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After being attacked by a dog once when I was cycling (he bit my leg), and another time when I was 4 or 5 years old (there is a scar on my face where the dog took a chunk out of it) I feel J.H.'s sentiments . There is no need to feel threatened by J.H. if your dog is doing nothing. If he provokes the dogs, then I understand your responsive anger, but if the dog bit him for an unnecessary reason other than the claim that he's J.H., I think he has a right to wrath. Just be responsible owners. It's that simple.

Now when/if he gets into name-calling, especially with a super guy like Hugh, definitely kick his ass.

There is no need to feel threatened??? My dogs are wonderful but they're dogs; Dog = unpredictable. In order to prevent any harm THREATENED at my dogs I WILL prevent JH from going near them.

Sandy, I am sorry. I guess I didn't realize that this is how FRIENDS are supposed to speak to each other. I guess I assumed you wanted nothing to do with him because of all the threats.

Artsay, No it didn't break the skin, that's why I didn't beat/kill it.

Artsay wrote:There is no need to feel threatened??? My dogs are wonderful but they're dogs; Dog = unpredictable. In order to prevent any harm THREATENED at my dogs I WILL prevent JH from going near them.

Don't you think you might have a little more control over your dogs going near JH than JH going near your dogs? If your dog is on a leash, walk away from JH, don't run to him and say, "Hey, JH, get away."

Well that dog that bit me was also a wonderful dog, just having a bad day and didn't like a happy kid giving him a hug. They're definitely unpredictable.

I’ll chime in.

Walking to base of climb at Nautilus formation at Vedauwoo:

Dog comes out of nowhere to investigate me. BIG BIG dog. Questionable demeanor, growls a little, shows teeth. Had me wondering how fast I could grab a boulder and crush his skull. Owner gives typical reply, “He’s harmless”. My reply to him, “Your dog needs to be on a leash”. He ignores me.

The next thought is I should kick his and the dogs ass. But I am on vacation and decide to have fun and climb instead. All the time though I have to watch this animal out of the corner of my eye while swatting at the biggest mosquitoes I have ever seen and racking up.

I like dogs. I would love to be able to take one with me wherever I go. I would love to own one, but I realize how much they do not fit into what I do and where I go. I could never adequately give them the attention they want and need let alone the time to adequately exercise them to keep them fit. The dog’s life and behavior is the owner’s responsibility.

Bottom line: Dogs are not allowed on NFS trails in the gorge. They should, more importantly, not be at the crag either. Owners are too preoccupied with climbing or belaying to be able to adequately control their animals. That should be justification on it’s own. If it were up to me I would ban them. As it is, every dog owner should, at the very least, have his or her dog on a leash. Otherwise I think you are fair game to J.H. justice.

The bottom line in my mind is that dogs are somewhat unpredictable and those of us who own them are not going to take any chances of having them around J.H. because of his threats, regardless of how much we like J.H. or not.

I also believe that there is a logical explanation for these incidents. As I said before, a dog on a leash is generally more territorial of the area s/he is occupying. Perhaps the way J.H. walks or presents himself is threatening to dogs. Dogs see people as dogs, for the most part, and perhaps J.H. presents as a dominant dog and this brings out aggression in other dogs. Perhaps that dog at Solar Collector perceived J.H. as going after the other dog (which appeared to be her bitch in a weird lesbian dog thing that was happening). I don't know. I just know that I am now seriously afraid for my dog to be anywhere near J.H. in case she might act out of character and snap at him. I feel as though my baby has been threatened and I am acting to protect her, in a preventative measure. If you don't understand that, you've never truly loved a dog.

Lame Wade, I agree.

Dogs can snap when they're on a leash. I believe that's the circumstance of the last time he was snapped at.

I think JH doesn't respect a dog's space. Just like I don't stand within a few feet of a person so as not to enter their personal space and make them feel uncomfortable, nobody should stand within a dog's personal space. It's the same thing.

So just to make sure that I don't ever have to deal with this crap during climbing, JH is not permitted near me. JH, do you understand this? Are you going to respect my demand? If not, please let me know.