Name:   MAJ USA RET - Subject:   Please! Can we Play? Date:   7/5/2012 10:06:21 AM

When we walk our golden retriever, “Gumdrop” along the trails of the dead StillWaters golf course, we frequently encounter other dogs.  Gumdrop does not walk on a leash.  She is obedience trained:  voice-whistle-hand signals.

For example, there is “Dixie.”  Dixie is huge.  Dixie never… at first…likes Gumdrop when we go by her house… or when she is being exercised by her owner.  So, we order Gumdrop to sit… and then down.  Dixie sniffs her… then, when tails start wagging… the two of them romp and play in the open field.

There is the man with the two working retrievers (I think they are black… maybe chocolate… labs).  He is training those dogs to hunt.  When he is out “tossing the bird”, we know he doesn’t need a big slobbery golden running through his training.  As much as Gumdrop would like to play, we keep her next to us… heel position… until we are by.

But, if an owner is present, and they indicate they will allow their dog to play… we let them run.  Running is good for dogs.  We always ask if they can call their dog back after play.  Sometimes we call Gumdrop back so that they can grab their dog.

Then, there was the German Shepherd police dog.  The dog was walking with its policeman owner. I asked, “Can you call that dog back to you?”  He said, “Yes, of course!”  I said, “Let her go.” He let that dog loose and it came straight for Gumdrop… who, instinctively went down into submissive mode. The police dog came to a screeching halt over Gumdrop.  There was some sniffing… and then some tail wagging.  Then, they were off… high energy play.  Big dogs need that!

There are numerous other dogs on our walks… most of which are unrestrained.  Some raise a ruckus in their yards.  Gumdrop does not leave us to investigate.  If she shows interest, we call her back.  We know that some dogs will fiercely defend their territory.  

Some dogs leave their yards to investigate Gumdrop. We make Gumdrop stay with us until they get to know her.  The vast majority of dogs will not “defend” outside of their own territory.  

We know where the dogs to avoid are.  Those are pit-bulls, chows(including chow-mix), and Akitas.  We do NOT go into their areas unless we know the dogs are contained.  Notice the distinction… I did NOT say restrained.  Unless a big dog is trained, you cannot “restrain” it with a leash.

Gumdrop is my third dog trained under this method for voice-whistle-hand controls. Until recently, she has never been mauled.  Her training and submissiveness have always served her. This does not work in an encounter with an unconstrained, untrained dog which has been bred to be aggressive towards other animals.

Suddenly, our evening walks are very restricted.  Gumdrop will drop to her submissive position, BEFORE we go into certain areas of our community… Places we can’t go anymore. 

She can’t go and play with Murphy anymore.