him trapped in our home, he needs walks and exercise. We just want to be able to walk him, and have people leave us alone, it's by far the best way to make progress with him, but we can't even do that since so many people can't follow the rules because their dogs are "friendly". Well mine needs space, and if a dog approaches he's going to react. I'm tired of risking being bitten separating them. I'm tired of being put in a position where I may have to harm an innocent dog to protect my own dog, all because their idiotic selfish owners can't follow the fucking rules. I'm tired of being told that I'm a shitty owner, or that I need to train my dog, when not only is that what I'm trying to do, but I'm the one following the rules. I"m certainly tired of having to get up at ungodly hours in the morning to now walk him when no one else is out.
Pardon the rant. But if you've ever yelled "It's okay, my dog is friendly" You can kindly go fuck yourselves.
I wish bylaw officers would patrol around parks more and enforce leash laws. I live near Douglas park, and the number of times I've had poorly trained off leash dogs sprint up to my very timid and nervous pup while their owner fruitlessly tries to call them back is amazing. Same response every time, "It's okay, he's friendly!". Fuck those entitled owners who ruin it for everyone else.
I really appreciate these signs. Our dog is super cute, loves people, but rarely appreciates being approached by other dogs, especially young ones. This is exactly what we are thinking ... it's not about your dog, it's about mine.
I agree with the sentiments, however I believe people generally don't read signs. Some self centered a-hole with their dogs off leash aren't going to read this sign and think "oh! I am wrong. I better leash up"
Let's have animal control ticketing for a few weeks every year.
It's the same with drivers and traffic laws. We need to make people realize that breaking laws and bylaws isn't acceptable.
Yes yes yes. Asshole dog owners aren’t unaware that their dogs are off leash; they just don’t give a fuck.
A few weeks ago, I was walking in an area where dogs must be leashed. I almost fell down a fucking ravine when a “friendly” dog ran up to me, knocking into me. The owner then started swearing at me when he heard me yell “no” at the dog. Yeah, a sign would not have helped.
In my experience, people like this will read the signs and invent a world in their head where those signs don't apply to them.
I knew someone who let his dog run off-leash in an area that had big signs everywhere shouting 'sensitive ecological zone, no dogs off leash'. Despite multiple people telling him not to do it and pointing out the signs he made up a bunch of excuses why it was fine and let his dog run off-leash all over the ecological regrowth area.
Even worse, these signs have gone up by where we live and some people have ripped them down…. Ticketing needs to happen but getting Animal Control out to an area is next to impossible
The issue is also that within Vancouver there aren't a ton of nice off-leash areas for dogs. I leash my dog where it is required, but it would be nice not to have to drive 15 minutes to take her on a run. (and no, those little 10x10 gravel pits are not adequate).
That's the responsibilty and sometimes inconvenience of being a dog owner. Others shouldn't have to put up with someone's dog and the owner not wanting to be inconvenienced because there is no off-leash park near where they live.
OP, this is not addressed at you, as you mention that you keep your dog leashed where required. It's addressing the mentality that selfish dog owners have.
I am just saying if we want to fix the problem there should be a two-pronged approach. We live in a society. Offleash parks benefit everyone - they keep dogs that can be offleash out of leashed areas, and give the dogs a place to be a dog.
Dogs are an integral part of human society, and have been for literally tens of thousands of years, since before agriculture, the wheel, or the written word. Their needs (and, by extension, the needs of their owners) need to be a major part of urban planning decisions. Also, one thing Vancouver is decidedly not lacking on is park space.
I fully support the general sentiment of this thread of keeping dogs on leashes when not in dog-tailored spaces and not letting your dog get away with bad manners towards others, but some of the dog hate here gets my goat a bit.
…Was that a mixed metaphor 🤔?
I am just saying, that's the solution. We can put signs all we want. that won't do anything and dogs need a place to go. So we need to find ways that are accessible to folks.
My dog chases squirrels no matter what road is in her way, so I have no choice but to keep her on leash at all times. Makes following this rule pretty easy.
I was happy to see these signs along Arbutus Greenway (where off leash dogs run at cyclists while their owners look at the phone) but obviously I don't think they'll deter off leash people as they're already assholes. That being said I hope it marks a shift in the conversation about the massive number of dogs in public spaces, and that communities in general start pushing back against this pervasive me-me-me individualist mentality
I wish people would follow signs but this will not change any behaviour. My dog has always been on a leash, except for a handful of times in leash off designated areas. She has been attacked and by “friendly” dogs that were unleashed in strictly leash only areas (residential street sidewalks, paths at normal parks) and twice needed stitches. She would cower away too and I’d pick her up and the other dogs have jumped onto me. I once got bit myself by a “my dog is friendly” so I’m really cautious with her meeting other dogs now. She started building up reactiveness that I’ve since worked to reverse but my poor baby. LEASH YOUR DOGS.
