leash laws?

is there a leash law here and how strict is it?

i was walking our dogs in the park this morning when this other dog came out of nowhere and attacked one of our dogs.
She is a 13 year old greyhound who is very fragile and small. And this dog was almost 3 times her size. He pounced on her,pinning her on the ground and putting all of his weight on her,crushing her. I had to drag him off her and hold him back while this stupid fuc*ing lady comes strolling over casually and laughing. My partner comes running out the house and we both just flipped on her,yelling at her and etc. She claims "he was just trying to have sex with your dog,thats something you should learn about"...oh that didnt settle too well with us!! She then says "he has a muzzle on, whats your problem?" ....yeah your fuc*ing dog needs a muzzle yet you're gonna let him run around a park on his own with children and other dogs.

I really want to report this woman,is there anything i can do? What pisses me off the most is she didnt even apologize.This dog could've killed our dog and she stood there having a "i dont see what the problem is" attitude

As far as I am aware as long as the dog did not attack you a person then there is not much which can be done other than giving the dog warden a call and if you know where she lives then they can go around and have a word with her. But even then it really just depends on your dog warden. Sorry that's probably not want you want to hear. 

Leash laws depend on the specific location.  From my casual observation, in our area, dogs are not required to be on leash in most parks.  There will be a sign if a leash law applies.

you would think there should be stricter laws.

she has to go to the vet this evening now because everytime she moves, she cries out in pain.

If she was younger, I wouldnt be so upset.but the fact is,she is 13yrs old. which is quite old for a greyhound.shes very small and fragile and if i didnt pull him off her when i did,he wouldve killed her.

thanks for the answers guys

A huge dog that wasn't on a leash tried to attack my cat when I had her out back of my flat. Fortunately, she was okay, but the owners didn't even apologize. Then my neighbor's cat was attacked and had to run up a tree. When doing this he ripped that nail on the back of his leg and had to go to the vet. Normally it wouldn't have been a big deal, but her cat was diabetic and needed extra care. My neighbor was yelling at the owner when it was happening and the owner was yelling back, that it wasn't the dog's fault. No it wasn't the dog's fault, it was yours. People are idiots. I hope your dog is okay, Ink.

I wish there were leash laws.  I know some people think their dogs are adorable but I really hate dogs and I hate when they run up to me and sniff me or jump up on me.  Obviously some dogs are well controlled but I imagine you felt anxious with your experience too. 

thanks guys

she went to the vet this evening and he said she has some bruising, so he gave her a painkiller straight away (with a syringe) and also gave her some tablets to take at home for a bit.

ive also contacted the dog warden in this area to find out about leash laws in the park, i should get a call back tomorrow and i will go from there

I wish there were leash laws.  I know some people think their dogs are adorable but I really hate dogs and I hate when they run up to me and sniff me or jump up on me.  Obviously some dogs are well controlled but I imagine you felt anxious with your experience too.  

There ARE leash laws.  There just isnt a law that says that dogs must be on leashes at all times in all places and there absolutely shouldnt be.  In the UK where gardens are smaller and there is less open space, I have been thrilled to see that my dog is welcome in public areas without always being on a leash. In America, the only places in urban areas where dogs could be off-leash were dog parks which were of course packed to the gills with other dogs and were uncomfortable environments for older dogs (such as mine) who dont want to play with pups.  

I know this will be an unpopular argument, but I dont like children and I especially dont like when children scream and cry and run around like lunatics bumping in my chair, kicking my purse, etc when I am sat down to a meal.  But no one ever says children should be on a leash in public to save me from being bothered by them.  People should keep their dogs under control and they should keep their children under control, but there is no need for either to be on a leash at all times.

Ink - I am sorry this happened and hope your dog gets well very soon.

i have no problem with dogs not being on leashes,...as long as the dog is well behaved.

But as I said earlier..if her dog required a muzzle when its in public...then why does she think its ok to let it off the leash in public? obviously the dog isnt well behaved and we learned that

 

I know this will be an unpopular argument, but I dont like children and I especially dont like when children scream and cry and run around like lunatics bumping in my chair, kicking my purse, etc when I am sat down to a meal.  But no one ever says children should be on a leash in public to save me from being bothered by them.  People should keep their dogs under control and they should keep their children under control, but there is no need for either to be on a leash at all times.

I think the problem with this argument is that dogs are animals that can almost always physically harm a person or another dog, as Ink's experience has demonstrated. When I was about 5, our neighbors had two German shepherds that used to run up to me barking while I  walked to the bus stop. I was seriously traumatized by this and still don't like dogs.  (I was also bit by our own dog (a nice beagle) in the face at 16 and still have major scars from it.) I  would never want a child or anyone to feel scared by a dog when all that needs to happen is for the dog to be on a leash.

Yes, I'm not fond of annoying, bratty children either, but I don't feel like I am physically endangered by them.

Yes, I'm not fond of annoying, bratty children either, but I don't feel like I am physically endangered by them.

sorry,but that gave me a giggle reading that
love the way you worded it lol

I think the problem with this argument is that dogs are animals that can almost always physically harm a person or another dog, as Ink's experience has demonstrated. When I was about 5, our neighbors had two German shepherds that used to run up to me barking while I  walked to the bus stop. I was seriously traumatized by this and still don't like dogs.  (I was also bit by our own dog (a nice beagle) in the face at 16 and still have major scars from it.) I  would never want a child or anyone to feel scared by a dog when all that needs to happen is for the dog to be on a leash.

As I said, the humans need to keep their dogs under control and if "under control" for your particular dog requires them to  be on a leash, then so be it.  
However, my dog, for example, never NEEDS to be on a leash - she sticks to me like glue and may sniff a person or their shopping bag, but has never in her 10 years aggressively approached anyone.   For someone to say they don't like it when a dog even just sniffs them as an above poster said, is a ridiculous reason to call for leash laws.  

It does suck that bad owners would have to ruin it for everyone.

People walking in Dublin let their dogs walk without a leash and it terrifies me. These aren't exactly people who are concerned about how their dog acts in public.

its not that i think all dogs should be on leads.

Just ones that need it. Whether because they are aggressive or they might run

Our dogs for example,arent aggressive . But they need leashes for 2 reasons (1) the older one Ive been talking about, has one so that she can be near me incase anything like the above incident happens. and (2) Our other greyhound needs one because we just rescued him earlier this year,so he just got done with racing,and we dont want him running too far and getting lost.

but they get their exercise,even with leads. We walk them 3-4 times a day in the park. So i dont think the whole "dogs with leashes dont get enough exercise" excuse makes sense to me