Originally Posted by
MyNameIsTerry
Protecting the child is essential, if anxiety about dogs becomes an issue later it can be dealt with but the potential for the child being injured is far more important. If you get bitten, that's just part of shielding your child.
The dog might be friendly but it can still barge into the child not meaning to harm them. And it's really up to the parents whether they want their child near the dog as they may have concerns about their child learning about their safety.
Councils specify areas where you must use a lead but many dog owners always do anyway. We always use one but it's about how friendly he is too and we prefer to control him rather than risk something happening that may cause injury e.g. we are near to busy roads a lot.
I'm fine with dogs being off leads in general but unfortunately things do happen. Dog owners need to be mindful of situations that can be a problem, like the OP's. Our dog has been attacked in a park in this situation when he was young.
Several times I've had a couple of dogs run to mine because the owner runs them on a field and I had to pick my dog up to protect him. I would rather shield him and use my feetv on the dogs if they tried to bite me...and then the owner!
With this one being a puppy it was obviously still excitable and likely being trained. But they need to be mindful of the law and how best to avoid upsetting others until the dog can be trusted.
OP - I think avoiding nice places, or any place, because of the potential for irresponsible owners shouldn't be the case but I can understand your fears. All you can do is be alert and practical. Keep your child near and between you when passing dogs and then you can react/put one of you in between, etc. Sometimes it's possible to spot an idiot owner or a badly behaved dog so if you wait in the car until they put some distance between you or walk away from them until you can come back, that may be wise.
The benefits to your child in enjoying nice places & activities far outweighs the risk and it's your right to be able to go to them.
If there are problems in a public place you could always approach the council for advice. If they feel it's needed, they can declare a place dog safe. The trouble is, it comes down to owners as councils won't have employees watching such places all the time. But responsible owners would respond e.g. use of leads can be stipulated.