what are good self defense tools against dogs

I can go one of two ways off the top of my head.
1: half a pound of bacon in a ziplock baggie in my pocket. (quickly disperse bacon and leave the area while sparky is occupied munching down....he may, however come back looking for more.)
2. The stout radio antena off of an older model truck. ( I carried one of these little, light weight devils with me when I was a paperboy back in the early '80s. One whack on the nose and sparky will lose all interest. It also worked well once on a two legged mutt who tried to rob me....That took a few extra whacks but drove the point home.)
Doc
 
Also check out the upcoming Spyderco Temperance. Designed as a general use knife that doubles for fending off mountain lions, I think it might prove equally well designed for resisting a canine assault.
 
Short of a firearm, if it were me, I wouldn't run, ever. I also wouldn't want to fight a dog, or multiple dogs with a knife. Some sort of bear/pepper spray would probably be the best defense, other than yelling and trying to make yourself seem larger. A good, stout walking staff would be light in the hand, and give you good distance. I would rather use an axe handle, though. An axe handle makes a terrific club. If the dog actually gets close enough to bite you, none of the above matters much.

I've been attacked by a dog only once in my life; it wasn't fun. Some things I learned that helped me win the fight:

I'm a lefty, so I used my right arm as a shield, and purposely stuck it out so that the dog would go after it instead of my leg(s) and/or left arm or throat. I also tried to make sure the dog only clamped down on the meatiest part of my forearm.

If you push whatever the dog has clamped his jaws onto farther into his mouth, the grip lessens, if that makes any sense. Try this with your dog, and watch what happens. It might give you that split-second you need to snatch your hand out of its mouth.

Be prepared to beat and stomp the dog to death. Not just enough to make it run away. If you're not already in the mode that your are going to finish this no matter what, then the dog has the upper hand already and things are going to go poorly.

Eye gouging works. You want to ram your thumb so far into its eye socket that you can move its head around with your thumb.

If the dog has a collar on, you have the upper hand, and can control the dangerous end of the dog...to a certain point.

I was 12 or 13 when I was attacked by the neighbor's hienze-57, medium sized, 10+ years old dog. The dog probably weighed around 60lbs, and I probably weighed 100lbs. It wasn't some super killer dog, just an ordinary dog you could find in any neighborhood in America. Lucky for me, all the above mentioned things just came naturally, and were just my reaction to the attack.

So, I guess the best defense you can have against a dog/dogs is to remain calm and use your head. Think about how you can manipulate and control the situation. And remember, you are a HUMAN, who is able to think deviously and violently, and it is just a dog bound by the rules of instinct and reaction.

I'm not sure how I would handle a pack of dogs. It would be much more difficult, and the chance of getting seriously hurt/disabled is greatly increased. I would probably stay 90% defensive and 10% offensive against the pack leader. I don't know if that's good strategy or not. Hopefully I never have to find out.
 
A friend has multiple dogs that sometimes fight, he swears that the fake lemons you get at a grocery store is the best thing in the world. One squirt in the face and the fight's over. Now all he has to do is toss the fake lemon up and down in his hand, and the dogs run away from each other.
 
I worked last summer/fall for a grass-roots election campaign organization.

I got bitten 3 times, and threatened so many times I forgot. (and I'm only talking about the dogs, not the housewives, ho ho :rolleyes: ) My friends took to calling me "Milk-Bone."

Dogs that threaten, don't generally WANT to bite. They will give you time to draw any defense mechanism you want, and you won't NEED it if you're smart enough to back out of their yard. They just want you to go away.

Dogs that WANT to bite, generally don't threaten. They will come at you FAST, perhaps silently and from out of your field of view. They want to find out what you taste like, and will follow you down the block to find out. I suspect this is pretty rare, but it does happen. I have the scars to prove it. By the way, getting bitten by a dog pretty much sucks. Don't forget that.