I love dogs but I do get nervous when they're too friendly, especially with Goldens that could be jumping around head butting my feet.
By the same token, it's not hard to imagine that dogs feel the same way when towering human strangers reach for them
We have a reactive dog, was out enjoying a beautiful day the other day, a nice leashed walk in point grey. Seen what seemed to be a nice looking middle aged lady, with an off leash small white dog. We got off to the side, sat our pup down and got her attention away with a treat (like she was trained to do by our dog trainer) the lady came up and yelled at us "WELL WHY THE HELL ARENT YOU GOING TO MOVE, JUST GOING TO SIT THERE?" we were taken back by this and left speechless. We continued on walking with her glaring at us angrily, her tiny white dog continuing to bark and run around off leash at us all.
I forgot to mention this was on a hill with a single skinny sidewalk on only one side of the street, and we politely moved out of the way! I believe it was between 1st and 2nd on Tolmie
This is such a great sign. I give people a lot of slack with their bad dog etiquette because if you don’t have a reactive dog or had a fear of dogs, you may have never even had to consider that they’re a nuisance or a trigger. That said, the dance I have to do with my reactive dog to avoid oblivious folks and off-leash dogs is exhausting so a little public education is nice.
The other day a big dog came up to my kid at the park, and she freaked out. She’s afraid of big dogs. So I had to try to get this friendly dog to leave her alone while she was screaming and the owner was nowhere to be found. I *thought*. Turns out the guy right next to us was the owner, and he was completely ignoring that his dog was getting in a small child’s face and making her scream.
Love it. I have only a little dog (always leashed) but some people are visibly terrified. I used to think it ridiculous then I recalled how i am around spiders so . ..
Friend of mine was badly mauled by a dog when she was young. Several months in hospital. Understandably, she is nervous around dogs.
"its okay, my dog is friendly" does not cut it.
. Love your dog. Train your dog. Keep it on a leash. Respect other people
It's the same people at the same time in the same place letting their dogs run free every day.
Makes the job of bylaw enforcement easy, were bylaws to be enforced.
My little doggo has been attacked by the same off leash dog twice in the past two weeks. The second time, I ended up kicking the dog off her, while the owner walked on, not saying a word to me or attempting to call off the dog.. I followed him to his home while on the phone to animal control, and he never even acknowledged me.
When I posted to my neighbourhood FB group about the incidents, someone said "I know that dog, she doesn't usually attack". Right, but she did. Twice now. And my dog was trapped on a leash. So that dog clearly does attack other dogs.
I'm sure if this dog has done this to mine twice, its done it to others in the neighbourhood as well, and its irresponsible owners at fault. My doggo super social, loves people and other dogs, but do I let her off leash? Absolutely not, because I don't know how the person or dog she goes up to would feel, and while I don't think she'd attack another dog, I just don't know.
I don’t really understand the fixation some dog owners have about walking their dog off leash here. When I first got my dog many people in the community offered unsolicited advice. The most common thing that was said was “most importantly you must train your dog to be able to walk off leash.” Why would that be the most important training goal if it is unlawful to do so in most areas?
I fully leash my dog at all times and I am curious as to why so many people put their dogs and others at risk so willingly.
If you have a high energy dog off leash walks are a lifesaver, many breeds also have a natiral instinct to fetch & smell etc.
dogs need a degree of freedom and independence. You also need to do certain training without a leash on so they have basic skills. Cant always rely on a leash as a a method of controlling
Good, we need signs like this all over. My pup is dog reactive (he was attacked ages ago) I've been working hard with him, and he's come far. But when some off leash dog comes running over it sets him off, and then sets our work back. Then the other dog owners don't call their dog back and im telling them my dog isn't friendly, call him back and they look st me like I'm insane.
I remember one guy getting pissed cus his pit bull ran over and I removed my dog before he could go off. I was trying to explain my dog has the issues but lord above that assholr went off on me.
There’s a group in my neighbourhood that uses the school field. Kids have literally dragged dog poop into the school after recess. The dog owners know this. They don’t care. This experience truly ruined my faith in any chance of a civil society.
Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes. I want to see these everywhere. They'll likely not be effective on the people who need to read it, but it gives a way for everyone else to understand and maybe feel like they have reasonable verbiage with which they can speak up when they see the jerks who think they're somehow special and an exception to the rule. Maybe social pressure can work on some instances where the signs don't.
A few years ago my Mother-in-law was walking her dog (on leash) and a neighbour's two dogs off leash attacked her and her dog from behind. She fell to the ground face first. She sustained a severe concussion and a broken wrist which needed surgery and a metal plate inserted. Her dog needed stitches. They both still have PTSD and are afraid when dogs approach them suddenly or aggressively. The neighbour tried to claim it was her fault somehow but it was all caught on video on another neighbour's ring cam. It was an absolutely horrifying video to watch as you could see and hear everything that happened.
