Jet's Furkid Palace: Resisting the chase!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Resisting the chase!

There is a lady who lives nearby who has two little brown Italian Greyhounds, or iggies. I have seen them around, and N has met them up close because their human is a massage therapist who N went to maybe a month ago.

Anyway, we were out on our nightly walk, and I saw a woman walking towards us with a dog on the leash. I told N to take Bender to the other side of the road as we are working on his leash reactivity. I was looking across at them when I saw a small, brown shape flying across the road towards them at high speed. This brown shape was barking it's little fool head off. I told N to look out, but the high speed dog turned and headed for Barbie. I realised then that he was an Iggie. He demonstrated amazing agility by sprinting towards Barbie, twisting in the air, landing facing the other direction and taking off again. His owner was yelling his name over and over but he wouldn't listen. He was just darting around all over the place, on and off the road. Barbie was completely non-plussed. She just stood calmly by my side. I was actually shocked that she didn't try to chase him at all. She didn't even tell him off for saying nasty things.

I was just worried he would run onto the road, and I could see a car coming, so Barbie and I moved as far away from the street as possible. By the time his owner arrived, with the other Iggie on a leash, he had calmed down and was sniffing Barbie's butt. She ignored him completely.

Now, I let Barbie off leash in safe locations, like at the beach and in fenced dog park areas, but I would never dream of walking her off leash in the suburbs. I really have to question the sanity of someone who would let a little sighthound like that, who clearly doesn't like other dogs, off the leash when cars are an everpresent danger.

Just 5 minutes before, walking down the same road, we saw a high powered car speeding down the street, doing at least 80kph and being chased by an underpowered Police car. If that car had been heading towards us, the Iggie's chances of coming out of it unscathed would have been much, much smaller.

Yes, yes, Bender is good to chase!

I just can not get over how good Barbie was. She did not show any signs of wanting to chase this very fast, small dog which hopped and twisted around in the air like a bunny rabbit!

Comments (20)

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Caron · 697 weeks ago

Barbie must have sensed that he was just a harmless crazy nut. LOL! I am always amazed that people let there dogs off leash like that. Especially like you said, a little nutty sighthound. I have neighbors that used to let there four small crazy fluffy white dogs hang out in the street barking at and chasing people down the street. It took numerous complaints, visits from animal control and finally the police before they kept them in.

1 reply · active 697 weeks ago

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perthcyclist 21p · 697 weeks ago

Yeah, I'm sure she knew. As she is becoming more experienced in these things she is becoming even more level-headed. She does have the advantage of having good dog-to-dog communication skills. She is the opposite to Bender in that way!

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Declan Greyhound 76p · 697 weeks ago

Oooh you are a good girl Barbie; I might have eaten the little *^"er!! We have a Yorkshire terrier near us that goes nuts at other dogs - owners don't give a hoot. One day they had the nerve to shout at a (leashed) me for barking back! Won't tell you what Mum said. Hehe! Deccy x

1 reply · active 697 weeks ago

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perthcyclist 21p · 697 weeks ago

Yeah, Bender barks back sometimes. Barbie usually just gives them a subtle lip raising gesture if they are too close to her. Barbie tends to only bark when she wants to play with other dogs. That tends to unnerve people as well though because they think she is big and black and scary. Why are people more scared of black dogs?

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jan · 697 weeks ago

Good Barbie. Don't even dignify poor dog and irresponsible human behavior.

1 reply · active 697 weeks ago

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perthcyclist 21p · 697 weeks ago

As time goes on she becomes less likely to lower herself, that is for sure. They call her 'Princess' at the boarding kennels. She does have a regal air to her ;)

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Helen, Snoopy&Jerry · 697 weeks ago

What a good girl Barbie is!!
If the lady had the other iggie on leash, I wonder if the sprinting one had slipped it's collar? I used to do agility with a lady who had one, he would always slip his collar!
Regardless, people should be more careful eh!!

