Hi Burt,

I agree with you that using a squirt gun with ammonia water might be
unnecessarily cruel. It could make the dog unduly anxious to find his owner
suddenly blinded and screaming for help :)

Seriously, I think the best response is to be as non-judgmental as possible
while making it clear that it's not okay with you to be approached
aggressively by a dog, regardless of whether it's bluffing or not. It's
very hard to deliver criticism that doesn't sound self-righteous or
judgmental, especially when one has just been frightened, but unless you
can master that you're more than likely to evoke a defensive and angry
(even dangerous) response.

It would be nice if we could have some S.O.D.A. folks chime in here.

Marc Hoffman
Kirkland, WA
http://www.dartfrogmedia.com
mailto:tweeters at dartfrogmedia.com

At 01:15 PM 10/10/2005, you wrote:
>As some others have said, fairness requires us to acknowledge that there
>are inconsiderate idiots of all stripes, both doggy and nondoggy, birdy
>and nonbirdy. I happen to be a nondoggy person, and generally that
>doesn't pose a problem while birding or just walking. But the dog-owners
>I just adore are those who allow their unleashed dog to run far out of
>their control, to rush at you and stand barking like mad a few feet away,
>looking as though at any moment it will jump you and tear out your
>throat. And then the owner casually strolls up and says nonchalantly,
>"Oh, he won't hurt you." If anyone knows an appropriate reaction to that
>situation, I've love to hear it. I've known of people who carry
>squirt-guns with ammonia water, but that seems unnecessarily cruel, and
>likely to have negative repercussions from both dog and owner.
>
>Burt Guttman