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Comment by prmoustache | Hacker News Reader

As a cyclist, I can't say dogs are my best friends. OTOH I have had great bonds with some cats.

Cycling in rural Virginia/West Virginia has this risk as well. 99% of pooches just want to run along and make noise, but 1/100 wants flesh.

The solution - never be the slowest in the group!

When in Rome... open/constitutional carry, stand your ground?

Open carry is legal in both states. But I want nothing to do with owning/carrying guns. And haven't ever felt the need - most dogs give up chase once you pass their property. And I've only had a dog get my back tire once, and never flesh (though it does happen).

If there is more than one dog then you are almost always in big trouble.

I got bitten on a bike before, we have lots of aggressive stray dogs here. Even running routes have to be carefully planned to avoid the dogs.

> But I want nothing to do with owning/carrying guns.

I said "when in Rome" to signal distaste at the idea, for whatever that's worth. On the other hand, if bicycling leftists armed themselves and started blasting away every car and dog that made them feel threatened, it might move the needle on gun rights in a way that right-wing shooters fail to.

And, I've had several dogs escape their fences. They aren't just noisy.

i was walking my two dogs Sunday before last and was jumped by pitbulls roaming the neighborhood. A passing Dominos delivery driver pretty much saved the lives of both my dogs. I got him to role down his window and literally threw one of my dogs through it, then when the other one got separated for a min she literally jumped through the open window too. I jumped in and paid the driver $20 to take me home, the pits chased the car for maybe a block.

I have a pistol and was thinking about carrying it but that means every time i take my dogs for a walk i have to get it out of the safe and put it back in the safe. I have kids so can't just hang a holster with the leashes. Too much hassle and I know i'll eventually stop taking it with me. What i ended up doing was getting bear spray that can attach to the leashes. Now I can't forget to take protection with me when taking the dogs out because it's physically attached to the leash.

edit: this happened in Dallas TX

I, too, like cycling around with my shotgun. It nicely complements the spandex outfit.

Missed opportunity here. I found a number of gun racks for bikes, but no hardpoint mounts for gun turrets on bikes.

https://silodrome.com/columbia-military-pneumatic-safety-bic...

For when you need to deliver a really, really important message.

Pfft, it only aims forward. Surely we can do better.

I can't say cyclists are my best friends either. Just had two buzz me with with few mm to spare while walking to work. Yes, I was on the footpath, cyclists are not allowed to ride on footpaths here, there was a bicycle path right next to the footpath. If I was a dog that would be even more disturbing - a huge fast monkey trying to kill you (and your owner) while you peacefully walk.

Bikers gotta watch out for the cats as well!

https://www.kuow.org/stories/cougar-attack-washington-state-...

Deadly and non-deadly mountain lion attacks are rare, but dog attacks are not rare.

I do hiking, the same.

Pepper spray, knife etc are illegal here. I carry air horn for quick deployment, and petards (very small explosives). Saved my ass twice! Once I was surrounded by pack of four large dogs!

Wait, what? What country is a self-defense item like a pepper spray illegal in?

Most EU, some US states, some places have age limits...

You’re not allowed to carry pepper spray in Canada for self defence purposes

No offense but why do you care what the law says when you're by yourself in the middle of the wilderness?

It is mostly South Europe, not wilderness but more like 10 km from nearest village of 2000 people. Injuring dog is a serious offense here ($20k fine, perhaps jail). I am also foreigner, not local citizen...

You have stray dogs where you live or what? Cant say cycling has affected my views on dogs.

Lots of stray dogs around here in south of Spain. Also when I used to be a 12y old cycling in rural france that was pretty much the same, I was always prepared for a sprint whenever I would reach a farm.

In a sense it probably made me stronger but I can't say I build a friendship and a mutual sense of confidence with dogs.

I wonder what makes them hunt cyclists and some cars that pass by.

Instincts? Wolves hunt animals much larger than themselves for a living, they run after, nibble their ankles and wait for them to make a mistake and then they go in.

My dogs bark at people on bike/motorcycles/scooters. I think they code as a big animal to them. Once we get up close and it's clear that it's a person on a machine they stop barking.

As a counter point to hunting, my dog seems to be afraid of almost anything on wheels. Even a skateboard without rider is a hard nope, and will send her tail tucked behind me.

She's a 90 lbs Mastiff/St Bernard/Lab cross. It's not like she's worried about being crushed or eaten. She could probably eat me.

Or maybe she doesn't realize she's big. I don't know.

Some breeds have a higher prey drive than others.

But many bad behaviours are pretty easy to train out of most dogs (eg barking at passer-bys). Dogs are easy to train. Too many lazy owners blame their "nature" or "that's just how they are" as if they can't do anything.

Perhaps this is in order https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velo-dog

Well I don't want them any harm either. I understand all this is a big misunderstanding as they probably feel I am a danger to them.

> For the more humane, there were cartridges loaded with cayenne pepper or dust,

Could probably go for pepper spray nowadays.

ah okay thats not a thing here in Sweden.

So its not cycling then its a stray dog thing :)

I've been bitten by off leash dogs in California. They often give chase and try to attack your legs or bike wheels causing a crash.

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