# Thinking of becoming a dog murderer...



## MHFoundation Quarters (Feb 23, 2011)

I can relate! I love dogs, especially my own but our neighbors dogs have chased, barked, bit at my horse's legs one too many times. I went and had a friendly discussion with the owners & they didn't have much to offer in the way of handling their dogs, so it ended with an agreement. If they attack my horses, I mace them. Did it once, they tuck tail and go home when they see me on horseback now. 

I felt awful doing it, but I'm not going to have torn up legs & vet bills because they can't keep their dogs in their yard.


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## manca (Feb 23, 2011)

This is a good idea  Mare already kicked one and he is behaving now, but some others are just to quick for her 
I just wish there was a way to prevent them from jumping suddenly behind my horses. I want a magic flute that would annoy dogs, but not horses


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## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

Dogs aren't too much trouble for my horse and I. My horse doesn't seriously believe that her kind is a fighty, plant eating species. She spins around, lays her ears back, and bares her teeth at dogs. If the footing is good, we're game to chase some mutts.


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## Spastic_Dove (Oct 4, 2007)

Agreed. 

At the equestrian park here in town, people in the neighborhoods nearby take their dogs on walks through the cross country course. *headdesk* 

We HAVE a dog park. For dogs. This is the HORSE park. 

Keep your dog on a leash around the horses and out from under my feet, please.


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## manca (Feb 23, 2011)

I'd like to see those people on the horse while their dogs are chasing them... My neighbours even don't try to call their dog back. They just watch and smile. Well, they didn't today when I lost my nerves and yelled at their dog that ran away like a puppy  I wish I could always win so easily, but dogs don't obey always...



> Dogs aren't too much trouble for my horse and I. My horse doesn't seriously believe that her kind is a fighty, plant eating species. She spins around, lays her ears back, and bares her teeth at dogs. If the footing is good, we're game to chase some mutts.


Haha  Wish for a horse like that


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

I especially despise when people bring dogs to shows and let them have free rein to run around the showgrounds.


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## WickedNag (Sep 7, 2010)

Pellet guns work wonders


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## Fiinx (Jun 19, 2011)

I can totally relate. My dogs are all completely well trained and two of our neighbors let us use their trails to ride on but Im terrified to go on them. There are eight houses on our private wooded drive and the two houses to our left let us use their trails. Well the second house has two dogs, one from our litter and another small crazy dog that jumps on you all the time. You will be riding along quietly on their trail and all of a sudden theyll come rushing at you barking and everything. Its so SCARYYY!! My sister fell of her horse once. The dogs used to stay back but now they arent afraid to come up and try to bite the horses legs. Now I can't even ride on the neighbors trails next to us either because they come onto their land too...they have even come as far as my trails...its scary.


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## Fiinx (Jun 19, 2011)

Brighteyes said:


> If the footing is good, we're game to chase some mutts.


We do this on road rides sometimes! Works wonders!


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

Brighteyes said:


> Dogs aren't too much trouble for my horse and I. My horse doesn't seriously believe that her kind is a fighty, plant eating species. She spins around, lays her ears back, and bares her teeth at dogs. If the footing is good, we're game to chase some mutts.


Haha this almost perfectly describes one of my horses. He can be quite aggressive to dogs and other horses if you let him. My other two are a bit nicer but if a dog annoyed them enough the dog would know about it :twisted:


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## lilkitty90 (Nov 11, 2009)

i love chasing me down some mutts, but i try to make my girl behave, and not all dogs will run some will run and then spin and bite. 

i remember on a trail ride once a boxer/ rottie mix was biting her on the legs, i kept her calm and made her behave for a 1/3 of mile of this and eventually i loosened the rein and let her rip, she cole cocked him in the jaw, and i swear she broke it because he didn't make a peep, when i turned around to see he was gone. and i haven't seen him since. the owner KNEW he was following me and didn't try to get him, and i gave him the benefit of the doubt. i do feel bad for just letting my horse kick him, but my horse means to much to me to have a bunch of vet bills.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

WickedNag said:


> Pellet guns work wonders


this sounds like a good idea. Or, a very loud whistle, and start to blow it FIRST, then when the dog comes, you shoot him with the pellet gun. After that, all you'd have to do was blow the whistle prior to the place where the dog is and they'd be afraid of you.


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## Fiinx (Jun 19, 2011)

Another good Idea would be to train your dog to scare other dogs...then they can ride with you and you'll never have any problems. hahaha...I wish..


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## corinowalk (Apr 26, 2010)

A squirt bottle (think travel sized from walmart) with water alone will scare them. Filled with white vinegar, the dog owner will think twice before they let the dog come close to you again. If you are riding on a public road or on your own private property, I highly suggest this route. No one gets hurt and the owners usually get the point when their dog comes in reeking like vinegar.


