is it illegal to smack my dog?

I just want to know the legalities involved. My dog is very well trained, and I use the reward system for 99.9% of the time. However, every now and again, especially when there is another dog around it is like he forgets all his training, goes deaf to my voice and runs off, across roads to go to the other dog. I walk him 3 times a day mostly near or on countryside, but there is the occasional road. My intention is not to cross the road, but off he goes anyway. I generally smack him, not with force, on his snout, and only ever once.

yeah stupid animal rights

Don't hit him. He'll just fear you and not respect you. You can create obedience without causing pain.Take a stick when you walk and use it as a barrier between him and another dog, dont hit them though. Unless one of the dogs is in severe danger.

Smacking your dog is animal abuse and you could be in big trouble,and could go to jail.You don't ever smack a dog you only spank it but not to hard.

I'm not going to get into the physical punishment debate at all, but if you punish a dog when you eventually catch him, next time he will be harder to catch. Dogs aint daft.

yeah i dont smack it i ussually hold its head into the ground like i am the alpha try it it make u a pack leader owe yeah and i have a stubborn dog to .... hope it helps

Not that I am aware of. There is nothing wrong with a tap now and again.

i pick him up buy the ears and side of his neck left him off the ground and shake his head good.

You should have your dog on a lease and you wouldnt hav that problem, I have four dogs and walk them together. You should never have to hit a dog, all that does is show aggression.

A light smack is okay if you do it the instant he does wrong, not 1min later. An e collar sounds like what you may need. And before everyone gets their pannies in a bunch I didn't say fry him. When used correctly it is a very effective tool. I have used one for years to train hounds. Read the instructions and follow them, or find someone who knows how to use one and learn.

Maybe just use a leash? I think there's a law about somewhere anyway.

Just keep him on a real loose leash that way when he runs off you don't have to chase him.

I don't know where in the world you are. However, there are no laws in the UK that make this illegal. On the other hand, out and out animal abuse can, and is prosecuted. I would just say that a 'tap on his snout' would not, as far as I'm concerned, necessarily constitute animal abuse. If you belt him after you catch him, or if he eventually comes back, this is totally counter productive and will only make him reluctant to come back to you. Any correction has to be made at the outset, while a dog is 'in the act'. With this sort of thing, running off, prevention is always better than correction - 'eyes in the back of your head' and all that. When you have him off the lead, until his recall is solid, you have to always be one step ahead and the moment another dog comes in sight (assuming this is the primary reason for him taking off), get him back and on a lead. And I'd recommend you have him on a long line (I have a 30 foot line I used for my Whippet early days) until you feel he is trustworthy, especially if there are roads involved.

No its not illegal but it wont help you one bit with trying to get him back or to not cross roads. If he doesn't have a perfect recall he shouldn't be off leash... period!!! The more he's punished for running off the less likely he'll be to come back to you. Dogs don't see it the way humans do, in his mind he's being punished for coming back to you, not running across a road. He needs to be rewarded for coming back.

smack ya dog, how would you like a smack on the nose, ever thought of it that way? the words were hard hut do ya realise that you can kill a dog by smacking its nose not the nose directly but the soft spot behind the nose your dogs nose is one of the most sensitive places on its whole body it is by far much more sensitive than your own if a dog is to be chastised think of the way a bitch punishes her pups (she will nip their ear) the best way is to imitate the nipped ear, you can can fold and pinch it for example the dog understands that as his mom did it to him, its doggy language personally i have never hit a dog and would never consider it as hitting the dog gives it fear of the hand and there may be a time he will have to protect you, if he has fear of the hand and someone threatens him with one he will shy away, i dont know whether its legal so smack a dog or not but if i were you i wouldnt simple as that. As for him crossing roads ever heard of a lead there are on the market spring loaded leads that can be lengthened or shortened by use of a control and locking button i recomend you buy one of these and use it when approaching the said road that way you have your dog under control and he will not need smacking on his nose huh

It is illegal to hit your dog. People have their dogs taken off them if they harm them and can be taken to court. Smacking your dog is not the way to train them, some dogs get aggresive from fear and can lash out. Keep him on a lead on walks if your near busy roads or other dogs, he will always be curious around other dogs so will want to say hello. If you let him off try calling with a low but firm voice when he runs off, if you shout and scream chances are he's not going to come back because he knows he's in trouble.

I don’t know if it’s illegal to smack a dog, but it is in MY book! It should be illegal anyway!So…..do you have him on a leash at all times when you walk him? If not, and your letting him run free, than it’s completely YOUR fault that your dog keeps wandering off or running away. It doesn’t matter if you live in the country with practically no roads. You MUST keep your dog on leash at ALL TIMES! Smack yourself on the head! Not your dog! YOU are the owner so it’s YOUR responsibility to keep your dog safe! Your dog doesn’t know what’s safe and what’s not! You can have the best trained dog out there, but there will be never a 100% chance that he will come to you immediately, on the first call, all the time. HE IS A DOG! Dogs pick up scents, they like to explore etc. so why SHOULD they come to their owners when they’re having such a great time in the middle of the countryside? Why should your dog come to you ESPEICALLY if you smack him as soon as he gets close enough? If you smack your dog when he comes to you, he will start to never come because he knows that he will get punished for doing as he is told! Ugh, don’t people think anymore? This is COMMON SENSE!ADD: What is with the thumbs down??? Am I the only one with a brain here? People......

No it is not illegal, but the question is does the dog have any idea why you are smacking it?When you finally catch the dog smacking it only tells the dog that it should not have let you catch it.BTW, this is WHY the e-collar works, you make the correction when the dog is making the offence instead of when it is doing what it is suppose to do.

Its your dog do what you thinks right, the problem is you got to watch out for those peta people, there nothing wrong with smacking your dog when he does something bad, you got to let him or her know who the boss is,don't let him try a be your boss...Hope that helps

no - but it may be cruel. u shdnt need to hit a dog in any circumstance - in the same way u shdnt need to hit a child. animal rights shd be considered, apart from legalities.