Staffie ignorance annoyance

Hi Staffie lovers

Had an "experience" this eve that I would like to touch on.  Took Zeus to the park to throw his new ring, after hysterically finding the only puddle in existence in a 300m radius on our walk on Sunday in Richmond park.  Anyway I met a lovely lady with her two sons, 10 & 8 plus her cute little fluff ball Milly, also 7 months old.  Milly wasn't a staff but I didn't hold it against her.  But we chatted, the boys threw the ring and the ball, and our respective doggies got along like a proverbial panting house on fire.  Apologies for the mixed metaphors.

After we parted ways, I started making my way back to the car.  Then I met HIM...

This d***head had two dogs! one on a leash one loose.  Of course Zeus HAS TO go say hi.  And Zeus being Zeus does it in the only way he knows how despite running around like a mad thing for 45min.  

My new "friend" goes into instant defence/ aggressive/ insulting/ hostile mode all at once!!! Lifting his dog by the neck completely off of the ground and swinging him around while shouting at me to "get my bleep bleep dog off!!"...

In my split second to respond I tell him that he is negatively reinforcing this behaviour in his dog...   Talk about petrol on fire...  

What follows was a series of profanity and gestures and general nastiness, in which to be honest I wasn't completely innocent.  But here are my questions;

Do your beloved four legged friends behave like this? The mad jumping and over the top greeting of other dogs, some of whom are ok with it, and some of whom are not.  That includes the owners.

And if so, what and how do you deal with this short of keeping the dog on a leash at all times?

I would like to say that Zeus is getting better.  But he really isn't. When he was 10 weeks old, he would see a dog 100m away, and bolt... Me running and shouting and calling after him... It's exhausting.

So thoughts, suggestions and comments...

Thanks in advance for any kind, thoughtful and helpful words.

Lloyd

Ps I've been informed that running after doggie ain't such a good idea.  So I don't do it as much anymore.  Barring incidents like today.

Was Zeus off the lead?

Oh dear.. Love Richmond park BTW. Watch out or the Dear though    

Running after a Staff is really not a good idea as they think its a huge game. My youngest found that out last year after Flo slipped her harness.

With my girl, it's a little easier as she is older and not so easily excited. Zeus will mellow. 

It's hard to judge when to give distance until you know how Zeus will react in certain situations. I am sure you already pick up on his body language even at this early age.

For him and you it's all learning, but trust me on the running... Zeus will always win  

Sazzle wrote:Was Zeus off the lead?

THIS ^^^^^

Honestly, I or my husband would probably had a similar reaction to the guy ONLY because we've had problems with dogs off lead running up like crazy up to ours and it is very stressful for us and the dogs because we have no idea what the dog charging us is like.   Also if we let our dogs run off lead and allowed them to run up to strange dogs, you have no idea how the other dogs will react.  For all you know, his dog that he had on lead may have been dog aggressive or had some fear issues and you allowing your dog to run up to his is irresponsible IMO.

This isn't a dig at you but my own experience of owning dogs for over 25 years and ALWAYS keeping ours on lead in public and avoiding off lead areas because as an owner large breeds in the past with the potential to do a lot of harm without much effort, if ours had attacked the loose the dog (and they never have because they've not been DA) we would've been the ones to blame.  I just think you need to consider why the guy was so upset as I would've felt the same way. I would feel the same REGARDLESS of the breed that was running loose off lead and not because it was a specific one.

I echo Diane's comments above. I'd never, ever let my two go bounding up to another dog. Perhaps this guys dog is nervous or DA and didn't want to put him in an unpleasant situation.

It's no way a dig at you, but perhaps worth having Zeus on lead when approaching dogs and asking other owners before letting him off will help with such nasty situations.

Hope you're alright   

i think if your dogs reaction to others is that over the top then its probably best to pop him on the lead when othe dogs show up.
as for reactions to other dogs tessas is suspicion leading to indifference. shes not that fussed with them which is a big change from how she was when we rescued her. its been hard work but its been worth it because having a dog that wants to kill every other dog it meets is just not good.

Same thoughts as above really axl gets way too over excited when he sees anything that moves so we keep him on his lead when we see another strange dog.

Dogs running up to axl when he's on lead is a major pet peeve of mine not only does it stress my dog out I am actually not too keen on random dogs running up to me

Yeah if you let your dog run up to Bug on lead you'd probably get a similar mouthful, sorry but it's really irresponsible. Biscuit is fear aggressive, and always muzzled, i do everything necessary to keep her and others safe, yet people still allow their dogs to jump all over her.

