Only Barks Or Will They Attack?

[coralia]

I agree but I but I think one of the points being discussed is how one establishes or what defines "a dog that is ready to take some meat out of you". Showing fear is definitely is not a good idea but I would not recommend making them feel threatened as a way to express this.

Right. I wouldn't want to go around trying to intimidate the poor specimens. However, even if they aren't going to try to take a piece out of me, the ones that bark loudly and startle me are being aggressive and trying to intimidate the human. I guess one needs to have a confident, fearless indifference. That's a little hard if one actually feels a little uncomfortable when a small pack of dogs, after one passes them, trail one with their breath on one's calves.

Recently I was at a rather secluded temple in the outskirts of Bangkok, and there were shitloads of hell hounds there. They were in packs as well. I got kinda spooked by them after a while, but noticed Thai kids totally indifferent to them, as indifferent as I would be to flies. And the dogs left them completely alone, or if they trailed them, the kids didn't care. I walked down one very narrow lane and a large, ugly-ass black dog squared off with me, cutting me off. It barked like made. I stopped. A Thai man calmly walked past it.

Point is developing the right attitude, once one can muster it, probably cuts out most of the problem.

It's not a matter of attitude. Dogs will not bark at people they are familiar with. The temple dogs were probably familiar with the Thai kids, and the Thai man who walked in that narrow lane probably lived in the area, and the dog knew him. Dogs will bark at people whose smell they are not familiar with, and at people who smell differently - and it's quite obvious that we (we foreigners) smell differently from Thai people.

I know of a case where a six year old boy was killed by stray dogs (by a bite to the neck). It happened last spring in an East European country.

[klikster]

.. I agree with the post about extending your hand to introduce yourself to the curious four legged gardian/s of the territory.

I don't. The last time I tried that was on a buddy's terrace. I had visited that house dozens of times. He had 3 dogs, looked a bit like Samoyed. Put my hand down and got a finger ripped open.

[junglechef]

Interesting 3 part series on owning dogs and biting dogs in Sunday's BKK Post Spectrum magazine

[Mousehound]

Does anyone know how much the pre-vaccination costs? They are quoting me $500 AUS in OZ.

[FolkGuitar]

Does anyone know how much the pre-vaccination costs? They are quoting me $500 AUS in OZ.

I'd check around if I were you. I don't think I paid more than $100 for the two shots together, but that was in Japan.

[HaleySabai]

Since living in Thailand I have grown to dislike dogs,especially soi dogs,but ever since I bought a cattle prod from walmart I have actually begun to enjoy their presence...as fleeting as it may be.

Peace doggie lovers

[k1d]

How come so many people are saying to just fake a rock throw? Why not just bust the dog in the face with the rock so your point is made right then and there. "You F'ing with the wrong person today". I love dogs, but wild dogs that are aggressive are no joke. Is it legal to carry around a police baton in a backpack or something? So just in case one of the dogs get out of line, you can easily reach into your bag and knock the F out of them.

[junglechef]

Why are all you aggressive people so afraid of these dogs? Perhaps it's not them that is the problem!

[connda]

I know exactly which area of CMU you're talking about, Sante. I was there a couple of weeks ago with the intention of jogging, until I saw a pack of about 10 dogs in the vicinity, I decided to go elsewhere. Do like me and don't take any chances. Go to Huay Tung Thao or 700 Stadium instead. The same warning goes for the vast City Hall grounds...there's a pack of unfriendly dogs who have claimed part of the territory as theirs. They once came out of nowhere and chased me while I was biking.

The dogs at CMU are pretty nasty. Don't show fear, ignore them (i.e., don't look at them), make yourself look big, and act confident. You are being the alpha male and letting them know that. They'll reluctantly give ground. But yeah, that group are some of the most menacing dogs I've come across in Thailand.

[Judecalling]

So, so far there appears to be no universal way of dealing with it! Unfortunately '75%' of the time is no good because it's easy to find the other quarter on offer.

As for turning your head away and walking past them and carrying on, with them now behind your back, that takes some courage/foolery.

