We have heard of deerhounds being maligned when attacked by other dogs because they are big,deerhounds knocking children over,chasing cattle and sheep,and even being kicked in the head for approaching strangers....
So the question is when is it ok to let a dog off lead in today's society??

90% of the time my lot are off lead, we dont have cattle or sheep,
near by, the places we walk are nature reserves(sp), we do meet lots of people
but out of courtesy to the other person, i hold on to layla till they have passed,
the other dogs have been taught that they have not to approch other people, unless invited,
and they have been taught not to approch other dogs aswell - with a wait command,
layla is still learning this with regards to people, but dogs she dosent know, she will not go rushing over to, nether the less i still tend to just hold her a second, to instill the command, round hear most people know each other, and everyone who walks their dogs round hear know each other, but i just find its commen courtesy to reel the dogs in if someone approching.

My dogs arnt perfect by any means, but the one thing i will not allow is bad manners
all my dogs are well scocalised with people and all different types of dogs,
most have been scocalised from being 5 weeks old, but with the way todays society
is going, there is a lot of risk out there, a lot of councils are now stopping people letting their dogs off lead, im not to sure, but i think its nott's council, that have (or are) putting out an order that in most public places dogs are not to be let off lead, eventualy other councils will take note and stop dogs being let off lead, especaly if they get complaints.

According to the law a dog must always be under control in a public place. This does not necessary mean being on a lead but can just be obedient to it's owners commands. Unfortunately Ben's recall is not reliable so I do have to be careful.

I will always let Ben off lead when I know there are no people or dogs around that I do not know but am carefull if in doubt. I can afford to careful and have him on lead when out more than many people as I am lucky in having 2 acres at home for him to run around in.

Obviously on roads a dog should always be on the lead and also anywhere where it could be a danger to other people or itself if tempted to chase something.

Unfortunately the way things are going with dogs I suspect that in time the "Under Control" clause in the law will be changed to "On lead".

I spoke to the local Police about this. They reckon the letter of the law is, dog on leash, collar and name tag. Technically if you let your dog off a leash, even if he is 'controlled' you are breaking the law and can be done just for letting them off.

So you need to be somewhere that doesnt have other distractions like humans and other dogs. Good luck with that one. Having said that, when we had our dear departed Lurcher, I dont remember seeing any dog on a leash where we used to take him!

Haswell wrote:


9 times out of 10, the police dont actualy know the law properly regarding dogs,
its only an offence to let your dog off lead on a public highway, but that does depend on where you are, in the countryside you can walk your dog off lead on a public foot path, solong as its under close controal, at certain times of years dogs are restricted to being on lead, again depending on where you are.




A lot of times councils can put out dog controal orders or bye-laws, to specfy where you are allowed to walk your dog and were you can let them off lead, so with any matter its best to check your councils website, most beaches now, you can not take a dog on at all during certain periods, wether its on lead or not, we have two beaches that we can walk on at any time of year, and the dogs are allowed off lead, but these beaches are just dog beaches, not many people go on without dogs.

its always worth knowing what the law is regarding dogs, as one day you could end up needing it.
www.endangereddogs.com/EDDRDogLaw.htm

Jane's correct about a lead not being compulsary in a public place except for a highway or anywhere there is a dog control order. A dog must however wear a collar with Id tag in a public place. It is an offence for a dog to be dangerously out of control in a public place and even if on-lead and it pulls the lead out of the owners hand or slips its collar and becomes out of control that would be deemed an offence.

These conditions do not apply if you have the landowners permission to be there with a dog even if the public are permitted, ie open access land.

On footpaths a dog must be under close control if not on-lead and if they chase farm animals they can be shot by a farmer or siezed by the authorities. I guess with most Deerhounds it's not a good idea for them to be off-lead in a field with sheep/cattle as most Deerhounds recall is not reliable. Deffra strongly recommend that you do not take a dog into a field where there are livestock and definately not if they are off-lead.

Good question Dr. Grumpy - when is it okay to let a dog off lead in today's society?

Seems never unless you're at a dog park and there's big signs saying it's okay to do so, otherwise you're breaking some law or another. In practice however owners do want to let their dogs have a run and a sniff off lead and unless they have large gardens they need to use public spaces.

More and more the single detached home with garden is becoming a thing of the past. Townhouses, condos and the like are taking over and if these people want to own dogs...public parks are the only green spaces they can readily access.

We need more dog parks, places where people who think dogs are dirty or dangerous can avoid

Give the council a hard time over this, we need space too. Dog walkers can use dog parks knowing that the other folk in there shouldn't be yelling and throwing themselves about because a dog approaches them.

Because more and more people are growing up with distorted views of animals and the dangers they face from them, us dog folk need our own area where we can speak with other normal people.

www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/397

Information here...

