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  • "Is your dog friendly?"

    Is it just me or is this a question most Dane owners get when going/walking anywhere? I'm constantly having to reassure other dog owners that "yes he's very friendly, he just wants to play with your dog". No matter where I go, parks, petsmart, petco, just walking outside, people walking by my car when he's in it I always get asked if he's aggressive.. Is this a common thing? Parros has never once acted anything less than a goofy teenage dog when other dogs are around. I never was offended by it until today. We were in petsmart and a woman snatched up her poodleish looking dog right when she saw Parros and then asked "is your dog aggressive he has a muzzle on" I explained that it was a gentle leader and that it promotes better walking. She then proceeded to tell me that I shouldn't put it on him because it will confuse people into thinking he's aggressive. I told her that I'm not going to not use a great training tool just so other owners think he's not friendly. I then showed her how it doesn't look like a muzzle at at it's completely open. She then huffed and asked me to scoot over so she could walk by with her dog in her arms. I'm actually insulted by this. Maybe I'm just being sensitive.

    Just because I have a big dog doesn't mean he's unfriendly or aggressive, I've seen more little dogs snap/bite then I've ever seen a Great Dane. Annoying petsmart people lol
    sigpic 6/20/14 Parros

  • #2
    I love those that shriek and run to the opposite side of the isles and or store in some extreme occasions and those are followed with a why is he here and you shouldn't have such a big vicious dog like that in public.

    I think it just has to do with their size that intimidates people.... or could be they were raised right and were taught to ask if they could pet the dog (granted the execution is flawed).
    sigpic
    Mom of 3 dogs & 4 small humans
    Titan - GD
    Thor - GD RIP 12/28/13 6/1/14
    Finnegan - Mini Schnauzer
    Cookie - Mini Schnauzer

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Titan3151 View Post
      I love those that shriek and run to the opposite side of the isles and or store in some extreme occasions and those are followed with a why is he here and you shouldn't have such a big vicious dog like that in public.

      I think it just has to do with their size that intimidates people.... or could be they were raised right and were taught to ask if they could pet the dog (granted the execution is flawed).
      Lol I've seen that before! I think it's kind of funny really. I just smile and walk by with Parros I understand asking if he's friendly if they want to pet him I love and appreciate people asking but it's asking if he's aggressive and then freaking out that my dog is there that I get offended.
      sigpic 6/20/14 Parros

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      • #4
        Like I said I think the intention is good when they ask if he's aggressive.... But the execution is a bit off! Lol
        sigpic
        Mom of 3 dogs & 4 small humans
        Titan - GD
        Thor - GD RIP 12/28/13 6/1/14
        Finnegan - Mini Schnauzer
        Cookie - Mini Schnauzer

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        • #5
          .... Yes, my dog is friendly but beware of my husband he can be an ankle biter.

          We can't have it both ways. We, as dane owners, can't be annoyed that people just walk up without asking AND at the same time be annoyed that they ask first! I am perfectly happy if someone asks if he is friendly or not before reaching for Phineas. If he had people / dog trouble (Phin doesn't), it would give me a chance to say for example, "he doesn't like small dogs!" or... "pet him only on his back". Be thankful people want to ask before approaching. It's so much better then the bum rush of people / dogs.

          Ignore idiots like today. Smile, nod and walk away. You can't fix stupid! If it were me, I might have advised her to walk by faster just in case he changed his mind and wanted a taste of her. SMH..
          Last edited by Angel7292; 02-19-2015, 05:48 PM.
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          • #6
            I see some people with straight up FEAR in their eyes when I'm walking my full grown Dane. I just have to remind myself that if I didn't know anything about the breed and a 170+ lb dog came trotting up to me I'd probably be at least taken aback

            I try to assure them that yes he's friendly, no he won't bite, he just wants to say hi, etc. It usually works out okay, but the other day I ran into a lady that was terrified and saying "please just get him away!!!" Poor baby just wanted to make a friend lol!

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            • #7
              I've never had anyone ask if Zoomer was aggressive (just friendly), but I remember when we used the Snoot Loop on our previous females, we did get that question. (It looks just like a Gentle Leader).

              I've heard that black dogs (of any breed) are harder to place in rescue/shelters, and I believe the assumption is that they somehow look more mean or intimidating? People did not come up to us as much with Kahuna (mostly black w/ some white) as they do now with Zoomer. Although that could be in part because our kids are almost always with us when out with Zoomer, whereas we had 7 years w/ no kids and just our two dogs previously.

