Don't bite the hand that feeds you? I fed the dogs that tried to bit me.

 

Seven years ago when looking to buy a property, I had two criteria:

1. It has to be close to my family business
2. It has to have public transport

Fast forward seven years, I now cycle to work. During my first few trips, I had many difficulties - one of which involved a pack of dogs that lived close to my condo. I was barked, chased, and quite close to being bitten as I raced off dangerously along the road.

After a few close encounters, I decided to do something about it. I wasn't going to halt my quest of minimising my carbon footprint just because of a few dogs that were being unreasonably territorial. So one day, I bought a bag of dog food and brought it along with my ride.

This time, I parked my bike further away from the area where the dogs were and walked cautiously into their area. I thought maybe my bike was a bit intimidating, so I left it where the dogs couldn't see it.

As I walked up to the dogs, they lifted their heads and watched my movements. As I approached closer and closer, some dogs got up and started barking at me. The alpha male growled especially loud, warning me to stay away. I got as close as I could without triggering their full aggression and dropped a handful of dog food. Then retreated backward while maintaining eye contact with the alpha male.

Once there was sufficient distance, some of the other dogs got curious about what I left behind and started sniffing at the food I left there. Eventually, they figured it was a tasty treat.

The next day, I repeated the same steps but closer. This time, some of the younger pups were more approachable as they didn't get their fair share of the tasty treat the last time. I fed them and left.

The third time I returned, the pups swarmed me while the adults were still quite cautious. Those who were friendly with me got to eat first.

After repeating this for a few weeks, I now have a pack of friendly tail-wagging dogs near my condo.