DevilDog305,

The situation you describe is not fair to you, your neighbors, and especially the dog. I have trained dogs for thirty three years and I have found that all dogs have an Achilles Heel. You just have to find out what that is. I train dogs to overcome their particular fears. But someone else’s dog is not your responsibility.

At your first opportunity, contact the dog’s owner. No dog, trained or otherwise, should be allowed to run loose. In most cases, the dog will be the one to suffer either by becoming lost, stolen, injured, or killed. In the remaining cases, someone is injured or worse, usually a child.

The owner is always at fault when a dog is allowed to run free, however an owner’s irresponsibility should not be permitted to cause harm, injury, or death to another animal or human. In many parts of the country, a loose threatening animal is legally allowed to be summarily shot.

If the dog’s owner does not take immediate action, contact Animal Control. They have been trained to provide a remedy. With the number of deaths caused by dogs highlighted by the media in the last few years, local governments are also held liable for not taking action. You also have a moral obligation to protect yourself and the innocent people that pass through your neighborhood.

Bottom line, this situation needs to be addressed before someone is badly injured or worse.

I love dogs but letting a dog, any breed, run loose is like leaving a loaded gun out in the front yard.