Jeraboam

In recent years we have seen a great improvement in the restriction on dogs running loose. Fortunately, most of the dogs in the area between Albufeira and Gale beach are now confined to their owners properties as they appear to be all owned as guard animals and display nasty attitudes as one passes their homes. Unfortunately, a few irresponsible owners let their animals out on the streets without leashes and my morning runs sometimes encounter snarling, aggressive dogs. Most websites for runners provide little guidance of value: take another route, back away cautiously, climb over a wall or fence if attacked, etc. Carrying a useful club (!) makes running difficult and Mace or bear spray are not allowed in my checked luggage...! Any suggestions from other runners in the sunny south?

mfesharne

You can buy pepper spray here........ It's only the stronger ones that are licenced

nogard

I too used to suffer with this problem, on my early morning runs. I started to carry a 1mt long stick! When the dogs ran at me; i just raised the stick. The dogs did a very quick about turn and ran off.

liveaboard

Dogs are all different; but they are quite territorial. So as you run through 'their' area, some just can't resist the urge to harry you.

There are 2 paths; dominance or alliance.

Dominance is the stick. I don't think the spray is a good idea at all, that will cause far more escalation [canine and human] than a stick will. Also it's hard to control if there's any wind.

The alliance path is to stop and make friends with them; carry some little doggy treats to throw to them.
The owners might object to you feeding their dogs, but then you can tell them to tie the critter up if they don't like it. They're the ones out of order after all, not you.

Soon you'll be able to run through without trouble, tossing a little biscuit [or not] without breaking stride.

Truly nasty aggressive dogs won't cooperate in this way, but those are rarely loose [they make a lot of trouble and get taken to the kennel pretty quick].

Good luck!

Jeraboam

Thanks for the suggestions; the bear spray was tongue in cheek. I'll try the treats and then the big stick approach.

mfesharne

How about those small hand held, compressed air fog horn things they sell in some of the Chinese shops?

EMR

The dog biscuit works a treat.
Dogs when we first met them were scary and aggressive now wait for their biscuit

Red Eric

A big stick sounds a bit awkward to carry on a run, whereas dog biscuits would fit nicely down the front of the shorts, leaving the hands free for proper running action.

Pilou

Very good advice!

scrubbedexpat142

I feel a horror headline coming on - "EMR eaten by savage dogs after leaving biscuits at home"!

uk_grenada

Here, most dogs wander free, they are supposed to bark at passing people, thats their job and its usually pretty friendly, but aggressive ones dont prosper. If one bites someone or kills a sheep/goat, chances are some local will dispatch it with a cutlass or one night it’ll get poisoned with gramoxone,

BlackBeardie

I am guilty of letting my dog run loose. Own her own she is very friendly to passersby. However, she joins up with the neighbours dogs on occasion to harry people on. Not ideal I know, but they are not attack dogs and have never bitten anyone if you shoo them they stop and back off.

What drives a one of them nuts are cars with noisy engines. Like those small cars with three cylinder engines I think.
Pepper spray is a bit extreme but yes, do carry stick.

Ingles

Don't know why some are going on over Pepper Spray , nearly everybody has in the house Fly Spray , this works just as well ,if you spray there face !