A not fun dog park morning!

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

Such a gorgeous morning.  We had gone to our regular dog park that is fully fenced yesterday, so we decided to try the one much closer to our house that is supposed to be on leash only and is not fenced.  Quincy has poor recall command once he is out of the house so we knew he would have to be on his long lead.  

It was very crowded and most dogs were not on leashes.  All seemed okay and then I heard Quincy yelping really loud.  My DH had the lead and was going toward him.  When I spotted Quincy he was on his back, belly up, screaming, really the best way to describe it.   It scared me near to death.  My husband was trying to get to him, just a short distance, but so was every other dog in the park, it seemed.  Quincy was surrounded by all these dogs. I remember bending over and trying to pick him up and a dog jumping on my back, and I remember seeing my husband and thinking one of us was going to get hurt.  It was just mass confusion.  All the dogs were going crazy by then.  I remember clapping my hands, I guess I was trying to scare them.  I don't even know.  Some people did come over, but it seemed like more dogs joined in instead of owners getting their dogs out of the melee.  Just horrible, with Quincy screaming the whole time.  He is a very verbal dog but with all this mass confusion I really had no way of knowing if he was being bit, had been bit or was just scared- I certainly was.  My husband said he was sure he was going to get bit, too, trying to get the dogs away. 

Once we got him away, some dogs were STILL coming over and poor Quincy was shaking.  I sat on the ground and held him to try to calm him.  I actually started to tremble. the two of us sat there shaking. 

The owner of the dog who first growled and jumped on him or whatever he did at Quincy that made Quincy go on his back and start howling was very nice and felt horrible.  She came over and stayed with us and shooed the other dogs away.  A guy came over and identified himself as a vet and checked for bites- thank goodness, none.  He did say to watch him since they can show up later once there is swelling.  so far so good. 

I remember another post not so long ago-I am bad at remembering who- where her dog was attacked while walking and thinking- crap...what do you do.  I still don't know.  It was mayhem for at least a few seconds that seemed like much much longer. Our poor dog is laying there on his back and there are all these other dogs circling, jumping and I was hearing that awful snarling sound with Quincy yowling.   

After the owner gave me her phone number and suggested to us that we not leave the park but let Quincy be there a bit so he won't be afraid next time.  so we walked down the long lawn and he kept very, very close to us.  

We all started to feel better and then wouldn't you know it we saw a golden doodle and thought, great! But, son of a gun, Quincy went over to him, sniffed his face and the dog growled at Quincy !  He came flying back between my legs.  I could not believe it.  Psycho dog park? or do I have to change Quincy's deodorant...poor guy was just not having any luck. 

We went to another section of the park area and there was a really old dog and his terrific owners.  Her theory is that the pack smells out the puppies and does a hazing on the vulnerable ones.,  i don't know what was up.  We hung out there for a bit, walked him around  and then went home.  

We decided to plant and Quincy got to terrorize us by stealing our garden gloves and the empty plastic pots from the plants were were trying to do.  His drop command is also limited to inside the house.  But, at least he seems just fine. We put the sprinklers on for him, a new treat, and all is settled down.  

My husband is far less dramatic than me.  When he said it was a nightmare, you can bet it was. 

[Lonnie & Libby Lu]

OMD my heart was racing while reading this and what a scary experience.  Poor Quincy and I cannot even imagine how you both felt.  I probably would have been screaming like Quincy. I'm very happy Quincy is hopefully ok and no side effects.  I took Libby for the first time to a dog park last Wednesday and she stayed right by me the entire time.  Was not the least bit interested.  The dogs all came up to her and everything was fine, but I she think overwhelmed by it all. 

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

Oh, thank you.  As I said, the fact that my Dh was so upset, upset me even more.  But we are all ok, now.  It could not have been more than a minute, probably 30 seconds, but seemed like an hour.  

thing is, he loves meeting and running with other dogs.  I may put an ad in craig;s list for running companion who does not terrorize!  

[Seamus & Haidee]

oh my goodness, I know exactly how you feel. Seamus has been attacked on two separate occasions, maybe more at the dog park.  It was frightening and although he came out alright, he never leaves my sight when we are at the dog park now.  fights can break out in a matter of seconds. i agree that puppies are often targeted and i feel that as Seamus has gotten older, he is getting better at handling the bigger, more mature dogs.  Im happy that Quincy is okay and back to causing mischief in the garden:-)

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

thanks so much.  Quincy was right back at mischief making!  I have seen so many altercations at the dog runs, but we were never in the middle and I really hope we never are again! 

Maybe it is that not quite a little puppy, not quite a grown dog at 11 1/2 months.  oy.  

