Well, it finally happened to me (vent)

[BeckyNC]

Grrrrrrrrrr. I know there have been past posts on this topic, but I need to vent. There is a woman we pass from time to time on our morning or evening walks. She has a very medium-sized dog that must be a senior girl, as her face is very silver. Tae always goes bonkers, straining to meet all dogs, including this one, on our walks and crying like she's desperate to meet them. My behaviorist has told me how to work on this, but I admittedly have not had the chance to do so--she says Boxers are a very social breed and that is why they sometimes display this behavior. Regardless, I try to pull Tae to the side and keep walking. I usually talk to her, telling her we aren't going to meet that dog right now, but I do that more so others don't misunderstand her behavior. Well, 1-2 weeks ago, we passed this woman and her dog and she wouldn't even look at me. She's usually not too friendly, but that's OK--maybe she's shy or in a bad mood--I still try to say hello to everyone I pass including her. This evening, we were on our walk and we came around a bend and there she was. She pressed herself and her dog against the wooden railroad tie retaining wall and didn't look at me. As we passed, she said "get that dog away from me." This is the first time anyone has said anything nasty about my sweet smooshy-faced 40 lb full grown Boxer girl! Tae then obliged by going nuts--making her desperate "I must meet other dog" noises. I yelled after the woman "she's just trying to be social, she's friendly, not aggressive." Again, though, I did NOT let Tae close to this woman or her dog--I try to be very respectful of personal space, regardless. The woman yelled back at me "no she's not (friendly)." Soooooooo, I had a really rough day at work today and the last thing I needed was someone acting like I'm irresponsible and have a mean dog. I yelled after her "***********, you should try to be more polite." So polite of ME, I know, but I'm very type "A-." I'm still pissed. I really want to talk to this woman and explain my dog. I don't know if she thinks Tae is aggressive or if she thinks I have a pitt bull (which would mean nothing, as we know, but is a common error made when identifying Boxers).

Anyhow, I just needed to get this out!

 

[Scorpio]

These are just ignorant and uneducated people, don't lower yourself to their level, maybe try talking to her one day when you don't have Tae with you and explain. wish her a Merry Christmas!!

 

[marciafinn]

Poor Tae just wants to make friends. I wish people wouldn't pre-judge others, but we don't live in a perfect world. Maybe you can mail her some literature on the breed, and wish her a happy holidaay season too. Good luck. I hope Tae meets some other friends who'd like to play with her - or at least their owners would like their fur babies to play with Tae.

 

[BeckyNC]

I wish I knew where this woman lived. I would go by without Tae to talk with her. I never see her unless we are walking, though.

I know--shouldn't lower myself to her level. I had a really rough day at work today--actually the past week has been a bit turbulent! Just last week, I wrote on the chit chat board that it's better to kill someone else with kindness... I did address the woman as "ma'am" at one point during our exchange...so I was trying!

 

[Ciscobxr]

Wow, I'd be ticked also!
Being unfriendly is one thing, but the "get that dog away from me" would have sent me over the edge.
Stinks that running into her will always be a worry now. Some people!!!

 

[kassa]

Some people are afraid of dogs. And as much as we love ours, a lunging boxer making the sounds that boxers make when they're excited is terrifying to somebody who's afraid of even labradors (and you'd be surprised how many people my lab friends say back away from them when they're walking down the street).

Because you know the dog is just excited doesn't mean that she does, and the casual attitude doesn't jibe with what she's seeing with her own eyes (and believes she knows about dogs) so she has no reason to trust you that you know your own dog.

You never know who has been bitten by a "friendly" dog in the past (or whose dog has), and how that affects them the rest of their lives. Even if it's just a groundless phobia, the fear itself is real. She just wanted to avoid the situation, and that was her right.

I'd cut her some slack and double your efforts to work on the behavior. It's behavior I struggle with with my own boy (on leash boisterousness when spotting another dog), but it's NOT good dog manners from a dog standpoint, either and the woman's dog had every right to read it as aggression too.

 

[daisyscrazy]

My boxer being mistaken for a pit

I have a brindle boxer who has no white markings on her face... So what do most non dog owners call her... A PIT BULL! Makes me so mad... She is so cute and cuddley and drags me across pet smart wiggling her booty because her tall won't go fast enough... People have told their kids not to touch her because she is vicious... So once when someone did this I told Daisy to sit and lay so she wouldn't feel the bad vibes I was about to give off. I told this woman that she needed to not judge dogs by what they are and needed a book of dogs to figure out the difference in pits and boxers... My friend has pits and they only lick you to death some people make me so mad about confusing them... Its not that pits are bad its that humans are bad to them! My Daisy would only bite if someone came too close to me or my daughter in a harmful way!

 

[Doja's Mommy]

Don't worry about it

What kind of dog does she have? If its not a boxer, than she's just jealous! Who cares what she thinks, you know your dog, and it doesn't matter one bit if she likes her or not.......

In this world, some people are just plain nasty...... don't let her bring you down.....

Keep your head up, and keep showing of your pride and joy!

My best friend has a 3 year old flashy brindle and shes never been around new people, so, now that we are trying to train and socialize her, shes a little agressive, so poeple thinks shes a certain way too..... But I just think, you know what, shes a great dog and I wouldn't want any other dog, so we keep on walking....

Not everyone is meant to understand our boxer babies!

 

[Daisys_rjm]

My Boxer Scares people too!

I used to confront people when they were rude about my dog(s) but I've since stopped. Their is nothing you can say to this lady to make her believe that your boxer isn't dangerous. It is very difficult, but their is no use worrying about things that we have no control over.

Because I do get ticked off when people, assuming my Daisy is mean, make snide comments, I go to extraoridary efforts to get out of people's way. Although, I always look very friendly overtures from strangers, (at a distance), and introduce them to my Daisy-girl.

Some people get it and some people don't!

Merry Christmas
randy and Daisy

 

[BeckyNC]

Thanks to everyone for your continued responses.

Kassa--I totally agree with you. I wanted to explain Tae's behavoior to this woman, but she told me I was wrong. I think that's what ticked me off. Usually people are friendly when I explain. I can definitely understand how Tae's behavior might be misunderstood--I misunderstood it myself when it occurred the first time! In a perfect world, I'd see this woman without her dog and try to explain my dog's behavior. The behavoirist I use actually told me labs occasionally display this behavior, too. She has three and she said the lab is a very social breed, similar to the Boxer.

I do need to work on this behavior and I have been hampered a bit by the fact I had knee surgery 6 weeks ago and until 1-2 weeks ago, carrying treats along on a walk wasn't as important as maintaining my balance and ensuring the need to avoid making a quick move on my right leg. Now that we've passed that point, I have gotten to yummy liver treats out again, though admittedly they were on the counter yesterday evening! I suppose this "event" will nudge me toward working on Tae's manners some. I definitely want to have a well-mannered dog. We are starting a beginning CGC class on Jan 10 (completed beginning obedience in March of this year). I am very excited b/c the behaviorist I have used is teaching it and I feel she really knows what she's doing!