So I’ve been wanting a little walking buddy lately. Probably a shih tsu mix or something. Something small that has a good personality and is available at the shelter. I’ve never had a dog myself before though and I had a couple of bad experiences with large off leash dogs when I was a small kid (I don’t think I was hurt but I very much do remember being chased and being very afraid) so I find myself still a little nervous around larger dogs I don’t know, especially if that dog is feeling excited or jumpy. A couple of gentler breeds are excepted in my head (golden and labs) and once I get used to a particular dog, I’m perfectly fine. I can leave other situations just fine by myself but I’m here asking for opinions from more experienced dog people. I suppose I’m afraid that having a dog myself would be like a magnet for other dogs while on walks that I might be uncomfortable with or that my being nervous could make a normal meet and greet go poorly. I just don’t want to adopt a dog and wind up putting it in a bad situation by accident. It’s also super common that I see escaped dogs when I’m out for walks by myself and others who walk their dogs without a leash.
Also, to say out loud, I am addressing my dog fears in therapy. It’s just not an instant cure, you know? It’s also possible I am way over thinking this.
Anecdotal evidence being what it is, trends have smaller dogs being more prone to biting – small dog syndrome. Bigger dogs can be dicks if they’re raised poorly, but are less prone to bite.
I’ll be the anecdotes for that …… spent my whole life with dogs of all sizes and have always been comfortable with them. But the only one that bit was a mini poodle
Then again, as the other guy said, I’ve always paid more attention to dogs that can do damage, vs the mini poodle bit me when I was ignoring it. Of course the most painful part of that was the tetanus shot
I think this has everything to do with owners and not taking the bites of small dogs seriously. Also dachshunds skew that statistic WILDLY as they account for 30% of bites to strangers across all breeds… as a dachshund owner I can tell you people see those little stubby legs and their common sense goes out the window, thankfully my dogs are nice but I know many a weary dachshund who would bite you if you came in too fast