Pet Etiquette

[dawbs]

When my dog jumps up on you, and I say "Gracie, get off," Please don't say, "That's OK" and encourage her. I am not apologizing to you, I am trying to train my dog. Please do not sabotage my training.

Maybe I am reading this wrong, but if you had control of your dog on a leash, why would he be jumping on people? And once he jumps on people, your first response is not one of apologies to the person being jumped on?

When I've done it, it's been with unexpected guests.
If I know guests are coming, I put a leash on El Pupus Extraordinaire or at least am alerted to maintain control.  When she is outside in my yard and someone drops by (family, solicitor, mailman, etc) I don't have immediate control.  And then when I work on regaining control, they undermine the training.
 

[RooRoo]

What Dawbs said.

Gracie is a Miniature Bull Terrier, and everyone she meets wants to pet her, and she thoroughly agrees with that idea. When she's on leash, I have a chance to control her. When she's not... Oh, well.

[Millionaire Maria]

Submitted For Your Approval

Pet Etiquette


1. Most people love their pets very much. Most people also understand that you don't love their pet as much, but please refrain from making disparaging comments to people about their animals.

2. Most people love their pets very much. Not everyone else loves your pet. Do not force your pet's presence and attention on to people who are not interested. Please refrain from talking about your pets at every opportunity.

3. Do not take your pets to places that do not allow them. If you are unsure, call ahead and ask. This goes for businesses, people's homes, and events planned in public places.

4. Service dogs are not pets, they are workers. Do not interact with them at all, unless you have the explicit permission of the person who is using them.

5. Do not approach or interact with anyone's pets without their permission. Do not feed animals without permission. It is also your responsibility to make sure that your children do not interact with or feed pets without the owner's permission.

6. Do not make disparaging comments about others people's choice in pets. For example, it is not appropriate to refer to smaller dogs as "rats", "rodents", or any other derogatory term. Do not say "That's not a dog, it's a ____." Scientists have spent countless hours doing research and I can assure you, it's a canine.

7. It is not appropriate to discuss your opinions on Breed Specific Legislation in mixed company. It is a political topic, and with all political topics, it can get heated and out of hand. This goes for any kind of "current event" or incident you may have seen on the news that could lead to a discussion of BSL.

8. Play parks are for children, dog parks are for dogs. Do not take your dog to a play park and be surprised when you have to shoo away a dozen children while you are attempting a training session. Likewise, if your children are afraid or nervous around dogs, or they don't know how to properly behave around them, do not take them to a dog park.

9. Clean up after your animal. If you forget to bring a plastic bag, go get one.

10. Do not correct someone else's animal unless you have their permission to do so.

11. In reference to #10, people should never be put in the position of having to correct your animal. If you do not believe in teaching an animal certain behaviors (leash training, not begging, not jumping up) that is your right. However, if you choose to refrain from teaching these things, please refrain from bringing your animal around other people. This applies to all pets regardless of species or size.

12. If someone tells you they are nervous or allergic, do not insist on introductions and cuddle sessions. Respect their boundaries. If you are afraid of or allergic to any specific animals please say so. "I'm sorry, but your pet tiger makes me nervous." However, being afraid or allergic does not make it okay to make excessive or grandiose demands. Steamcleaning of carpets and having pets locked up for the duration of your stay fall into this category.

13. Regardless of the size of your pet, aggression towards other living things is not acceptable. If your animal is behaving in an aggressive fashion, please remove them from the situation.

14. Obey all leash laws and town bylaws in regards to registration, and vaccinations. When you are in public with your animal, it is your responsibility to keep it under control. Do not let your animal jump on, sniff, snarl at, etc other animals or people. Once again, this applies to all animals, regardless of size or species.

15. While it may be something that you are passionate about, talking about animal abuse and negligence can make people feel incredibly uncomfortable. It's generally best not to go there.

16. Your pet is your responsibility to feed, shelter, groom, etc. It is also your responsibility to keep your pet from reproducing. Whether that means getting your pet fixed or isolating them during their heat, it is important to note that animals don't respond to abstinence training  . br33ders may disregard. Failure to do any of these things is negligence.

17. When it comes to tail docking, ear cropping, de clawing, breeding, or any other controversial subject, it is not your business what another pet owner chooses to do or not do. As much as you may despise the practice, it is not abuse, and therefore it is not acceptable to comment on it. Please note that laws detailing abuse differ from area to area. Please be informed before taking any action.

18. Do not allow your dog to bark continuously. Most towns have by laws in regards to this, but even if yours doesn't it's still rude.

19. Do not sabotage an owner's training by allowing an animal to continue their bad behavior. It may be okay with you, but it is not okay with the owner.

20. If you are walking your pet on a multi use trail, make your animal heel when you hear people coming up behind you.

[RooRoo]

Excellent summary, Maria!

Thanks!

[Millionaire Maria]

Thank you Roo Roo. 

[threedogs]

Do not make derogatory comments on the 'equipment' my dog is wearing, be it a harness, collar or head halter, as long as it is not being used in an abusive manner.   While you may not like the look of a certain collar or other restraint, it may be the most humane and effective way to control a particular dog.

[Betelnut]

Slight variations on 3 and 12:

If you have an unusual pet that many people are phobic about and are bringing it out in public, please warn people before approaching them with the pet. 

