I don't have much experience with dogs, much less untrained off leash ones. One is pretty big (a lab maybe?) and always runs right up to me and my wife barking territorially whenever I'm out in my garden, and doesn't stop until one of my neighbor's kids comes and gets them. I've had dogs try to fight me before and they make me really nervous. I just want to touch grass :(
How should I be responding to the dog when this happens?
it's important to realize that you're not doing anything wrong. some dogs are reactive as hell and usually it's because they are poorly socialized, which leads to really annoying behavior habits like loudly challenging everyone and everything in their sight line. for reference, i am the guy that gets along with lots of dogs/animals, including the ones that have reactivity, socialization and trauma problems. like dogs that are aggressive to men never seem to put me in the man category. even so, there are individual animals and contexts that are no-win and the best you can hope for is a situation where neither party feels antagonized.
if you have a good relationship with your neighbor, you can try to work out some formal socialization times where you learn how to interact with each other and pick up some nonverbal, low effort tactics for getting the dog to shut it's cram hole. if you're not friendly with your neighbor, your options are much more limited. the fence is a very real physical and cognitive boundary.
as others have said, being or at least imitating calmness and an assertive countenance is key. animals aren't psychic. they are master interpreters of nonverbal cues, though. also, generally, giving attention is a "reward" for good behavior, so ignoring them (in terms of body language) when they are being crappy can be helpful.
some people have said using a higher pitched tone is interpreted as "friendly", but i don't agree with that being universal. talking friendly to a dog you don't know can work, but it might also confuse them or wind them up. calm voice. calm tones. as best you can. if you can't, just orient yourself and go about your business as if you don't acknowledge their existence or care what they're blabbing about when they're being annoying. also, don't do a lot of eye contact. if you want to keep an eye on them, look near them all you want with your head off axis and let your eyes do the work, maybe a quick glance, but don't lock eyes like a cult leader or an MLM recruiter.
and, above all, garden whenever you want. wear ear plugs if you want. that's your back yard. if nothing else, time and repeated exposure can make them less reactive to you puttering around. patience is key. their concept of time is a mess. play the long game with that big brain of yours.
Thanks, that's really helpful and gives me a lot to think about.
Ignoring it might be hard since there's no fence and it runs right up to me, but the good news is as a member of #autismgang I'm very practiced at avoiding eye contact lmao
I know it's hard, but as another poster said, the dog can quickly become habituated to you. There are a few key behaviors when interacting with dogs:
- high-pitched friendly voice. the reason people use baby talk with animals is because it's a universal signal for "I'm not a threat"
- If your neighbor agrees, stand there and wait until there's a pause in the barking, then toss a treat (cheerios are a great low calorie option that won't ruin the dogs diet. if it's a bigger dog and cheerios are potentially too small, seedless watermelon can be a nice option.) you're doing two things here: making friends with the dog while also not rewarding the barking (by waiting until it stops)
- stay calm. I know it's hard, but staying calm yourself will help calm the dog down and take it from a "reactive" state to a more thoughtful state of mind. when one of my dogs is barking, I have a family member who will turn to it and very calmly go "excuse me. come over here. I'd like to have a word with you" while looking at the dog sort of sternly. the dog gets sort of confused and basically goes "oh. uh. yeah... ok. sure." and gets sort of apologetic.
- slow, deliberate body movements
^ This is the better comment. I just added provisions for if neighbors are being unbearably irresponsible jerkwads.
Good thought to summon every communist in a 10-mile radius for a struggle session to bore the dog until it leaves. There's a shitload of outdoor and feral cats in my town, though, so I think me and my wife might be the only communists around
Had the same problem for years. When my neighbor was diagnosed with cancer and covid just hit, she asked if I could take him for walks when I took my dog out. The only time he barked after that was when I was walking to the front door for a walky. Also, when my brother and his girlfriend live with me, her dog couldn't fucking stand me. I changed that with a slice of ham and taking her for a bike ride. The little angel would crawl into my back pack every morning wanting to go for a ride. Not an expert, but some dogs can be bought off fairly easily. Have fun in your garden, and I love your user name.
Yeah, sometimes for all you know your smell or way of moving vaguely reminds the dog of someone who was a shithead to them in the distant past. Showing you're a friend can go a long way.
I was a letter carrier for years so I have a ton of experience with getting to know strangers dogs. If there is a fence between the yards when the dog comes out to bark hold your hand low against your side of the fence so it has a good chance to sniff you. If your kinda friendly with your neighbors have them come shake your hand while the dog is there, having the owner speak to you in a friendly manor helps but it's my experience that when a dog actually see you physically interact with their person it helps a lot. Giving treats can also help but it will likely make the dog bark bark even more because it wants to get your attention and the corresponding treats.
Most dogs are all bark and no bite but it always pays to be cautious till the dog knows you.
A dog that is cautious or untrusting will like the back of the had and scent trick unless they already have those things wired in their head for bad things. A barking or territorial dog will not give a shit and will try to defend the area and not get close to you to even bother sniffing. Lots of small dogs are the latter and can only ever be bullied into being quiet against non-threats.
runs right up to me and my wife barking territorially whenever I’m out in my garden, and doesn’t stop until one of my neighbor’s kids comes and gets them
I know lots of people are really skeptical of dogs on this site but I'm almost 90% sure the dog is barking at you because it just wants your attention and not because it's 'protecting' its territory.
