I live in an area where lots of people walk their dogs without a leash. I have also heard many dog fights and arguments because the unleashed dog approached a leashed dog who has anxiety about being approached, or otherwise has problems with meeting dogs. In 100% of these scenarios, it is the fault of the unleashed dog owner not having 100% control of their dog. People rehabilitate rescues, they are training their puppies- there's many reasons someone may be walking their dog and should not be approached.
I would love for my dog to be off leash all the time. I really would, I think he deserves to run free and chase squirrels and sniff anything he wants. However I keep him on the leash because it's the right thing to do for him and especially for other dog and dog owners.
My only request is that you are certain that your dog will ALWAYS return when you call them, 100% of the time with zero exceptions. Because if they approach the wrong dog, you will absolutely be the "asshole dog owner" you speak of.
soupkitchen89 t1_j0yi56m wrote
Reply to A VT dog living his best off leash life in the VT snow, following all the VT laws and picking up his poop ❤️ by Internal-Fudge8578
hello! before responding to your post, i wanted to just get an idea of what I was getting into and I saw this: https://www.reddit.com/r/vermont/comments/zpy75b/dog_areas_in_vermont/j0x28r8/
I live in an area where lots of people walk their dogs without a leash. I have also heard many dog fights and arguments because the unleashed dog approached a leashed dog who has anxiety about being approached, or otherwise has problems with meeting dogs. In 100% of these scenarios, it is the fault of the unleashed dog owner not having 100% control of their dog. People rehabilitate rescues, they are training their puppies- there's many reasons someone may be walking their dog and should not be approached.
I would love for my dog to be off leash all the time. I really would, I think he deserves to run free and chase squirrels and sniff anything he wants. However I keep him on the leash because it's the right thing to do for him and especially for other dog and dog owners.
My only request is that you are certain that your dog will ALWAYS return when you call them, 100% of the time with zero exceptions. Because if they approach the wrong dog, you will absolutely be the "asshole dog owner" you speak of.