[Vent] Off-leash dogs are killing me slowly.

I know this is a topic that has been talked about here way more than once. But as a person with chronic anxiety who takes medication and receives counseling for it, off the leash dogs aren't doing me any favors.

I have been in my fair share of dog fights from people not leashing their dogs. My dog is very friendly and not leash or dog aggressive. He just wants to play. I am ALWAYS on the lookout for off the leash dogs when we go for our walks. If I spot one in the distance I about face and go the other way. 2 years ago we were in a very severe dog attack that left both me and my dog with stitches. All because an owner refused to leash and control their dog. We rounded a blind corner and there was a great dane mix off leash and it charged right at us. I grabbed my 40 pound dog by the harness and hold onto him as best I could and put my body on top of his to protect him. I had nightmares about it for months. If other people hadn't been close enough to hear me scream bloody murder for help I don't think either me or my dog would have survived. It was THAT bad.

There is a dog park in my apartment complex that I take my dog to every morning before work. It's an easy way for him to get some exercise in and do all his business before i head off for the day. I only let him go in there if it's empty. The dog park itself backs up to a walking trail and of course, it's fenced in with an iron fence. It's actually DOUBLE fence with chickenwire fencing and then steel fencing as well. So it's very safe from outside intruders.

This morning there were two women walking the trail, their dog ran out ahead of them (off leash) and came right up to the fence. Tail straight up, hackles raised and staring down my down with a low growl. My dog whimpered and cried like he usually does, which is his signal "hey new friend! I Wanna play! can you come play?!" The dog was being very defensive but eventually ran off with its owners. It was a big yellow lab looking mix of a dog.

I obviously wasn't worried about my dog getting 'attacked' with a double fence between them. But it STILL Gives me anxiety. All I could think about was "That dog is obviously not dog-friendly and they're just nonchalantly letting it roam!"

It just makes my blood boil and makes me want to double up on my anxiety medications.

Sorry for the long rant. Thanks for reading <3