I would suggest a long line and teaching him to sit and wait whilst you ask the other owner if it's okay for him to play. He'll still get to run around but you'll have full control.

i'm reluctant to use words like irresponsible as we all should learn from our mistakes and owning a dog is a learning curve especially staffies. probablly just a bit naive and we really don't need to give the antis more ammo do we?

I'm just being honest and talking in general; not an attack on the OP at all as you said, he's come here for help but I don't do sugar coating, if I was to say "yeah it's alright" what's the point in that? Personally, I do think letting your dog run up to people/dogs is irresponsible; that is any dog, any breed, any size. That is my opinion.

i am with you on the sugar coating but calling people irresponsible just gets their backs up and makes them reluctant to take onboard any advice from people who are probably more experienced with dogs than they are

Calvin was exactly like this when I first got him, then he started doing a thing where he looked to be stalking the other dog. He is put on his lead as soon as I spy another dog so he cant bound over for his own safety as well as the other dog. We have a lot of dogs bounce all over him when hes on a lead and owners nowhere in sight, but atleast I have control over him. If they get on well then he cant be let off to play if the other owner is ok with it. He is a lot better now, sometimes he even completely ignores other dogs if we are playing, other times he will just sit, giving me chance to get up to him and pop his lead on. I agree with all the others about using either a long line or flexi and working on his recall, also teaching a 'watch me' command to get his attention back on to you is useful.

If it seems that I called the owner irresponsible, then sorry, but I meant that the "act" of allowing your dog to run up to others is irresponsible. Not the owner themselves.

djstratton wrote:

Sazzle wrote:Was Zeus off the lead?

THIS ^^^^^

Honestly, I or my husband would probably had a similar reaction to the guy ONLY because we've had problems with dogs off lead running up like crazy up to ours and it is very stressful for us and the dogs because we have no idea what the dog charging us is like.   Also if we let our dogs run off lead and allowed them to run up to strange dogs, you have no idea how the other dogs will react.  For all you know, his dog that he had on lead may have been dog aggressive or had some fear issues and you allowing your dog to run up to his is irresponsible IMO.

This isn't a dig at you but my own experience of owning dogs for over 25 years and ALWAYS keeping ours on lead in public and avoiding off lead areas because as an owner large breeds in the past with the potential to do a lot of harm without much effort, if ours had attacked the loose the dog (and they never have because they've not been DA) we would've been the ones to blame.  I just think you need to consider why the guy was so upset as I would've felt the same way.  I would feel the same REGARDLESS of the breed that was running loose off lead and not because it was a specific one.

RoxysMum wrote:I echo Diane's comments above. I'd never, ever let my two go bounding up to another dog. Perhaps this guys dog is nervous or DA and didn't want to put him in an unpleasant situation.

It's no way a dig at you, but perhaps worth having Zeus on lead when approaching dogs and asking other owners before letting him off will help with such nasty situations.

Hope you're alright   

Debs01 wrote:Same thoughts as above really axl gets way too over excited when he sees anything that moves so we keep him on his lead when we see another strange dog.

Dogs running up to axl when he's on lead is a major pet peeve of mine not only does it stress my dog out I am actually not too keen on random dogs running up to me

I'm with these guys on this one, Rocky is always on the lead and I expect other dog owners to be as responsible too, sorry if this offends it is not meant to. Rocky can be reactive to some dogs, not all and I would rather not have constant vet bills because of other dog owners stupidity when Rocky gets injured by their dogs.

Also, by the very nature of Staffies, they can be very very unpredictable. I know Axl is. 99% of the time he will be welcoming to a dog and everything is okay but that 1% of the time he will seem like everything's alright but one growl or grumble from another dog and things escalate very very fast. I always err on the safe side because of the 1%

Also, we shouldn't feel that what we say on here should be sugar coated in any way shape or form. If an opinion is given then the readers should take it as that, an opinion. It's never meant to be offensive but if a question is asked and the answer is given it should be straight to the point.

So yes I agree, letting a dog run up to another on-lead dog is very irresponsible and causes huge amounts of stress for the on-lead dog and is bad manners. Also you don't know why that dog is on a lead in the first place so be responsible and have good manners and pop yours on a lead if you see a dog approaching, just err on the safe side, trust me it will save you a lot of grief in the long run and will ensure good experiences for you dog growing up which will, in turn, reduce the chance of dog aggression in adulthood

I think the replies above are all relevant but can come across the wrong way when typed sometimes.

