Tonight I was out walking my 6.5 month old border collie, Charlie. He is, for the most part, a very good puppy and I usually take him to a near by field to walk and play frisbee off leash. This is a daily spot for us and all of the dogs we have come across have been friendly. Charlie can be quite submissive and winds easily due to a birth defect (can the other dogs sense this??).

Anyway, tonight, the field was quiet, when out of the blue, a large Malamute-type dog showed up. He was wearing a collar and tags, so I started scanning for the owner - no one to be found. Meanwhile, Charlie and this dog gave each other the big sniff, and Charlie left him right away, so I sensed he wasn't particularily fond of this guy. Sure enough, this dog started harrasing Charlie, pinning him to the ground, growling, barring teeth and biting at him as he struggled to get away. Now, I'm usually pretty laid back with the dogs figuring out who's who, and Charlie tends to get pinned frequently, but this guy meant business. I started running at this dog, yelling at him. I didn't want to get too close, but he would step back as I came at him, so I kept going. Finally, his Dad appeared at a distance, calling for the dog. I kept running at him, pointing and yelling for him to go. Eventually, he turned and ran... but not to his Dad! (they caught up with each other a short while later while Mr. Meanie was tormenting someone in front of thier house!!).

OK, so I guess I'm just wondering....... my "solution" to this problem seemed to have worked for me THIS TIME. If this should happen again (and I'm sure it will, sooner or later), what else can one do?? I gotta say, I'm a little shaken and thinking of potential outcomes of tonight's events, I just want to be preparred for round 2!
Any suggestions you can throw my way would be appreciated! :)

Kendra & Charlie