Thoughts on Loose Dogs

[radfordred 6,284]

Walking my Daughters dog around to my Mum's (can't have him in the car, dog hairs) my Mum spoke of the 2 family dogs we had as kids, she mentioned that dog food did not exist the dogs ate leftover scraps? She also mentioned, which I had forgotten, when the dog needed to go out, she just kicked him out the front door onto the street, on his own & he joined up with other dogs & ran round the streets in packs? 

 

Whatever happened to packs of dogs running free?    

[MargieH 7,599]

My mum used to boil a sheep's head from the butcher for my dog, Scamp, in the late fifties.  It smelled dreadful, but he liked it!  He also ate the scraps from our meals.   I remember mum buying a tin of Chappie as a treat  for him, but he actually rolled in it!!

He often roamed by himself and followed me to school one morning (with a bit of encouragement from me..).  He did go out on a lead as well, but whenever I took him to the park and let him off, he often went home by himself...

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

We used to have a Blue Heeler in Australia, and over the back fence was a cow paddock, she would get a bath by the wife and first place she'd head for was the fence, dig a hole under it and find a nice wet cow pat and have a roll in it, then come home expecting a petting.

[Brew 5,410]

I don't think growing up we even had a doglead for our dog. My friends and I would roam all day through Clifton, Ruddington and the surrounding areas. The dogs just went with us and we wouldn't even consider going out without taking him with us. Like RR said if we didn't want to go out we simply opened the door and off he went. happy as Larry, sometimes gone all day  and came back when he got hungry.

The difference then and now is the the amount of open space we could access and virtually do as we pleased.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

When I was a young kid, we lived in one of the terraced houses in St Anns, we had a little mongrel dog, cross between several terriers and whatever, well Mum would let him out of an afternoon, one afternoon, the man from the Pru  was collecting insurance payments up the terrace, and the dog took a dislike to him and ripped the backside out of his pants. It was funny, but Dad didn't find it funny, as he had to buy the Pru man a new set of pants..lol.

[katyjay 5,090]

We had a purebred Boxer, Kim, and he would roam the neghbourhood. Like most dogs of that time, he wasn't fixed, and we did wonder how many part Boxers were on the Bells Lane Estate! He would go off all day, or just lay on the pavement outside our house. We lived near the bus terminus and a lot of folks would pass him and pet him. A neighbour up the road once said to mam, we love your Kim, we let him in and he lays in front of the fire. Rent-a-dog?

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

My maternal Gran had a dog that all the kids in here street played with, he used to follow me up Gordon Road then run after me when I rode down on my Uncles trolley, he is only four years older than me so more like a cousin, My late Mothers baby Brother. The dog was so gentle, but I did see his dark side once when some salesman raised his hand while talking to Gran, the teeth bared and a deep growl, and hairs standing up on his back.

 

[radfordred 6,284]

When our dog eventually came home after roaming the terraced street of Radford all day with his pack, he'd come home looking like a tramp, looking quite disheveled & always had a smirk on face? Not sure what he'd been up to? Good job he slept outside in a kennel in all weathers.