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Originally Posted by Raretreasures95 hi all,
We have a male rottie that will be two years old in April. We live in the San Francisco Bay area and needless to say, with all the media attention the horrible pitbull bites/deaths have gotten for the last year or so, when I have my rottie out I feel very uncomfortable....and it's not very enjoyable at all.
I would never say that he wouldn't hurt someone or protect himself against another dog because I wouldn't want to somehow jinx us, but he is very well trained, has had training off and on since a puppy and listens to commands eagerly on leash. My problem is people's perceptions of him....which I can understand a little in this area.
To put it bluntly, am I a bad owner for beginning to muzzle him on walks just to make others feel more comfortable? Sigh, literally, people who are also walking will stop dead in their tracks, or go the other way...just to avoid us. And he whines and cries, because he thought he was going to meet someone new. At the same time, if I muzzle him he doesn't really enjoy his walks as much and he looks really mean and even more intimidating. How do I handle this situation with naive humans?
How can I socialize my dog when no one wants to socialize with us? Is it proper for me to muzzle him just to keep other humans at ease? Is strapping a muzzle on him helping this or hurting it because of the way he looks (MEAN?) when he has his muzzle on?
Any advice as to what to do and if a muzzle is okay? |
How can you blame uneducated people for being scared of certain breeds?
Even I don’t believe all I read or hear on the news; I don’t think journalists and dog haters make up stories about mauling and dogs killing kids! Sad but true, this happens. The News are the only reference regarding certain breed to many people and “their truth”… meaning the deed/death/attack/mauling/story is true… but not necessarily the truth to us as dog owners, if the dog is proper breed and raised.
Why are you using a muzzle if your dog listens to your commands?
If I see a muzzled dog, the first coming to my mind is… the owner has (after all) realized he/she can’t control the dog, and THEN I have no intention to let my dog interact nor will I interact with a muzzled dog I met on the street. An unknown muzzled dog sends bad vibrations to me! (IF I know, I am in a country where muzzles are not the law) (I think) I am good at reading dogs, but again, the muzzle sends the signals: The owner doesn’t trust the dog.
Last… true socializing is done before 12 weeks old and the window is closed forever… the rest is just attempts to adjust.
Every one with a well socialized/mannered/trained/and mental sound dog, do a great job and IMO a much better job without a muzzle.
“Seeing is believing”!!!
Walk your well-behaved dog on every street (whit out muzzle) and be proud of that.
Those dogs change prejudice!