I can only speak from my own ongoing experience and do agree that any dog not under control is a pest at best. My Flo doesn't tollerate being pestered by other dogs at all, she will turn and snap as a warning. It does annoy me immensly when other owners of any breed are way off in the distance and have no way of controlling thier dog which is why I keep a close eye on Flo.

Flo is off lead with me in the Park but it has taken nearly 2 years to get this far, it is a tad hard using recall alone as she is deaf, but my OH won't allow her off lead unless the Park is empty.

I can understand her fears. We have both learnt to look out for the warning signs which is what I was referring to in my earlier post.

If we see that she has spotted a dog in the distance and takes a certain stance, then we distract her with her stick and move in the other direction. This has worked without fail so far. It has happened where we have been taken by surprise and I can now get her to ignore other dogs and move on (gives me enormous satisfaction).

My advice to the OP would be to use recall training and not allow Zeus to bound on up to anything/anyone without first knowing it's ok. Having had it happen to me, I know how frustrating this behaviour can be.

As I said earlier Zeus is young and full of energy and just wants to play with everyone, which is fine if controlled. He will mellow as he matures but in the meantime... recall training.

I know where you're coming from. Your dog is still a puppy (I think?) and you want to get him out and about and as socialised as possible. One person loves his exuberant personality, the next wants to kill him.

I always put dog back on lead when approaching any carpark or enclosed space anyway now (I don't know if you were actually in the carpark itself).

It is difficult to control a Staffy's excitement sometimes. You really have to work at it - as I think we all know! I am now working with R a lot on not jumping up. It is slowly getting through to him. I do this by practicing with two particular friends who are prepared to endlessly ring my doorbell but then shut the door in his face is he goes insane with happiness.

Recall and response to "no!" is much better now.

I would suggest you see this latest experience as a challenge to get Zeus to be the best behaved dog in the park. There is more than one way to be annoyed with someone and perhaps this man was excessively rude. I know it can really spoil your day. It does mine.

Suzy reacts quite odd when she see's another dog she would like to say hello to. She will lie down and refuses to move until they get closer to her and she can't be moved. I don't personally let Suzy off her lead,if we are walking in the country she has her extending lead. The reason I don't let her off is because she is extremely friendly with people/other dogs and I don't want her to run up to people and start bouncing at them. I know the general rep Staffies have and don't want her accused of trying to "attack" someone when all she is really doing is saying hello

I agree with a lot of the above. I hate loose dogs running over to us, because Alfie is on a lead for a reason. He has fear aggression and I would hate for Zeus to be bitten for rushing at the wrong dog. Quite apart from any horrendous injuries he might get, it could really knock his confidence with other dogs or change is personality. This man may have over reacted (though we don't know if he reason to with his dog), but please always remember that dogs are often kept on leads for very good reason and no one should expect their dog to be able to charge over to them. My old dog was friendly but if I saw an unknown dog on a lead I always put hers on to pass them as I didn't want her bitten by a possibly aggressive dog.
We all want Zeus to continue being his happy playful self, just with a little help containing his enthusiasm from mum & dad

Lula is always on a lead, we have a long lead but she never of the lead her recall crap.
We went to the park yesterday and there was a JR running around no owners in sight. Me and my daughter kept an eye on the dog but could not spot anyone with a lead. The Jr was running in the kiddies play area. I`ve noticed a lot of owners of small dogs think its alright to allow there little dog to run around in an area where dogs are not allowed. Its well sign posted that no dogs are allowed in that area and is fenced of.
Lula been pounced on a few times not in a nasty way but its made her a little wary of dogs. Lula does not make a fuss just stands and watches to see where the dog is going.
If your dog recall is not 100% it should not be allowed off lead where other dogs are. Your dog maybe friend but other dogs may have an issue with it

if your dog doesnt have good recall i wouldnt let off anyway! willow has excellent recall esp with her whistle and a reward of a treat but if i see another dog on lead or not i call her back immediatley and put her on lead there are so many idiots out there u need to be the responsible dog owner and do whats best! same really if willow off lead and people are coming our way i put her back on lead because even if she wants to say hello lots of people are scared of dogs and 99 times out of 100 if i say leave she does but theres always that one time she might ignore me its not worth the stress ruins your walk and also if your dog is on lead and theirs isnt your not in the wrong!

if your dog doesnt have good recall i wouldnt let off anyway! willow has excellent recall esp with her whistle and a reward of a treat but if i see another dog on lead or not i call her back immediatley and put her on lead there are so many idiots out there u need to be the responsible dog owner and do whats best! same really if willow off lead and people are coming our way i put her back on lead because even if she wants to say hello lots of people are scared of dogs and 99 times out of 100 if i say leave she does but theres always that one time she might ignore me its not worth the stress ruins your walk and also if your dog is on lead and theirs isnt your not in the wrong!

