Why I Want You and Your Dog to Leave Me and My Dog Alone

I take my little dust mop out for a walk 2 times each day. Those walks vary in length and distance, but there are always 2. This is largely because apartment living means it's the only time she gets a potty break.

(see the dustmop in question)

But the one thing that irks me about taking her out each day is not the walk itself, or even the time it takes. I signed on for all of that when I adopted her. The problem I have with our walks is that it seems like having a dog makes other dog owners think there's nothing wrong with coming over to strike up a conversation.

If I wanted that, I'd take her to the dog park.

Honestly, it's usually not a big deal. But my little fur face is an only child. When she does socialize with Earl's mom's dogs she more or less ignores them both. She's kind of stuck up like that. But she gets very territorial when she's on her leash, and so, when other dogs/dog owners come up, she get vocal and pushy and honestly, I don't want to have to deal with it. So most of the time I tell people as soon as I can (usually when they're close enough to ask if "he wants to play") the she's not good with other dogs. Some people listen. Some dont. 

There's a guy who lives in my building who has two extremely poorly behaved dogs. The one, upon seeing another dog, will rush said dog and then, when it's at the end of its leash, it will stand on its back legs, trying to get closer. He will generally meander toward other dog-walkers with his pair straining to get to the other dogs.

I learned to avoid this guy the week I moved in. And it's not just me that he lets his dogs creep towards, though I've noticed he stays far away if Earl's out with me. Last week I saw that he was out, so I moved to the opposite end of the park, because it's just easier that way, and he started creeping toward a college age girl out with a little mop of a dog. Then when she turned her back, he dropped his dog's leashes and they charged her and her dog. No one was hurt in the making of this guy's attempt at a meet cute, but as an outside observer, it was ridiculously clear the thing had been manufactured. 

I'm thinking about getting a yellow ribbon for Miss Lu's harness. As a small layer of "Leave us alone."

We'll see if it works.

But I totally get why people want to meet her.