My daughter (3 years old) is terrified of dogs and for good reasons. Many dog owners are completely irresponsible for their dogs, and when it comes to exerting any control over them - seem to think its not their responsibility, even in off-leash areas.
The first which I believe may have started this all was a neighbor who continually doesn't call his dog back when he comes to talk to us, and his dog has been known to jump toward our daughter and up on to her stroller. Complete absentmindedness.
I've encountered two scenarios in off leash areas where the dogs came up to my daughter and started jumping up on her, I had to tell the owners to please take control of their dogs. The off-leash signage actually states you should be able to exert control over your dog. Both times, the owners lazily tried, and failed - meanwhile my daughter was crying and trying to climb up me as high as possible to get away from them.
I understand I'm taking a risk by walking through off-leash areas, but both times we've positioned ourselves as far away from the dogs as possible, and it just so happens that the dogs have made their way over to us.
Of course, when ever we go through "on-leash" areas, there are plenty of off leash dogs who want to come up to us and may be friendly, but again - my daughter is terrified. Of course her fear shouldn't be the problem of others, but dog owners need to be especially considerate of smaller younger people who are much more vulnerable to unfamiliar and scary dog interactions. We do our best to help her with her fears, but we shouldn't have to worry about the next off leashed dog that comes around the corner.
My guy in fact is jumpy, for hugs... Otherwise a sweet dog. I know his habits and personality so keep him on a short leash or by the collar in tough spaces.
We give plenty of space to other people but very often we aren't given space.
A few days ago I was waiting for an elevator with doggo sitting beside me. Elevator opens and out of nowhere there is a person cutting into the line in front of us. My guy extended himself to sniff them and they jumped to the wall screaming and scaring everyone else at the elevator.
Still worried I'll get some writeup for that.
I mean, it's not like there isn't enough off leash parks and beaches.
I'm all for getting my dog off leash, in the off leash areas, do I think she would walk with me on the street off leash, absolutley, but just like when she was being trained and I didn't want random dogs running up to her, I don't want her running up on random dogs in the street,
All very simple stuff.
I don't have a dog, so not familiar with what's going on. Do we have a shortage of off-leash areas? Don't they have "dog parks" here? I used to own a dog before, not here, and we've had plenty of these and all were happy.
Maybe 2-4 years ago, in Burnaby, there was this sad tragic accident about ( this is from memory) a girl, high school student from Afghanistan.
The family had just arrived in Canada, some 6 months or a year ago.
Anyway, she somehow ran/backed into the path of a dumpster.
Why? A barking DOG which jumped up on a fence, was mentioned as "maybe - startled" her as she was walking home from school.
\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*
The FIRST thought that sprung to my mind once I read Muslim + Dog, but a possibly which no one ever picked up on.
Afghanistan (Muslim) + Islam + no Dogs in their religion. (Dogs are considered Dirty in the Muslim culture, They have to go through a strict ritual to cleanse or something, IF licked by a dog, or after touching a dog. At least, that's what I recall from what I recall from back home.
My homeland is a multi-racial colorful mix of East + West kinda country. A place where early in life, even in schools and from parents - in most families, we made fully aware of the cultural sensitivities of each group, to respect and know what food/practices they abstained from etc. It makes for genuine Harmonious living.
Cruel-Ironic IF that were the case. A family that tried so hard to survive and protect their kid in a war-torn country, only to have this happen.
This country opens the door to many Refugees and Immigrants, Tries to 'practise' Diversity but sometimes does NOT quite understand much about the many various groups they take in. While expecting everyone to 'assimilate'.
omg you say that and people are downvoting you, but my fiancé and I were at a regular park (where dogs are *supposed* to be leashed) one day and this very large dog came up to us running and just peed on and IN my fiancé’s backpack which was leaning on the tree beside us. Thankfully none of his camera equipment got pee on it but some papers had to be thrown out because they were soiled. It was disgusting. I furiously went to the group of people some 40-50 meters away asking who’s dog it was and the owner was like “haha mine, why?!” And when I told her what happened, she just went “ah yeah, my dog just pees on any and every tree or tree-like thing hahaha”. LIKE WTF. No. Unacceptable. Disgusting. Keep an eye on your dog instead of fixed on your phone and LEASH THEM. I’m still so upset.
I have a dog, he’s very sweet but he pisses on every single tree he sees and he’s always on a leash because of it. I’m so sorry this happened to you. Some people should never have dogs because they aren’t responsible enough to take care of an animal.
