We routinely walk thru the neighborhood in the early evening. While I always CCW, for these walks I 'carry' a traditional wood walking stick. Twice now I've had to 'swat' aggressive dogs away. Not interested in shooting someones pet, but will if necessary.

quote:

Originally posted by neverfollow:
We routinely walk thru the neighborhood in the early evening. While I always CCW, for these walks I 'carry' a traditional wood walking stick. Twice now I've had to 'swat' aggressive dogs away. Not interested in shooting someones pet, but will if necessary.

Yeah all of the walking stick suggestions seem to make sense. Just ordered one of these Cold Steel Walkabout Sticks we'll see how it works.

In addition to all of the great suggestions, can you take a walking route with your children that does not pass by this particular house?

Why expose them to the anxiety of possibly being ‘attacked’ again if you don’t have to?

quote:

Originally posted by Cookster:
In addition to all of the great suggestions, can you take a walking route with your children that does not pass by this particular house?

Why expose them to the anxiety of possibly being ‘attacked’ again if you don’t have to?

Thanks for the concern for my kids. Always amazes me what a great group of people are on here.

The kids were over it within a few minutes so I think they'll be okay, but I'll still avoid the house. It was really just a bunch of jumping and licking so the kids were crying because of the excitement, but they're not traumatized. Unfortunately I'm the one who is fully aware of how quickly things can turn to shit, so I'm left kicking myself for letting it happen.

I walk with a cane that has a heavy chrome ball (similar to the ball on a trailer hitch). It's just the ticket when dealing with dogs you don't want to shoot.

This may not be the best option, but it is a good option, a Livestock Whip. Longer than a baseball bat, and can deliver a very strong sting of pain. It will break the sound barrier and make that loud noise.

Live Stock Whip LINK
.

When I walk my small dogs, I have my normal pepper spray and knife that I carry standard. I also bring a BlackSwift Walking Stick. It's lightweight fiberglass but used for impact.

You can't shoot dogs that are attacking your dogs but you can shoot them if they're attacking you. I suppose that goes for your kids too.

I've used the stick to ward off unleashed dogs several times while holding the leash of my dogs behind me. I haven't yet contacted any dogs with the stick.

I usually always carry a can of Bear spray or mace from Costco. a walking stick is another good option. Inside most City limits it is a violation for a owner to walk there dogs unleashed in a public area like a neighborhood park.

Please know your laws because some laws limit the amount of mace you can carry in public?

I’d be wary of using pepper spray due to blowback on your kids and yourself. 1-3 kids hit with pepper spray doesn’t sound like fun. If you get it too then you’re in an impaired state trying to deal with your kids and a dog. I accidentally let a small spurt out in my bedroom. It was away from my face but it was enough to make me very uncomfortable. If I were you I’d mix it.

quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
This may not be the best option, but it is a good option, a Livestock Whip. Longer than a baseball bat, and can deliver a very strong sting of pain. It will break the sound barrier and make that loud noise.

Live Stock Whip LINK
.

Brother, I cannot, for the life of me, think of a weapon that I'd feel less confident deploying next to my kids than a bull whip, lol. Surely a good option for a man more skilled than me!

quote:

Originally posted by kobra:
Please know your laws because some laws limit the amount of mace you can carry in public?

I'll read up on the laws - good catch.

quote:

Originally posted by berto:
I’d be wary of using pepper spray due to blowback on your kids and yourself. 1-3 kids hit with pepper spray doesn’t sound like fun. If you get it too then you’re in an impaired state trying to deal with your kids and a dog. I accidentally let a small spurt out in my bedroom. It was away from my face but it was enough to make me very uncomfortable. If I were you I’d mix it.

Good point. I'm hoping the stick will work for most situations. I'll probably carry the spray as well just in case but your point is a good one regarding when to use it.

quote:

Originally posted by Rey HRH:
When I walk my small dogs, I have my normal pepper spray and knife that I carry standard. I also bring a BlackSwift Walking Stick. It's lightweight fiberglass but used for impact.

You can't shoot dogs that are attacking your dogs but you can shoot them if they're attacking you. I suppose that goes for your kids too.

I've used the stick to ward off unleashed dogs several times while holding the leash of my dogs behind me. I haven't yet contacted any dogs with the stick.

I came across BlackSwift while I was researching walking stick options. Good to hear that you like it. I decided to go with something heavier but if it doesn't work out I'll check out BlackSwift again.

quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
This may not be the best option, but it is a good option, a Livestock Whip. Longer than a baseball bat, and can deliver a very strong sting of pain. It will break the sound barrier and make that loud noise.

Live Stock Whip LINK
.

But then you have to wear those Gay looking leather chaps if your out in public with that thing.

I’d go with a taser and a police report. Pepper spray is too likely to get on the kids. Seems you’re well prepared to deal with any objections the owners might have.

I too have a BlackSwift Stick. Quite effective piece of gear!

quote:

Originally posted by Cookster:
In addition to all of the great suggestions, can you take a walking route with your children that does not pass by this particular house?

Why expose them to the anxiety of possibly being ‘attacked’ again if you don’t have to?

Having read through all the posts, this is what I was going to suggest.
Still would be a good idea to have some form of defense, in case of other dogs.

Here's a site for some lovely sticks.

https://oldeshillelagh.com/

A water bottle that can squirt. Several times while bicycling I've been harassed by dogs enough to be quite worried. Squirting them in the face with water disorients them. It won't stop a malicious attack intended to harm you, but it will stop a bluff or a dog like you encountered.

I would also carry mace or a stick as an elevated level of response.

I watched a video on just such an issue last week. Get hold of the dogs collar or use your belt if no collar in place. Lift the dog by the collar and twist the collar. This method shuts off the wind pipe. Stop short of suffocating the dog. The dog will retreat.

That whip displayed is not a bull whip by any sense of the word. I used to use one like that when helping a friend on his cattle farm. It’s a fiberglass rod with woven nylon surrounding it. There is about 10” at the top that does not have the fiberglass inside, tied to that is the nylon string. You just snap it like a fishing rod and it makes a loud crack. It’ll stop a 1000lb steer, it should work for a dog. If it doesn’t stop, then smack the dog with it. It’ll sting it a bit but no long term damage.

Sounds like a dog that really likes kids and has not been trained to control itself. It is great that it was just aggressively friendly versus plain aggressive.

Decisively putting yourself between the kids and an approaching dog is a good start. Think practically charging the dog, but not getting far from your kids. With luck, an adult aggressively blocking and yelling STOP! may give the dog pause. If the dog won’t stop, pinning him like you did is great. With an aggressive dog, stopping/backing him off with a cane or walking stick may be better (and safer) than getting close enough to pin him. Being loud and projecting authority should help with the dog and any witnesses. Hopefully it may wake the owners up.

Hitting a dog with a cane or a walking stick might upset some owners, but if you told him to stop and he didn’t, that’s on him (or his owner who failed to properly train and/or manage him). I’d feel a lot more comfortable using a cane, walking stick, broomstick with a nail, etc rather than a spray or a taser, but to each their own.