dogs i m a biker and a dog lover first and foremost i want to mention some common sense if it s a choice between injuring killing a dog or getting yourself injured killed there is only one rational decision only the most insane animal rights kook would put the dog first second it s useful to learn how to read a dog s body language how you react to a dog who is chasing you because he thinks it s a game and that you re playing with him is completely different from how you react to a dog which has hostile intent third it s useful to learn how to present yourself to a dog dogs are social beasts and recognize a domination submission hierarchy to a dog there are two types of fellow creatures that which he dominates and that which dominate him you need to unambiguously represent yourself as being of the latter class you are god you are easily angered and your anger is terrible but god is also amused by one who properly submits to his dominance and may even on rare occasions dispense a kind word a kind word or even oh joy oh rapture unforeseen a dog bisquit now how does that all relate to biking well first it s a good idea to assume that most dogs who chase motorcycles do so because they think it s a game and not out of overt hostility the msf suggestion is a very good one when you see the dog coming slow down so he determines a particular place of interception just before you and he reach that spot punch the throttle so that when he reaches it you re already long gone dogs take a few seconds to react to new input and definitely cannot comprehend the acceleration that a motorcycle is capable of with a hostile dog or one which you repeatedly encounter stronger measures may be necessary this is the face off first and there is very important make sure you never face off a dog on his territory face him off on the road not on his driveway if necessary have a large stick rolled up newspaper etc something the beast will understand is something that will hurt him stand your ground then slowly advance your mental attitude is that you are very angry and are going to dispense terrible punishment the larger the dog the greater your anger dogs will pick up anger just as they can pick up fear and since you and he are not on his home territory it may suddenly dawn on the dog that perhaps he is on your territory and that you are prepared to fight to the death most dogs will decide that it is a good idea to retreat to their own territory where there is at least a home advantage they ll also observe that you are satisfied by that retreat gesture of submission and thus they have escaped punishment the interesting thing about dogs is that body language communicates a great deal to them the more effective you are at communicating body language the less you actually have to do after years with my pound beast i ve learned a few tricks i think
