Dog bit on South Tripyramid

[jjo]

Imho...

I love dogs and my Dog hikes w me all the time..As to your course of action, THEY were very irresponsible and should have been concerned aboutYOU and apologized and offered help of any kind. They did not have their dog under control (leashed). You did the right thing by a gentle retreat IMHO because you were not dealing with a mature, rational group. Further emotional clash/conflict could have happened...Sad what's becoming of our beloved backcountry....Similiar to the car breakins.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

This kind of thing is right up there with ....... people not returning a greeting on the trail. Common courtesy can make everyone's lives so much more pleasant. And if you don't get that courtesy, it almost always feels good to vent about it later.

Yikes, now we are expected to exchange greetings with 500+ folks who pass us on the Bridle Path?

 

[--M.]

In the context of Dr. Dasypodidae's quote of Albee, I'd also have to disagree with Albee: Exchanging greetings -- or not -- is a matter of manners. Having one's personal space invaded by an extension of another's hand (a dog) is assault. One is under no legal obligation to say hello, but a hiker is legally entitled to protect his/her personal space as if it were his/her castle. How to do so profitably is another matter, of course, and once someone has trespassed that badly on your person, he's not likely to see any further fine points, and extraction is usually the best option.

I find trekking poles make a good visible defense and don't usually need to be used in order to be effective. I've also stopped taking it personally when a dog behaves like a dog. And 90% of owners I've met have been aware of their responsibility and been some form of cool. For the others, I use a long fuse and a couple of well-displayed poles -- and keep moving.

I also own a dog and don't usually blame them for the problems I see; it's usually a people problem.