Good thing he was friendly

[Robert Jones]

"Duke" was left in the home I was inspecting this morning. Fortunately, he was well fed and not overly interested in me.

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[mgbinspect]

Speaking dog, comes in pretty handy in our business. The more racket a dog makes, when I arrive the more I give him the, "Yeah, whatever" attitude, as I brazenly walk into his space. I've actually done inspections with dogs that would close in for the bite, when I turned my back on them, and back up as they barked and snarled each time I turned to face them. Once I had to kick my way out of a crawlspace.

Dog psychology is funny. I've had dog owners warn me that their dog is going to bite me, as I go into the yard, and in a few minutes the dog is following me around licking me. Usually, as soon as you make it crystal clear that today you're the Alpha male around here, they settle into it.

On a side note, once I had a dog get loose because I didn't chain the gate. (It knew how to lift the hasp with its nose). So, next thing you know, the buyer, two agents and me are all trying to chase down this dog through the neighborhood. Pretty soon it became evident the dog saw this as a game and was really good at keeping a set distance between us and him. [:-propell So, I quickly convinced everyone we needed to run away from the dog instead. Sure enough it suddenly got the feeling it was being left out of something and ran after us and right back into the yard. [:-graduat

[Bill Kibbel]

Duke looks like a friendly puppy with really long legs.

Dog psychology is funny. I've had dog owners warn me that their dog is going to bite me, as I go into the yard, and in a few minutes the dog is following me around licking me.

same here. Many owners have said that their dog has never taken to a stranger like they do to me.

I've never had a problem with dogs on-site during inspections - except that it takes at least a half an hour longer, because I keep stopping to play. I've done many shelters, kennels and vet hospitals and I really have trouble focusing on my job. I also inspected a facility that trains police K-9s. None of the dogs had any interest in me or what I was doing. I felt snubbed, but they're bread and trained to focus only on what their partner asks them to do.

[Erby]

you'll be fine most part of the time!

Funny stuff!

[Phillip]

Had one owner tell me that their dog would not hurt anything.

As she said the door run over and bite my leg.

Then she said I don't know why he did that.

I have been around dogs all my life and no how they act.

The main reason I don't like pets at an inspection is I would hate that one got out and I could not get back up and they get killed or hurt because they got out.

[mgbinspect]

Duke looks like a friendly puppy with really long legs.

Dog psychology is funny. I've had dog owners warn me that their dog is going to bite me, as I go into the yard, and in a few minutes the dog is following me around licking me.

same here. Many owners have said that their dog has never taken to a stranger like they do to me.

In my case, I think it all started with being a paper boy for several years. There used to be a magnificent black spaniel that was on my route - it looked exactly like a large jet black cocker spaniel. It was totally neglected - coat all gnarled, etc, but incredibly handsome. Every day the dog would bark and snarl at me as I walked by. It was such a ferocious display that it was all but chewing on the chain link fence. Well, over the course of about two weeks, I stopped and talked to it and put the back of my hand against the fence as it continued to do its posturing. Little by little, it warmed up to me, and finally I was able to reach over the fence and actually pet it.

Then, things took a turn for the worst (kidding). It turned out the dog could jump the fence all along. It just liked posturing. It got to the point that when I would come by and say my hellos, it would jump the fence and follow me on the rest of my route and right up to my door. Then, I'd have to walk it back to the owners and ask them to keep it inside until I was out of sight.

So much for "Chopper". I reduced their dog to a Purple Barney. [:-tophat]

[mgbinspect]

Dogs can feel your fear.

Show none and you'll be fine most part of the time!

Horses too. Both very perceptive creatures.

And, you're right - there are a few dogs on the planet that are just plain out there - too wild or abused to reason with. It only takes a second to know you'll get nowhere with them. Just a look in their eyes gives them away. If it looks like "no one's home" when you look in their eyes - a glazed over look similar to a tiger or lion, forget it. You're wasting your time and about to become a human sacrafice. [:-graduat

My son-in-law has just such a dog - a pit that is so completely mixed up that it will lick and try to bite me all in the same moment, through his crate bars. The poor dog is completely at the mercy of some really powerful instincts...

[ghentjr]

"Duke" was left in the home I was inspecting this morning. Fortunately, he was well fed and not overly interested in me.

Mine was an Irish Wolfhound, fully grown. The sign on the basement door said "BIG" (in 6" hi letters) "dog in basement" (in 8 pt type). When I turned the corner and met the dog I realized why they made the sign that way. Very friendly. Then there was the guy that said his dog would not bite anyone, (dog chained to the deck with heavy duty chain) who proceeded to bite the owner so bad when he tried to move the dog from the deck so we could inspect, we had to call an ambulance.

[hausdok]

I've been bitten once by a dog while on this job. I turned the corner of a zero lot line house one day in south Seattle and had by back against the wire fence between that property and the next when a dog suddenly lunged over the fence and bit me on the neck. I swore at him, swung my clipboard at him and he retreated.

The owner came to the door and started yelling at me to get away from the fence before her dog bit me. I said, "Lady, he's already bitten me!" She said, "No, I don't think so, you're a liar," or something like that and told me to get away from her fence or she'd call the police. I told her she could go pound salt or something equally as rude, keyed in 911 and a while later a cop car rolled up.

I explained what happened to the cop. The cop looked at my neck and then went up to the fence, called her out and commenced to read her the riot act (Apparently he'd been there before for the same thing.). She denied that the dog had bitten me. The officer said, "Don't give me that, look at the guys neck, you can clearly see the imprint of every top and bottom tooth including the incisors, (I hadn't realized that because I didn't have a mirror with me.) how do you suppose he got those marks on his neck?" She was silent.

The cop asked me if I wanted to press charges. I said, "The dog is only doing what she apparently pays him to do. He can't be blamed. But she should have him chained if she knows that he'll attack anyone who is that close to her fence. I just want to see proof that he's had his rabies shots; I really don't feel like getting that series of shots."

The cop sent her in to produce the dog's rabies vaccination certificate. She produced it and then the cop told her that he'd had more than one complaint about her dog, ordered her to chain it up and told her that he was going to put a notation in the report that if anyone else was called to that house again for a compliant re. those dogs that they should contact animal control and have the dogs seized pending a decision by a judge as to whether to euthanize the dogs or not.

She shut up and took the dog inside but I could tell by the glower in her eyes that as soon as I was done and out of sight she was probably going to let that dog out into the yard without a leash again.

I love dogs - big dogs, small dogs, tiny dogs - I love them. They want nothing more than to love and please their masters and for that love to be returned. What other creature on the planet is like that?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[mgbinspect]

I love dogs - big dogs, small dogs, tiny dogs - I love them. They want nothing more than to love and please their masters and for that love to be returned. What other creature on the planet is like that?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

I was surprised to learn about a month ago, while watching a National Geographic documentary about domesticated dogs, that we bred them to bark. In the wild, they tend to be much quieter. Makes sense if you one likes to eat much.

In the wild stealth has its reward, and for us, being the alarm has its reward.