My second dog attack.

[getoff]

having owned several dogs, and having been bit by the strange mutt or two, i am a firm believer of wearing some nice boots and packing a gun. dogs are as good as the person who trains them. as we all know there some idiots out there. i dont go downstairs to see my in-laws without slipping my 442-2 in my galco horsehide pocket holster. other than shooting the dog a good swift kick to the chops, or ribcage should do the trick. i once sprayed a german shepard with old school mace... didnt work to good. was like seasoning on my arm i guess. a good shot to the ear got him off me and running home. the owner and i had a nice little chat, and all was forgivin(told next time a lead pill would be administered instead).

 

[dougb1946]

Shooting a dog that is attacking you is appropriate and probably legal. Going back after leaving the scene of the crime and shooting the dog may be pushing the envelope on legality.
If you have been chewed up, the law provides remedies that effect the dogs owner and getting reimbursed for medical expenses is more meaningful than losing a gun for illegal discharge. An understanding cop is great, but he's not always the one who shows up.

 

[MotorCityGun]

Or, you can do what this armed citizen did, if necessary:

A wheelchair-bound 70-year-old man says he shot a stray pit bull in self-defense

 

[David Sinko]

The only way to handle large aggressive dogs is to shoot them. If you are in a rural area and are a halfway decent shot, shooting them shouldn't be too troublesome. In an urban environment I will wait until they are almost on me and shoot once carefully. The price of missing and hitting somebody who doesn't deserve it is very high. If the dog is actually chewing on you, you need to be very careful that you don't accidentally shoot yourself if the bullet fully penetrates the dog. Only the most hardcore dog will continue fighting after being shot once anywhere. Stray dogs (especially pit bulls) are a huge problem in the 'hood. Tasers work very well but hitting them is not a sure bet for a variety of reasons. If I see a large dog running toward me with malice in its eyes I will choose lead instead of voltage.

Oh, and you want to keep the gun on you, and not on the bicycle.

Dave Sinko

 

[Faulkner]

I would be visiting the police to file a complaint and then sue the dog's owners for medical expenses.

I appreciate your feedback. The only problem is this is out in the country in the Arkansas Ozarks. There'll be no police reports or getting lawyers involve to solve this issue.

 

[Kanewpadle]

I appreciate your feedback. The only problem is this is out in the country in the Arkansas Ozarks. There'll be no police reports or getting lawyers involve to solve this issue.

Some, not all, but some of the people that allow thier dog to run loose and terrorize the neighborhood are losers anyway.

Suing them would be a waste of your time and money.

Ride your bike. Enjoy your ride. Shoot the pooch if needed.

Sorry, but it's brutally that simple.

 

[Road Rat]

i say carry your weapon with you and say your prayers regularly.

I agree completely - except for the praying part (that won't work on dogs)........just carry your firearm!!!!!!!!

 

[Kanewpadle]

To add; I walk in the morning. I am armed. But I also carry an ASP baton in my back pocket as I said before.

The reason is, if I can deter without shooting, great. If not the baton buys me a little time by serving as a "buffer" between me and the dog. If he bites the baton, good. At least it's not my arm. As he's biting, I shoot.

The baton has already worked twice. First time I swung at the dog and he got the hint. Second time, different dog. Hit him as hard as I could on top of the head. Knocked him silly and he turned and ran.

I would strap one to your bike.

 

[J.R.]

Just a couple of non-lethal methods I've used before on charging dogs were a collapsible portable umbrella.The sound of it extending and visual of it opening scares the **** out of dogs, stops them in their tracks and other method is let dog see you bending down and looking like you picked up something and then throwing it at him. Dog doesn't know if you had anything in your hand but will think you threw something at him. I used these methods alot during my meter reading days. Sticks & stones or ? use what ever works best for you.

 

[Larry from Bend]

To add; I walk in the morning. I am armed. But I also carry an ASP baton in my back pocket as I said before.

The reason is, if I can deter without shooting, great. If not the baton buys me a little time by serving as a "buffer" between me and the dog. If he bites the baton, good. At least it's not my arm. As he's biting, I shoot.

The baton has already worked twice. First time I swung at the dog and he got the hint. Second time, different dog. Hit him as hard as I could on top of the head. Knocked him silly and he turned and ran.

I would strap one to your bike.

Carrying an ASP was what occurred to me, also. If the dogs are that bad I'd carry a paintball gun --- mark the dog --- then call the Cops. Maybe they'll find the dog and talk to the owner; if not, at least you've tried to remedy the situation thru lawful means. I'd say shooting someone's dog, even under the circumstances you've mentioned, will only "ramp up" the situation and could cause BIG reprisal. It wouldn't be worth it to me. Hard to believe a can of Bear Spray wouldn't turn a dog ---- but it is expensive. Sometimes, it's not about being right ---- it's about considering the problems your actions might cause. PS: I'm NOT a dog owner.

