I was paying extra attention to this the last 3 days and i noticed that about 8 of 10 people:
hold their dogs close preemptively (most of the time nothing happens wiht those)
dogs bork and need to be held back
people cross to the other side
Is nobody bothering to properly train their dogs anymore?
What is happening in the dog scene? is anybody else experiencing this?
Most people never really trained their dogs beyond potty training to begin with.
This isn’t a new thing- just a thing you’ve noticed.
Also, holding the dog close preemptively could also be a response to you (or others,) looking like you’re about to do something the dog won’t like (see the comment about rescues, etc.) or to put you at greater ease (because a lot of people are scared of dogs- even if it’s a tiny little bichon puppy)
An increasing number of people rescue dogs that have been abused in some way, which can often lead to defensive behavioral patterns that can be really hard to address fully. Recent isolation has also caused a lot of socialization problems for dogs that can’t really be helped sometimes.
Despite an owners best efforts, some dogs are just nervous and reactive, but they still need to get out and enjoy the world.
Training a dog requires appropriate discipline, sufficient exercise + stimulation, adequate positive reinforcement, and most importantly of all: consistency.
To many people, adequate training is not part of the basics.
Many treat a dog as a surrogate human and think they can be engaged like a human. They have alomst zero idea that different breeds have very different temperaments and training requirements,
People who buy well bred dogs train them. People need to stop "adopting" nervy shelter dogs that require lifelong rehabilitation and intervention. Dogs are supposed to enhance our lives, not make them more stressful. Research and invest in a proper, stable puppy from a reputable breeder.