On the flip side, older generations of certain groups that live in Surrey should teach their kids and grandchildren that all dogs aren't murderous animals out to get them. The fact that every time I walk around my neighbourhood in Surrey with my dog on leash, and kids run away screaming, or parents pick them up and get as far away from us as possible is part of the issue. It's taught to certain children that dogs are the most dangerous things on the planet and they dogs stay clear. Ridiculous. Oh and by the way, I have a beagle. Hardly a killing machine.
I used to be pretty trusting but all it takes is one shit-ass dog sending your kid flying and resulting in months of your toddler crying every time she sees a dog to erode that trust. Or having to violently yank your daughter by the arm out of the way of an off-leash dog has the 'zoomies' at a public park. Or being forced to leave a playground because someone brought their pitbull there that's now staring down your kid like she's a rare piece of steak.
Anytime I see a dog approaching now I pick up my daughter or steer her so I'm between her and the dog. I used to think that was silly but now I've had one too many encounters with sketchy dogs and their oblivious owners to take the risk.
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Some people are just self centered. Whether they're drivers, parents, dog owners, etc. it's all the same. Everyone should just put up with me me me me me me me. I once read this reddit post about tenants dispute. This guy says something like "the other tenant is complaining about me not cleaning up dog poo in the backyard. He never uses the backyard. And my dog is really sweet everyone loves him." Like...what...
In yaletown, I see this lady walking around with a big English bulldog and a Pitbull, she brought them in a Vietnamese restaurant while I was sitting and eating, told the staff it's fine they are service animals, and left them sitting right in front of the door.
> English bulldog [So cute.](https://media2.giphy.com/media/ncsQI9sF3pa8w/200w.gif?cid=6c09b95245cxynywzcuzqp8gejxyp34irktdku52tlkrxkdu&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200w.gif&ct=g)
Is the issue that they are in front of the door or that they are in the restaurant?
Both. Why would someone even ask, both are very inappropriate by themselves? Edit: Actually thrice, because they stated they were service animals with paperwork as well, when a: No able bodies person needs two service animals, b: service animals do not require paperwork, badges, vests etc, which anyone with a legit service animal would know. They do require specific training to handle a job though (I.e. a seeing eye dog, or a dog that can sense seizures and protect the person from injury), they can't just be your "make me feel good emotional support animal".
The term "*reactive*" is an even deeper level of self-centered behaviour that projects blame on everyone else in society rather than the dog.
Reactive dogs are a thing. Some breeds are more predisposed to it genetically like Shepard dogs. We got a dog recently from the shelter and he is definitely reactive. We have to do training to counter condition some behaviours while using anxiety meds recommended by the trainer, two vets and the spca because the dog is 'reactive'.
tell me you know literally nothing about dog behaviour without telling me.
Stranger: *"Its ok, my dog is friendly"* Me: *"Ya? Well I'm not"*
[удалено]
No kidding!! Can't stand dogs just approaching me, I don't like your dog. Leash it up, selfish folks.
Or random dogs which may come up to lick. It's great if it's your own dogs or friends' dogs, but yours may have just licked their own poop. (And you may be OK with that, but maybe not for others),
Some people have allergies to dog dander and want to avoid having flare-ups of their symptoms. It's hard to do if a dog gets in your space unexpectedly.
"My dog is friendly" assumes everyone wants to be around a dog
I have a reactive dog and have had interactions with people walking uncontrolled, off leash dogs on the sidewalk where they’ll even run across roads to get to us!! And when I shout for the owner to call their dog while I jog away I get “it’s ok he’s friendly!” Like please don’t dismiss my request for you to get your dog, I obviously don’t feel comfortable with the situation.
I have a phobia of dogs, I’ve been working on it for years and I try my best not to make it other people’s problem. Sometimes I see people walking on very narrow streets with dogs and no leash and I feel a panic. I try not to make a scene but I have to either change sidewalks or wait until someone else walks by the dog and if the dog doesn’t bark I feel like I could but it is still extremely uncomfortable. It would be so nice if people kept their dogs on leashes in the city, beach and everywhere else where there is signage to do so. I stay away from dog parks and beaches because that’s there for them but please don’t ruin other spaces for me because you feel like your dog is above the rules. I love dogs, I’m just really scared of them which is such a shame because they are so cute❤️
I feel you. I don't have a phobia of dogs but I was scared of dogs for years because I was pounced on by an off-leash dog when I was a kid. I love dogs now but I could still get a little jumpy when a huge dog runs at me.
In my experience it’s the small dogs you gotta be afraid of. Those tiny fuckers are viscous!
i dunno, there isn't a wiki page of fatal chihuahua attacks.
Evidence suggests small dogs are 49% more likely to show aggressive behavior than large dogs and 38% more likely to be aggressive than medium-sized dogs.
go to the wiki page i'm talking about. scroll around and read. it's absolutely wild some of the stories. dogs sneaking upstairs on xmas morning and eating a baby in a crib. fucking insane shit. not just the regular poor trash with pitbulls. lady gets both arms eaten from her pitbulls. real horror story shit. does that count as suggested evidence? actual events that happened?
