Attacked by Dog Yesterday While Bike Riding

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted By: Bluestream
Full strength red pepper spray bear repellent. That will stop him in his tracks. If the owner gives you a hard time let him have it as well..


Unless the owner sees his dog sprayed, and responds with a shot from his deer rifle!

 

[demarpaint]

The gun is a little hard core imo, especially if there are other homes and children around. I would however hit his pocket book good and hard, and inform him that you plan on riding that bike route again and will be carrying, mace, or a knife, or a nice nightstick, which I prefer.

I was recently chased by a dog while riding my bike and it was a wake up call for me. I now have a nice stick attached to the bike that comes off easily, and I'm pretty well versed on how to use it to defend myself. I would have no problem cracking a dog good and hard with it. FTR I'm a dog lover.

In all honesty I'd be looking for another hill to ride up.

 

[wander2039]

Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Originally Posted By: clinebarger
Originally Posted By: Nickdfresh

Either way, one has to dismount. The OP was bitten because he "ran away" and showed weakness. How will shooting a dog make a difference in that situation?


Exactly, A Dog will only attack if YOU let them, Stand your ground & they run away.


WRONG


Typically he is correct. I've stood my ground against many a dog and they'll turn and run.. I've chased a few till they couldn't run anymore. There will a couple that don't though just have to know how to handle it. Let them bite you all right.. on the hand so you can pin them. A blind dog would have a hard time chasing anyone in the future.. and hey for the animal activists it still lives right?

 

[simple_gifts]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
If you're going to continue riding that hill I'd ask the mod's to delete this thread. You just told us that you know the dog will most likely come at you and that you intend to shoot it. That may seem like you set out intending to kill the dog that bit you.

Justified as it may be, having this thread floating about may not be in your best interest.


+1; Many times justification of gun use overrides the use of common sense. If he pursued holding public official accountable to doing their jobs (e.g. dog warden investigating reports of vicious unleashed dogs) as adamantly as exercising his rights to not avoid a dangerous situation, thus creating a situation where gun use is inevitable, I'm sure the situation would turn out better for him. After all, if the dog is super vicious, the warden need only bike on by also.

Why use the town as a proxy for eliminating the dog risk, when he can clearly identify himself and escalate the situation with the owner by shooting it; I'm sure he'll be exercising his right to bike past the guys house the day after he killed the guys dog; after all, it is his right.... LOL.

Asserting your rights in all circumstances could be admirable, but can be a very expensive and disruptive proposition.

 

[Kuato]

Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Originally Posted By: Kuato
Originally Posted By: Vern_in_IL
Here is some wisdom...

When I ride my bike and come across a "chaser" or a growler. The FIRST thing I do, is GET OFF THE BIKE! You simply walk your bike past the residence, keeping the bike between you and the animal.

Also don't make eye contact, or show your teeth. Talk cutesy. ...


Exactly, this should work and is recommended by bicyclists since dogs don't see the person on the bike as a person, but as part of the noisy machine they're nervous about.

Since you plan on riding that hill frequently, have you given any thought to going over and making friends with the dog? A short visit or two with the owner in attendance, and some dog treats will probably go a very long way to defusing the situation.

Having owned dogs for many years, IMO the dog that got into it with the one that bit you was telling him it was not cool to do that, in a dog way. Can't say that the owner is or is not encouraging them to be vicious.

Gun? Sorry, not for this situation. Shooting a dog that's protecting its owner and home because you want to ride that hill? Reverse the situation my man...would it be fair for the same to be done to you? (Not saying you're an irresponsible dog owner)


That wouldn't work with this dog. Unfortunately the owner is a jerk and has trained the dog to aggressively confront strangers.

I'm a responsible dog owner. I don't have one currently, but when I did, I didn't let her run loose, and certainly would never have tolerated her chasing down cyclists and attacking them. If she did, she would get the beating of her life.



I think I understand now. Thanks for the explanations, and best of luck with the situation. I'm out.

 

[dlundblad]

Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Originally Posted By: clinebarger
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
The owner




I guess you think your superior to him, But your fragile A$$ couldn't take a Dog bite...


Um, hey, tough guy - I turned around, went back, and confronted the dog and its owner.

Why don't you try a little reading comprehension?


Do you have any experience with German Shepherds? My girlfriend has one and even though he likes me, he is scary as heck when mad or being protective. Best dog in the world IMO.

I hardly consider the OP being fragile. If he was, he would have left without confrontation.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: Bluestream
Full strength red pepper spray bear repellent. That will stop him in his tracks. If the owner gives you a hard time let him have it as well..

Yep, that's about the best idea!

 

[Triple_Se7en]

My 14" billy club works great. My long walks with my dog have resulted in 26 attacks in about four years. 22 of those were various pitbull mixes. Had to use my club with force 4-5 times. Otherwise lighter knocks on their head or body-side did the trick for us.

In all these instances, I had to make sure the attacking dogs were either on the public sidewalk or on the grassy easement between the sidewalk and street. There were a couple instances where I wanted to smack the charging dog, just prior to the sidewalk. But that's the homeowner's private grassy / driveway areas. So patience is sometimes required, despite being scared of those four legged freight trains headed our way.

