My bugout "route" has many aternatives but encountering feral and farm dogs is a common factor. I have not thought through how to deal with dog encounters. I am especially concerned with encountering a pack of dogs.

I guess I could start with "nice doggie, here's a treat."

What do you think?

That's a good start but IMO, it would be wise to have some mace/pepper spray and/or a hiking staff to back up the first effort to avoid dog problems.

That's a tricky situation. Normally I'd suggest your "doggy treat" be made of fast moving lead. However in a bug-out situation shooting a farmer's dog, even if it's attacking you, could lead to much more severe retailiation from said farmer than under normal circumstances.

Maybe a can of "bear spray"? The downside of any Mace/pepper spray is the risk of it hitting you, too.

How about a speartip on your walking stick? It'd probably quietly work against one dog but it seems most farmers/ranchers have more than one dog.

One of those pistol crossbows?

This is a very good question.

-Blast

I always have my walking / wading staff, but multiple dogs would be a serious problem.

High-powered air or CO2 gun? Throwing knives? Some kind of powder that can be thrown?

I cannot quite figure this out yet.

How about when Mr. Canid is fastened to your arm or leg: best practices to persuade him to make a different choice?

I'll stick with a firearm as dog defense.

Pepperspray has several different methods of discharge: stream, spray or fog. Each has it's own benefits. I carry the kind that discharges in a stream, because I'm outside at work, and don't want to have to worry about "overspray" when I use it on one animal. Spray offers a shotgun approach, with less need for precise aim and more chance of overspray, while fog is good for clearing a crowd, as long as you check the wind first. Most times the dog only needs to get a little whiff of the stuff for them to decide that you don't smell good enough to eat. Don't limit your other options.

D'oh! A wet cat.

-Blast

Are you talking about one dog or a pack of dogs?

Also, feral dogs are very different than farm dogs, which are used to people and generally friendly. Feral dogs that are unafraid of people are the worst.

Can you be a little more specific about what you're imagining?

Loosely speaking, one dog is manageable. A pack of dogs is bad news. Run for your life and climb a tree, get in a car, etc. I don't know anyone who could control something like that. I honestly don't see how a firearm is going to help, unless you are far away and have a machine gun...

A friend worked one summer as a relief postal carrier, was issued pepper spray for dog defense, used it, was bitten anyway. Wisdom of older, unperforated carrier: ' you gotta spray 'em before they decide to bite ya-once they've made the commitment, spray won't stop them." Friend used 5 cans of spray in the next week, spraying every visible canine. Thereafter, dogs on his route ran squalling whenever he appeared on the street. Dogs are pretty tough to discourage, and fairly tough to kill. Feral dogs were a problem in the Southern Adirondacks, due to summer visitors acquiring a pup for the vacation, and abandoning the pup upon leaving. Packs chased deer and attacked deer hunters. Deer rifles are pretty effective, but number 4 buckshotwas regarded as the best solution to packs. Alternative solution to dog aggression: get your own dog-a big dog can chase them off, a small dog can distract them while you load up. This is the "Mexican sacrificial arm knife defense" applied to dogs. Or you could get a big cat-I'm talkin' one mean pussy....