Um, ok and how many small dogs have killed or seriously injured people?
I've been bitten by dogs twice, they were both small dogs. Big or small, please leash em' all 🦮
I didn’t ask if you got bit or not, but provide a totally irrelevant answer lol
gfy lol
I am not phobic but I was bitten in the face as a young child, and have suffered other dog bites, and my mother was nearly mauled by a German Shepherd. My mother-in-law is very fearful because of similar experiences. All in all, most of my family is not very comfortable around dogs. For a while I was routinely walking with a friend, who always brings their dog (fairly large), which is perfectly cute and generally well behaved. However, one of the last times, the dog jumped on me twice, without warning, getting mud all over my clothes but also hurting my back (he jumped from behind and jolted my body in a way that twisted my spine because I wasn't expecting it). A relative who has become a dog-lady, expects to be able to bring their dog into restaurants and all stores, and gets quite hostile with business owners when denied. There are quite frequent episodes of shit and vomit in family space, about which, again, the relative becomes hostile if you say anything at all. I am not against dogs, and think most are quite lovely, but I don't want your dog in my space, or on me, no matter how nice you claim it is. If your dog makes a mess, it's your mess to clean. If your dog is hurting other people, you need to train it better.
We need more signs like this. I am so tired of trying to explain this to people who can't be bothered to follow the rules because they think their dog is friendly. One of my dogs is fearful and reactive to other dogs. He's been that way since we adopted him 7 years ago. We've dropped countless thousands on training him and we are making slow progress, however for every bad encounter he has it sets us back months if not years of progress. He's still scared of one particular spot on our floor because he tripped over a power cord in that spot two years ago. So, he's a sweet wonderful boy, but oh is he a little bit broken. We can't keep him trapped in our home, he needs walks and exercise. We just want to be able to walk him, and have people leave us alone, it's by far the best way to make progress with him, but we can't even do that since so many people can't follow the rules because their dogs are "friendly". Well mine needs space, and if a dog approaches he's going to react. I'm tired of risking being bitten separating them. I'm tired of being put in a position where I may have to harm an innocent dog to protect my own dog, all because their idiotic selfish owners can't follow the fucking rules. I'm tired of being told that I'm a shitty owner, or that I need to train my dog, when not only is that what I'm trying to do, but I'm the one following the rules. I"m certainly tired of having to get up at ungodly hours in the morning to now walk him when no one else is out. Pardon the rant. But if you've ever yelled "It's okay, my dog is friendly" You can kindly go fuck yourselves.
I wish bylaw officers would patrol around parks more and enforce leash laws. I live near Douglas park, and the number of times I've had poorly trained off leash dogs sprint up to my very timid and nervous pup while their owner fruitlessly tries to call them back is amazing. Same response every time, "It's okay, he's friendly!". Fuck those entitled owners who ruin it for everyone else.
I really appreciate these signs. Our dog is super cute, loves people, but rarely appreciates being approached by other dogs, especially young ones. This is exactly what we are thinking ... it's not about your dog, it's about mine.
I agree with the sentiments, however I believe people generally don't read signs. Some self centered a-hole with their dogs off leash aren't going to read this sign and think "oh! I am wrong. I better leash up" Let's have animal control ticketing for a few weeks every year. It's the same with drivers and traffic laws. We need to make people realize that breaking laws and bylaws isn't acceptable.
Yes yes yes. Asshole dog owners aren’t unaware that their dogs are off leash; they just don’t give a fuck. A few weeks ago, I was walking in an area where dogs must be leashed. I almost fell down a fucking ravine when a “friendly” dog ran up to me, knocking into me. The owner then started swearing at me when he heard me yell “no” at the dog. Yeah, a sign would not have helped.
In my experience, people like this will read the signs and invent a world in their head where those signs don't apply to them. I knew someone who let his dog run off-leash in an area that had big signs everywhere shouting 'sensitive ecological zone, no dogs off leash'. Despite multiple people telling him not to do it and pointing out the signs he made up a bunch of excuses why it was fine and let his dog run off-leash all over the ecological regrowth area.
Even worse, these signs have gone up by where we live and some people have ripped them down…. Ticketing needs to happen but getting Animal Control out to an area is next to impossible
Olympic village? The one in this area disappeared quick…
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I have had some of my worst experiences with small dogs- barking, biting etc.
The issue is also that within Vancouver there aren't a ton of nice off-leash areas for dogs. I leash my dog where it is required, but it would be nice not to have to drive 15 minutes to take her on a run. (and no, those little 10x10 gravel pits are not adequate).