Well im the fly in the ointment lol. Both mine remain leaded at all times, they have zero recal when prey drive kicks in so cant be trusted off lead. I love it when big dogs approach them and they played with a loverly staff girl last weekend.. yet my arse cheeks clench when small fluffy dogs approach... why oh why do the owners do it...last incident this small fluffy thing ran up to marley of all dogs, rolled on its back and started squeaking. ..= toy... marley promptly picked it up and gave it a shake. I got it out his mouth in seconds as his reaction to leave command is instant. Could have been worse had laska got it. Yeah so your dog is okay but mine are on a lead for a reason. Im in that grey area where I need dogs that play on the same level to interact but anything else needs to stay way away...peeling your dog out of mines mouth isnt fun at all.

Kai is on a lead if we see anyone come and use the area we walk and play with him on. I make the effort to take him out and play off the lead as much as I can when things are quiet.

We struggle because we live in an area with a high density of older people with small dogs. The culture is not to have have them on a lead. Aside from the fear about staffies that our neighbours have, they tend to leave their dogs off lead and then fail to take any responsibility when we pass them and their dog is jumpy, barking, snarling at Kai, who is on his lead doing his best to stay calm. Kai is not a jumper or a snarler, but he is an old dog and is anxious around aggressive dogs.

Sadly, the local grassland is a through area and many people walk through who don't live locally in the next few streets, so we regularly deal with dogs who we see sporadically and Kai cannot get a feel for in terms of saying hello. Often these dogs are off lead too. We keep Kai's collar on with a D ring to grab him if a dog off lead surprises us.

It is a big fear that someday, a dog will come and be too intrusive before it's owner can leash it and Kai is snap in defense. It would be an understandable reaction to nip to guard his space, but given the hysteria about Staffies, I live in fear. I did have a large Lab come and jump at me, I had to get between them and fend it off and owner offered absolutely no acknowledgement or apology. It shook me, maneuvering Kai on a lead with his bulk and getting between him and Lab was scary.

i think if your dog is leaded and a dog that is not comes over to your dog a nd a fight occurs you are by law not in the wrong and therefore not be held responsible( that is what ive been told) im always telling people that think because their dog is friendly everyone elses are too, that my dog (chester) is not dog friendly and can u please keep your dog away but lots dont seem to listen it can turn from a lovely peaceful walk into a stressful one in seconds

Hi to owners of Daisy, Flo, Marquez, Roxy and Vinnie, Tessa, Axl, Biscuit, Calvin, Rocky, Rupert, Suzy, Alfie, Tallulah, Willow and Chester, Laska and finally Kai.

Firstly I would like to thank you all for your kind and considerate words, suggestions and comments. Secondly, like our doggie, I would like to say that I am not made of glass, and long ago decided to take responsibility for my choices and actions. Accordingly, none of what any of you said was in any way offensive. Similarly, I trust that none of you take any offense to anything that I have to say.

My response:

I would like to specify a few points.

1. Zeus is and always has been this super friendly little guy, who loves bounding over to other dogs to say hi. Regardless of what other dogs and their owners might think. This has been a contentious issue in our household, and frankly, we are 100% to blame for his lack of training and discipline.

What frustrates me about this is that when he was this tiny little cute thing at 5kg, no one seemed to mind, but now that he is 18kg and considerably bigger, that's when the whole "breed ignorance" issue comes to bear.

Ironically, he hasn't changed, just other peoples' view of him.

Which brings me neatly back around to the responsibility issue, which as mentioned, is ours. And, we're working on it.

One small addendum. We ran into a dog walker/trainer on Saturday, (who walks 22 dogs a day, and seems to know everything about everything dog related), she suggested rather forthrightly that it's all about his goonies, and as soon as we have him snipped, he will be calmer.

Watch this space.

2. Many of you suggested and talked about the fact that you never let your dogs off leash. I have only one question with that. How do I let Zeus run around, play, sniff, explore and generally be a dog if he is always on leash?

But for me, more importantly, the incident that I initially described was with one enraged a**hole who may or may not have had an aggressive dog, I don't know, but 99% of the time when Z runs up to other dogs to say hi, the owners don't normally mind. And we are normally close enough to defuse any situation that may arise.

