This thread scares me to death. I have an overwhelming dog phobia that I've had since I was a kid. Whenever we encounter loose dogs, I stand up an run on my bike - all out sprint. My intelligent brain tells me it's stupid, but my phobia tells me to get the heck out of there. DH usually tries to get behind me and yells at the dog. We've never dismounted our bikes when being chased.

I do carry pepper spray, but have never thought about using it, just escaping