I totally agree with this comment (thank you barbara!)
"If your are suggesting that because your dog is very well trained and
obedient and therefore you are able to leave him loose in camp, please be
aware THAT is what everyone would say about THEIR dogs."
How true! First, let me say I just became a dog again owner after several long, dogless years. And please don't think I'm trying to flame anyone, I just want to be sure no one ever has to go through what I went through last spring. I love my dog, and I do plan to bring her to rides, but she WILL be leashed and never let loose. If she doesn't turn out to be ride camp worthy, she will stay home. I don't even let her loose at home, there are leash laws for a reason, and as a responsible dog owner, I not only respect that, but I also have firsthand experience with what can go wrong with loose dogs. Look at the above quote again. EVERYONE's dog is perfect and would NEVER do anything wrong. Well guess what, my neighbor said the same thing for years, paid many, many fines for leash law violations and still never tied the dog (he would NEVER hurt anyone, you know). Well, last spring their sweet, wonderful dog attacked my four year old Shetland stallion while he was being trained to drive. It cost me hundred's of dollars and several months to retrain him, and the dog owner got off with a $50 fine, and tried to deny the whole thing. (must have been the pony's fault you know, the sweet dog would never hurt anyone). The pony, who until then was the calmest, most trainable horse in the barn was afraid of his own shadow for weeks and would freak out at anything. He is doing great now and I can drive him anywhere, except past the house where the dog came from. Even if the dog is not there, he is still too afraid to go by. I can't work him in my own neighborhood, even after months of retraining. I have to trailer someplace if I want to work him. All because someone refused to acknowledge that their dog would actually behave like a dog! The pony is fine now with other dogs, but will strike at one (even mine) if he feels threatened. I can't say I blame him, so if he kicks a dog, too bad, it should have been leashed! A few months later, one of the other dogs from the same house bit me while I was walking. Again, it must have been my fault, because the dog was too sweet and well trained to bite anyone. Doesn't matter that the owner saw the whole thing, she still denied it and got off with another fine. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE no matter how well trained your dog is, don't let it loose at a ride! You can't possibly predict every move your dog will make, don't ruin someone else's hard work so your dog can have fun. I have tried very hard to make my neighbor see what her ignorance did to my pony, but she doesn't care that all our hard work was ruined, and even tried to blame me for the hoof prints my horses left in the pavement by their house all the times the dogs scared them.
Again, not flaming anyone, just trying to create some awareness...
Heather
____________________________________________________ IncrediMail - Email has finally evolved - Click Here