The best defense against a dog, just like the best defense against anything else, is to not get into his field of fire. If the dog is of reasonable size to hurt you (and it doesn't take a very big dog to ruin your day and put you in the clinic for shots and stitches... trust me) and you're SOL in his AO, the best advice I can give is kick him HARD right under the chin. I think that might work, but I never had time to try it :D No, I don't carry a sidearm, but yes, I carry a knife... the 3 times I got bitten, I simply did not have time to bring my knife to bear. I sure didn't have time to dig out my squirt-gun full of lemon juice, or grab hold of his collar. Food for thought.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I have actually had to use a sjambok against a dog before. I was walking my dog on a subdivision near mine. Now I had had trouble with loose aggressive dogs in the area before, so I had my sjambok (the older lighter weight version) tucked in my arm. A while into the walk I noticed a big black dog loose and wandering around down the road a ways. I pulled my dog over to the opposite side of the road in the hopes that it was friendly, and if no then it would at least keep its distance. It did neither. The instant it noticed my dog it barreled down the road and started going for his face. Not about to tolerate this I hauled back and gave one firm strike on the dog's back. It didn't make a sound but jumped a good three feet in the air and ran off at top speed. Never seen that dog again. It's not easy to carry a sjambok around, but let me tell you they sure do work! :eek:
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If you are talking about the older Cold Steel ones they could be wicked! I have seen the used to drive cattle. They are very durable accurate and easy to use. I would hate to see what one could do if it was used all out as in self defense. I am sure you could lay flesh open with one. I am not sure it would be lethal but it would have the potential to inflict tremendous pain!
 
James_Terrio said:
the 3 times I got bitten, I simply did not have time to bring my knife to bear.
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I carry a gun. A dozen years ago, a BIG rottweiler came charging at me and I didn't know it was on a long chain. Obviously nothing came of this. I should say, though, that in the few seconds that this happened, I complete forgot that I had a gun. It bothers me that this was my reaction. My hope is that perhaps I'd have eventually remembered some time before everything went black.
 
James_Terrio said:
I worked last summer/fall for a grass-roots election campaign organization.

I got bitten 3 times, and threatened so many times I forgot. (and I'm only talking about the dogs, not the housewives, ho ho :rolleyes: ) My friends took to calling me "Milk-Bone."

Dogs that threaten, don't generally WANT to bite. They will give you time to draw any defense mechanism you want, and you won't NEED it if you're smart enough to back out of their yard. They just want you to go away.

Dogs that WANT to bite, generally don't threaten. They will come at you FAST, perhaps silently and from out of your field of view. They want to find out what you taste like, and will follow you down the block to find out. I suspect this is pretty rare, but it does happen. I have the scars to prove it. By the way, getting bitten by a dog pretty much sucks. Don't forget that.

The best defense against a dog, just like the best defense against anything else, is to not get into his field of fire. If the dog is of reasonable size to hurt you (and it doesn't take a very big dog to ruin your day and put you in the clinic for shots and stitches... trust me) and you're SOL in his AO, the best advice I can give is kick him HARD right under the chin. I think that might work, but I never had time to try it :D No, I don't carry a sidearm, but yes, I carry a knife... the 3 times I got bitten, I simply did not have time to bring my knife to bear. I sure didn't have time to dig out my squirt-gun full of lemon juice, or grab hold of his collar. Food for thought.
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I grew up around lots of dogs..we always had atleast 2 when I was a kid..my first dogs where a black lab and a german shepard..both great dogs..they looked out for me while I got into trouble. I hate when I feel threatened by a dog..I am used to my dogs being friendly and loved, and basically, I have no patience for an agressive dog. I feel alot of it comes from bad owners.
I was attacked from behind while jogging once..I had on headphones, and didnt hear the dog until it was about 10 feet behind me moving at full speed..honestly..I dont know what alerted me to its approach. I didnt have time to even think..I let out a grunt and kicked it right in the nose...it dropped right there. a few seconds later..it rose up and trotted for home with a kind of crooked gait...really ruined that dogs day. I doubt he was ever the same..
On one other occasion I was confronted by a good size britney spaniel, it wouldnt back down..just kept barking and growling..I was talking calmly and backing up..the dog kept lunging for me and working up its courage. I was pretty amped up by the time he went for me ..I landed one hard punch to the top of the head, and basically knocked him for a loop...sadly, the dog died not long afterward..I was pretty upset, as it was a family members dog. I still feel really bad about that dog, although, I am not about to get bit without putting up a fight.
I see alot of joggers carrying sticks with them..I think that a short stick, much like a nightstick, would work just fine. I think that most of the time, unless its just a "mean" dog..you can talk your way outta trouble. Running away isnt a really good idea IMO..kinda sets off their instincts. I like dogs, and try to let them know it right away. I sometimes forget that a dog that I dont know should be approached with respect and distance...I just wanna pet them:thumbup: Some of my best buddies have been dogs..
 
