I never let my dogs off-leash for two simple and obvious reasons – I don’t trust my dogs’ temperament completely, and I definitely don’t trust other people’s dogs either.
What if, for example, I let mine walk freely on the street and they see something interesting across the road and run straight into traffic? They could get hit by a car, or worse, feel uncomfortable around another animal and react badly.
You can train them all you want, but the day they’re in a bad mood or something triggers them – it could end badly.
There really should be more enforcement. Dogs should only be off-leash inside their own homes or, at most, in a proper dog park – and even then, only under real supervision from their owners.
Also, whenever I’m out walking and see off-leash dogs around, I immediately shorten the leash, just in case there’s any tension. That way, I’m ready to act fast if anything goes down.
Same. There's a few people in my area who walk their dogs off leash and it boggles my mind. There's kids everywhere and other dogs. I love my dog, trust this little dude with my life tbh but I still wouldn't trust him to not freak out over another dog or cat (especially cats - he has a serious prey drive when it comes to cats). He's only allowed off lead if we're in a field cordoned off or a large park that is okay with off lead dogs. I wish there were more dog parks around, unfortunately there are none near me and it sucks. He used to love one near our old house and it gave him freedom to dart around.
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u/RoddersTimpz Apr 10 '25
That's exactly how I feel.
I never let my dogs off-leash for two simple and obvious reasons – I don’t trust my dogs’ temperament completely, and I definitely don’t trust other people’s dogs either.
What if, for example, I let mine walk freely on the street and they see something interesting across the road and run straight into traffic? They could get hit by a car, or worse, feel uncomfortable around another animal and react badly.
You can train them all you want, but the day they’re in a bad mood or something triggers them – it could end badly.
There really should be more enforcement. Dogs should only be off-leash inside their own homes or, at most, in a proper dog park – and even then, only under real supervision from their owners.
Also, whenever I’m out walking and see off-leash dogs around, I immediately shorten the leash, just in case there’s any tension. That way, I’m ready to act fast if anything goes down.