Over the last week I have seen The Oregonian, Fox News and other local media share stories regarding dog attacks. The stories focused on pit bulls and, as the owner of a pit bull I feel compelled to remind my fellow dog owners that dog attacks are nearly always the direct result of TWO dog owners acting irresponsibly. Unless you're at a designated off leash area, leash your damn dog! Why is that so hard for Portland dog owners to understand? I don't care if you're dog 'is friendly' or under 10 pounds-they are dogs, they act unpredictably and my dog simply isn't friendly towards other dogs! I keep her on a tight leash, walk her at 'off hours', cross the street when other dogs are in sight and take every precaution possible. Yet on more occasions than I can count our walks have become stressful because an off leash dog comes our way (often with an owner distracted by their children or their cell phone)! And, on two occasions, a dog under 10 pounds and off leash came running towards us aggressively covering considerable ground before the owners even recognized what was occuring. Yes, my dog can injur your 'friendly, little dog', but we'll never get there if you're a responsible dog owner!

Sincerely-
One of the responsible dog owners in SE Portland