What to do if I am with my dog and an aggressive and unleashed dog approaches us?

Question

There are plenty of instructions on what to do if approached by a dog, for example this one : http://www.wikihow.com/Handle-a-Dog-Attack . I don't see anything new there, have been using similar approach, despite never reading any instructions or guides on how to handle dog attacks.

But how does this change if I have my dog with me? And he is the target of the other dog?

I have an English springer spaniel and when we walk, sometimes we come across unleashed dogs who approach and start fighting, and don't follow their owner's commands. German shepherd, staffordshire terrier and boxer, those are the breeds.

I can tell my dog to stand still, I can put the leash on him. But trying to not let a fight happen can be difficult at times. And breaking one up as well.

Shouting angrily in a deep voice works most of the time. But sometimes dogs just ignore me, and try to ran past me to attack my dog.

Another question, related to first one, what should I do if some dog is biting mine, and not letting go? I have not had this happen to me, but a neighbor had his collie badly hurt by a boxer. He was unable to get him off until boxer's owner came.

There is plenty of information on these questions on the internet, but it is hard for me to understand the quality of information in this case. And I don't want to do something stupid if the described situation happens. I hope that here I will get answers from knowledgeable people, typical to StackExchange communities.

Thank you!

Answer 1

Your dog is being attacked, the other dog is being vicious, and you need to get him off as soon as possible. What can you do?

When dogs act like this, their focus is very singular: they see nothing but their target. What you need to do is re-direct their focus long enough for you to escape the situation.

My dog has been in fights with other dogs often, (his nature is very pushy, but he isn't dominant enough to back it up) and often ends up at the mercy of the other dogs. All I have been able to do to get them off my dog is to bring their attention away from my dog, onto me. This unfortunately often involves violence, as in the heat of the moment, there is little else you can do.

The response required to distract the attacker also depends on the ferocity of the dog, sometimes you may just be able to kick the other dog away, and pull yours to safety, but other times, I have personally been required to physically overpower the other dog, and have ended up taking some damage myself.

If anyone has any better solutions, please let me know too!