The dog I am sitting is dog aggressive when off leash and the owner just does not seem to care?

As a sitter, I never allow a client's dog to be off leash, except on my own premises, which are fully fenced in. Sorry that I can't be sympathetic to your situation but the risks are too great IMO for a pet that isn't mine.

As for allowing a guest dog to play with another totally unknown dog, nope, not going to happen,. When I have more than one dog staying with me, I make sure they get along before accepting the second dog. Moreover, i don't leave them alone for a day or so until I can assess their behavior. So, at this point, all four of my regular boarders know each other, as well as my own dog, and can be trusted to be left alone when I run out for errands, etc.

Taking a dog to a safe area (fully fenced in) to toss a tennis ball is entirely different from taking it to a dog park with lots of strange dogs can be a disaster waiting to happen, especially with dogs that might be possessive toward toys.

This seems like a tough situation! If I read this all right - the dog owner it would be okay to take the dog to the dog park (is that the same as the dog run?). However the dog owner forgot to mention he can only got o the dog park if there are no other dogs there, correct?

I always ask if my clients if their dogs go the dog park, and if I could also take them. If they do usually go, then I will also take the dogs to the dog park. I board a lot of high-energy dogs, thus the dog parks are a good way -if not the only way- to get them all exercised (we have dog parks here though that are very large, so it is a combination of play and walking miles). However, I wouldn't take a dog who has not gone to the dog park.

There is little we can do to inform a client's future behavior. To make something good out of this tough situation, I would recommend adding this to the questions you usually ask to a client, such as "Have you ever had a bad situation at a dog park, or seen him be aggressive?" etc. Sometimes a good question can unearth things owners forget to tell you. Questions I also ask are: - If your dog is a rescue, how much do you know about their past? And how long have you had them? - Have they displayed unexplained aggressive behavior? - Do they have a problem coming when called? - Have they had problems with resource guarding? - What can I do to make them comfortable? - Have they been around other dogs before?

I myself am learning to ask some of these BEFORE the meet and greet. I have had some owners show up with a dog who hasn't been well socialized, which is already a no-go for boarding with us as we have a dog. Also if the owner is in a time crunch, you can always schedule a phone call in advance to hopefully have a non-rushed conversation.

If the owner had told you to go to a dog park - but forgot to tell you only if there are no dogs there - it seems like you were put in a really tough situation. I'm glad you were able to get the dog out safely and secure and can imagine how jarring that experience was. Best of luck in the future!

I’m sorry you had that experience and glad to hear you were able to handle it. Personally, I struggle to keep my opinions to myself! Unfortunately not all parents are receptive to constructive criticism 😬 Im working on how to talk to clients without sounding judgmental. I have to accept that not everyone is a trainer with very high standards.

I agree w you that the owner left out some important information when you met. That’s exactly why I have a list of questions to ask at the M&G (or before). I also text the owner if we didn’t talk about something, e.g., can I give pup cheese or other high value treats (and I add the question to my M&G list of questions).

Definitely don’t take someone else’s dog to a dog party on the “first date”. A new-to-me dog’s recall hasn’t been established, I don’t know their behavior yet, and they don’t know/trust me yet. At this early stage in the relationship, I won’t take a dog around other “stranger” dogs off leash (even my friends’ dogs, before I know the new dog’s behavior).

I never go to dog parks- I have no idea if those dogs are vaccinated, know nothing about their behavior, are the owners paying attention etc. (it’s all probably fine, but I don’t know for sure). It only takes one bad experience to create a huge mess.

We can walk around the park (on leash) and work on training, but we don’t go in.

During the Meet and Greet I ask the owner If their dog(s) have ever shown any signs of aggression towards people or other dogs?

If the owners do mention anything, I typically will then ask them to elaborate. This let's me better understand the issues so I can have a better understanding of the situation and how their pet(s) responded.