Friday, January 22, 2010

January 22, 2010

I don't think that is
biologically possible!


You know how sometimes you go to the grocery store and someone just keeps following you around and jumping up on your back and putting stuff in your cart and just won't leave you alone? Well, something similar happened to me at the puppy park yesterday.

There are two big dogs (let's just call them 'NOODLES' and not those little miniature NOODLES, I'm talking the regular-sized ones) who will not leave me alone when I go to the puppy park if they are there. They are all the time climbing on me and jumping on me, even when I'm trying to play with another puppy or get a drink of water. And I don't mean just for a minute or two. I'm talking CONSTANTLY. It's like I'm covered in some sort of NOODLE-attracting scent that just drives them crazy.

The first time it happened, the tall guy just watched for about 5 minutes to see what I would do and then looked to see if the owner of the NOODLES was going to do anything. I mean I couldn't even chase the frisbee without one of them coming and climbing up on me. After the tall guy realized the other guy wasn't going to do anything, we left the park.

The second time it happened, we just got to the park and they started again. The other guy still didn't do anything, so after about 5 minutes, we left again. I didn't even get to try to play with any of the other puppies.

WELL (and I think you can see where this is going), we went back yesterday and BOOM - I'm a NOODLE magnet. So after a few minutes, the tall guy asked the other guy if he would do something about his dogs pestering me. You would have thought he asked the other guy to kick his dog in the head! The other guy started yelling and cussing (he said the tall guy's mother was a female dog) and said that he wasn't going to do anything because they were just dogs and that's what dogs do. The other guy asked the tall guy what did he want him to do. The tall guy said the other guy could control his dogs or leave. OH MY! The other guy said he wasn't going to do anything and that the TALL GUY could leave. TG explained that he had already left twice and that if he wouldn't hold his dogs that the tall guy would. Finally, the tall guy told the man that he did not need to yell and cuss at him. So the other guy pouted around for a few more minutes and then left. But you could tell he was not a happy camper!

Now, the tall guy understands that some dogs like to play 'King of the Mounting' with other dogs and that is something that I just need to take care of myself (usually, I just sit down until they decide to stop) and then we can play again. But this is a little different in that the NOODLES never stop, even if I go to the other end of the park. Someone said that I would learn to turn around and get mad at the dogs when they do that, but the tall guy is glad that I'm not the kind of puppy who will do that.

So, what have we learned from this? 1) Sometimes it doesn't do any good to ask someone to be responsible (but sometimes it does). 2) Some peoples don't think their dogs are the problem. 3) If someone does start yelling at you, don't yell back. It just makes them look silly, AND 4) It does no good to argue with a drunk, because the drunk doesn't care and it just makes you madder (we didn't learn this at the park - but the tall guy told me to put it in anyway!)

(From the tall guy: I told Jack he was writing too much, but he's still a little perturbed about the whole situation. It's no exaggeration - the other dogs simply will not stop humping him. It's not sexual - it's obviously a domination thing, but it is so bad that Jack can only try to run away from them when we're at the park. So I will ask you: What would you have done in that situation?)

31 comments:

  1. We would have left too -

    Sorry woo ran into poopyheads -

    Hugz&Khysses,
    Khyra & Khousin Merdie

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  2. That's really unfortunate and I think you attempted to handle the situation tactfully...
    Too bad you can't teach Jack to hump the Jerk's leg...

    Another solution is to get Jack a brother or sister and then you won't have to visit puppy park for playmates! Just a thought!!!

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  3. Wow - you've got quite a conundrum there. Not sure what else you could have done TG. Some people are just morons. I'm glad you confronted him instead of just leaving again though. Maybe he'll think about it and see the error of his ways... but don't count on it.

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  4. JAck,
    We probably would have done the same thing and my mom would have raised her voice, lol Too bad that this guy is a real jerk.
    Maybe he got real annoyed and wont come back, I have my 3 yr old dog cousin Jake, that I can send right over, he is tough!!

    wags
    jazzi

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  5. Wow Jack, that's quite a story. I think you and tall guy handled the situation perfectly. What's up with those crazy "Noodles"? It must just be all your charm- after all, you are a very good looking pup and everyone wants to be your buddy, in this case a little TOO much. You were a very good boy through the whole thing. I'm glad your a pup who doesn't use his teeth. That never ends nicely.
    Hope you are staying warm and dry. I think my peeps house might just blow over!

    Tall guy- good job at keeping your cool. Call us next time if you need a possy. Me, Dexie and the peeps can throw down! =) Ok, not so much... but we do know how to use the natural vegetation to our advantage. "Bugs" + the guys driver's seat= sweet revenge.