 

[reppans]

Well, I'm a motorcyclist, so I don't know how much this would apply to you, but.....

There was a dog on a regular route of mine that was occasionally allowed loose. He was one that would hide out at the end of the driveway and wait to the very last second to come out barking and chasing bicyclists and motorcyclists. He once got so close to my front wheel and causing an accident, that it threw me into a fit of rage.

I stopped and pulled a U-turn... the dog ran back onto his owner's driveway, stopped and stared at me.... I rode up into the driveway... the dog ran up on the lawn, stopped and stared at me.... (I was still absolutely livid)... I rode up onto the lawn and chased him.... he ran a full loop around the house and I chased him, on the lawn, all the way, honking my horn and hooting/hollering at the top of my lungs. The dog's face was priceless as he turned back and looked at me every ten yards or so.

No chance I was ever going to catch him, so I cut the chase and left. I never ever saw that dog give chase again - either he learned his own lesson, or the owner witnessed the spectacle from inside his home and locked that mutt up for good. Either was OK with me .

(FWIW, this was a Lab of some kind... no 100lb Put Bull, although I was in such a rage, I don't know if it would have mattered.)

 

[J. W.]

Personally, I've seen enough inhumane antics from humans for me to really give a damn about busting a cap in an aggressive animal. I despise people who let their anamials run loose just about as much as the ones that let their animals **** in my yard. People really need to take a little bit responsibility and take care of their animals.

<<Rant mode off>>

 

[Faulkner]

I've shared in another thread about how I was attacked last month by a neighbor’s dog and how I dealt with it. Short version, while riding my bicycle on a rural country road a pack of dogs allowed to run loose by my neighbor chased and harassed me as I rode by each day. I advised my neighbor of the issue, he did nothing. One dog in particular became more brazen and eventually bit me. Afterwards I went home, fetched my 1911 and walked back down the road. As I neared where the dog lived it came out into the road heading in my direction in an aggressive manner. As it got within pistol range I shot it between the eyes. Police were called, no charges filed, dog owner was advised to keep his dogs up. The incident has since died down.

The second attack was just in the past few days and nowhere near the original incident. While riding my bicycle down a slight incline at just over 20 miles per hour I looked ahead and catch a glimpse of the familiar site of a big dog coming in for the chase. Only thing is, this one is running right at me, never waivers, and slams right into my front wheel. I flew over the handle bars onto the county road’s chip seal pavement and my brand new high dollar bike tumbles to the side of the road. As I sit up to take stock of the situation, the dog is just a yards away, the hackles on its back flared and he’s barking at me quite aggressively. With blood running down my right knee and elbow, I crawl a few feet over to my bike and retrieve my OC spray. I was not otherwise armed. The dog was just out of range of the OC spray, but I sent a couple of spurts in its direction and I guess he got the hint because he lost interest and pranced his happy self back where he came from, his mission accomplished. I was able to ride back home but as I write this I have a bandaged knee, a brace on my right elbow and my wife has me on anti inflammatory medication to reduce the swelling.

I'm giving due consideration as to how I want to follow up with this incident. Had I been armed I would have shot the dog on the spot. OC spray has been working as a dog deterrent for the most part, though I’ve been through two cans in the last two months. I'm not on a crusade to kill every loose dog in the community, but once word got out about the first incident I received a lot of positive feedback. I’m a dog owner and have been all my life, but I don’t like coming out on the short end of a meeting with someone else’s dog that that’s allowed to just run loose. I certainly don’t want my wife and son to either. I don’t plan to go confront this dog like I did the first time, though once I heal up I will be riding fully armed. I realize killing other people's dogs is not real humane, but as I look at my bandages I'm not feeling very humane at the moment. I may go talk to the dog owner if I can determine who owns it.

Just for conversational purposes I’d entertain some feedback from the forum on addressing this situation.

UPDATE: A week after the 2nd incident I was able to determine who might be the owner of the dog. Based on my investigation, I drove up the gravel driveway to a rural home sitting on a couple of acres near where my incident occured. As I got out of the my car, my arm still in a brace, a man in his mid 30's was mowing the yard on a riding mower. He cut the engine and came over to speak to me when I got out of the car.

I introduced myself and asked if he lived here; yes it was his place.

I asked him if he owned a medium sized gray dog. He looked puzzled and said he did but not anymore. Now I was puzzled. I told him I'd had a run in (literally) with the dog last weekend, explained the situation, and told him I wasn't looking for anything other than to advise him of the issue and that it was a problem letting the dog run loose like that.