I don't completely agree. But I'd say it's more of an "identify yourself!" than "get off my lawn!" if that makes sense. The dog doesn't want to hurt anyone. It wants to know who you are and what you're doing.
since I'm a dog person, I'd think it's a combination of 'identify yourself' and 'why aren't you petting me, that's super sus'.
haha. that can be true. it also super depends on the dog. I have herding dogs, so they are much more of the inquisitive sort. but if it's someone they know, then it's 100% "PET ME".
But like, a golden retriever is basically always saying "pet me pet me pet meeeee"
Pit bulls are, ironically, another one that I find is typically saying "pet me!! hello! human! I want pets!!!"
Usually when it runs over it's because it's already outside with the neighbor's kids so I'd be surprised if attention is the issue :/
I'm a dog person, so I would probably talk to it in a friendly voice
Depends, if you maintain proximity long enough and offer treats (sneaky or with neighbors permission) they can become habituated to you. They just have to see you as part of the normal fabric of their reality, they don't really understand property boundaries and all that.
If they seem too aggressive to acclimate to you, you might just have to talk to the neighbor directly. Alternately put up a visual barrier on the fence (they sell opaque removable slats for chainlink), install a wooden fence, or plant a hedge on your side.
It's not really clear from your post - do you have a fence that will stop the dog from attacking you but it's coming right up to the fence where you are and barking and being annoying, or is it coming into your yard and barking at you?
If it's the former, that sucks but I'd try to ignore it. Maybe talk to your neighbour about keeping their dog inside if it will ruin every garden experience you try to have.
If it's the latter, your neighbour is fucking up extremely. I would be yelling in my neighbour's face if they can't control a potentially dangerous dog and keep it from intimidating you on your own property. It is your owner's responsibility to keep their dog inside, tie up their dog or build a goddamned fence if they have a dog they cannot control.
As for reacting to the dog, that's not your responsibility. It's not your dog, you need to react to your neighbour.
No fence, dog runs right up to me in my garden. Yeah everyone around here seems like a really shitty dog owner.
Neighbors are basically never around and are kind of assholes — I only ever see their kids, who are like 10ish and I'm not gonna yell at kids for having a shitty dog and shitty parents.
It's not my responsibility to react to the dog, but the options are that or potentially get stitches or some shit so I still have to do it
Yeah IDK, I'm a dog owner and I'd be much more pissed than you seem to be lol. I'd be making it my week's mission to talk to the owner, knocking on their door several times a day at different times whenever I could. That shit isn't ok. If you do, my only advice is to not do it when you're actively pissed - they may literally have no idea what's going on, and it's probably most effective if they don't start the conversation on defence.
In the meantime, I would talk to the kids if you can. 10 years old is old enough to understand that their dog is terrorizing someone, most kids would put their dog inside if an adult asked.
Sucks comrade, hope it works out for you.
Before gardening get some raw ground beef and ball it up around several pills of Benadryl
When my old dog was a puppy, she would run along the edge of the fence and jump so she was just out of reach for the neighbor's mean hunting dog. She just enjoyed taunting him, I guess, because she almost got her head snapped off so many times but she kept on doing it.
My sister would sneak onto that neighbor's property and free all the squirrels he was using to train the dog to kill. I don't know if he ever figured out who was doing that.
If it's aggressive and you can't convince the neighbor to put it on a leash then a cap gun might help. It's basically a toy that makes a loud bang and it might work to scare the dog off.
This can also backfire. My dog barks at and tries to bite the air when loud, sharp noises happen nearby, like cap guns or real guns
Yeah I suppose it depends on the dog. There's a lot of aggressive dogs loose in my neighborhood and I've never had an issue with the cap gun but definitely exercise caution.
It doesn't hurt the dog. There's no bullet or anything it's just noise. You don't have to point it at the dog either, just fire it in it's vicinity.
So the dog is just running up to you while you're outside and constantly barking?
Not lunging at you, not actually trying to bite or nip, not charging at you when your back is turned to it?
If you've got a friend/family/acquaintance who is more of a dog person you could ask them to come over and see what the dog is doing. Maybe they'll have a better shot of trouble shooting than us.
Alternatively, if you can try some different treat options (peanut butter, cheap block of cheese, maybe a dog treat that has a hollow core) that the dog might like that you can stick a Valerian Root tablet in there that might curb some of the edge. CBD oil might be an expensive option but it might work too.
NOTE: DON'T feed this dog by hand, use a wooden dowel rod or a solid stick with a blunted end or a long handled wooden spoon or something.
If possible, be patient when the dog is barking at you and if you notice any hesitation or pause in the barking, that is when you try to offer the treat. (It doesn't have to be exact, this isn't a science).
Get a box of cheap dog treats, give them a biscuit everytime you come out. Maybe this will train them to bark more idk, but it usually works for me.