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  6. Ok, my opinion, from someone who has a dominant dog: ALWAYS ALWAYS Protect your dog. a dog humping your dog is BAD MANNERS! Period. I do not let my dogs hump other dogs and I do not let my dogs be humped by others. i simply step in, i don't ask any PERSON to control their dog, i just step up for my dog and step in and pull the dog off. then i chase the dog away gently. "go away" and wave my hands at them. if i have to, i'll throw hot dogs or food AWAY from me and my dog. I'll continue to intervene UNTIL the other dogs get the picture that I am alpha over my dog and over them and they have no business being dominant with my dog. And that we do NOT want to play with them. do it enough and the dog goes away. you may have to do it alot or get a little rougher in chasing the dog away. ALWAYS show your dog that you go his back. that is how your dog will ALWAYS learn to go to you in case of fighting and to resolve conflict. when you show your dog YOU will protect him, he will always come to you to "tell on" the bad pooch. NEVER EVER let dogs work it out or see if your dog can stand up for himself. humping leads to aggression on either dog's part. even the humper can get aggressive even if the submissive dog is sitting. YOU would NEVER let children work this out. YOU would NEVER let a child hold another child down and rub his body on the other child. It's extremely bad manners. And whenever someone says it's "natural" i retort, of course, but we humans don't go around dry humping eachother because its bad manners and uncivalized and not to mention AGAINST THE LAW (for humans). K, now think about it in animal world... a pack leader would NEVER let one his pack members be humped by a DIFFERENT dog from a DIFFERENT pack. so you as his pack leader should stand up for him.

    you did the right thing mostly. i would ignore the dog's human because people who actually LET their dogs do this don't get the point of it being bad manners in the first place. so don't even waste your time. Instead i go straight to the source. My dog and the offending dog and step in and push the dog off. SHOW your dog you will not tolerate him being humiliated. Make him feel good.

    Loki came to me when a dog picked a fight with him a few weeks ago. A year ago he would have NEVER come to me. he now comes to me and DEFERS to me for all conflicts involving dogs or things that distress him. Juno (his sibe sister) once took his bone. Instead of fighting for it, he came to me and sat next to me gently and told on her. I went in and saw she had 2 bones. one of them his. i simply laughed, took his bone back and gave it to him showing him i will resolve his conflicts and he doesn't have to. ever.

    I show him that i will protect him and he knows this now.

    do this for Jack and he will soon learn to come to you for EVERY conflict (which is exactly what you want).

    good job tall guy! and thanks for sharing. It's something i had to learn as well, both from having a dog that would do it and from having it done to my dogs. and like you, i didn't know what to do. people said, let them work it out. but as i read about building a relationship with my dog, i realized that i NEVER want them working conflict out among themselves. and I want them to always know i will always protect them. hell or highwater. Nobody would ever guess Loki was once aggressive now.

    For people who say, "I want my dog to stand up for himself" i say "PHOOEY" that they are inviting their dog to resort to aggression and that is a road you NEVER want to go down as you could end up losing your dog through a fight or through a court order.

    ok, off my soap box. good job. thanks for raising the issue. i hope i was able to offer some light even if you don't agree.
    wags-n-wiggles to Jack (and NEVER a hump) from Loki and Juno at Wild dingo

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  7. I really know how you feel, Jack! I hate jumpy "noodles" all of the time, just set my teeth on edge! Aren't they just squirrels with perms that need chasing any way? (My mom doesn't think so for some reason!)
    Like you, I prefer dogs my own size to play with. Some dog parks we've visited have a park for small dogs and one for big dogs. That's the way it should be.
    High 5,
    Raider

    PS Mom says to thank your dad for his comment to our blog! We'd like to have some more sunset back! These windy storms have us all a little rattled!

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  8. Jack.....well you know I don't go to dog parks....or any parks for that matter; however, Mom and I have an opinion. Have you ever met 2 Southern girls who don't have an opinion?
    We see similar behavior all over with ill manner parents raising ill manner children. Mom often says to Dad do you think they let their children do that at home? My word food all over the floor, running wild and screaming. And I'm not talking about McDonalds I'm talking about normal restaurants. I see not discipline and no one taking responsibility. Seems you have the same thing at your park. Ill manner people who unfortunately get trophy dogs just to say they have them. I expect most of these dogs have little if any interaction with other pups or people. We are sorry you had to leave when Jack was having fun NOT FAIR!! Someone needs to kick the human in the head. Madi and Mom

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  9. TG, I find you run in to a lot of bad manners at the dog park.
    Let me just say this, Re-read what Wild Dingo wrote. There is a lot of very good wisdom there.
    Byron and I are seeing a dog behaviorist and from what we are learning, Wild Dingo is bang on with his advise. You are the leader of your pack, it is your job to care for and make decisions for you and Jack.
    Jack is #1 and you take care of him. Don't give a moments thought to what the human who refuses to teach his dogs good manners thinks.
    Never apologize for stepping in on your dogs behalf.

