Australian dog culture

Hey all!

I’m a Brit who has been living in Aus for a year and a half for some context.

I’m currently in a park in Sydney and I have thought to ask a question regarding dogs.

I’ve noticed over the past three months that dog owners don’t let their dogs come up to you at all. The dogs don’t want to come up to you either, like they’re trained.

Now I’m usually sat on park benches with my friend who is a girl. So it’s not that I’m an unapproachable yob.

In the UK I feel I had many more dog encounters. They’d come up to you and you’d have a little chat with the owner.

Now I used to live in a small town so it got me wondering. Is this an issue Aussie culture thing? That you don’t like your dogs interacting with strangers? Or is this a Sydney thing? Or a city vs town thing? Or a rich vs poor thing (the parks I like to go to are in nice neighbourhoods). Or am I just tripping?

Thanks!