This happened to me mowing grass with a push mower.....

[blueriver]

Dogs ... I wonder about my Antolian Pyrenees ... she is very protective of her territory. I really like her she does a good job. HOWEVER ... when a stranger drives in she is on alert. The hair on her neck rises and I take control of her ... I have the pet safe collar, transmitter that keeps her in her area.

I have signs that state "beware of dog" ... one side of me says if you take upon yourself to tresspass in her area you will have to deal with her ... the other side says ... what if she does attack.

 

[caps]

Cats can be very aggressive/protective. Several years ago I had both a standard long hair dachshund and a 19 pound short hair Pershian cat. My 5 year old was in the front yard walking the dog and my neighbors Saint Bernard got away from his daughter and came tearing across the street. It was probably just trying to be friendly but my dog attacked it as soon as it jumped the hedge. My son yelled and when I looked out the window the dachshund had the Saint Bernard by the back leg and was not letting go. When I opened the door and ran out the cat also shot out the open door and jumped on the back of the saint bernard and was bitting and clawing. The dachshund let go and ran to my son when I screamed at him to "Drop it". The cat however, did not let go and only cut loose when I squirted him with the garden hose while my neighbor grabbed hold of his dogs harness. My neighbor also ended up getting several minor scratches on the arm by the cat. The only real loser in the fight was the poor saint bernard who had to go to the vets for bites and scratches on his neck and ears from the cat and a bite on the rear leg from the dog. No hard feelings on either side so it all came out ok. Prior to this I had no idea that cats could exhibit any sort of protective or territorial behavior.

 

[Don87]

Dogs ... I wonder about my Antolian Pyrenees ... she is very protective of her territory. I really like her she does a good job. HOWEVER ... when a stranger drives in she is on alert. The hair on her neck rises and I take control of her ... I have the pet safe collar, transmitter that keeps her in her area.

I have signs that state "beware of dog" ... one side of me says if you take upon yourself to tresspass in her area you will have to deal with her ... the other side says ... what if she does attack.

The laws on this vary state by state. Here in Pa. the owner is responsible for any damage the dog does (or causes) on or off the property, irregardless of any signage. All dogs in Pa. are required to be on a leash.

 

[TripleR]

I have been bitten a few times, once severely which kept me in bed for several days. I don't completely trust any dog as I have yet to meet anyone who was not surprised that their dog bit someone.

One of my partners was a dog trainer for military, police and civilians and as much as he loved dogs was always wary of them. I had hoped for some sage advice from him, but he simply said, sometimes dogs just bite.

I have owned dogs, but am not a "dog person". My sons are though, so I am around them quite a bit. I'm not afraid of dogs, I just accept that though unlikely, dogs can bite you and use some common sense precautions. In a couple of cases, that just didn't work out.

 

[kebo]

I have been bitten a few times, once severely which kept me in bed for several days. I don't completely trust any dog as I have yet to meet anyone who was not surprised that their dog bit someone.

One of my partners was a dog trainer for military, police and civilians and as much as he loved dogs was always wary of them. I had hoped for some sage advice from him, but he simply said, sometimes dogs just bite.

I have owned dogs, but am not a "dog person". My sons are though, so I am around them quite a bit. I'm not afraid of dogs, I just accept that though unlikely, dogs can bite you and use some common sense precautions. In a couple of cases, that just didn't work out.

Yep, if a dog (or cat) has teeth, it can bite anyone, including it's master. It just depends on the circumstances.

Last summer I was walking my little 15lb female dachshund (by leash as I am supposed to) and a neighbor stepped out his front door and this big white poodle came running out by itself and ran straight out into the middle of the street towards us. This scared my little doxie and so I reached down to pick her up, and brace for the possible attack that might happen. The poodle wasn't really acting aggressive, but neither was that dog that bit me 3 weeks ago. The owner then piped up and said, "oh, he won't bite". I said, "he's got teeth doesn't he?" The owner shut up after that and got his dog back under control. You just never know what circumstances will provoke a pet into biting. And yes, dachshunds will bite people too.