As promised, feral dog banishment tools,

DOGS BANE, a hand scraped, fire blasted, linseed oiled stout hiking staff, and GITSNICK, a Norse hawk with a hickory haft, hand scraped, fire blasted and linseed oiled. Shown with several well made knives, including I do believe the one and only J-Siah Heavy Camp Knife (HCK).

DSCF7530.jpg
 
I think MERCOP on the forum has dealt with a couple of mean dogs.
Maybe he can add some info on disabling dogs.

About 3 months back a Pitbull killed a lady over here and the cops shot it 20 plus times but it was still pacing up and down the yard before it dropped taking at least 3 shots to the head.
 
bigox said:
If you are talking about the older Cold Steel ones they could be wicked! I have seen the used to drive cattle. They are very durable accurate and easy to use. I would hate to see what one could do if it was used all out as in self defense. I am sure you could lay flesh open with one. I am not sure it would be lethal but it would have the potential to inflict tremendous pain!
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It was one of the older ones. I had also modified it with a bicycle grip (instead of the red vinyl razors it came with:rolleyes:) a steel cap on the end as a pommel, and a screw in the end, tightened down flush with the tip. The little bit of extra weight made the tip more lively and aggressive. I suppose if I wanted I could unscrew it a little bit and then it would lay someone/thing open but I'm not THAT mean...unless I have to be.:o The nice thing with a sjambok as opposed to a stick is that you can strike through the target and be ready immediately for another strike without having to return to line. That being said I didn't need more than one blow to send the dog running. I hate having to hurt anything, but that dog had it coming. :grumpy:

For what it's worth, I think that the newer sjamboks are a better material, but the design blows compared to the original. Same shape/size in the new plastic would have been better.
 
I have never used one of the new ones but I noticed that they look thicker. I assumed that they used the same material and that you could shave it down to make it more snappy or "lively and aggressive" as you say.
 
I hike in northern MD, which is relatively rural, but not the boonies by any stretch. Whether walking on the road, or the trail, I always am in close proximity to pups. I carry dog biscuits and a hiking stick. I normally carry a SAK, a larger folder, and a cellphone. Other than maybe a water bottle, the only defense I have is my walking stick. I have not seen feral dogs, but I have seen a few dogs that were a lil removed from domestication. Most of the time, the dogs that bark at me, are just letting me know that their property is theirs, the trail is theirs, have a good day, just don't piss them off. Fair enough. A few times, I have had dogs come at me, and have tossed a dog biscuit, and held my walking stick firm. Quite rarely, I have laid dogs out in the middle of the road or the trail. When I came back through, they were gone, either removed, or they came to and trotted off. Most of the time I try to toss them a biscuit. I've had snarling dogs stop advancing on me, sniff the biscuit, gulp it down, and come over for more. Made friends with them, and their owners who saw the altercation and ran out to get their dog, or as in one case, come out to chastise me. After they gathered the scope of what happened, they have been very cordial when I come past.
 
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