    Good luck,
    Byron's Mom
    P.S. Maybe a water squirt bottle might be a good tool to deter the 'Noodles'
    P.S.S. I hope that didn't sound too preachy, I'm just concerned for you and Jack.

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  10. Exactly what you did without the bit of not yelling back. I'm afraid my voice would have raised a bit at the jerk for not taking responsibility.

    I think Wild Dingo has excellent advice. Always have your dogs back and they will adways have yours! perfect...

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  11. How funny woo were that khlose to a 'Coopers' hawk!

    I was about 5-10' from one on Thursday afternoon! He/She was at the edge of my yard - I was out as khlose as my lead would pawmit - Mom saw it and started out with the flashie beastie but he/she took off before Mom khould snag any pikhs - I enjoyed watched the nice birdie fur a while!

    H&K,
    Khyra

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  12. Woof! Oh! My ... This happened to us. My mom can control herself but dad will argue especially when we are right and have to stand up for my right as a dog. Lots of Golden Woofs,Sugar

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  13. I think you did the right thing. Crazy humping dogs (noodles or non noodles) can be funny at first, but also just annoying, to your dog and you.
    There's a commercial on tv now (at least in Seattle) about a wireless provider, and their commercial is like, "you can video chat from the dog park". I HATE THAT COMMERCIAL. It's those dummies who are chatting it up on their phone or to other people at the dog park who aren't watching their dogs.... be it harassing other dogs or just pooping. It's all about being a responsible owner. UGH.

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  14. Bad manners are not good. I think the Tall Guy handled it correctly. I don't know what Beth would of done....

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  15. First, let me say that I also think you did the right thing by asking the other owner to do something about his dogs. However, because Cabana and I are new to dog parks ourselves, I can see how the other guy might have been a bit dense, being a bit dense myself. Sometimes, Cabana has played with (or pestered) other dogs, not by humping, but just by being overly exuberant, when maybe the other dog didn't want her around. It took another dog owner telling me to leash her for me to realize my lack of dog etiquette. Unlike that noodle owner, I felt really bad, but I learned a lot that day.

    So having been on that end of things, I'd give the other person the benefit of the doubt, approach them nicely, without any accusation or anger.

    But if that didn't result in better manners, I'd take it upon myself to handle those noodlers. When they act inappropriately, step in and either give a collar correction, or give their rumps a "bite" with your hand (mimic a dog's teeth with your fingers, Cesar Milan style). Neither of these gestures will hurt the dog, but it might give them a startle and let them know you are stepping in to take charge. If the other owner gives you a hard time for correcting his dogs, at least you can say that you gave him the opportunity to take care of his dogs first, but since he didn't, you had to.

    I hope you'll be able to work it out because it's definitely not right that you and Jack have to leave all the time!!

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  16. Well, you are a lot braver than I am - confronting the dog owner. Although, he probably needed to be told his dog had bad manners. We always leave when something unpleasant happens at the dog park - we want it to be fun for Sam, not stressful.

    Sam

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  17. Hey Jack,
    The TG did the right thing and his "conversation' rules are also absolutely correct; never stoop to the level of your adversary. The "other guy" was an "irresponsible" pet master.
    Heck, we bet that the "noodles" are boy dogs and that they most likely have not gone to school to be "tutored" like all of us TBH boys have. Doc Witter, our vet, must be a hypnotic teacher because he but each of us to sleep before he tutored us; we didn't even know that we were getting smarter.
    It isn't up to other people to control you and us. It's up to the TG to control you and for our dad, the GOM (grumpy old man) to control us. If our GOM told us that if he can't control us and we misbave then we're going home, not the dogs that we would be bothering (but that never happens).
    - TBH&K

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  18. How scary and annoying!
    We has never beed in that situation, and not likely to, we doesn't have dog parks round here, so mostly we can just find somewhere else to go, and it big enough that you don't need to encounter other dogs, if you don't want. I hope you don't meet them again!
    ~lickies, Ludo

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  19. So many great options Jack...We think the TG did the right thing...but we also like Wild Dingo's idea for ways to handle it in the future. I also go to my Mama to resolve conflicts (most of the time, except if Bilbo is getting on my nerves).