As has been noted the real problems are when there's a pack of them. On the few occasions that i've had to deal with either single dogs or a pack of them which looked very intent on more than just barking at me, i've carried on walking past them turning round as i get level so that i'm now walking backwards up the soi so that i keep facing the dogs which are snarling at me. All the time i'm using some choice anglo-saxon communication requesting them to desist from causing me any aggro beyond the already astronomic levels of fear that are flooding my body. This fear i know is a bad thing, but it's a natural physiological reaction that i seem unable to prevent from happening when faced with several dozen teeth that seem to want to sink themselves into my flesh.

I've been in some rather horrible situations before, but this version thus far has prevented me from being bitten. Dogs seem to recognise aggression, and it makes them hesitate from acting out on their own aggression, at least in my experiences. I know they go for fear, but i can't stop that flooding of fear that hits my body, try as i have. If i was able to avoid that reaction, perhaps i could try other ways presented on this thread.

Great thread.

Yes what about that 'FEAR' Lol - quite something. Was faced unexpectedly myself a while ago - the initial eye contact was instant - we just bumped into each other and it was obviously his turf. I calmly walked but he followed - so i didn't turn my back from then on - and someone bailed me out - presumably the owner. Just about - really just about in time ... i felt. ! I was told later on about 'the fake stone trick' ... after reflection on that, there would still be no way i would spend my few seconds of 'judgement call' on putting my face towards the ground pretending or otherwise and nearer to 'Mr Infected or not'. I could spare a bit of leg if it came to it .. and still be in the better position to further my judgement if i really had to fight for it. Fear is instinctual to danger .. it's what keeps us alive .. unfortunately its very obvious sometimes - but it can be thought through. Personally i won't be so surprised again ... and i like to think that will lead to what i will do the next time - if there is one. (Mostly not a problem)

Also - the vaccination sounds interesting to me ... yes precaution - but i am not keen on being bitten - rabid or not. : )

The pepper spray has my vote ... but only as a final resort and that it buys you time to get away and not permenantly harm. If my life is depending on it ... then you are going down first, if i can manage it. Sorry about that .

[beb]

So, so far there appears to be no universal way of dealing with it! Unfortunately '75%' of the time is no good because it's easy to find the other quarter on offer.

As for turning your head away and walking past them and carrying on, with them now behind your back, that takes some courage/foolery.

As has been noted the real problems are when there's a pack of them. On the few occasions that i've had to deal with either single dogs or a pack of them which looked very intent on more than just barking at me, i've carried on walking past them turning round as i get level so that i'm now walking backwards up the soi so that i keep facing the dogs which are snarling at me. All the time i'm using some choice anglo-saxon communication requesting them to desist from causing me any aggro beyond the already astronomic levels of fear that are flooding my body. This fear i know is a bad thing, but it's a natural physiological reaction that i seem unable to prevent from happening when faced with several dozen teeth that seem to want to sink themselves into my flesh.

I've been in some rather horrible situations before, but this version thus far has prevented me from being bitten. Dogs seem to recognise aggression, and it makes them hesitate from acting out on their own aggression, at least in my experiences. I know they go for fear, but i can't stop that flooding of fear that hits my body, try as i have. If i was able to avoid that reaction, perhaps i could try other ways presented on this thread.

Great thread.

Yes what about that 'FEAR' Lol - quite something. Was faced unexpectedly myself a while ago - the initial eye contact was instant - we just bumped into each other and it was obviously his turf. I calmly walked but he followed - so i didn't turn my back from then on - and someone bailed me out - presumably the owner. Just about - really just about in time ... i felt. ! I was told later on about 'the fake stone trick' ... after reflection on that, there would still be no way i would spend my few seconds of 'judgement call' on putting my face towards the ground pretending or otherwise and nearer to 'Mr Infected or not'. I could spare a bit of leg if it came to it .. and still be in the better position to further my judgement if i really had to fight for it. Fear is instinctual to danger .. it's what keeps us alive .. unfortunately its very obvious sometimes - but it can be thought through. Personally i won't be so surprised again ... and i like to think that will lead to what i will do the next time - if there is one. (Mostly not a problem)

Also - the vaccination sounds interesting to me ... yes precaution - but i am not keen on being bitten - rabid or not. : )

The pepper spray has my vote ... but only as a final resort and that it buys you time to get away and not permenantly harm. If my life is depending on it ... then you are going down first, if i can manage it. Sorry about that .