Moe information here.

www.direct.gov.uk/en/Home.../Dogs/DG_180008

feldandjack wrote:


I think dog parks are a good idea, but it would give councils more incentive
to ban dogs from other areas, mind you doubt our council would give us dog
parks anyway, they wont even give us dog bins - say it will cause dogs to poop more .

I have two points to make at the moment,I could be wrong but this is how I interpret the rules...

1.Out of control does not mean running about or sniffing people or other dogs
2.If a Dog Control Order is in place in an area,it is the responibility of the local council to ensure that properly visible signage is in place,and it is not down to the dog owner to presume one is in place just because signs allowing dogs are not seen.

hairybeasty wrote:


There is no definition of what out of controal means, to each and every person its different, your dog barking behind a fence, can be classed as out of controal, even though its behind a fence, and cant do any damage.



The general consensus of under controal - generally means that a dog responds to commands and is kept close at heel, so if you have someone whos frightend of dogs, and your dog approch's them, and they are frightend they could get hurt, even though they dont, it can be classed as your dog is out of controal, just cause we love dogs we should never assume that every one likes, or wants to be fussed by our dogs.

Your second point, is correct - its down to the council to put signs in place.

Just down the road from me there was a case of local kids, riding their motorbikes
on the ajacent land, its council land - there are no signs up saying you cant,
these kids were caught by the police, becauses there were no signs, the police could do nothing and had to let them go - bikes and all, few days later signs were put up,
stating no bikes, no cars etc were allowed on that land, under such a law - they could be prosacuted. We do have a desagnated area - that anyone can take their motorbikes down to and ride till their hearts content, but the council has made it harder, for the local kids to get their bikes down there, by placeing gates at certain ponts, so they can not go through

chook wrote:


Exactly right,but note that you are talking about dogs intimidating and scaring people and/or their dogs,and I was talking about dogs running about and sniffing stuff...to me,that is were the distinction lies..people who have aggressive dogs must surely be aware of the fact and if they let them off lead,they deserve to be fined,and the dog removed from their possession....as far as I see it,the rest of us good owners should not be tarred with the same brush....would be interested to see what others think on this(and you chook)

Oh and really grumpy now...just seen this topic has been veiwed 152 times...yet it is only 5 or so people replying...THIS AFFECTS US ALL!!!!......WHEN YOU LOSE THE RIGHT TO EXERCISE your dog on PUBLIC land...dont come crying to me...

hairybeasty wrote:
Exactly right,but note that you are talking about dogs intimidating and scaring people and/or their dogs,and I was talking about dogs running about and sniffing stuff...to me,that is were the distinction lies..people who have aggressive dogs must surely be aware of the fact and if they let them off lead,they deserve to be fined,and the dog removed from their possession....as far as I see it,the rest of us good owners should not be tarred with the same brush....would be interested to see what others think on this(and you chook)[/quote]


If a dog is running round sniffing bush's, grass etc, and ignoreing people and other animals
and responds to its owner, then no its not out of controal, but if its approching people and other dogs - invading their space,without being invited, then that dog is plain rude.

www.nesr.info/images-engl...s-to-say-hi.pdf

Agressive dogs are obviously to be kept on theleash. But there are dogs that might run to strangers, just to say a friendly hello. But these strangers may be afraid of dogs, and deerhounds are quite large. We must understand that not all humans love dogs, and are able to read their intentions, even if friendly.
A very important precaution to let the dogs run offleash is that they are under enough control to get called back when reasons require this.

Here where I live, the possibility to let the dogs run free are somewhat limited. I can do it on he beach, but it is not really legal in the summertime. Well, if I get early up and can be at the beach at 5am, I have it all to myself, and the dogs, noone gets offended, noone checks..

OK KimC,what I am getting at is that although a dog approaches another,or a human without invitation,it is not guilty of an offence under British law..and therefore it's actions,unless aggressive,are of no consequence...
I understand that you excersize your lot at 5 am in order to avoid any problems...but what about those of us who do not have the luxury of empty beaches?
In the uk,the foreshore(covered and uncovered by the tide)is at the moment owned by the crown,and none but the police have jurisdiction there....no byelaws exsist...
I dont know what the laws state in your country, but this is exactly the erosion of civil liberties that I am protesting against in the UK..you state "it is not really legal in the summertime" to take dogs on the beach...and my point is that unless your dog is aggressive...where is the problem...??

OK KimC,what I am getting at is that although a dog approaches another,or a human without invitation,it is not guilty of an offence under British law..and therefore it's actions,unless aggressive,are of no consequence...
I understand that you excersize your lot at 5 am in order to avoid any problems...but what about those of us who do not have the luxury of empty beaches?
In the uk,the foreshore(covered and uncovered by the tide)is at the moment owned by the crown,and none but the police have jurisdiction there....no byelaws exsist...
I dont know what the laws state in your country, but this is exactly the erosion of civil liberties that I am protesting against in the UK..you state "it is not really legal in the summertime" to take dogs on the beach...and my point is that unless your dog is aggressive...where is the problem...??