1 reply · active 697 weeks ago

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perthcyclist 21p · 697 weeks ago

I wondered if that is what happened too - but when I saw them I only saw one dog on the leash even when they were about 800m away from us. Barbie has the same issue with her head being smaller than her neck (she had slipped the collar that she came with a couple of times, but once she was chasing an aggro dog away from Bender, so that was kind of handy...) I got a martingale to walk her in and never had a problem.

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houndstooth4 82p · 697 weeks ago

It amazes me the places that people will let their dogs off-leash. Just because you think you can doesn't always mean that you should!

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Nibs_Nibs 20p · 697 weeks ago

Well done Barbie! It's incredible the risk that the iggies owner was taking! :( phew, very glad that no one was hurt. What a superhound Barbie was!

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Nibs_Nibs 20p · 697 weeks ago

Also, Ambam wants to know- what's a smooch? :D xx

3 replies · active 696 weeks ago

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jetsagenda 82p · 696 weeks ago

hi Nibs! tell Ambam that in Aussie-speak a 'smooch' means a 'kiss' and so when you refer to someone as a 'smooch' it means they like kissing/cuddling a lot. :) I noticed that Ambam likes to cuddle and lie on laps in those photos

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Nibs_Nibs 20p · 696 weeks ago

Thanks! She is now giving a happy little bounce because she is, indeed, a smooch! A big, heavy, climb-on-your-lap-even-though-I-weigh-a-ton smooch! xx

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jetsagenda 82p · 696 weeks ago

haha big dogs are the best to cuddle though :)

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bighoneydog 27p · 697 weeks ago

Oh, Barbie was VERY good!!! Especially if you believe in what they say about a "greyhound's instincts"

As for those kinds of owners...DON'T GET ME STARTED!!!!!! GRRRRR!!! I see them all over here as well - I just think it shows a kind of arrogance - people trying to show off that their dogs are so well behaved, they don't need a leash to walk them (OK, maybe not in your lady's case but that's the reason I've heard given by the people around here) - they like to look smug as they pass other people with their dogs on leash...meanwhile, their dogs are NOT under control - they're zooming all around the pavements, harrassing other dogs, running into the street...admittedly, we live in a residential area with little traffic but cars can still come through and some very fast...besides, the point is - why do you need to do this?? What's so cool about breaking the dog laws this way? I can walk Honey without a leash around the neighbourhood - with MUCH more control than they do with their dogs! - but I don't because it's stupid and inappropriate and unnecessary and I don't need to prove my superior dog obedience this way. GRRR! It just makes me so mad!!!! And at the end of the day, it's the dog who will suffer for their arrogance!

Hsin-Yi

1 reply · active 696 weeks ago

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jetsagenda 82p · 696 weeks ago

I get the impression some people do it cos their dog pulls on the leash and they can't be bothered teaching it proper leash manners. Still there is no reason for it, and the consequences can be so tragic!

Our street is 'traffic calmed' with chicanes all the way up it but there are a lot of people who use it as a 'rat run' to sometimes avoid police that they think will be patrolling the bigger roads, if they are drink driving or whatever. It only takes one car at the wrong time though. :P

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Never Say Never GHs · 697 weeks ago

Good girl, Barbie! Stupid IG owner!

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Ihatetoast · 697 weeks ago

I don't understand the no-leash thing. It's never worth the risk. I'll take mine out to the country where they'll go batshit at a friend's place, but her property is enclosed. Urbs and burbs? Never. I couldn't cope with the grief and my role in their tragedy.

Barbie, you're a rockstar!

1 reply · active 696 weeks ago

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jetsagenda 82p · 696 weeks ago

yeah, I felt bad enough when my very first dog barged out of the front door cos I'd failed to ensure it was properly closed.... she got hit by a car in front of the house... fortunately she was OK but it was three days til I got her back as she bolted and hid in someones' yard. She got out of it with a broken tooth and some scrapes.