The most rewarding part of being a self defense and safety professional is the ability to protect your loved ones. For example, one of my best girlfriends relayed a story to me about her unsettling encounter with a strange man in a car. She was walking her dog at night and heard a car coming towards her from behind slowing down, causing her to go into “defense mode”. He stopped to ask her for directions to a hotel down the road. When asked the name of the hotel, he said he’d have to get his glasses. She was suspicious immediately and nervously waited for him while he fumbled around for his glasses and the hotel name and address. She became even more suspicious that he didn’t have either in front of him. At this time, she had her cell phone in one hand and a bag of her dog’s poo in the other. She remembered she had grabbed a pocket knife on her way out so her instinct was to let go of the poo and grab the knife. Her large dog was on a choke collar, due to his history of running away, that was restricting him from protecting her when he sensed her fear. This was a recipe for disaster but at least she had her “gut instinct” and a 70 pound pooch working in her favor. She provided him with the requested information and he departed.
The encounter ended without incident but she called to relay the story to me and of course, to hear my reaction and guidance for future dog walking excursions. I abruptly interrupted her story as soon as she mentioned dropping the dog poo bag so that I could pose the question, “Why did you drop the poo?” Even though she was anticipating my safety words of wisdom, she was not expecting that question. She responded, “Should I have thrown the poo?” When given the option to protect with a knife without knife training or years of training with dog poo, choose the poo.
I would recommend walking your animals in daylight but understand that is not a realistic plan for some. For those that walk dogs in the dark (early morning or evening), there are some preventative measures that can be taken to prevent unwelcomed or unsettling encounters. First, take a buddy. Any buddy will do like a husband, boyfriend, friend, child or neighbor. There is always safety in numbers, which is a good thing for all to remember and practice regardless of age. Second, take a flashlight to light the way and illuminate possible threats. A flashlight demonstrates safety planning and execution plus there are self defense flashlights like SureFire's E2D LED Defender to convince an aggressor to back off and defend if noncompliant. NEVER take a tool or weapon with you that you do know how to use and have not used recently. Third, leave all mp3 and audio devices at home and enjoy the great outdoors; limiting hearing creates vulnerability. Remember, my girlfriend heard the car slowing behind her, which was her first alert to possible danger. Lastly, put the prevention cap on and think before you do. Have a safety plan ahead of time so there is no panic. Tell someone when and where you are walking as well as when to expect you back. Take a cell phone but don’t talk on it because it is a distraction and limits hearing; use it for emergencies only. Obtain some basic self-defense training so you feel confident in protecting yourself if something happens to the dog. Leave the choke collars at home so the pup can protect.
While walking during the day or night, keep your eyes and ears open to what is going on around you. The neighborhood where you live has a heartbeat of its own and residents know when something is offbeat in their neighborhood. Trust this sixth sense and heed the warnings when felt or heard. Your dog, small or large, will sense your fear and protect you from the threat so it is important for the dog to not be restrained by a choke collar or other restrictive devices. It is also important to know a few basic safety rules like changing directions if someone approaches you on foot or in a car. If they follow, they should be considered a possible threat (great knowledge for kids). It is okay to say NO when approached too, so don’t feel obligated to talk to anyone even if you recognize them as a neighbor or acquaintance.
Even though I have tried to shed some light on dog poo as a defensive tool, the bottom line is that we all have the ability to protect ourselves with things or poo in our everyday lives. Poo is a great defensive tool when walking the dog because it is readily available and causes the aggressor to pause, providing critical time necessary to get to a safe place. Just like I would recommend stabbing an attacker in the throat with any pen that can be found in a woman’s purse, I would also recommend taking into consideration throwing fresh dog poo on someone threatening to harm you or your dog. It is assault if you just throw the poo without cause, so please don’t fling the poo for no reason unless you feel that you are in danger. A little bit of planning and a buddy equals safety in dog walking and can prevent an unsettling encounter for you and your pooch. If all else fails…just throw the poo, release the dog and RUN!
Be Safe!
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