At that point he told me the dog was dead. It had been run over by the UPS delivery truck that runs the route in this area. He said the dog belonged to his cousin that recently shipped out to the Sand Box and he was keeping it for him 'til he got back. He'd only had it a couple of weeks. His cousin had lived in a rented house in town and his back yard was fenced in so the dog was not used to running loose, and once it got "out in the country" it just ran wild. The dog ran out in front of the UPS truck which hit it. The UPS driver stopped but the dog was DRT.

He apologized for my trouble, we shook hands, and agreed the problem was resolved.

 

[old curmudgeon]

Well, I'm a motorcyclist, so I don't know how much this would apply to you, but.....

There was a dog on a regular route of mine that was occasionally allowed loose. He was one that would hide out at the end of the driveway and wait to the very last second to come out barking and chasing bicyclists and motorcyclists. He once got so close to my front wheel and causing an accident, that it threw me into a fit of rage.

I stopped and pulled a U-turn... the dog ran back onto his owner's driveway, stopped and stared at me.... I rode up into the driveway... the dog ran up on the lawn, stopped and stared at me.... (I was still absolutely livid)... I rode up onto the lawn and chased him.... he ran a full loop around the house and I chased him, on the lawn, all the way, honking my horn and hooting/hollering at the top of my lungs. The dog's face was priceless as he turned back and looked at me every ten yards or so.

No chance I was ever going to catch him, so I cut the chase and left. I never ever saw that dog give chase again - either he learned his own lesson, or the owner witnessed the spectacle from inside his home and locked that mutt up for good. Either was OK with me .

(FWIW, this was a Lab of some kind... no 100lb Put Bull, although I was in such a rage, I don't know if it would have mattered.)

There re three ways to cure a dog forever of chasing. Well, the 4th way is to kill him.

First, if the owner will cooperate, a shocking collar. The collar and the transmitter are expensive, but one could find a hunter and borrow.

Coon, fox and rabbit hunters use them all the time to break dogs of running deer. So do bird hunters use them to cure their dogs of pointing trash game.

The second way, and I guess I should have put it in 1st place, is to get some dog spray. Bicycle shops carry a good grade and it does work if it is not too windy.

The third way, and what would be the easiest and best for shooters is to get a .22 and load it with rat shot.

About three or so encounters with rat shot will cure any dog.

It would be the preferred method for anyone on a bike.

Of course, the dog owner will think you are using real bullets and so there is a need for a frank discussion with the owner.

I have more than 20 foxhounds, so I know what I am talking about. I use the combination of shock collar and rat shot.

 

[Bicky Robby]

Glad your injuries are not to severe. Before you decide to carry a gun for protection, please check your local laws in order to determine your ability to do so. This is especially important since you are in a populated area.

Now if you were in my area and shot your gun, neighbors here would have a contest trying to fiqure out what caliber was used.

Continue to carry pepper spray and maybe a weighted stick until you decide to carry a gun or not.

 

[Rangerpat]

"The dog ran out in front of the UPS truck which hit it. The UPS driver stopped but the dog was DRT."
Sir, that is called KARMA....
I carry a NAA .22 mini revolver with two rounds of ratshot and three 22LR, mainly for Mr. Noshoulders but they will work on feral dogs.

 

[photoman]

I realize killing other people's dogs is not real humane

I realize that letting one's dog run loose and being a danger to the public is not humane.

 

[celticfisherman]

A couple of years ago in GA we had several people killed by packs of feral dogs in their neighborhoods. NOT the woods. Not the middle of nowhere. But in subdivisions. Dogs running wild is just not acceptable anymore. they breed with coyotes and other feral dogs and the issue just compounds itself.

Sorry that dog got a bad deal by the guy who it was left with. But I would have shot it myself.

 

[terryn4iy]

Faulkner,

You are a heck of a nice guy, that is for sure.

I am a bicyclist and have plenty of trouble with dogs and a scar to prove it.

You did right by talking to the guy and fortunately the dog is dead. I am glad that it all worked out for you.

I almost always bring pepper spray or my Kel Tec P32 or both. The almost part of the above is because I am absent-minded and forget, that is when my neighbor's abused pitbull broke its chain and bit me while I was still on the bike. Forgetfulness is costly sometimes.

If I lived in Arkansas I would find it an honor to ride with a man so even-tempered as yourself.

Best regards,

Terry

 

[mc5aw]

The aggressive dogs I've encountered are either barkers or biters. The former make a lot of noise but pose no imminent threat. The latter group is the problem. Any biter over 30-40lbs can be a serious problem, one that requires lethal force more often than not. My first choice is a pistol ... then spray. The baton isn't practical IMO as using it means the man vs. dog confrontation is now hand to paw, and way too close for comfort. A well placed shot or two will prevent the altercation from getting into CQC. If I was encountering threatening canines on a regular basis, I'd consider the Governor with mixed .45 & .410 loads.