fickman wrote:I'm not dog-piling here,
but I thought I'd offer my opinion, too.
It could have been very bad if you had pulled a firearm. It all depends on the witness accounts, the DA, and the grand jury, but you could have been charged. In a civil suit, I think you would have lost. As somebody else said, in the heat of the moment, you could have been shot - and it might have been viewed as justifiable self-defense from the other guy's perspective when he told his point of view to the investigators.
In Fort Worth, you can't even chain a dog in a front yard if it's not fenced. Dogs have to be in a fence, in your house, or on a leash controlled by the owner. Just like you couldn't know their dog's intention, they (or their dog) couldn't know yours or your dogs. Your party was the aggressor, they were defensive. That's how almost any jury would find it after hearing both sides. You might get a few points by vilifying the breed, but I doubt it would overcome the rest of the evidence.
By the way, I'm not innocent here, either. Our dog rarely goes out the front door, but she did sneak past a family member coming to visit the other day when she saw a jogger pass on the sidewalk. She's an 80 lb. weimaraner. . . so we know she's playful, loving, and non-aggressive, but that jogger sure was scared. My dog wagged her tail and jumped to kiss the jogger on the face a couple of times before listening to my "come" command and returning. If he'd had an aggressive dog and that chose to attack mine, I would've had to accept the responsibility.
I'll also echo the guys who are saying that they never allow their dog to mingle with others on the street - whether leashed or not. If you've ever dealt with Parvo, distemper, ear infections, or even kennel-cough, you'll know why. Regardless of the chances of a fight breaking out, there are a lot of nasty diseases that can be spread from dogs touching noses. You don't have that other dog's shot records.
When I walk my dog and come across another walker / jogger, I immediately shorten the leash in my hand to about 18". Then one of us will either stop in the grass while the other ones passes, pass in the grass (staying to your own right), go in the street, or cross to the other side of the street. This has almost always happened automatically without any of us having to negotiate what to do. It seems like most people in my neighborhood tacitly agree with me.
If one or more parties are jogging, they'll just give a head nod or a wave. If all parties are walking, we might chat for a few seconds, but never let the dogs reach each other. I use it as a chance to teach my dog to sit at my side an wait for a "heal" command. She's not supposed to break the "sit" until I tell her to do so.