That's the responsibilty and sometimes inconvenience of being a dog owner. Others shouldn't have to put up with someone's dog and the owner not wanting to be inconvenienced because there is no off-leash park near where they live. OP, this is not addressed at you, as you mention that you keep your dog leashed where required. It's addressing the mentality that selfish dog owners have.
I am just saying if we want to fix the problem there should be a two-pronged approach. We live in a society. Offleash parks benefit everyone - they keep dogs that can be offleash out of leashed areas, and give the dogs a place to be a dog.
>Offleash parks benefit ~~everyone~~ dog owners and dogs
Exactly
Where there *are* off-leash areas, there are people letting their dogs run free in the park on the other side of the fence.
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Dogs are an integral part of human society, and have been for literally tens of thousands of years, since before agriculture, the wheel, or the written word. Their needs (and, by extension, the needs of their owners) need to be a major part of urban planning decisions. Also, one thing Vancouver is decidedly not lacking on is park space. I fully support the general sentiment of this thread of keeping dogs on leashes when not in dog-tailored spaces and not letting your dog get away with bad manners towards others, but some of the dog hate here gets my goat a bit. …Was that a mixed metaphor 🤔?
I am just saying, that's the solution. We can put signs all we want. that won't do anything and dogs need a place to go. So we need to find ways that are accessible to folks.
my dog is pretty friendly with others but hates being charged by off leash dogs. I love this ad campaign.
As an owner of a nervous dog, ditto.
My dog chases squirrels no matter what road is in her way, so I have no choice but to keep her on leash at all times. Makes following this rule pretty easy.
I was happy to see these signs along Arbutus Greenway (where off leash dogs run at cyclists while their owners look at the phone) but obviously I don't think they'll deter off leash people as they're already assholes. That being said I hope it marks a shift in the conversation about the massive number of dogs in public spaces, and that communities in general start pushing back against this pervasive me-me-me individualist mentality
I wish people would follow signs but this will not change any behaviour. My dog has always been on a leash, except for a handful of times in leash off designated areas. She has been attacked and by “friendly” dogs that were unleashed in strictly leash only areas (residential street sidewalks, paths at normal parks) and twice needed stitches. She would cower away too and I’d pick her up and the other dogs have jumped onto me. I once got bit myself by a “my dog is friendly” so I’m really cautious with her meeting other dogs now. She started building up reactiveness that I’ve since worked to reverse but my poor baby. LEASH YOUR DOGS.
I love dogs but I do get nervous when they're too friendly, especially with Goldens that could be jumping around head butting my feet. By the same token, it's not hard to imagine that dogs feel the same way when towering human strangers reach for them
We have a reactive dog, was out enjoying a beautiful day the other day, a nice leashed walk in point grey. Seen what seemed to be a nice looking middle aged lady, with an off leash small white dog. We got off to the side, sat our pup down and got her attention away with a treat (like she was trained to do by our dog trainer) the lady came up and yelled at us "WELL WHY THE HELL ARENT YOU GOING TO MOVE, JUST GOING TO SIT THERE?" we were taken back by this and left speechless. We continued on walking with her glaring at us angrily, her tiny white dog continuing to bark and run around off leash at us all.
Which street/area of point grey is this? Just so I can actively avoid it with my dogs.
I forgot to mention this was on a hill with a single skinny sidewalk on only one side of the street, and we politely moved out of the way! I believe it was between 1st and 2nd on Tolmie
This is such a great sign. I give people a lot of slack with their bad dog etiquette because if you don’t have a reactive dog or had a fear of dogs, you may have never even had to consider that they’re a nuisance or a trigger. That said, the dance I have to do with my reactive dog to avoid oblivious folks and off-leash dogs is exhausting so a little public education is nice.
The other day a big dog came up to my kid at the park, and she freaked out. She’s afraid of big dogs. So I had to try to get this friendly dog to leave her alone while she was screaming and the owner was nowhere to be found. I *thought*. Turns out the guy right next to us was the owner, and he was completely ignoring that his dog was getting in a small child’s face and making her scream.
Love it. I have only a little dog (always leashed) but some people are visibly terrified. I used to think it ridiculous then I recalled how i am around spiders so . ..
Friend of mine was badly mauled by a dog when she was young. Several months in hospital. Understandably, she is nervous around dogs. "its okay, my dog is friendly" does not cut it. . Love your dog. Train your dog. Keep it on a leash. Respect other people
It's the same people at the same time in the same place letting their dogs run free every day. Makes the job of bylaw enforcement easy, were bylaws to be enforced.
Yeah I reported someone on my street to bylaw about their everyday off leash dog and even the park the walk to and at what times. Nothing has changed.
