I can see both sides and to be fair i don't think it's a matter of speaking plain English, behaviourists trying to make a living or anything else - it surely depends on where we live and our individual experiences?? ;)

I had a beautiful Terv bitch who was only socialised to her farm (not a puppy farm!). She was nearly 16 weeks when I got her. I let her interact and the first time she did so, she got chased by a boxer and nearly went on to the road, luckily she came back in time. She was basically scared and I had just assumed it would be OK. Similarly, her litter mate, was chased over the cliffs at Swanage (again, oddly, by a Boxer) and died.

I carried on in my own way and got another Terv, a young male, younger than her, and just walked every day in the woods where we met lots of dog walkers - she ended up being fine with other dogs and in fact more than fine, really excellent. However, genetically her whole temperament was very good as her granddam and sire, both American, were known for excellent temperament so maybe that helped her along.

My male was fine also, brought up in the same way, just being allowed to meet and greet, although as he matured he did get a bit protective but it was easily solved with a ball  which he preferred to anything else ;)

My family dogs from years past always mixed off lead with no real thought from me.

My current dog was brought up in the same way, but unfortunately has had a few bad experiences with other bitches attacking her and she changed from being a submissive "I'm a humble puppy" to a "you dare touch me and I'll get you first " approach.  I've had to work on her a lot and she's really good again now, but my point (sorry I know it's rather a saga!! I wish I could be more incisive!) is that so much depends on not only what dogs one meets, but possibly the dog's own genetics and the ability of the owner to read other dogs. I'm much more wary now of other dogs than I used to be - this is a direct result of my personal experiences with my own dog/s :)

I now walk in an area with many dogs that are generally very well socialised and it's done wonders for my current girl's confidence. I now allow her again to meet and greet on her terms, but if anything I have even more of an eagle eye for dodgy looking dogs (or owners :P ).

I agree totally that some puppy classes which are free for alls can produce problem dogs  - either aggressive or nervous - and believe in particular that the initial start for this can be at the very early vet classes where very often a vet nurse is in charge who thinks it's OK to let pups charge around for an hour and doesn't see any harm in it. There's nothing wrong in letting 2 well matched pups play and romp to their heart's content (as long as they are learning owners are intersting too!) but not in a class situation where you may have the BC herding, the gorgeous bouncy staffie trouncing the shy Sheltie, and so on...

Just my take on it,

Lindsay
x

"That's what a long line is for, Yvonne - for pups who don't have a 100% recall yet. "

Well hey - what do I know ? ;) - all those years I've been doing it wrong then  - must just be fluke that my dogs are fine with others- perhaps I've just been lucky or........

Yvonne

My post got put right at the bottom, but was in response to you saying: "The problem is that there has to be a point when you first let a youngster off the lead - their recall is highly unlikely to be 100% and they will more than likely run up to other dogs" - that's what a long line is for.

That's why many people advise letting the pup off the lead (away from roads etc of course) on the very first walk, when they want to stay close to anything familiar and safe - ie, the owner!