              You never know what others' experiences have been - their dog may have been attacked or they themselves might have been attacked, so I try to steer clear when I see someone visibly frightened.
              -Lisa (Zoomer's mom)

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Titan3151 View Post
                I love those that shriek and run to the opposite side of the isles and or store in some extreme occasions and those are followed with a why is he here and you shouldn't have such a big vicious dog like that in public.
                I had someone skitter away from me once...I just put an alarmed look on my face and looked behind me like I was looking for whatever scared her . Poor lady got all red in the face . I get that some people are scared of bigger dogs, but if so...is Petsmart really a good decision?
                sigpic
                Chaucey
                Asaah ~ xxx Asaah LaLa, CGC, registered therapy dog

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                • #9
                  I always get asked if Zia is friendly, which I'm glad because she's a spaz! I would rather they ask then rush us! But as far as the freak outs go..those irritate the heck out of me. We used to live by this neighbor who had an obnoxious little Shih Tzu that was always yapping his head off. Her dog would be going crazy and she would pick it up, shelter it with her body, cross the street and glare at us. Gotta just brush that kind of stuff off...but it certainly bugs!
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                  • #10
                    I'd rather people promote asking something like "Can I pet him?" or "Can I say hi?" rather than "Is he/she friendly?". It just has a better tone. There might be a lot of reasons I don't want a stranger near my dog that have nothing to do with the dog.
                    sigpic

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                    • #11
                      It all started with people coming up loving him when he was "little" but we noticed a massive change between the 5-6 month mark. We've had plenty, "can we pet him" and "is he friendly" which I completely respect. Most of the time they come and love on him after they've realized and even a happy nod works. But we have had a couple over reactions I guess lol. People jumping across the isle or jumping back when he's got his nose out of the car in a parking lot (never alone there's always someone in there with him) but most of the time after the initial shock he gets pets and love from the originally scared people when they learn he's still a puppy.

                      We have had one when he was only 3 months old where a woman hid behind her man in fear; considering his size then it was kind of ridiculous lol. But we had the exact same thing happen again last week. Makes me wonder about the future considering he's got a lot of growing to go. It kind of makes me snicker because in reality he's really a whimp. It's kind of refreshing when a dane knowledgable person pops up and just gets it in public; knowing exactly how to react with him.

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Almsah View Post
                        It all started with people coming up loving him when he was "little" but we noticed a massive change between the 5-6 month mark. We've had plenty, "can we pet him" and "is he friendly" which I completely respect. Most of the time they come and love on him after they've realized and even a happy nod works. But we have had a couple over reactions I guess lol. People jumping across the isle or jumping back when he's got his nose out of the car in a parking lot (never alone there's always someone in there with him) but most of the time after the initial shock he gets pets and love from the originally scared people when they learn he's still a puppy.

                        We have had one when he was only 3 months old where a woman hid behind her man in fear; considering his size then it was kind of ridiculous lol. But we had the exact same thing happen again last week. Makes me wonder about the future considering he's got a lot of growing to go. It kind of makes me snicker because in reality he's really a whimp. It's kind of refreshing when a dane knowledgable person pops up and just gets it in public; knowing exactly how to react with him.

                        I get that too, especially people hiding, I was walking Parros one day and a woman literally hid behind the stroller she was pushing😂 I love meeting dane people randomly, your just walking along and someone says "wow what a beautiful Dane puppy" and then asks to pet him and we chit chat danes for about 10 minutes it's so much fun
                        sigpic 6/20/14 Parros

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                        • #13
                          I can't remember having an adult act really scared of Lola, just a couple little kids. I actually seem to encounter the opposite problem, we've had people come right up and hug her and stick their face in her face. I think maybe because she looks like Marmaduke, people assume she's great (thankfully she loves people and attention).

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                          • #14
                            Phin's a big boy and I've never had an adult scared of him either. He draws people in like a moth to a flame.

                            I have had a handful of children over the years scared of him. I always take the time to speak to them and encourage them to pet him. Perhaps a good experience with Phin will allow them not to be so scared in the future. I just have Phin put his butt to them and let them reach out and touch his back half instead of the face half. I can usually coax them into touching him really quick. LOL He wags his tail and loves a good butt scratching. He often backs up more like, "hey.. don't stop!" Of course I wouldn't force a child, but I think with coaxing and reassurance, most come around and really do want to touch him.

                            My future daughter-in-law is scared of big dogs because she was bitten as a child. She KNOWS Phin isn't going to bite her, but she is still weary of his face near hers. Phin pile drives his head into her stomach for an ear scratch and just looveees her. He gets his front loved on and always turns around and sits on her lap for an ass scratch. He has decided she is going to love him if she wants to or not. It's been funny watching her warm up to him over the last couple years. The wedding is in four months and I keep telling her that I'm getting him a tux too and I promise he'll behave. She knows I'm joking, but I think in the back of her head, she is a little worried I'm being serious. HAHA
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                            • #15
                              I wish more people asked me before jumping into Ferg's space. It seems dog shows are the absolute worst, too. This morning we were warming up before our ring time, and some lady in the class ahead of us decided to heel her weiner dog RIGHT UP AGAINST Fergus. Uh, hello. Space invasion much? Would've served her right if Ferg had been in the mood to have a hot dog for breakfast. A few minutes later I had to shoo two older ladies off of him. After our last trial, I was making an effort to keep everybody but me away from him before we went in the ring. This lady didn't ask, didn't say anything until she was getting all ready to lean over the top of him. I'm just glad he was actually watching me and I could get him up and away quickly.
                              sigpic
                              Fergus
                              SC Dinnie Stone Guardian, CGC
                              Eisen Shark
                              C Shadows On The Sun, CGC

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