how to protect yourself (and others) from soi dogs.

[WaveHunter]

7 hours ago, giddyup said:

Then what's your solution to attacking dogs, give a peace sign?

Aggressive stance is best strategy.  Most dogs are cautious and challenge you first to see how you react before they get real aggressive (both individually and even in a pack).  They can sense fear but they also can sense a dominant attitude.  Most I've run into are real pussies and quickly turn tail if you challenge them aggressively and quickly before they get too bold.  That's the key I think.  Take the initiative immediately. 

 

Once I was jogging at night and a nasty sounding/looking dog came out of the shadows just a few feet from me, barking and snarling and showing his teeth.  Scared the crap out of me!  I lunged at him and yelled and sure enough the dog turned tail, but I was so  pissed at being scared like that I started chasing him down the street, picking up sticks, and rocks and bottles and throwing them at him (none actually hit him).  It was comical actually because he started yelping as he ran being pursued by me, who must have appeared to him to be a madman. 

 

On the rare occasion they don't back down, you've got trouble on your hands.  Not much you can really do except defend yourself with anything you can find at hand (a rock, stick, bottle).    There's always some sort of trash laying around on the streets of Thailand LOL! Even if you're attacked it's better to be aggressive defending yourself.  With dogs, it's an Alpha / Beta thing I think.  Running is probably the last thing you'd want to do; then they sense you as prey, and you're not going to outrun a dog...no way!

[samuttodd]

Riding close to home there are a lot of street dogs but they’re used to the traffic of bikes so they just lay there.

 

When I go further out into the countryside most of the dogs are not used bikes and being dogs, they want to give Chase or to defend their territory.

 

I am always riding alone and let’s face it if you’re going at a good good clip it can be difficult to determine whether or not several dogs are going to try to cross in front of you and cause you to go over for your bars and crash, or if you’re going to be able to out run them.

 

Since I’m all alone. generally what I do it is soon as I’ve seen them and they see me I’ll take my hands off the bars and put my hands up in the air so I looked big “. 90 times out of 100 the dogs instantly turn away and walked away from where I’m going. He doesn’t wanna mess with something that’s that tall and large. Occasionally they’ll give Chase and I’m able to out run them by getting them on one side of the bike and then cutting them off into the edge. Helps to be in a tall gear when You see dogsdogs coming  up in the roadway so that you can out run them kind a hard to do if you’re in too low of a gear.

 

If you can’t out run them then keep peddling it’s harder for them to hit a moving target

 

Another tactic I’ve used after I make myself look bigger on the bike if the dog hasn’t turned away from me I get into charge mode and point the bike directly at it and power up making it look like I’m coming after him.

This seems to work really well but it means that you have to ride with enough oomph in reserve to be able to do that on a moments notice.

 

 There was a time about 20 years ago when I used to ride 400 to 450 miles a week. So I’ve had plenty of encounters with dogs.   Never got a bite, but I felt their breath on my ankles

[StreetCowboy]

Coming through the industrial estate before dawn on Sunday two dogs perked up and started barking and chasing us.  I don't think they had any intention of catching us, as we were not going that fast, and we encouraged them "Come on, boy, let's find some traffic" but they gave up after a while.

 

They looked pretty domesticated, not the diseased scabby-brown street dogs you sometimes see

 

SC