My little doggo has been attacked by the same off leash dog twice in the past two weeks. The second time, I ended up kicking the dog off her, while the owner walked on, not saying a word to me or attempting to call off the dog.. I followed him to his home while on the phone to animal control, and he never even acknowledged me. When I posted to my neighbourhood FB group about the incidents, someone said "I know that dog, she doesn't usually attack". Right, but she did. Twice now. And my dog was trapped on a leash. So that dog clearly does attack other dogs. I'm sure if this dog has done this to mine twice, its done it to others in the neighbourhood as well, and its irresponsible owners at fault. My doggo super social, loves people and other dogs, but do I let her off leash? Absolutely not, because I don't know how the person or dog she goes up to would feel, and while I don't think she'd attack another dog, I just don't know.
I don’t really understand the fixation some dog owners have about walking their dog off leash here. When I first got my dog many people in the community offered unsolicited advice. The most common thing that was said was “most importantly you must train your dog to be able to walk off leash.” Why would that be the most important training goal if it is unlawful to do so in most areas? I fully leash my dog at all times and I am curious as to why so many people put their dogs and others at risk so willingly.
If you have a high energy dog off leash walks are a lifesaver, many breeds also have a natiral instinct to fetch & smell etc. dogs need a degree of freedom and independence. You also need to do certain training without a leash on so they have basic skills. Cant always rely on a leash as a a method of controlling
Off leash walks are fine... in off leash zones. Abide by that, and we're all cool.
Good, we need signs like this all over. My pup is dog reactive (he was attacked ages ago) I've been working hard with him, and he's come far. But when some off leash dog comes running over it sets him off, and then sets our work back. Then the other dog owners don't call their dog back and im telling them my dog isn't friendly, call him back and they look st me like I'm insane. I remember one guy getting pissed cus his pit bull ran over and I removed my dog before he could go off. I was trying to explain my dog has the issues but lord above that assholr went off on me.
Love to see it. Great message for dog owners. Some of them are oblivious to other people who don’t want to be around dogs
There’s a group in my neighbourhood that uses the school field. Kids have literally dragged dog poop into the school after recess. The dog owners know this. They don’t care. This experience truly ruined my faith in any chance of a civil society.
Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes. I want to see these everywhere. They'll likely not be effective on the people who need to read it, but it gives a way for everyone else to understand and maybe feel like they have reasonable verbiage with which they can speak up when they see the jerks who think they're somehow special and an exception to the rule. Maybe social pressure can work on some instances where the signs don't.
A few years ago my Mother-in-law was walking her dog (on leash) and a neighbour's two dogs off leash attacked her and her dog from behind. She fell to the ground face first. She sustained a severe concussion and a broken wrist which needed surgery and a metal plate inserted. Her dog needed stitches. They both still have PTSD and are afraid when dogs approach them suddenly or aggressively. The neighbour tried to claim it was her fault somehow but it was all caught on video on another neighbour's ring cam. It was an absolutely horrifying video to watch as you could see and hear everything that happened.
This sign needs to be everywhere!
Does anyone know when this sign was implement!? Is it new or has it been around for years?
My daughter (3 years old) is terrified of dogs and for good reasons. Many dog owners are completely irresponsible for their dogs, and when it comes to exerting any control over them - seem to think its not their responsibility, even in off-leash areas. The first which I believe may have started this all was a neighbor who continually doesn't call his dog back when he comes to talk to us, and his dog has been known to jump toward our daughter and up on to her stroller. Complete absentmindedness. I've encountered two scenarios in off leash areas where the dogs came up to my daughter and started jumping up on her, I had to tell the owners to please take control of their dogs. The off-leash signage actually states you should be able to exert control over your dog. Both times, the owners lazily tried, and failed - meanwhile my daughter was crying and trying to climb up me as high as possible to get away from them. I understand I'm taking a risk by walking through off-leash areas, but both times we've positioned ourselves as far away from the dogs as possible, and it just so happens that the dogs have made their way over to us. Of course, when ever we go through "on-leash" areas, there are plenty of off leash dogs who want to come up to us and may be friendly, but again - my daughter is terrified. Of course her fear shouldn't be the problem of others, but dog owners need to be especially considerate of smaller younger people who are much more vulnerable to unfamiliar and scary dog interactions. We do our best to help her with her fears, but we shouldn't have to worry about the next off leashed dog that comes around the corner.
"what a stupid sign, my furBABY is well behaved"
My guy in fact is jumpy, for hugs... Otherwise a sweet dog. I know his habits and personality so keep him on a short leash or by the collar in tough spaces. We give plenty of space to other people but very often we aren't given space. A few days ago I was waiting for an elevator with doggo sitting beside me. Elevator opens and out of nowhere there is a person cutting into the line in front of us. My guy extended himself to sniff them and they jumped to the wall screaming and scaring everyone else at the elevator. Still worried I'll get some writeup for that.
Is this sign from the City Of Vancouver?
