I was walking two of my dogs, both on short leashes with pinch collars, on the Riverparks trail near the Tulsa Tech Center on 111th in south Tulsa. We were heading west down a straight stretch of the trail, having just descended a hill, when suddenly a middle-aged man and a teenaged boy flew right past us on their bikes, followed by two unleashed Labs running flat out. The dogs passed on either side of us, and startled my two dogs and myself. My heart was pounding from the sudden shock, and I watched as the dogs criss-crossed the path in pursuit of the cyclists. This happened near where I was parked, so after we got back to my car, I drove on ahead to the next parking lot and waited for the cyclists. They arrived a few minutes later at a slow pace, and I stepped out, smiling, and asked if the Labs were their dogs. When they told me yes, I asked why the dogs were not on leashes. The older man waved a training collar remote and said, "They're on a leash." I asked how it was fair for his dogs to run all across the path off-leash, while I had my dogs on short leashes on one side of the path. "They're on a LEASH," was the terse answer, again with a waving of the remote. He also added, "If I put my dogs on a leash, I can't ride my bike." To which I said, "Then leave your dogs at home. That's what I do when I ride my bike, because it's the responsible thing to do." At this point, he made a dismissive gesture and made to ride around me, but I stepped out in front and said, "I'm sorry, but you're not being considerate or responsible. You need to have your dogs on a real leash before they cause an issue." "They're ON A LEASH!" was the response, with the obligatory waving of the remote. The kid stepped off his bike and put his hand on my chest and said, "Get out of the way." The man motioned for the kid to back off, and steered his bike around me, and they took off. I watched as they crossed the road, and made their way to the pond in front of Grace Fellowship. After the dogs had a dip, they ran back out onto the trail in front of their owners, and off they went.
I was not happy, to say the least. All I could think was, what if the dogs had been approaching from the other direction, running flat out? That's enough to upset a lot of dogs, and if a cyclist was going the other way, what guarantee does he have that one of the dogs won't run out in front of him?
Was I wrong to tell him that? Putting aside all questions of personal safety during a confrontation, that is. Just the morality of riding a bike fast with a pair of dogs running unleashed after you, criss-crossing the trail - do you folks think that's acceptable behavior on the Riverparks trails?
I was not happy, to say the least. All I could think was, what if the dogs had been approaching from the other direction, running flat out? That's enough to upset a lot of dogs, and if a cyclist was going the other way, what guarantee does he have that one of the dogs won't run out in front of him?
Was I wrong to tell him that? Putting aside all questions of personal safety during a confrontation, that is. Just the morality of riding a bike fast with a pair of dogs running unleashed after you, criss-crossing the trail - do you folks think that's acceptable behavior on the Riverparks trails?
