Dogs doing it wuff
Owners’ bad manners leads to rise in fights
THE increasing number of vicious incidents at Queensland dog parks can be boiled down to owners lacking manners and not understanding their dogs, experts say.
Councils confirmed several dog-on-dog attacks occurred every week in southeast Queensland. On the Gold Coast, 51 complaints have been made in the past 12 months.
Dog etiquette trainer Janine Soryal says aggressive behaviour is often due to an owner not properly understanding the dog’s mentality.
Gold Coast-based Ms Soryal adopts a holistic approach to helping owners understand their furry friends.
She believes forcing two dogs that don’t get along in one area will likely cause a fight and the best solution is to simply leave.
“It’s a lot like being trapped in a room with your worst enemy,” she says.
“Often, the parks are busy when people go after 5pm. I don’t recommend people to take them when it’s busy.
“When there are lot of dogs and not a lot of space it causes stress and adrenaline. Mental and physical health and wellbeing is just as important for our pets as it is for us.”
As for owners training their dogs to behave better in dog parks, Ms Soryal said that it took time and patience.
“There is no quick and easy fix when there’s a problem, which can lead to some owners resorting to harsh methods because they think it’s working, but it is actually creating more stress for the dog,” she said.
RSPCA spokesman Michael Beatty said fights could be reduced simply by using manners and socialising dogs from an early age.
“If you see that your dog is intimidating or overpowering a smaller dog, then it is your responsibility to go in and restrain your dog,” he says.
“What you should be doing from an early age is socialising the dog, take them to puppy class to meet other dogs.”