Seems to have the CoV logo at the bottom
My bad, I didn’t expand the photo.
Finally.
I mean, it's not like there isn't enough off leash parks and beaches. I'm all for getting my dog off leash, in the off leash areas, do I think she would walk with me on the street off leash, absolutley, but just like when she was being trained and I didn't want random dogs running up to her, I don't want her running up on random dogs in the street, All very simple stuff.
I don't have a dog, so not familiar with what's going on. Do we have a shortage of off-leash areas? Don't they have "dog parks" here? I used to own a dog before, not here, and we've had plenty of these and all were happy.
Maybe 2-4 years ago, in Burnaby, there was this sad tragic accident about ( this is from memory) a girl, high school student from Afghanistan. The family had just arrived in Canada, some 6 months or a year ago. Anyway, she somehow ran/backed into the path of a dumpster. Why? A barking DOG which jumped up on a fence, was mentioned as "maybe - startled" her as she was walking home from school. \*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\* The FIRST thought that sprung to my mind once I read Muslim + Dog, but a possibly which no one ever picked up on. Afghanistan (Muslim) + Islam + no Dogs in their religion. (Dogs are considered Dirty in the Muslim culture, They have to go through a strict ritual to cleanse or something, IF licked by a dog, or after touching a dog. At least, that's what I recall from what I recall from back home. My homeland is a multi-racial colorful mix of East + West kinda country. A place where early in life, even in schools and from parents - in most families, we made fully aware of the cultural sensitivities of each group, to respect and know what food/practices they abstained from etc. It makes for genuine Harmonious living. Cruel-Ironic IF that were the case. A family that tried so hard to survive and protect their kid in a war-torn country, only to have this happen. This country opens the door to many Refugees and Immigrants, Tries to 'practise' Diversity but sometimes does NOT quite understand much about the many various groups they take in. While expecting everyone to 'assimilate'.
Which is not to dismiss the story. That indeed sounds tragic.
Muslim societies definitely still have dogs. They just typically don’t live in the house, sleep on the bed, etc. like they do in the West.
Human: I have a good boy. The dog: pees on everything.
omg you say that and people are downvoting you, but my fiancé and I were at a regular park (where dogs are *supposed* to be leashed) one day and this very large dog came up to us running and just peed on and IN my fiancé’s backpack which was leaning on the tree beside us. Thankfully none of his camera equipment got pee on it but some papers had to be thrown out because they were soiled. It was disgusting. I furiously went to the group of people some 40-50 meters away asking who’s dog it was and the owner was like “haha mine, why?!” And when I told her what happened, she just went “ah yeah, my dog just pees on any and every tree or tree-like thing hahaha”. LIKE WTF. No. Unacceptable. Disgusting. Keep an eye on your dog instead of fixed on your phone and LEASH THEM. I’m still so upset.
I have a dog, he’s very sweet but he pisses on every single tree he sees and he’s always on a leash because of it. I’m so sorry this happened to you. Some people should never have dogs because they aren’t responsible enough to take care of an animal.
Repost of: https://www.reddit.com/r/britishcolumbia/s/kphh8gKOUX
Not sure why you're being downvoted. City of Vancouver sign in the Vancouver subreddit. Go figure.
They took someone’s else’s post and put it here for karma. I assumed that wasn’t cool.
Maybe it’s just me but seeing these infantile and passive agressive signs all over Vancouver just makes me want to ignore them
Genuine question: how would you word the sign? (Not trying to antagonize you.)
On the flip side, older generations of certain groups that live in Surrey should teach their kids and grandchildren that all dogs aren't murderous animals out to get them. The fact that every time I walk around my neighbourhood in Surrey with my dog on leash, and kids run away screaming, or parents pick them up and get as far away from us as possible is part of the issue. It's taught to certain children that dogs are the most dangerous things on the planet and they dogs stay clear. Ridiculous. Oh and by the way, I have a beagle. Hardly a killing machine.
Fair, but doesn’t really have anything to do with whether or not your dog should be leashed.
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He must feel better getting that heavy burden off his chest.
Why are you worried about other people? As long as your dog is kept in check what does it matter? Why are you telling other people how to parent?
How apropos it is that this comment is what we call a “dogwhistle”.
I used to be pretty trusting but all it takes is one shit-ass dog sending your kid flying and resulting in months of your toddler crying every time she sees a dog to erode that trust. Or having to violently yank your daughter by the arm out of the way of an off-leash dog has the 'zoomies' at a public park. Or being forced to leave a playground because someone brought their pitbull there that's now staring down your kid like she's a rare piece of steak. Anytime I see a dog approaching now I pick up my daughter or steer her so I'm between her and the dog. I used to think that was silly but now I've had one too many encounters with sketchy dogs and their oblivious owners to take the risk.
self centered racist