How to deal with Dogs?

[VeganWheels]

Any suggestions please?
I have considered carrying a can of Pepper spray,even though they are not legal in UK.
I live in very rural area & where most people make their livings from Farming.
I encounter dogs most rides at some point,tipping point was this Sunday chased by two collies,a springer & then almost forced to ditch with a large Alsatian charging towards me.
Animal lover & don't want to harm the dogs,as it's owners that are at fault for letting their dog's roam free.

 

[Slick]

Dogs love to chase things, I just stop as that confuses them long enough for their owner to get them under control.

 

[VeganWheels]

Stuff that,the Alsatian I encountered saw me coming & was bounding towards me ,very often the dogs I encounter, the owners are nowhere to be seen.

 

[Binka]

I wouldn’t try and pepper spray an aggressive dog, I’d be worried it would make it worse. 🤷‍♀️ And by the time you’ve got the spray out your bag/pocket, got the lid off, etc the dog’s going to be on you.

i had to bail off my bike when attacked by a Doberman earlier this year. Owners were out of sight. I got the bike between me and the dog and used the bike to fend the dog off while screaming at the dog. Seemed to work.

 

[Landsurfer]

Frame fitting pumps ...... one whack across the muzzle is all it takes .... but my first line of defence is just to stop ..... they like to play chase ...

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Don't see a one size fits all answer here, each occasion is different, some dogs will just chase that's all they want to do, there's no aggression, others unfortunately see a fleeing animal & going for the kill especially if there are several.

Often as above slowing/stopping & challenging the dog works, staring, shouting with clenched teeth often produces the right amount of aggression to get a backdown reaction, but I would hate to advise that & then you meet the one that doesn't care.

You can try the pump, but a focused big dog will just brush that off & come again.

 

[mudsticks]

Any suggestions please?
I have considered carrying a can of Pepper spray,even though they are not legal in UK.
I live in very rural area & where most people make their livings from Farming.
I encounter dogs most rides at some point,tipping point was this Sunday chased by two collies,a springer & then almost forced to ditch with a large Alsatian charging towards me.
Animal lover & don't want to harm the dogs,as it's owners that are at fault for letting their dog's roam free.

That's been one upside of a decline of dairy* farms in my area.

Fewer packs of swivel eyed collies laying in wait for hapless cyclists.

If the dog is big or aggressive it's your right to fight back, if it's just a terrier trying to nip your tyres you can out ride it.

As others have said stopping and facing them off can work.. Use your bike to defend yourself.

But at some point you still have to get going again , and it's scarey.

A bop on the nose with a pump to show em who is boss, may be in order, and may prevent someone else, less able being molested .

A dog trainng friend of mine uses nothing more technical than an empty plastic bag to show them how to respect space and pecking order.

They don't like the sudden ballooning effect when it's shaken in their faces, and of course it doesn't hurt them. but I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to reach for a placcy bag over a pump, when faced with a snarling hound.

If people, cared about their dogs they wouldn't let them run free on the road, it's a menace to everyone.

* This decline may even be your doing in part - so you just have to convert everyone to veganism.. No more mad collies..

One dairy farm I milked at, the cow dog would grab a tyre lugs in its teeth as the tractor was moving, and get a circular ride round with the wheel.. Nuts..

Funnily enough the postie insisted on a mailbox at the road end of the driveway.

I'm wondering if one of those loud air horns, to blast in its face would help.. Might also alert the owner to the fact that something was going on too.

 

[Drago]

Pepper spray is a section 5 firearm. You're pretty much guaranteed a stay in prison if you're caught with it. As far as the law is concerned it's the same as having an unlicenced shotgun or a revolver.

The frame pump full of sand is an old classic. Personally, situational awareness and good obs drills have kept me clear of mutts over the years.

 

[tom73]

As @Drago points out your leaving yourself wide open to a fire arms change. Best of luck trying to one talk yourself out of it and two finding a job after. The other thing is in a blind panic it will be so easy to end up getting sprayed yourself. It's effects are no joke.

 

[Drago]

If you're just caught with it youre probably looking at 6-12 months, maybe suspended if youre incredibly lucky. If you've discharged it, or someone else has seen it and been put in fear,or you have an previous for violence or weapons offences then you can double that. I've sent otherwise law abiding people with no criminal records to jail for simply possessing CS or pepper (and electric shock devices too, which fall under the same legislation, s.5.1.b).

It's also not a good dog repellent. Like CO2, it'll either subdue them completely, or drive them into an absolute attacking frenzy, and if it's the latter then youre well and truly stuffed if it's a dog of any size.

Remember, pepper and CS aren't weapons as such in their effect - they cause pain and disorientation as a distraction technique. They're described as "incapacitant" sprays, but they dont do that at all - a bign bloke can punch you just as hard, and a dog will be able to sink its teeth into you just as painfully once you've sprayed them. They don't actually reduce an attackers ability to continue if they choose to do so or have the mental wherewithal to ignore the pain distraction, so even if you were to deploy it you really need a strategy to either help you continue the confrontation or exit the confrontation. Just spraying it and hoping for the best isn't sensible.

If you're not prepared to actually harm a dog in self defence, then avoidance is far and away your most effective tactic. Situational awareness, obs, and a willingness to take avoiding action are what is required.

 

[PeteXXX]

What about one of those inaudible (to humans) dog whistles on around your neck on a lanyard?

Any use, do the CC Massive think?

 

[steveindenmark]

The Transcontinental Race guys have tried all sorts of things. I have never heard of a silent whistle or electronic device that works. A spray with a waterbottle can work. If you are brave enough. The solutions seem to be sprint or stop, get off and get the bike between you and the dog and keep walking or retreat. Whistling is sometimes recommended. 😊

 

[VeganWheels]

Pepper spray is obviously not an option.
Really don't ever want to hurt any animal,suspect I may go down the route of carrying a pump on my bike future as a bit of a last resort.

 

[VeganWheels]

Pepper spray is a section 5 firearm. You're pretty much guaranteed a stay in prison if you're caught with it. As far as the law is concerned it's the same as having an unlicenced shotgun or a revolver.

The frame pump full of sand is an old classic. Personally, situational awareness and good obs drills have kept me clear of mutts over the years.

Our laws can be an arse at times

 

[Drago]

I would disagree, and i'm sure you would too if someone ever sprayed you with one. They can be nasty bits of kit in the wrong hands, and I'm quite glad that not every Tom, Dick or harry can get their grubby little mitts on such things in the UK.

This country is bad enough with a public that doesn't know how to behave itself, confrontations, Friday night fisticuffs and road range, and it would be a nightmare if CS, pepper or electric shock devices were chucked into the mix.