The value of a good light

Went out for my morning walk this morning a bit earlier than usual. Early enough that it was still dark out. I was carrying my usual EDC gear - light, pepper spray, G19, phone. Since it was dark and I was going to be outdoors, I took my Surefire P2X instead of my usual, smaller light.

Along the way, I came across a dog wandering loose. Fairly large, looked like some form of Boxer mix. Apparently, he had decided that the sidewalk I was on was his, and interlopers were not welcome. He was ~30 feet away, in an aggressive stance, growling.

OK, let's try step 1 - avoidance. I crossed the street to the other side, keeping an eye on him without looking him directly in the eye. Pulled the flashlight out, and the spray. Hoped Fido would be content with owning half the road. Nope. When I crossed the street, he started to walk / stalk towards me. Looks like it's time to escalate a bit.

Shined the light on him on low, and told him to "Git" in a firm voice. Not having any of it - growling increased, teeth bared. Edged toward some cover (a tree) and got ready to spray the beast. He continued to walk / stalk toward me, now about 20 feet away. Not quite in spray range, no wind. Bumped the light up to high and yelled at him again.

Apparently, 500 lumens straight in the face is quite annoying to dogs. He yelped, turned, and ran off.

I'm rather pleased, as a dog owner myself, that I didn't have to spray (or worse, shoot) the dog. It's not the dog's fault the owner failed to control or socialize him. I did call the Sheriff's office non-emergency line and report the loose, aggressive dog. I hope they ID the owner and fine him.

A good reminder to:

1. Carry your EDC gear every day, and
2. Have something in your toolbox besides lethal force.

Thanks for the recap, Matt. Good advice.

I started regularly carrying a light after seeing "Silence Of The Lambs". When Jodie F. is banging around in that dark basement with Buffalo Bill, she should have had her flashlight!

My Fenix TK15 goes everywhere I go. I love how such a harmless tool can have such a big impact on 4 legged as well as 2 legged animals.

If you don't have a non-lethal option, you can always trigger the Crimson Trace and draw big circles on the ground. The dog will chase it until he's overcome with exhaustion.

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Originally Posted by CPanther95

If you don't have a non-lethal option, you can always trigger the Crimson Trace and draw big circles on the ground. The dog will chase it until he's overcome with exhaustion.

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I like your idea! Sounds much easier and less cumbersome than my present method of carrying a shoulder bag full of kittens to toss out when a dog threatens me.

I have found that even a normal flashlight shown into the eyes of an approaching dog will cause them to at least momentarily pause.

Michael

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Originally Posted by CPanther95

If you don't have a non-lethal option, you can always trigger the Crimson Trace and draw big circles on the ground. The dog will chase it until he's overcome with exhaustion.

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Are you sure it's not a cat that you are talking about?

I, as a young man, rode with a group of touring bicyclists. We kept squirt guns full of lemon juice to ward off pursuing dogs. I never once saw it fail to turn even the most determined canine. I wish it were than easy with human assailants.

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Originally Posted by MattInFla

It's not the dog's fault the owner failed to control or socialize him.

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Actually, it very likely is exactly that: failure to control/contain him, as well as to properly socialize him.

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A good reminder to:

1. Carry your EDC gear every day, and
2. Have something in your toolbox besides lethal force.

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Absolutely.

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Originally Posted by MattInFla
It's not the dog's fault the owner failed to control or socialize him.

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I hear this a lot when it comes to defending yourself against possible animal attacks. Would I sound overly harsh if I were to say that I do not care why my attacker is trying to harm me? Whether it be a dog driven to madness by rabies, a mentally ill woman with a weapon a gang banger out to make his rep or your precious little dog who is all bark and no bite.

When I come under attack defense is my first priority. How my attacker feels that day or what is on its mind is something I might think about later after I have successfully stopped the attack.

Michael

I like your 'thought out approach' to self defense. When we choose to defend ourself we must take into account the possible consequences of our actions. The lawyers immediately will line up to prove that you could have taken other than lethal action. At any point they can prove that you didn't, but could have, then you are the one that goes down! When we choose to carry a gun (as I always do) we must also remember that it is not always the only method of defense at hand. But I also agree that sometimes you must quickly act or perish. Knowing the difference is the responsibility we take when we choose to carry.

Again, I really like your approach. I have slipped away from carrying my light as I used to. Thanx for the reminder.

Glad you also carry OC spray, ever since I've joined the forums I've tried to "convert" people to carry it. It's for more than just BGs, works great on anything with 4 legs and much less legal issues to worry about... glad you didn't have to use it tho.

I've had a few encounters with dogs that followed me for 5-10 blocks and looked like they were ready to attack me, turned out they were just big babies that got lost tho.

The last one followed me when I was walking to my wife's work to give her the keys she forgot, he ended up on a very busy road, walked him at least a mile to his home (while bending over holding onto his collar so he doesn't wander off again), found the house, knocked.. no answer, waited for at least 20 minutes, looked for a leash to hook him up to outside... none in sight..., called the phone number listed on his tags, no answer... I finally said whatever, cracked their front door open and let him inside, then left a note saying were I found him and my phone number in case he wasn't theirs (even tho he clearly knew that was his house because he ran to it when it got within sight). Didn't even receive a phone call.... drove by later to make sure they were home and a vehicle was in the driveway that wasn't there before. Some people just aren't responsible enough to own pets...

I did have a lady that was walking her dog thank me when I was walking him back to his house tho (after she asked if he was mine and I explained what happened), she said a lot of people wouldn't do what I did.

I carry a cane out of necessity and also a small light to warn off traffic when walking at night. The one thing that I have found is that I can bring my cane to bear on an aggresive animal much quicker than I could any spray can. The combination of light in their eyes and the cane poking at them works well. I think everyone who goes walking might want to consider a cane or walking stick as a good duel purpose tool. You can even wrap reflective tape near the tip of it so it is easily visible when waved at night.

EDIT: I have never been refused entry into a building or even questioned about the cane the way a person carrying other weapons might be. Canes seem to be the one weapon you can take with you pretty much anywhere without raising eyebrows.

Michael

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Originally Posted by ghost tracker

I, as a young man, rode with a group of touring bicyclists. We kept squirt guns full of lemon juice to ward off pursuing dogs. I never once saw it fail to turn even the most determined canine. I wish it were than easy with human assailants.

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Lemon juice filled supersoaker... the next piece of gear for my bloated EDC... (already have the flashlight...I hope 350 lumens suffices until I get that squirt gun!)

440 Lumens is just as good.
The same in strobe mode will really work.
Shone it at wall in my house and it annoyed me a lot even when not directly in the eyes!