ridein said:
Thanks for your honest reply, unlike "Tricycle Rider" snarky replies
Regarding your points:
1) Yes, Halt did have some effect and I aimed for the eyes whenever they were less than 8 feet away.
2) No, not a specific dog. It seems that people in the country don't really care where their dog(s) roam, therefore I'm the one that has to discipline them.
3) It seems to me the dogs are guarding their owner's property, since the strays typically won't chase after me.
4) So you're saying how dogs act to each other is directly translatable to how humans respond to them?
Another idea I had for a dog repellent was to use a predatory animal urine like mountain lion, wolf or bear. Although I might end up smelling pretty bad myself for the rest of the ride.
BigMac said:
Are you sure you're not trolling here? This whole situation seems odd. And this comment... no words.
Where do you plan to get the urine? Politely ask those predatory animals to **** in a jar? Roll on their urine in the woods? From black-market?
And would you bath yourself in such thing before each ride?
...seriously.
Cool links to urine supplies!

Man o man! Love it! Laughing!
Ok - back to biz.
General dog response - a bunch of dogs where you are seem to be in guarding behavior out into the street and it is acceptable to the local culture where you are. Ok, I can believe that. Matter-of-fact, I think I've lived in such neighborhoods. Yeah - I can see it - strays don't chase - only guarding dogs chase. Ok.
And, Halt type sprays have a single stream to aim, not a "cloud". Based on the responses here, the "bear" spray is a dispersed cloud. That has disadvantages when you are riding, because, by definition, the air you are spraying into whilst riding is moving. With Halt, like I said, I had problems making sure I HIT the target dog. I more often did not hit the dog. It isn't easy to aim this skinny little single stream spray backwards at a target you can't be looking at while you are also looking at the road in front of you.
So, at this point, I will divide the problem into two forks. Is the problem not hitting the dogs with the spray? Or is the problem that the dogs are resistant to the spray. If they are resistant, the obvious first choice is to try a different spray - and I go back to ammonia. Ammonia is a traditional repellant - and I have respect for tradition. I would not be shy with the concentration, either. Ammonia is a byproduct of natural processes - as urine and ****e break down, ammonia is produced.
If the problem is that the dogs are not getting hit (which I discount based on your testimony) - then we need to change how we spray, eh?
As for dogs responding to body language - yes - they do. They respond to ppl co-opting dog body language. Maybe not as much as we want - but it does work as part of "the mix". I've spent the last 5 years training a couple of dogs, and in the process learning a lot about training dogs. I already knew more than average about training dogs, because I grew up in a family with a parent who was breeding and training dogs. But, for the first time in 40 years, I have added to what I learned way back then about training dogs. Yeah, they respond to my body language, but no, it isn't like a universal command. Some dogs respond better than others. It is a part of the story - not the theme, ok?