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## manca (Feb 23, 2011)

So many good ideas  



> Pellet guns work wonders


I don't know if my parents would let me, but this definitly would work  

@Fiinx: Me too... I lost some amazing trails just because of the stupid dogs.

I didn't try chasing the dog, but I'll try next time.  Dogs, here we come! Beware!

When my dog was still able to go to trails with us (he is dead now, because of the age - he couldn't walk in the end  ) he made all dogs ran away. There was a problem only once, when some dog didn't want to leave and they got into a fight... Thank god, he wasn't injured, but it didn't keep my horse calm either 



> A squirt bottle (think travel sized from walmart) with water alone will scare them. Filled with white vinegar, the dog owner will think twice before they let the dog come close to you again. If you are riding on a public road or on your own private property, I highly suggest this route. No one gets hurt and the owners usually get the point when their dog comes in reeking like vinegar.


I will definitly do this! I think this will help a lot!


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## manca (Feb 23, 2011)

I wonder just how much this would scare/annoy horses: Dog Repellent - Ultrasonic Or Spray.

It would be a great thing.
If it wouldn't annoy horses...


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## Tennessee (Dec 7, 2008)

When we trail ride (whether it be down the road or miles upon miles), someone always has some kind of pistol on them (safety thing), so if some stupid dog comes up, we will shoot at it. Not close enough to kill it, but close enough to scare the **** out of it and make it leave us alone. I'm also not afraid to get off of my horse (who are both extremely nervous around dogs, despite being very broke) and chase after some stupid little mutt.

I hate dogs. lol. Don't even like my own.


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## lilkitty90 (Nov 11, 2009)

the vinegar idea is also a pretty good one, i remember another time we were rding on the rode and a girl had a extremely aggressive dog and it was rushing my horse, i can't remember why but i had my huge whip with me (i think i was trying to get my horse used to it being around her since she was scared) and this was in the first year or 2 that i had my horse, i remember hopping off her and the dog then rushing me, and i took my whip to it, it's never bothered us since, i just popped it once, but apparently thats all it took  i think it scared the holy poo out of him more then it hurt him lol


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## QOS (Dec 8, 2008)

A friend drags along his mutt when we trail ride and she runs in and out of the woods. I know this is supposed to desensitize the horses but it often makes ME nervous. I yelled a her a few times because she seemed to really bother Biscuit. He kept charging her one day and getting more cranked up about it. I finally got off and let them go on ahead because he was like balled up energy that day and Bella was right in front of us and he was busting a gut.

We rode with another dog that was just hanging out in the park the other day and Biscuit was fine with him. 

I did tell my friend I was afraid Biscuit would stomp her or kick her and I would feel bad if he seriously injured his dog. He said, she will learn to get out of the horses way or get kicked or killed. She needs to learn.

Ok...but it still made me nervous that day as Biscuit was all balled up and I think alot of it was the dog was ****ing him off and he is not a spooky horse at all.

I like the idea of the mace or vinegar. I do not want vet bills for my horse or doctor bills for me because of someone's dog. Pepper spray would work too but it does fly in the air so beware of using sprays! LOL maybe we need to carry a slingshot with some little rocks. A well aimed rock on the butt would send a mutt running!


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## HorseyyGal (Jun 20, 2011)

Spastic_Dove said:


> We HAVE a dog park. For dogs. This is the HORSE park.
> 
> Keep your dog on a leash around the horses and out from under my feet, please.


Couldn't agree more!


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## Jessskater (Mar 16, 2011)

I was riding Katie on a quite road yesterday. Near the end of this road was two German Shepherds, luckily one was chained up but there was still one getting close to us and barking like a nut. I managed to shoo it away, it was still scary though:-|


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## Rowzy (Mar 1, 2010)

The hiker's dogs that are running loose usually aren't the problem for me. Most of those dogs have never seen a horse, so if I have my horse take a step towards them they will run off or their owner will call them. The worst dogs I have been around on the trails are unfortunently other horse rider's poorly trained dogs. Some people don't seem to realise that not all horses are OK with dogs running under their feet, behind them, chasing them or otherwise being annoying. And because these people are also riding they don't have physical control over the dog. These dogs aren't afraid of horses and most other riders look at me like I'm crazy when I warn them (politely) that Gypsy will kick dogs. I don't have a problem with people riding with their dogs if they are well trained but for the most part they aren't.

As for getting rid of unattended dogs, I prefer chasing them off if I can. I can see the squirt bottle working sometimes however I know dogs that will try to drink the water or snap at it.


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## ShutUpJoe (Nov 10, 2009)

I remember someone let their little tiny lap dog lose out on a bridle path. That was clearly marked for horses. It got under some horse's hooves and ended up getting stomped on. The owners, of course, were upset and blaming the horse and rider. The horse and rider, after trying to be nice and apologize but still tell them their dog had been A. Off leash and B. On a bridle path rode off shaking her head. People... I don't even let two of my own dogs around my horses because they weren't raised around them.


