ridein said:
I currently live in Texas piney woods country and need a better idea to repel dogs during my rides. While the barking isn't too bad by itself, I don't like it when they are agitated and running next to me in the street. So far I've tried 1)riding offensively towards them, 2)yelling "BAD DOG" at them,
3)Halt-pepper spray specific to dogs, 4)emergency rape whistle, 5)air horn, 6)spraying energy drink/water and
7)spraying a bottle of vinegar/pepper/water mixture 8)water pistol w/vinegar. So far to date these have all had little to no success. The only suggestions I haven't tried are the "police grade" pepper spray and the bear grade pepper spray. Another is ultrasonic dog repeller, but the general opinion I've seen on the reviews is that they don't work. I really don't want to permanently harm the dog, but would like to give them an attitude adjustment from a cyclist POV.
Some thoughts:
1. Halt worked for me for most dogs for many years. You have to "jiggle" the spray as you spray to make sure it hits the dog. Just like people, some dogs don't mind hot stuff. Pit bull and fighting breed dogs, when they have a strong instinct, will tend to ignore pain, so may be among the dogs needing a different method.
2. It sounds to me like you aren't having a problem with many dogs, but rather one specific dog. Yeay or nay? If it is one dog, you can try the ammonia water mix, too. Should work better than vinegar.
3. If it is a particular dog, one has to wonder which instinct type it is enacting - prey, herding, guarding. Slightly different motivations, slightly different behavior responses. A herding dog might nip, but won't intentionally give a serious bite. A prey-motivated dog will usually stop when you do, since you are bigger. A guarding dog - best to keep moving along, imo, BUT --
4. Dog body language - turning your backside towards the dog, curving your back alignment so you are partially turned away, not looking the dog in the eye, not smiling or grimacing - are all calming moves dogs make to each other. A dog who is serious about calming a situation can help do so by even lying down on the ground. They don't need to roll over into a submissive pose, just lying down with their head still up is still a very calming gesture. I don't see how you could use this - but I do use the backside turn to calm excited dogs when training dogs. Of course, this is only useful if you decide to try the "stop and let the dog know you are a person" technique.
The dog may still decide, once you start moving again, that you are a fun target for a chase, or whatever. I tried stopping on occasion, but in my experience it was less successful than my Halt. I only had a couple of dogs who didn't respond to the Halt once they got hit. But it wasn't always easy hitting them - for me that was the hard part. If they didn't get hit - it wouldn't bother them.
It's just pepper water - so I wouldn't hesitate to use the bear spray myself. A dog in the street is no longer considered under the control of the owner in most legalese, I think. Some places a dog in the street without a leash is flat-out illegal. Not in my town, nor where I used to ride when I had to use Halt on a regular basis. The worst possible outcome from a severe pepper spray hit is still temporary. Ammonia could, I suppose, cause more severe burning - and could cause permanent damage, but I think it would have to be full-strength, in the eyes, and a real dousing for that.
I wonder if you could buy skunk spray online. (tongue in cheek, but you never know!)
Tricycle Rider said:
Dog behavior 101 - some dogs like it when you run/try to get away, they see it as a challenge and they will go after you.
A few years back when I still used to run I had a Rottweiler barking and chasing me, I just decided to stop because I knew I would never outrun him in case he decided to attack. I crossed my arms in front of my chest and stomach in order to protect the most vital of my organs, I was expecting immense pain because I thought he would bite me.
He just ended up circling me, giving me a dirty look and growling at me, and then he just ran off to wherever he had come from.
I'm not trying to minimize the frustration with stray dogs, I'm just saying understanding the most basic of dog behavior might be of some help.