A guy once told me how to deal with a dog attack and it involved throwing up your left arm (if right handed, reverse as needed) to allow the dog to clamp down on the weaker side, leaving your stronger arm free to use in a leveraging technique to break the dog's neck. I'm not sure which special forces training taught him that but I remember thinking that his experience with aggressive dogs was a lot different than mine. Or at least he imagined that.

So I don't think anybody can say exactly what one should do because every situation is different and calls for a different response.

Then the guy wanted to tell me how to kill somebody with a pencil.

[hml367]

Does a soi dog have an owner?

MSPain

[sante]

I still walk on the weekends at CMU but stick to the main road so haven't encountered the dog pack again. I think their territory is on the east side of the field. But I agree, Connda, they are a very ferocious and very large group of dogs

[junglechef]

Usually a dog with a collar has an owner, but this does not always mean the owner is taking responsibility for it by feeding or keeping it from running around loose on the sois and and perhaps causing problems. Most often a feral dog that lives on the street and may roam in a pack is referred to as a soi dog. I've taken in soi dogs and never had more loving and wonderful pets.

[Judecalling]

So, so far there appears to be no universal way of dealing with it! Unfortunately '75%' of the time is no good because it's easy to find the other quarter on offer.

As for turning your head away and walking past them and carrying on, with them now behind your back, that takes some courage/foolery.

As has been noted the real problems are when there's a pack of them. On the few occasions that i've had to deal with either single dogs or a pack of them which looked very intent on more than just barking at me, i've carried on walking past them turning round as i get level so that i'm now walking backwards up the soi so that i keep facing the dogs which are snarling at me. All the time i'm using some choice anglo-saxon communication requesting them to desist from causing me any aggro beyond the already astronomic levels of fear that are flooding my body. This fear i know is a bad thing, but it's a natural physiological reaction that i seem unable to prevent from happening when faced with several dozen teeth that seem to want to sink themselves into my flesh.

I've been in some rather horrible situations before, but this version thus far has prevented me from being bitten. Dogs seem to recognise aggression, and it makes them hesitate from acting out on their own aggression, at least in my experiences. I know they go for fear, but i can't stop that flooding of fear that hits my body, try as i have. If i was able to avoid that reaction, perhaps i could try other ways presented on this thread.

Great thread.

Yes what about that 'FEAR' Lol - quite something. Was faced unexpectedly myself a while ago - the initial eye contact was instant - we just bumped into each other and it was obviously his turf. I calmly walked but he followed - so i didn't turn my back from then on - and someone bailed me out - presumably the owner. Just about - really just about in time ... i felt. ! I was told later on about 'the fake stone trick' ... after reflection on that, there would still be no way i would spend my few seconds of 'judgement call' on putting my face towards the ground pretending or otherwise and nearer to 'Mr Infected or not'. I could spare a bit of leg if it came to it .. and still be in the better position to further my judgement if i really had to fight for it. Fear is instinctual to danger .. it's what keeps us alive .. unfortunately its very obvious sometimes - but it can be thought through. Personally i won't be so surprised again ... and i like to think that will lead to what i will do the next time - if there is one. (Mostly not a problem)

Also - the vaccination sounds interesting to me ... yes precaution - but i am not keen on being bitten - rabid or not. : )

The pepper spray has my vote ... but only as a final resort and that it buys you time to get away and not permenantly harm. If my life is depending on it ... then you are going down first, if i can manage it. Sorry about that .

A guy once told me how to deal with a dog attack and it involved throwing up your left arm (if right handed, reverse as needed) to allow the dog to clamp down on the weaker side, leaving your stronger arm free to use in a leveraging technique to break the dog's neck. I'm not sure which special forces training taught him that but I remember thinking that his experience with aggressive dogs was a lot different than mine. Or at least he imagined that.