    Good Luck Smileys!
    Dory

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  20. Oooohhh Jack!!!! I know exactly what my mom would have done....opened up a can of whip a@#!!!! That's just not right, good for your tall guy for saying something!!! It's too bad because it's not the dog's fault in these situations, it's the owner's!!!! Your a good pup Jack and so is TG!!!
    Good luck and have a great weekend!!

    lotsa licks,
    Miley

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  21. Keep a spray bottle of vinegar and water with you and when the NOODLES start humping Jack, squirt them in the face!

    Liz and Tootie

    (Tootie adds, "that sounds pretty extreme, Mama.")

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  22. ugggh... humping! Moose has gotten his share at the dog park but it was never a problem because it was short lived. I have never confronted another dog owner because I am just too shy to do that, but it seems like a reasonable thing to me and if someone confronted me about my dog I would certainly take it very seriously. When you are in a public place you have no right to disregard other people's concerns whether or not you agree and being outright rude is just totally uncalled for. I applaud you for standing up for Jack but agree with Dingo that it might be more effective to deal with the offending dog directly. I don't like the idea of 'disciplining' someone else's dog but if your child was being picked on by another child at a playground I think it would be perfectly reasonable to go pull that kid off you own kid. Anyway, I am sorry that your park fun has been and will probably continue to be marred by rude owners... Maybe he will be so annoyed he will never bring them back!

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  23. I am sorry about the dogs behavior and Jack is wonderful to be so kind and well behaved. I thnk you both handled it very well. Hugs and wags, Mistaya

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  24. Molly Labrador (Australia)January 22, 2010 at 7:12 PM

    Hi Tall Guy,

    You did the right thing, at times it's hard to fathom some people out - the Noodles' owner is just plain ignorant....it would be interesting to see what he would do if the boot was on the other foot and Jack were the "Humper" I bet it would be a different story then....
    What is it with those Noodles anyway, I have the misfortune of knowing a little one, his name is "Snoopy" and he's a bit of a short arse if you know what I mean - every time he visits he tries to hump me and his Mum does nothing about it - my Mum and Dad get pretty angry with him. Being a female blonde Labrador I know I'm rather attractive to boys but hey, a short arse Noodle is not my class!!!!

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  25. I am so upset for you. I know how terrible that is, when you try and do something special for your dog and irresponsible people ruin it. I am proud of you for trying to stand up for Jack, and sorry that there are always those who just don't get it. Take care guys, and I hope you can have your park back!

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  26. We like Wild Dingo's answer, but we actually usually just leave the dog park. In fact, we rarely go to the dog park because of that exact problem. We sort of make a dog park by ourselves.

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  27. I think this post was proportionately just long enough aka just right! I mean, Jack, what are they putting you through, and then to make that nasty remark! That's why our momma won't go to the dog park. She's encountered plenty of Noodle parents.
    Nice post by Wild Dingo too, huh? Oh boy! We all have to deal with this sea-rap. Poor Noodles, how can they know any better with a parent who doesn't know how to behave. I swear Jack, you and your tall guy did the best you could. And thanks for telling the story in such a funny and entertaining manner.
    Twink!

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  28. Hi Jack and Tall Guy,

    Noodle parents are the worst. Because of them, my mom does not like to take me to the dog park either. We are sorry that you and the Tall Guy were treated like that. Great advise from Wild Dingo too.

    Maggie Mae and her mom

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  29. I didn't read through all the other responses, but did you try humping the other owner? Apparently he thinks it's ok...

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  30. Hi TG + Jack...sorry to be reading this so late, been kinda busy lately! Wow this is crazy. You did the right thing...I mean I would've left the first time but yea, everyone has responsibilities for their own dogs, I really do not like when they just excuse stuff that "they are dogs".

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  31. @ Augie and Ti's Mom: HAHAHAHAH! EXACTLY! I swear to dog, i don't know why humans think its ok for dogs to do this. if dogs are domestic, then it's up to us to be their leaders and show civilized appropriate behavior. it's a well-known fact that humping leads to aggrssion. it's also rude and horrible for the dog being humped.
    there are better ways to play. i had a dog that humped, occassionally, not a lot. as a new dog owner i had NO idea what was right or wrong or how to handle it. some people said "let the dogs work it out or let the other dog tell him off..." but i figured out that we would not let children act this way or work out aggressions in fighting or let them hump eachother. i say, NO, teach your dog's manners. it's NOT ok to hump dogs or people's legs. and if other people don't teach their dogs good manners then it's up to the dog's owner to back him up and chase off any dog that is being rude. sigh.

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