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## goldilockz (Aug 1, 2008)

Spastic_Dove said:


> Agreed.
> 
> At the equestrian park here in town, people in the neighborhoods nearby take their dogs on walks through the cross country course. *headdesk*
> 
> ...


That would *seriously* tick me off.


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## thesilverspear (Aug 20, 2009)

Ah dogs... have a few stories..... 

I was out on a ride years ago with my friend on her greenbroke 4 year old. The golden retriever at one of the houses neighbouring the trails took off out of its yard and came after us. The 4 year old was quite freaked out and I charged my horse at it. Most dogs run like hell when 1200lbs of horse comes bearing down on them, but this one stopped, turned around, and tried to dart around my horse to get to the younger one. The owner, meanwhile, was shouting at it but it couldn't have cared less. My horse and I were facing down the dog, slowly push the dog back towards its house, using side-to-side cutting horse maneuvers to prevent the bloody thing from running round behind us, either for the 4-year old or my mare's heels (although if it had tried the latter, it would have been a harsh lesson as my horse knows how to aim a kick), and all the while the owner was screaming at it ineffectively. 

Another time, myself and another rider were on trails in Forestry Commission land, with thick walls of trees on either side, when this German shepherd came tearing round the corner, off leash, flat out run. The other rider's horse spooked and the dog went after them, at which point the horse started bucking and kicking out at the dog. The rider came off (she was fine). This all happened within seconds. As she was coming off, I finally reacted and ran my horse at the dog. That changed the dog's mind about chasing the other horse and it veered off, back to its much-embarrassed and very apologetic owner. 

One of the liveries at a barn I used to keep my horse at had a collie puppy, wild and hyper as collie puppies are. Now my horse is usually fine around dogs so long as she's not being hassled, so I don't mind when other liveries have their dogs about. On one afternoon, the puppy was running about while I had my horse tied up outside the barn. I was standing a few feet away from the horse, chatting to someone, when the puppy bounded up and jumped on ME. My horse's ears went flat back, the tail swished, and the threatening hind foot was raised. I thought my horse's protective reaction was cute, except it would have been decidedly less cute if she'd thrown a kick. Puppy went back into its owner's car. 

I say 'usually' fine with dogs. She takes each dog as they come, which is pretty smart. At a different yard, the owners had a couple German shepherds who lived in a big kennel on the yard most of the day. When the dogs were out of the kennel, which was not that often as far as I could tell, they were fine with horses. But when they were in the kennel, they would jump up against the side of the kennel and bark and bark and bark at any horse which walked past. As the kennel was on the way to the arena from the stable block, this was a fairly regular occurrence. My horse never spooked or worried about the dogs' antics when we walked past, but you'd feel a very slight, almost unnoticeable, annoyed twitch of ears and tail. She wasn't afraid or upset, but she was probably thinking, "stupid &*^&**^^& dogs won't shut up." In the evenings, the owners let the dogs out for a run. The horses were out late one evening as it was summer, and one of the shepherds ran into my horse's field. It could not have cared less about her and was just sniffing for rabbits in the field, but the horse thought it would finally get its come uppance for the all the jumping and barking, and CHARGED the thing, flat out run, ears back, teeth bared. Poor dog had never been so scared and was through the fence within seconds.


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## Kashmere (Nov 30, 2009)

I'd gladly raise my dressage whip at em.. After all, a good hit will teach em 

But yes, what interesting stories!
I've only come across 2 dogs trailing, one who was kind enough to pick his dog up (Which I thanked him for of course!), and the other one was when I wanted to go back to the barn with my friend. This big dog walks up to me and my lease horse, and started barking. I got off and just shouted "GET" and he was back on his way. Stupid dog..


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## Horsesdontlie (Mar 11, 2011)

I'm a little partial both ways. I pretty much have my dogs with me 24/7 except when I am at school or at work. One dog is an old pro around the horses, while the other is younger and learning. But my dogs are almost always off leash, but they are never wandering around. My dogs are either within 10 feet of me or are in a down stay in the shade somewhere sleeping. If I am riding by myself they are following me in the arena, but if they're other people are around they are sleeping outside the arena by my horses pen (always in view). I always pick up after them, and they never go anywhere near anyone else or their horses. They also don't bark.

Now I got chewed out the other day with someone saying I was a lawsuit waiting to happen and that I was a horrible person for taking my dogs off leash around horses. Also that dogs were required to be on leash (I have discussed with BO and she is fine with my dogs off leash). My dogs were both sleeping inside my horses pen at the time. I just don't get where some people get their nerve.

At the same time I have had a friend gotten seriously hurt after a pack of dogs charged us while we were trail riding. Her horse spooked and she got dragged down the road. I have also had tons of experiences with horse people that let their dogs do everything and anything, making it so people who DO keep their dogs well controlled to be strapped down by misunderstanding and laws. Which are needed, sadly.


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