“But my dog is so friendly and well-behaved!” — this phrase is sometimes used by owners who don’t mind letting their dogs off their leash for a while. While this gives their pet its necessary freedom and fun time, it can also pose dangers to the pet and its surroundings. From dog poisoning and the unpredictable reactions of people around to financial burdens for its owner. Unless you are in a completely enclosed area, putting your dog on a leash can save you a lot of trouble.

Bright Side always stands up for the safety of the people and animals around us. That’s why we would like to discuss this delicate topic with you about whether we should let our dogs run freely sometimes or not. Let’s explore this!

1. An unleashed dog can become too agitated or excited around other dogs.

“My dog has always been the sweetest, least aggressive dog I’ve ever had. We moved to Dallas and while walking around our neighborhood loop he was attacked on 3 occasions in 5 years, by off-leash ‘friendly, he never does this!’ dogs. He is now very wary and barks at dogs when we pass them on opposite sides of the street. He shushes quickly, but it’s been a major change in his behavior. I have no time for people who don’t leash their dogs and now I’m the angry lady who tells them off when I see them.” — drag0nw0lf / Reddit “Had a dog run at me while I was on my bike. Slowed down because there was a dog all up near my wheels, so it got to me. I got bitten — not badly, but I was really shaken. Now every time I am out walking or running and a dog runs at me, my heart starts racing and I start thinking, ‘It knows I’m scared, that I can sense it as dangerous, and that I’m an enemy, and it’s going to attack,’ and then that escalates until I’m nearly having a panic attack.” Add that to the fact that my dad is wary of dogs and I think I picked up on that at a young age.” — cateml / Reddit “My cat got attacked by a ‘friendly’ dog being walked off of his leash. She was sitting in our front yard when the dog spotted her and attacked. The owner was trying to smile at me, saying, ‘Oh, he never does this,’ while I’m trying to figure out how to move my blood-covered cat and get her to a vet without hurting her more. I honestly don’t understand this, why don’t you just put a leash on dogs? This whole issue just makes me mad and sad.” — snoozlesloth / Reddit

Do you let your dog off-leash? Let’s share our thoughts about this in the comment section!