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Sorry you are having these problems with Quincy and dog parks. I am one of the minority when it comes to dog parks as we have an excellent one within walking distance of our house. We have not had any issues, (yet). And I'm not naive enough to think we never will. Putting dozens of dogs with various ages, temperaments and training together is just a set up for possible and probable problems.
In 3 years, they have had 100's of good experiences and fun there. They are so excited when we walk or drive towards it and they run and play and bark and smell and just be dogs, with other dogs. If or when one of them is frightened or attacked or God forbid, bitten, I will handle it then and probably continue to go back very soon after.
Just like Karen and JD walking in their neighborhood, they wouldn't stop walking because of their scare. Yes, dog parks are more of a choice than walking around your neighborhood, but my two enjoy and need the exercise every bit as much and the park is great for that.
So not all dog parks are the same, but regardless all deserve our due diligence.

[Cathy, Fozzie & Shaggy]

I'm sure glad Quincy, you and your DH are OK!  I could almost feel your panic as I read about your experience. 

I've only been to a dog park once and it was no more than a chunk of field that had been fenced, and Fozzie stayed on leash with me.  Many of my dog friends hate dog parks due to aggressive dogs, careless owners, no standard for vaccinations or pest control.  What do folks do who live in the city with little room for dogs to run and chase, sniff and explore?  Are all dog parks just open to the public with little or no supervision?  Are any monitored? 

I'm from small town Gladwin, Michigan a VERY rural community.  A "dog park" in Gladwin is a family reunion at the homestead where families bring their children, campers, and their dogs for the weekend. All are turned lose and monitored by everyone and no one.

[Donna K & Quincy]

What a nightmare experience for you all, I am so relieved that no one was injured. Just my opinion for what it's worth but I think somehow submissive dogs seem to invite aggression. We have had a few non provoked episodes that happened with off leash dogs, only one of which resulted in a slight injury to Quincy. We don't go to the dog parks, mostly because our dog park is dirty and ugly and Quincy is not a player and after a sniff hello likes to be left alone. 

[Janie, Jackson and Jilly]

What a scary thing to happen, just glad that Quincy wasn't hurt. Jack sounds much like Quincy in temperament and he too had a dog come out of nowhere at him at a dog park when he was younger. We don't go. I think getting doodle number two just might be the thing.. ; )

[Christine & Camus]

I am sorry to hear about your scarey ordeal and glad to hear that Quincy is okay.  

IMO dogs definitely sense fear in other dogs and in my experience the reaction is not a good one, unless the fearful dog is one of two in a home.  In the second scenario the non-fearful dog may protect the other.  I do not take Camus to official dog parks anymore.  I may be wrong, but I get the sense that the fence brings out the worst.  When I first got Camus (~9 months old) he was afraid of everything, people, dogs, his shadow, noise, and since I did not trust him off-leash in an unfenced area we went to the dog park.  He was afraid and it seemed that all of the dogs, males and females, were after him, trying to mount and in general being aggressive.  It was not a good scene.  I have been lucky in that I have found areas that are not dog parks where he can run and play.

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

My take on what happened to Quincy is that he was frightened.  When my Gracie Doodle was a puppy if she got knocked over by another dog or ran into a wall or tripped on a sprinkler head which hurt, she would hit the ground and scream and almost look paralyzed.  This happened a few times and the first time I ran her to the Vet who is 5 minutes from our house.  By the time we got there she was fine and walking and I felt really dumb.  I had read somewhere about puppies when they feel pain brought on from play or if they are frightened they will do this.  Gracie was running and sideswiped a low wall which put her into a tail spin and the same thing happened.  I just calmed her and reasssured her and a few minutes later she was up and fine.  Also, my trainer told me to never take a dog into a dog park on a leash or even have an off leash dog greet one on a leash.  I also remember Ceasar Millan had a program on this.  The leash makes the dog feel restricted and not able to defend themselves.  They get frightened because they have no control and other dogs are coming at them that are not on leashes.  All dogs should always meet on equal ground. This also means that if you have a small dog you do not carry them into the park nor pick them up if they act frightened.  Either both on a leash or both off.  It is supposed to be the same thing with toys, tennis balls and treats in a dog park.  This creates competion and resource guarding which is not good.  But, every dog park that I have been in, no one goes by those rules.  I think that is why there are so may bad experiences.  Gracie hates dog parks and will resist one if I try to take her in.  I'm glad Quincy is OK and every thing is fine.

[Lynda Kamrath]

Yes, I guess dog park etiquette is something you just have to learn - hopefully not the hard way.  But I agree about leashes, some on and some off only creates problems.  When I go into a dog park I take Harpo off leash first and he runs around to meet everyone.  I walk Groucho on leash until we get to the benches and then have him sit down.  He gets so protective about Harpo.  When he sees that Harpo is fine and enjoying himself, I let Groucho go also.  Harpo is a wrestler and if he can find another dog to wrestle with, he is in heaven.  Groucho is the protector.  You need to know your dogs and keep them under control so everyone can have fun.

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

I'm sorry this happened to Quincy.  We had a similar experience 2 summers ago. Finn wasn't hurt, thanks to my son's quick action but we haven't gone to a dog park since.  No lasting effects and I hope it's the same for Quincy.  He still loves to play, chase and wrestle with one or two dogs at a time and meet dogs. But If there's a group of dogs, he'll sit by my side. Just continue to socialize him in safe situations.