I know that he is an animal. Domesticated. Tame. Etc. And that the possibility exists that he may one day bite someone, heaven forbid a child. I suppose the best I can say on that issue is that we will have to cross that bridge when it presents itself. Which I hope we never have to.

Lastly, I would like to add my own insights if I may be so bold. Agreeing with said insights are entirely up to you.

Dogs speak their own language. Based on age, size, training, history, temperament. etc.

For example. We (the 3 of us) met a 27kg beauty named Lily one Saturday. Zeus and Lily hit it off like a house on fire, and frolicked and played, and bit each others' necks and rolled and tumbled and carried on without a care in the world. For this he was off leash.

On a separate occasion we met a staffy hanging off of a tree - literally - Zeus went to say hi, and this beast was on Zeus, and tearing into him - not playfully - instantly. Thankfully his owner pulled his twice-the-size-of-Zeus bulk off of him in a second or two, apologized profusely, and we moved on. Zeus has new scars on his face to remember the occasion.

And there are a hundred more moments and meetings like this. Which I'm sure you are all familiar with and you've all had. But for us, or at least me. As mentioned, I believe that we struck gold with Zeus. He is a playful, albeit overzealous at best, fun, sociable friendly little guy. Who just loves other 4 legged furry friends with far FAR too much enthusiasm. And we love that about him, although it can be tiring.

So we're going to keep on loving him, playing with him, accepting him and training him. And get him fixed at some point.

* * *

May you all have awesome and beautiful experiences with your staffies. And may the number of aggressive dogs and their owners that you run into be few...

All the best.

Lloyd, K and Zeus.

(My lovely wife wishes to remain mysterious)...

Hi Lloyd (and anonymous wife ) Great reply; the thing that concerns me is that whilst Lloyd is still under a year and taking everything in his stride, he could run up to the wrong dog one day and get himself in real trouble. A dog aggressive staffordshire bull terrier is not an easy pet to handle, trust me, and if he gets attacked by another dog again, this can and will change his temperament and view of dogs. I walk a labrador for a client who was attacked by another dog in a dog walking group despite positive socialisation for his whole life and it's taken 2 years to build his confidence with dogs again, and this is a labrador we're talking about! My dog was found as a stray and I don't know why she's like she is with other dogs, but every time an off lead dog runs up to her and harasses her, it sets us back weeks of training, you've got to understand how frustrating that is? And it's the same way for many owners.

I've got to to say I completely disagree with the dog walker that you encountered; I too am a dog trainer and of course everybody is going to have differing views, however, firm research shows that neutering before 18-24 months can have a detrimental effect on your dogs growth, personality and temperament. You can generally tell the dogs that have been neutered too early as they can be a little leaner, and sometimes (not always) a little "all over the place" in temperament. I would wait until he's finished growing and settled into himself. 18 months at the earliest. What you're experiencing is a training issue; not an issue because he is entire. I agree that neutering CAN (though not always) reduce some behavioural problems (roaming/straying, mounting, bully behaviour, and some aggression) but it's more like taking supplement; it takes the edge of but doesn't solve the problem.

If you go onto ebay and type in "50ft training line" you will find a very, very long lead that allows Zeus to run around and play and sniff and whatever else you would like him to do; but still allows you to keep control of him. With the help of a long line you can teach him his commands and safely allow him to play with other dogs that the owners have expressed permission of. By law, Zeus is "out of control" in a public place; you can't call him back and he runs at people/other dogs; he's being a pest! When he's bigger, if he jumped up at somebody and knocked them over, or retaliated to a dog that snapped at him this could land you in court. You can't expect him to stay lovely and sociable forever if he keeps having negative experiences with other dogs; not only that but staffies are famous for "retaliating first." I can send you some training plans for recall, using the training line and anything else you need if you like. But I urge you to get this problem under control.

Hi Lloyd.

For us we strive for some balance. I want Kai to feel socialized and play. But I have enough people in our family and friendship circle who are frightened of dogs, and enough dog owners with injured, jumpy or small dogs who find a large, friendly, boisterous dog of any breed too much. I think we are sort of equating people who dislike dogs off leash with people who dislike staffys and that is not always so.

Kai does get let off the lead at quiet times, or if I have established that he is calm enough to come back in a field with a couple of other friendly dogs and happy owners. He is not leashed and restless all the time. However he also knows that as eager as he is to give cuddles, it is good manners to let the humans come to him, rather than be allowed to love bomb them with his kisses. He is a heavy little dog!