So I don't think anybody can say exactly what one should do because every situation is different and calls for a different response.

Then the guy wanted to tell me how to kill somebody with a pencil.

Yes well dear lol ... avoid pencils then - but i do agree "every situation is different" etc.

[Thighlander]

I think too much attention is given to the soi dog issue, when in reality, the most vicious dogs are owned and fed by low life thais, who I really doubt have the financial means to take responsibility for their "pets" action. The typical scenario is that the gate is left open enough for them to get back on the dog owner's rental property, but when someone comes walking buy (rarely thai); the dogs come charging out, and then if someone is prepared enough to retaliate, they go running back in through a whole in the fence or the partially opened gate. Almost never do they have tags indicating vaccination. US insurance companies reported that the average settlement on a dog bite claim is 29,000 USD or about 1 million THB. What will you get here? If you are connected, a little, you will probably get your bill at CM Ram paid for, and maybe 2000 THB for you to go away, but you can also expect the thais to deny that it is their dog(s); "we only feed it".I don't consider myself to be one of the many Thai bashers on this forum, but this is out of fookin' control. Stayed at what would have been a great hotel, with a nice modern room, at a great price, and the immediate neighborhood was complete dog Hell....they had their fangs out and were growling. I would have been perfectly comfortable beating one to death had I been properly armed. You add this to the lack of sidewalks, and what you have is a bunch of Africans disguised as Asians in a Third World Country. Next time you go to the Mall(s) and want to flirt with some sexy real estate saleslady, ask her to show you the plan for the sidewalks around the 2 million baht condos. You might even see one of them sweat. Cheers!

Edited August 5, 2012 by Thighlander

[binjalin]

I think too much attention is given to the soi dog issue, when in reality, the most vicious dogs are owned and fed by low life thais, who I really doubt have the financial means to take responsibility for their "pets" action. The typical scenario is that the gate is left open enough for them to get back on the dog owner's rental property, but when someone comes walking buy (rarely thai); the dogs come charging out, and then if someone is prepared enough to retaliate, they go running back in through a whole in the fence or the partially opened gate. Almost never do they have tags indicating vaccination. US insurance companies reported that the average settlement on a dog bite claim is 29,000 USD or about 1 million THB. What will you get here? If you are connected, a little, you will probably get your bill at CM Ram paid for, and maybe 2000 THB for you to go away, but you can also expect the thais to deny that it is their dog(s); "we only feed it".I don't consider myself to be one of the many Thai bashers on this forum, but this is out of fookin' control. Stayed at what would have been a great hotel, with a nice modern room, at a great price, and the immediate neighborhood was complete dog Hell....they had their fangs out and were growling. I would have been perfectly comfortable beating one to death had I been properly armed. You add this to the lack of sidewalks, and what you have is a bunch of Africans disguised as Asians in a Third World Country. Next time you go to the Mall(s) and want to flirt with some sexy real estate saleslady, ask her to show you the plan for the sidewalks around the 2 million baht condos. You might even see one of them sweat. Cheers!

totally agree it is irresponsible 'mai pen rai' Thais owners that are the real problem - exactly as you have stated

[kaptainrob]

I think too much attention is given to the soi dog issue, when in reality, the most vicious dogs are owned and fed by low life thais, who I really doubt have the financial means to take responsibility for their "pets" action. The typical scenario is that the gate is left open enough for them to get back on the dog owner's rental property, but when someone comes walking buy (rarely thai); the dogs come charging out, and then if someone is prepared enough to retaliate, they go running back in through a whole in the fence or the partially opened gate. Almost never do they have tags indicating vaccination. US insurance companies reported that the average settlement on a dog bite claim is 29,000 USD or about 1 million THB. What will you get here? If you are connected, a little, you will probably get your bill at CM Ram paid for, and maybe 2000 THB for you to go away, but you can also expect the thais to deny that it is their dog(s); "we only feed it".I don't consider myself to be one of the many Thai bashers on this forum, but this is out of fookin' control. Stayed at what would have been a great hotel, with a nice modern room, at a great price, and the immediate neighborhood was complete dog Hell....they had their fangs out and were growling. I would have been perfectly comfortable beating one to death had I been properly armed. You add this to the lack of sidewalks, and what you have is a bunch of Africans disguised as Asians in a Third World Country. Next time you go to the Mall(s) and want to flirt with some sexy real estate saleslady, ask her to show you the plan for the sidewalks around the 2 million baht condos. You might even see one of them sweat. Cheers!