(I'm not really thinking about dogs here since those are common and people who are afraid of dogs are probably always on alert while out in public. I'm talking about snakes, tarantulas, etc.  I don't have these phobias but I've witnessed people freaking out when unexpectedly confronted with a large snake.)

[snowfire]

I think some folks with exotic pets LIKE the shock value.  A few years back a young guy walked into the jewelry store where I worked with about 10 feet of albino python draped around his neck.  That is one of the few snakes I can reliably identify. (Thanks Animal Planet!)

Somehow I just got the vibe that he was waiting for the girly screams of SNAAAAKKEEEE in a three octave crecendo.  He was totally dissapointed....   I just gushed over how beautiful the snake was.  (And she was!) 

I don't mind snakes, I just don't know enough about them to identify them in the wild.  I still turned down the offer from a friend for the loan of his pregnant boa constrictor to clean out the cockroaches in my old apartment.  Apparently she considered them a delicacy. 

Don't get me started on spiders though...WAAAAAY too many legs.  And some have nasty bites...

[magdalena]

When my dog jumps up on you, and I say "Gracie, get off," Please don't say, "That's OK" and encourage her. I am not apologizing to you, I am trying to train my dog. Please do not sabotage my training.

Maybe I am reading this wrong, but if you had control of your dog on a leash, why would he be jumping on people? And once he jumps on people, your first response is not one of apologies to the person being jumped on?

First response is to correct the dog. If you wait, it's too late. Second response immediatly after correcting the dog should be apologies.

that's exactly it.

I had my dog pretty much trained off jumping. Then, while playing with other dogs, offleash, one other owner kept petting her and giving her treats while very VERY excited AND encouraging her to jump up. Now, a year later, she does not jump up on me (when very excited she'll bounce up and down in front of me) or my hubby but she'll try jumping on strangers who come into our house unexpected. If expected, she's on leash for the first few minutes of excitement and after that is told to sit and stay to sniff at the guests and no longer thinks of jumping.

[RingTailedLemur]

Sorry to revive an old thread, hope no-one minds.

Could we revise 1?  You (general) shouldn't talk badly of pets similar to a pet owner's animals either.

I have a rabbit and 2 hamsters, I have had hamsters for 20 years in fact.  I HATE having people tell me in detail how their rabbit or hamster died, or the rabbit or hamster of someone they know died.  I got quite upset with a man at the vet recently going on about the rabbits his dog kills.

Oddly enough I've not heard of this kind of thing happening to owners of dogs and cats.  I mod a rabbit owners forum and our members get comments like these and comments about rabbit stew all.the.time.

[BeagleMommy]

When you take your dog to a dog park please respect the rules of the dog park.  That means small dogs in the small dog area; large dogs in the large dog area.

Pick up after your dog, there are bag dispensers for a reason.

Don't expect your dog to have private use of the dog park.  It's in public people!

Notice when your dog has had enough group time and take it home.  When the beagle becomes Velcro Dog we know he's ready to leave.

[Emmy]

This pertains mainly to rural areas, but if you allow a dog to roam outside, make sure it is trained not to chase people who happen to walk along the street or ride by on a bike.  If your dog can't be trusted not to chase people who pass by or the mailman/UPS worker, ect., it would be better to keep it inside, behind a fence, or on a chain.

[snoopygirl]

This pertains mainly to rural areas, but if you allow a dog to roam outside, make sure it is trained not to chase people who happen to walk along the street or ride by on a bike.  If your dog can't be trusted not to chase people who pass by or the mailman/UPS worker, ect., it would be better to keep it inside, behind a fence, or on a chain.

Pod to this. If you don't do this it can scare somebody who is walking along. When I walk to the shops ( so we are talkin a busy road as it has three big supermarkets) there is a house with a dalmation that is not chained when it is out. That dog is mean. It growls at you and starts to run toward you. Sometimes I am scared it will attack and dogs don't usually scare me. After it is done scaring the pants off of me it runs away. But I wonder if I should say something to somebody about this dog.

[Auntie Mame]

1) Do not jump on my head at the crack of dawn, you are not starving, you can wait a few minutes for your food

2) Do not jump up on my lap and shove your bottom in my face, I don't need to see that

3) Do not try to trip me while I am walking down the stairs, if I break my arms, no one can feed you

4) Do not jump on a guests jacket and make sweet sweet love to it, it's embarrassing

5) OH! Can't you do that in the other room? Honestly!

6) Do not start yowling and batting at my head when I am on the phone, I AM NOT TALKING TO YOU!

7) Do not climb on my dinner plate or try to knock my food off my fork so you can eat it

8 ) Use the designated scratching post only

Now, does anyone know how to get a cat to follow etiquette?

Heehee, someone had to

[JonGirl]

1) Do not jump on my head at the crack of dawn, you are not starving, you can wait a few minutes for your food

2) Do not jump up on my lap and shove your bottom in my face, I don't need to see that

3) Do not try to trip while I am walking down the stairs, if I break my arms, no one can feed you

4) Do not jump on a guests jacket and make sweet sweet love to it, it's embarrassing

5) OH! Can't you do that in the other room? Honestly!

6) Do not start yowling and batting at my head when I am on the phone, I AM NOT TALKING TO YOU!

7) Do not climb on my dinner plate or try to knock my food off my fork so you can eat it

8 ) Use the designated scratching post only

Now, does anyone know how to get a cat to follow etiquette?

Heehee, someone had to

9)  And when you fart don't look at us like we did it.