 

[antiqueshell]

Originally Posted By: Eric Smith
Quote:


Exactly, A Dog will only attack if YOU let them, Stand your ground & they run away.

Typically he is correct.



No. That is NOT typically correct. It is an animal, and they are naturally unpredictable. If the dog is TRAINED or conditioned to be vicious to strangers they will not care whether you stand your ground or not.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted By: antiqueshell
Originally Posted By: Eric Smith
Quote:


Exactly, A Dog will only attack if YOU let them, Stand your ground & they run away.

Typically he is correct.





No. That is NOT typically correct. It is an animal, and they are naturally unpredictable. If the dog is TRAINED or conditioned to be vicious to strangers they will not care whether you stand your ground or not.


Yes. A dog that was trained to be vicious might be compared to a person who has been trained to react OFFENSIVELY (as in military-like tactics; their objective being to ADVANCE on a threat, rather than to retreat).

In either case, dog or person, you better have a weapon.

 

[FXjohn]

Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle


Unless the owner sees his dog sprayed, and responds with a shot from his deer rifle!


yikes, where do you live?

 

[dave1251]

Originally Posted By: FXjohn
Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle


Unless the owner sees his dog sprayed, and responds with a shot from his deer rifle!


yikes, where do you live?


Unfortunately this could be a likely response that many dog owners will respond with. Humanity is full of illogical and extreme responses.

 

[john_pifer]

Yep, especially if alcohol and/or drugs are involved, since we all know that those substances lower inhibitions.

 

[john_pifer]

The only thing I'm going back and forth about is whether to report this attack.

I don't necessarily want dude's dog hauled off. But, the logical side of me says to file a report so that there is a record of this...in case it happens again.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

When you contacted the county's animal control office, didn't that mean the bite was recorded?

I went running on a dirt road while visiting family out of state, and was bitten on the ankle by a dog that the animal control guy called, sure enough, an "ankle biter." I count myself lucky that the two bigger dogs stayed on the other side of the fence.

We couldn't reach the owner, but I went to urgent care (tetanus shot) when I got home and they had me fill out a form about the bite. Animal control from the county where the bite happened soon called me to say the dog was up to date on its shots.

If I were you and I insisted on continuing to ride past that property, I would get a can of bear spray. It's available in 7-10 ounce cans and sprays about 30 feet. I'd hate to see you get into a gunfight over riding your bike past a vicious dog.

 

[john_pifer]

LOL, I think what I'm going to do is start calling the owner when I want to ride up there and make sure Starsky & Hutch are put up (those are their names - Starsky is the biter).

 

[antiqueshell]

I don't think the owner is going to be real thrilled about accommodating your riding, but do you really want to have to call this guy each time you want to ride up that public street?

I would think that since you were bitten and initially contacted the animal control offices that they recorded that the dog was a dangerous and vicious animal, so you are on record, if you are not positive I would contact the office again to make sure it is on record, so if you need to use a gun shot to kill the dog you have proof that the it is listed as a serious threat to persons.

Don't back down, you owe the dog owner nothing, he is being grossly negligent in this matter, and if he is like most of these irresponsible owners he has learned "ZERO" from your encounter with his vicious dog. It's going to happen again either to yourself or someone else.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Originally Posted By: john_pifer
LOL, I think what I'm going to do is start calling the owner when I want to ride up there and make sure Starsky & Hutch are put up (those are their names - Starsky is the biter).


Both a police report and a visit to your doctor to be treated for the wound, should have been done immediately after the incident.

I can tell by your comments that you are a nice fella' and want to forgive and forget. But what you;re missing here is the opportunity to stop further biting injuries from happening...... even a future mauling of a kid on his bike.

The right thing to do is a little prevention medicine here John. Here is your opportunity to help / prevent someone else in the future, from another dog biting attack.

 

[Cujet]

Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
Not saying not to carry, but shooting it isn't the first thing i would do.


Wrong. That's the very first thing I'd do. People know better than to let dogs run amok. Yet they do it knowing the risk, and will gladly knife you in the back for no reason.

I had a neighbor's pit bull come after me daily while cycling. The idiot neighbor was impossible to deal with. Interestingly, I stopped, drew my pistol and the Pit Bull understood instantly. Weirdly, he (the dog) and I now understand each other.

 

[levi]

Great thread. Hope your adventures in bike riding go well, john_pifer.

When I was a much younger man I did in-home carpet cleaning. Homeowners knew I was coming and would sometimes still let their dogs run loose in the house. Honestly, most were not a problem. Some were.

Once a woman informed me that her very large dog did not like strangers, and not to make any sudden moves around him. I was dumbfounded. Why not put the dog in a room where I would not be cleaning? Why not put him out in the back yard while I was there?

Then she actually said, "He might bite you."

So I paused to make sure I had her undivided attention, looked her straight in her eyes, and very calmly but sternly said to her, "If he does, he will never bite anyone else again."

She put him outside immediately.