Riley came into my life in June of 2003. In the months following her adoption from the SPCA she was the perfect dog. I took her to off leash parks where she played well with other dogs.
July, August, September, October, November and December were wonderful. When winter set in, we began taking our walks closer to home. One February afternoon, we were at the soccer field. There was another woman there with her dog, Yahtzee. I recognized them from the dog park.
Riley had played with Yahtzee on several occasions. As the dog approached, Riley lunged and began attacking him. Thankfully, the confrontation was quickly diffused with minimal damage. Little did I know, that moment marked the start of a long journey as the owner of a dog aggressive dog.
I made several phone calls to speak with trainers. The one I worked with told me that there was little that could be done to change her aggressive tendencies. It’s somewhat disappointing to find this out because all I wanted was a normal dog. As a child, we had a cocker spaniel that never played with other dogs, never really cared much for people and seemed more interested in eating garbage off the ground than anything else. I dreamed of the day when I had my own dog, a dog that I could take hiking, one that would fetch a ball and go on adventures with me.
The best solution the trainer offered was for me to learn how to manage her behavior. We did a lot of leash work. I learned what to do if we encountered another dog on a walk. It took a lot of practice to get to the point where I felt in control on a walk. I spent a considerable amount of time, working with Riley because it was my obligation, to become the most responsible owner possible.
One problem I have with this is the way in which people perceive me as the owner. Aggressive dog come in all sizes. Little, 10-pound dogs can be aggressive as well, although their barks are far less fierce than those which come out of my 75-pound Riley.
Just because my dog is mouthy and looks like she wants to take a chunk out of your beagle, doesn’t mean that I am a bad person. Some days I feel like I need to carry a sign around that says, “My dog isn’t friendly, but I am.”
The second problem I have is with people who think that it is ok to allow their dog to walk off leash in the neighborhood. First off, it is illegal. Your dog might be friendly, but mine is not. It’s frustrating to walk three quarters of the way up the block, only to find an off leash dog, running around on someone’s front lawn. I never know if that dog will try to approach mine, which leaves me with no option other than to turn around and take a different route.
Despite her idiosyncrasies, Riley is a good dog. She’s never shown any signs of aggression toward another person and she loves me, unconditionally.
