My only time with bad dogs was all on the same weekend a couple Christmases ago. I think part of the reason for the problems that weekend was I was in a rural area where more dogs are off-leash or not fenced.
I have had no trouble since either but most of my riding is urban where there are strict leash laws or fenced yards. I sometimes let my lab run loose on off-road rides, she is not bothered by other bikes or unicycles.
In my pre-driving bicycle days there were a couple neighborhood dogs that would chase and nip, I rode with boots so my foot often went down their mouth to discourage their behavior. Can’t do that well on a uni unless you can one-foot really good.
I think it’s fair that if there is any question whether the aggressive behavior will lead to a bite, a dismount and pre-emptive strike is in order.
it sound as if many of you have the same problems as i have always have. I have lived with dogs all my life and have never lived in a house without one, but as soon i began to ride a unicycle evrydog dog i passed in the street or saw at home barked at me when i’m riding it. i think it must be because they dont understand it becuse it is a completley different shape, i dunno but its wierd.
James (any bristol, england unicyclists out there?)
Must explain why I get attacked everytime I go riding, I live in a very Rural area where most people have Gaurd dogs that they feal locking up to be optional…I have had a tire poped from a pitbul trying to get to my leg, I have several times used my muni as a bat…I think I once gave a dog a small cuncusion when I finally had to actually hit one with my uni nailing him across the head with my Jimmy C. But hay I got out unharmed…I have found my best Dog defending method is one foot riding…BOOT TO DA HEAD! You give them a swift kick with a loud NO and you never stop riding…Thats how I roll lol. I know it may sound cruel but get bit as many times as I have by gaurd dogs who think unicycles should not be on streets 5 miles near there dog house!
Never had a problem with dogs while riding my unis (other than incessant barking) but I had problems when riding my scooter (a 1946 Cushman Husky) when I was a teenager in Montgomery, AL. The scooter was so slow that most of the dogs could outrun me. I started carrying a squirt gun with household ammonia in it. That took care of the problem in a hurry.
Hey, I know this thread is a bit old, but if it helps, I have noticed that dogs usually attack or chase if you go really fast. You can try it, pass by a dog walking and usually they don’t care, do the same running and that make some of them crazy… What I always do is going really slowly and it has worked even with wild dogs.
I agree, moving slowly definitely helps. When I was doing 25 miles on a trail near my house, I encountered some rather aggressive looking dogs (Not because of breed - their teeth were bared.) I considered speeding past them, but decided I could never get away if they ran at me, so I slowed to about 3 mph (In my opinion, rather difficult on a 36er, on such a bumpy trail as that was, focusing on two dogs, a bike lock in my left hand and a water bottle in my right) and they didn’t give me any trouble. Their teeth disappeared from my sight, and back into their mouths as I passed. Had they attacked I wouldn’t have had a problem, being that my group of bicyclists was only few hundred feet back… but they still frightened me.