This works for us. So much so that local kids as young as three or four will ask their parents if they can pet him and he will sit and wag and let them stroke his snout. And so many people have seen that, or come away from that having changed their mind about staffies. The more people around us know they can get to know him without being mobbed, the more open they are to saying hi and letting him play with their dogs.

If I am playing with Kai off lead and someone chooses to walk by on open land and their dog bounds over, I politely ask them to consider using the lead as I am not responsible for controlling both dogs. A smile and a polite explanation gets me a long way with other owners. It lets them know that we were here first but we can negotiate a way to get along.The rule for me is this, I don't ask other dog walkers to behave in ways I am not prepared to myself, so whether Kai is leashed or they are, we respectfully act without the assumption that it will be okay. Cos one day it not be for Kai, and no one is destroying him under a DDA grudge.

My wife used to love going out with the north east branch of bullie walks uk

https://www.facebook.com/groups/569620496442768/?fref=ts

They are mainly bull terriers, but still a few Staffords in the group and all dogs are welcome, even those silly non-bull types! Maybe they do something like this near you.
I think socializing your dog with similar dogs, and more importantly, with owners who understand exactly whats going on, is priceless.
I don't want to hijack your thread with pictures, so I'll put some pics in the gallery.
Pete.

Some great responses to a difficult issue. In my post above I mentioned that the OH won't let her roam off leash, this, I have been told is completely untrue    I am now reliably informed that the only time she gets leashed (Flo that is) is if the OH feels uncomfortable with the other dogs around.

I do, however, agree that having another dog bound up is problematic. We have taught Flo not to do this and on the whole she is very well behaved. I think you're on the right track with the training. Recall is so very important.

HJ's post, 2 above, also struck a cord. I am never more proud of Flo than when she is completely under control and has changed SBT perception for the better   

I know exactly what you mean about striking gold but trust me on the chasing thing  

One small addendum. We ran into a dog walker/trainer on Saturday, (who walks 22 dogs a day, and seems to know everything about everything dog related), she suggested rather forthrightly that it's all about his goonies, and as soon as we have him snipped, he will be calmer.

Don`t agree with this Buster is about 20 months old now and is a really laid back dog he gets on with every dog he meets and he has`nt had his bits removed. If we approach another dog walker with their dog on a lead we will put Buster on a lead. Some people see him coming and put their dog on a lead after seeing Buster is fine they usually let their dog back off and sometimes he plays with them other times they just sniff each other then walk off. Sometimes he can be like most Staffies i.e bull in a china shop. I totally understand peoples apprehension when they see Buster approaching but usually after meeting him they relax I think he has changed a few peoples view of the breed. I think you need to adopt a similar approach as Staffies need all the public relations help they can get. Some people are just ignorant and can`t get over they hype and bad press but if we as Staffie owners conduct our selves in the right way then just maybe a lot of the bad press will not happen.

Mine would have done the same. Shes terrible for wanting to launch herself at people and dogs alike....we cant have her off lead as its an accident waiting to happen but hopefully with training she can eventually.

Bane is very similar to Zeus in that he is a happy, friendly, playful pup who just wants to run up to every dog and person to say hello and play. I have never seen him react negatively to a dog and I don't think he would lash out and snap at or attack a dog as he is still young BUT just because he is friendly, doesn't mean that it is ok for him to approach other dogs.

We are still doing recall training with him and to be honest he is pretty crap. We got to a point where we thought he was fine to let off the lead, but then had a few experiences of him ignoring us and running straight up to other dogs. Luckily he only got snapped at a few times.
I was extremely embarrassed to be quite honest, couldn't apologise enough and in one case had a very angry owner be quite rude. At the time I thought what a d**k but have come to understand what a stressful situation that would be for me and Bane if he was aggressive or nervous towards other dogs.
He now stays on his long training lead at the park which allows him the space to run around and play with other dogs, but it means we can keep hold of him so that he can't approach new dogs. We always speak to the owner and ask first before allowing him to play and he now has quite a few doggie friends that he does play with.

Bane is our first dog and it is a big learning curve. In a perfect world we would love for him to run free at the park and not get into trouble but you never know what can happen. I have spoken to so many people with Staffs and other bullies who used to let their dog off lead and play, until they were attacked and sadly has made their dogs aggressive and fearful of others. I would hate for this to happen to Zeus so maybe a training lead would be best until his recall gets better!