Photo source: morguefile.com
Editor’s note: This post first appeared on Nextdoor.com and was republished with permission by Harrison Keenan.
I’m trying to find the right way to say this without coming across as hostile: People of Happy Valley, y’all really need to manage your dogs better. It’s a nearly weekly occurrence that a dog has escaped its property to chase me down, attempting to attack me.
I’m a unique situation; I live in Happy Valley but I work in Redding. Without a car, I have to longboard to and from town daily. Sometimes I am coming home at 1 am. Daytime or night, it should not be happening. (It’s more frequent at night, but it happens during both. Maybe I just don’t see them out as much since the owners are awake, able to wrangle their pet.)
During the day, when the dog is chasing me down and the owner is nearby, I am hit with a slew of excuses while they make minimal effort to retrieve their animal. It’s not just in Happy Valley; dogs that are off leash/escaped their leash are in Redding as well. “He’s just saying ‘Hi!'” “Don’t worry, he’s friendly,” they say as the animal is barring its teeth, spreading its feet in an aggressive stance, hackles are raised, etc.
That, or they somehow find a way to justify the situation as something I am responsible for: “Stop walking like ____. If you walk like ____ dogs will attack you.”
Mind you, I’m just walking down a trail while this person’s dog has escaped its leash and is squaring up on me.
“Stop running! You’re encouraging him to chase you!”
I’m in fear for my life. I’m running. It’s not on me to stop your poorly trained animal.
Something y’all got to understand; dogs pick up on energy. I’m afraid of dogs. That fear is transmuted into animosity toward the owner when they’re making excuses, showing near to no urgency to retrieve and get a handle on their escaped animal, and/or blaming me. The dog picks up on that, making it double down on its aggression towards me, perceiving my frustration and anger toward their owner as a threat.
It is not my responsibility to control my emotions when it is a situation I have not consented to. Your dog is loose and is approaching me while I’m in public. I am not going to a place where I know someone owns a dog. I am only responsible for my actions, not how I feel when I’m pissed at you for losing control of your dog.
All that being said, if you’re not going to train your animal to not charge people, at least ensure your gates are secure and your fences are in tip-top condition so your dogs can’t escape. Fence maintenance should at least be weekly, if not daily. I don’t understand how people get a dog, then don’t understand (or don’t care) what they need to do to keep it contained at the very least, let alone train it.
If you’re not going to manage your animal for the altruistic reason of keeping the community safe, consider this: I see dead animals all the time, hit by cars. I can’t image you want that.
I’m a tall young man in peak physical condition for someone who isn’t an athlete. I exercise daily. If I can just barely escape a chase down by a dog while skateboarding at full tilt, what do you think is going to happen if the dog perceives a child as a threat? Maybe it’s unlikely since kids don’t give off “bad vibes” but the chances aren’t zero.
All week, kids get off the bus all the time in areas where dogs escape. Your dog is your property. Altruistically, you wouldn’t want a child hurt, or worse. If you have to be selfish, think of it this way: If your dog hurts/kills a kid, your dog will likely be put down, you’ll have to pay for medical bills, you may be sued or even (heaven forbid) have to fork out funeral costs. You may even have to pay for therapy if the attack is psychologically traumatizing enough.
I’ve been lucky that I haven’t been severely injured. But I’m in good shape, and am perfectly built to escape an attack. Most people aren’t.
I love animals. I used to love dogs; at least I did until I moved out here where this is such a common occurrence that now, I’m afraid of dogs. I don’t want to pepper spray, or have to use a taser on your dog. I don’t want to stab it, I don’t want to smack it with my skateboard or a stick, and I definitely don’t want to kill it. I believe life is beautiful, and violence is a last resort.
But if I am being attacked, or if I see someone else being attacked, I have no choice but to defend myself or someone else who’s being attacked by a dog. I don’t like guns, so I won’t go that far, but I’m sure someone out here won’t have the same qualms. My own brother, who no longer lives in the area, was considering buying a firearm because the aggressive dog issue is so severe. Eventually, someone out there certainly will defend themselves or others during a dog attack, and the result could become lethal for your pet.
So, no, I will not feel bad for pepper spraying or using a taser on your escaped dog if it’s coming after me. If it’s out of its territory, it has no right to attack me. If I’m in a situation where I feel in danger, there’s a moving car, I won’t hesitate to put the dog’s path in front of the moving vehicle to end the threat.
I just want a safe community. Walking really helps my mental health, but I haven’t been able to do it around here recently. I don’t feel safe with dogs running up on me, some of them seriously aggressive.
I’m sure you dog owners love your pets. I’m sure you don’t want any harm to come to them. But the truth of the situation is I’m not the only one getting sick of this. We will defend ourselves. Not everyone is as avoidant of violence as I am. Please, keep your dogs contained.
Harrison Keenan lives in Olinda. He believes that everyone can benefit from exercise, and that having safe, walkable, bikeable, skateable neighborhoods — even in rural areas like Olinda and Happy Valley — can not just improve people’s mental health, but it can help keep teens out of trouble. Harrison, 25, hopes to bring awareness to the importance of creating and maintaining safe neighborhoods, free from aggressive dogs and other hazards. Finally, when he’s not walking or riding his longboard, he’s working, or seeking work. He favors outside labor doing everything from livestock pen cleaning, weed eating, lawn mowing and digging holes, to hauling manure. He’s available for farm hand/barn work, and general maintenance. He can be reached at hkeenan2024@gmail.com or on Nextdoor.com.
