Did someone tie a steak to my back?

Sorry in advance to all you dog owners out there and, don't get me wrong, I like dogs but they are driving me mad.

I started to get a sore back running on the roads so I switched to the village meadow which is just by the river and a lovely peaceful place. Not surprisingly, it is a VERY popular place for dog walkers and therein lies my problem.

I just seem to attract dogs when I am jogging. They bound over, run in and out of my legs, jump up at me (after their swim in the river) and generally get in the way as much as possible. It is just me. I went out on Tuesday with my jogging group of five and they were not troubled at all. And so I have to ask, "Did someone tie a steak to my back?"

It has got to the point when, if I see a dog, I slow down and walk past them - they ignore me then. The last straw was when I came across a man with his dog attached to a 50ft chord (I kid you not). The chord was right across my path and I wasn't about to hurdle over it (maybe next year) nor could I go round either the man or the dog because both were moving unpredictably so I stopped altogether to wait for them to move out of the way.

Anyway, to cut a long story short (which I haven't but never mind), today I went back to pounding the streets for W8R2. I went just by myself with no music or Laura and ran my 28 minutes without stopping. It felt hard, really hard at the end, but I did 3.75km which is an average pace of 8 km/hr! That's a lot faster than I normally run. My back feels fine and there was not a dog in sight to hold me back.

Good times!

[Burstcouch Graduate]

Hey that happens to me in the parks. Seem they want to jog along with you,they are probably bored by their owners maybe taking them on short walks only.

I really like dogs too but worried they think I am a rabbit or a cat for chasing.

Well maybe not a rabbit, too slow for that!

[Rose885 Graduate]

Dogs can be a pain (ask CaroleC!), I think they just get over excited sometimes when they see a runner and want to join in. I'm not sure what to suggest, you're probably right to slow to a walk when you pass them but not exactly very practical if you want to continue your runs. Is there anywhere else less crowded you can run? Even take the car/bus somewhere?

Well done on your pace, that's really good Remember to stretch afterwards to keep aches and pains to a minimum!

[RhonaL]

Just any idea but may be you have a timing issue with running at the village meadow. I run with my two labradors and spaniel but I can understand your frustration. First, you must be a nice person because my experience is that dogs are pretty fussy about who they say hi to! Second, are you hitting the green area when you get what I call 'once a week long walk' dog owners come out? I avoid running with the dogs when I think the casual dog walkers are out because they are the ones who tend to have the over bouncy dogs / dogs that are snappy (under exercised and under stimulated generally).

I would ask a regular dog walker when they go with their dogs - you may well find it is ok then.

[Deryn61 Graduate]

I really despair of some dog owners, honest! I love my dogs, they have been my constant companions for the last 10 years have stopped me being a complete couch potato, helped me through bereavements/depression etc BUT even before I ever dreamt of taking up running myself, I would ALWAYS get my dogs back under control if I saw runners or cyclists to ensure they don't trip them up.

[kerryjoy Graduate]

I hear you about unrestrained dogs. I was on the last 5 mins of my 40 min run when a dog ran out at me from it's yard last week. My heart rate was already up and this sent it even higher! Having read Carol's post recently I was concerned I'ld be tripped up as it bounced from side to side - so I walked the rest of the way home with it following. I have since found the owners and have been very polite - however just as well they didn't come across me that morning! Apparently it is still a puppy which explains it's excitment. I just felt really frustrated to finish the run this way after the effort I had put in.

[runforestrun Graduate]

I loved reading your blog Nomorekebabs, was so funny and so true. I haven't been approached by any boisterous dogs as yet whilst running, However I have been at the park with friends who have dogs who have no control over them, running up to people and jumping up its really annoying and can be scarry to. I was at the park playing with my 7 year old daughter and we were playing chase this dog came bounding over and started to chase my daughter who kept running and was screaming, The owner was shouting out "stop running" He thinks your playing" its hard to stop running when your first instinct is to run away. I have been burned on the back of the legs by the extentable leads too. So I feel your frustration. Maybe you should get a dog to take with you and the other dogs will leave you alone?????

good luck! happy running!

[Anonymous36 Graduate]

I know how you feel!

I was jumped upon by a big unleashed dog in my local park last week!

I was half way through my run and saw the dog and its owner heading towards me. I did not expect the dog to jump at me... I kid you not, I crapped myself right there and then! The owner (in no rush what so ever and oblivious to me screaming like a banshee) came strolling over and said "he doesn't bite". Seriously, what is wrong with people? No sorry my dog almost gave you a cardiac arrest, or sorry my wet dog has made you filthy.. Nothing!

I'm afraid I saw red and just said "try keeping your dog on a leash in future if you're too lazy to be able to keep up and keep it under control" and ran off as fast as I could which totally knackered me out and I had to walk the last bit, but I felt I had made my point

[TheMagicalPixie Graduate]

I love the image of you having a steak tied to your back, that's brilliant!

Here's another dog anecdote to make you laugh - I biked up to the common one day a couple of years ago and lay in the sun there reading my book. I had my hi vis vest in my helmet beside me and my bike. This golden lab pup (sooo cute!) comes into my clearing with a couple of people, makes a beeline for me, which I was NOT impressed with as it was covered in mud! At the last second it veered to the side, grabs my hi vis and runs off with it. Sooo funny! The owner and her friend spent 10 minutes chasing it round trying to retrieve the vest, not realising that it was now a game to the pup. They had another dog who also wanted to play (just running round, he wasn't interested in my hi vis). I was trying so hard not to laugh at them, it was so comical and they just didn't have a clue what they looked like. In the end they got it back and returned it apologising profusely and offered to buy me a new one!!! I told them it was fine, quite amusing and I was just going to put it in the washing machine, it didn't matter! Did make me laugh though

[Hidden]

Thanks everyone. I have not met a mean dog yet - they all just seem to want to play. I suppose I should feel honoured that they like me. Their owners tend to be the ones stood chatting and taking no notice of them so they must be bored. I am worried about tripping over them though (the dogs, not the owners!)