Where are you guys running that you're getting attacked by dogs?

I've been chased by vicious dogs in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Peru. Most of the dogs weren't housepets, but rather feral dogs roaming the streets. In some countries, feral dogs are a big problem.

Curiously, the only time I was bitten by a dog was while running in the lovely Delaware Park in Buffalo.

Been attacked by a dog and harbor a visible scar on my forearm to prove it.

resident of NE sector of US wrote:

Been attacked by a dog and harbor a visible scar on my forearm to prove it.

Same. Except my scar is on my left leg. Required stitches. Incident occurred in California many years ago.

former west coast resident wrote:

resident of NE sector of US wrote:

Been attacked by a dog and harbor a visible scar on my forearm to prove it.

Same. Except my scar is on my left leg. Required stitches. Incident occurred in California many years ago.

pics?

Blah Blah Blah. wrote:

On my daily trail run I encounter an average of about 6 to 8 dogs per run. Out of thousands of encounters over many years, no dog has ever attacked me.

Please note on the other thread the poster said a dog "tried to attack me". He suffered no injuries. I have been barked at and I have had dogs chase me. Perhaps the other poster thought being barked at and chased is an attempted attack.

The other poster is gay.

Man up and go get a job at a vegan supermarket

I do my speedwork up and down the aisles at Petsmart. Perhaps I should relocate to somewhere safer like Target.......

I get chased at least once a week on my morning runs. I live in a very rural area, so I think most people don't think about chaining their dogs. Pepper spray has been my best friend. I had a pit bull run up behind me three weeks ago. Lucky I heard him and was able to give it a face full of pepper spray. He was definitely going to do some damage. Pulled my groin in the process and am only now starting to run again.

Louisiana. Many bad dog encounters. Pepper spray worked once, pretending to pick up rocks and pretending to throw worked another time. Lastly, when corneres by a German Shepherd at night, I stopped running and began talking to it like I would talk to an infant, and it actually calmed the dog enough to allow me to walk away. Very scary moment there.

I had a similar experience in Belize. Packs of feral dogs everywhere. In fact, the only dogs that were trained at all were gaurd dogs, and they were scary as all hell.

Got lunged at a lot, never quite bitten.

i think most of these guys saying they got attacked are drama queens. More like a dog ran close to them and they got scared

dogtown wrote:

i think most of these guys saying they got attacked are drama queens. More like a dog ran close to them and they got scared

I have never been bitten on a run...at age 60 I am more afraid of being tripped by a friendly dog and winding up in a nursing home with a broken hip.

Obviously have never met my prom date.

Southern Minnesota wrote:

I have never even SEEN a mean dog in person.

When I lived in Canada, I was bitten twice while running and chased many times. I had friends that were bitten too, massive bite in leg. Owners there are more negligent for sure, eh.

In the States, I've been barked at lots, but never bitten or chased. Most dogs are trained or leashed.

Dogs sense fear. Man up nancy boys & dogs will leave you alone.

Our cross country team ran on rural roads & the dogs always ran up to & messed only with the runners who feared dogs.

dogtown wrote:

i think most of these guys saying they got attacked are drama queens. More like a dog ran close to them and they got scared

Have you ever been bit by a dog? It hurts and can lead to significant bleeding and/or bruising. I hope you enjoy limping home in pain for however many miles it takes (since you can't run anymore if you are bit in the wrong place).

If you run enough and encounter enough dogs, you WILL 100% have a dog come running after you at some point. These aren't toy poodles or pomeranians. A lot of these are big, fast dogs.

The only times I've been chased are when I tried to avoid the dog by going way around them, even if it meant I had to stop and walk around bushes or go into the woods.

Trail running can be very problematic as trails are often narrow and your only option is to literally get off the trail road into whatever vegetation or drop-off happens to be on either side of the trail. Stopping and calmly walking by is sometimes the right move, but sometimes it's not possible and you just have to run through.

The soi dogs in Thailand make running there a challenge. That's the only place I actually worried about getting bitten.

So does the insane humidity and heat, too.

The one thing that works is to face the dog, reach down to the ground as if you are picking up a rock, then point back to where the dog came from and yell "GO HOME!"

malmo wrote:

The one thing that works is to face the dog, reach down to the ground as if you are picking up a rock, then point back to where the dog came from and yell "GO HOME!"

This definitely works against feral/shepherd dogs and is probably the most effective deterrent as I speak from much experience.

I'm not sure whether it works against pets out of control though.

Do you think it's an instinct, or do they learn by being pelted by rocks/sticks?

graceful_admin wrote:

malmo wrote:

The one thing that works is to face the dog, reach down to the ground as if you are picking up a rock, then point back to where the dog came from and yell "GO HOME!"

This definitely works against feral/shepherd dogs and is probably the most effective deterrent as I speak from much experience.

I'm not sure whether it works against pets out of control though.

Do you think it's an instinct, or do they learn by being pelted by rocks/sticks?

I think it's learned during puppy play.