Totally agree Thighlander Must be very difficult getting around with a Zimmer frame

I can put up with poor sidewalks, or 'footpaths'. It's part of living in a vibrant under-regulated society and CM actually has far better footpaths than many Thai cities, certainly way better than Indonesia!

Personally i hate the reference to '3rd World country', that doesn't apply to Thailand, does it?

I note the Mayor has said he will take action in 'due course', when funding and other works allow, to fix the footpaths on Nimmenhaemin Rd. For a major shopping, night-life and tourist street it's a disgrace! Eventually Chiang Mai may become fully modernised, by which time we'll be long-gone ... 6' under or living in ... Cambodia, perhaps.

[lizardtongue]

The pretending or picking up a stone thing works however what really gets them thinking is the 'crackle' from a stun gun,

no need to actually touch them with it although a short jolt around the 'nut' area probably wouldn't go a miss and would prevent

further attacks/threat of attack in the future.

[insertmembernamehere]

what you have is a bunch of Africans disguised as Asians in a Third World Country

I am glad you said that. Took the words, however un-PC they might sound to some sensitive types, right out of my mouth.

I just came back from a week in Japan, my fourth trip there to various places. Any foreigner who honestly thinks that Thailand is not a Third World Country is simply fooling himself or is a foreigner from Haiti or Zimbabwe.

I have never seen a "street dog" in Japan, although that certainly does not mean they do not exist. However, without getting off track with details, the Japanese have a sophistication that is exponentially higher than is found in Thailand in almost every aspect of life and environment. Of course the same could be said of the advanced standards in Sweden or New Zealand too. Thailand is a Third World Country. That does not mean it is not a suitable place for aliens to live if they learn how to accept this fact and roll with the punches.

[Rob8891]

Seen recently, I think it was in at Wat Phan On..... Ominously, the second part of the advice was painted out in red............... The pic is a bit small, sorry... You might need to enlarge it.

Edited September 1, 2012 by Rob8891

[dave2]

re.

Seen recently, I think it was in at Wat Phan On

100 % wrong

two cats live in wat phan on and this is one of them but no dogs live there

your sign is probably in the first temple on the left in ratwithi road

not the first temple on the left in sunday walking street next to AUA .. which is wat phan on

dave2

[jacktrip]

dogs dig holes under my gate, the same three each time, and they recently mauled and killed a kitten living around here that I consider to be a pet.

just waiting for the next entry. gonna hurt the poor dog this time real bad, and it's gonna learn to never come around here any more.

[Rob8891]

re.

Seen recently, I think it was in at Wat Phan On

100 % wrong

two cats live in wat phan on and this is one of them but no dogs live there

your sign is probably in the first temple on the left in ratwithi road

not the first temple on the left in sunday walking street next to AUA .. which is wat phan on

dave2

Thx for the correction.... you're 100% right. It was Wat Dok Ueang.....Very quiet, so it must have been the dog's day off.

I'm still wondering if the dog in question ever agreed to the original wording of the notice.....

Edited September 1, 2012 by Rob8891

[dave2]

re.

Thx for the correction.... you're 100% right. It was Wat Dok Ueang.....Very quiet, so it must have been the dog's day off.

no problem : ) ... the wording on your sign has changed from about six years ago

coz there was one dog that let you walk in the temple and then appear from nowhere and

bark at you , circle you .. but not bite

a bit like the pack of dogs that used to do the same

in wat sai moon until a few years ago which was frightening but they have all gone now

dave2