4YO killed by dog

[ QUOTE ]

You need to look at your statistics and not blame 'fighting' dogs as you call them. My son was bitten in the stomach last year by my friend's border collie and my husband was bitten in the face twice by the same dog not long after which drew blood and swelling on both occasions. She is still alive.


[/ QUOTE ]

I don't blame the dog at all, I totally agree that it's the people that make these dogs (any dog that bites be it human or animal) do what they do. A well trained terrier is a fantastic killing machine, they know their job, they know the rules and they are happy little creatures which are not a danger to anyone IMO.

What I was saying is that fighting breeds have an instinct to maul which other breeds do not. As with you my sister was bitten by a collie as was my brothers girlfriend, both when they were only children.

My point being that the collie bit once, maybe twice then left the person alone. A fighting dog is unlikely to behave THIS way when out of control. An out of control collie would bite or nip then run off, it would lock it jaws on then shake, it would continue to do so when someone tried to drag it off. What I'm saying is that these dogs are more dangerous purely because they have the natural behaviour to maul.

As I have also said ANY dog is dangerous, any dog can kill a child with a bite to the wrong place. The big the dog, the strong the jaws the more chance there is it will be fatal.

I haven't look at the statistics, I just read the press and I have never seen a 'Child mauled to death by Yorkshire terrier' headline, have you? As I also said before, my friend live in Holland and American Pitbulls are as common place as Staffies are in the UK. They do not have these mauling incidents, I would imagine because the dogs aren't kept as staus symbols and mistreated, they are probably given the training and respect any dog deserves.
 
I haven't read other posts but I think this story is very tragic and its not the first time we've heard this and it won't be the last until some people gain an ounce of common sense.

It really annoys me that some breeds of dogs are demonised because they have the mis fortune to be owned by idiots. As the owner of a bull breed I will not put him in any position where he will be alone near toddlers or babies. He was not brought up with children and isn't used to them. He is not vicious in any way but if a bully is provoked something may go wrong.

I have a livery who bought a visiting two yrs old to the yard and I found her slapping my bulldog on the head over and over and the look on his face said ' ok stop now' but at two they don't recognise this, the lady said ' oh don't worry she's got to learn' but I know that you don't pull this breed about and she'll have to learn on another more tolerant breed.

The book on Bulldogs says they must never feel threatened or they may react. I met a couple who were expecting a baby and the guy was rapped with my dog and said he wants to get one and asked what they were like. I told him straight I wouldn't recommend them with babies or small children.

I suppose what i'm trying to say is that bullbreeds do live peacefully elsewhere and its just idiot owners who put them in the wrong environments.
 
I would agree 100% that certain breeds are less tolerant to children than others. However, surely it is the parents responsibility to teach children from a very young age to behave appropriately with dogs. My parent had 3 whippets when I was born, not a breed known for their tolerant of being poked and prodded but they were there first and so from the moment I came home from hospital I was discouraged from grabbing at them. Consequently there was never any trouble and the whippets were fine.
I just see red when I see parents allowing children to maul dogs and say nothing to the child, why? Discipline appears to gone out of the window these days.
All that said I would agree that a dog should be allowed its own space and certainly a child should not have access to the dog at night.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Ah, I know I said I wouldn't come back to this, but FWIW kicking can agitate an attacking dog. Some of the 'owners' actually use that as a tactic to rile fighting dogs.

I know it is impulse, but throwing a large volume of water, jaw popping (only for the experienced and probably not effective for a bull breed), 'hanging' the dog (cutting off the air supply) by the collar or scruff and, er, something concerning the nether regions are 'better' ways to disengage an attacking dog.

[/ QUOTE ]

A very simple way to get a fighting dog to release is to use a breaking stick. A wedge shaped piece of wood. The owner only has to grab his dog by the scruff of the neck and insert the stick into the rear dogs mouth, which forces the jaws open. All owners of certain breeds could be forced by law to own and in public carry one but my guess is that is to simple.
confused.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]


A very simple way to get a fighting dog to release is to use a breaking stick. A wedge shaped piece of wood. The owner only has to grab his dog by the scruff of the neck and insert the stick into the rear dogs mouth, which forces the jaws open. All owners of certain breeds could be forced by law to own and in public carry one but my guess is that is to simple.
confused.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

but by carrying a stick would you be admitting liability that you have a dangerous dog and be leaving yourself open to litagation if the dog were to bite a human/animal? Its similar to having a 'beware of the dog' sign on your gate. You are announcing that you have a dangerous dog. And if your dog bites someone on your property after breaking in, they can sue you?!

What a terrible world it has become when one starts to think this way
frown.gif
 
we have terriers- one Jack Russell is in the house at night, if we have visitors hes taken out straight away. hes a wonderful temperament but still has that edge- common sense has to prevail, but when????
 
I agree that it is the fault of the owners and not the dog, and no dog should be completely trusted with a child, but often, the sort of people who have this type of dog as a status symbol are not capable of looking after dogs or children.

Bull breeds are more capable of killing people than a lot of other breeds, and if a JRT was to attack a child, it would be much easier for someone to over power it than a bull type.
 
QR - From reading about some of these incidents it seems to be the child does not normally live with the dogs, but are stopping over the night at a family members house. None of the articles I read were involving dogs that actually live with the child. I am not for one minute suggesting that it makes it any better but clearly the dogs are not used to living with small children
 
[ QUOTE ]


I have a livery who bought a visiting two yrs old to the yard and I found her slapping my bulldog on the head over and over and the look on his face said ' ok stop now' but at two they don't recognise this, the lady said ' oh don't worry she's got to learn' but I know that you don't pull this breed about and she'll have to learn on another more tolerant breed.



[/ QUOTE ]

Good lord, what a stupid woman! The dog isn't supposed to teach the child the parent is! I think I would have wanted to slap her, esp for letting her child annoy your poor dog. I see it with cats too, I hate kids annoying cats and we all know cats won't tolerate any of it!

I taught the yard cat to play really rough as it was just me and the kids, I'd put on my leather glove and teach her to play with claws and teeth, she was a wild little thing
smile.gif
the kids were terrified of her after that, no more picking her up by the back legs etc which their mother seemed to find amusing!
 
A few years ago after a few "dog" related incidents hit the headlines I read a report with regards to People injured by dogs that went to hospital. The hospitals statistics were very interesting. The type of dogs that inflicted the most injuries were first of all Collies and secondly labradors. The supposedly "fighting type" dogs ie Staffies and Pitbulls came at the bottom of the list. Its just unfortunate that these so called pitbull types seem to inflict more serious injuries therefore hitting the headlines more often than other types of dogs that inflict injuries more often.
 
Did the statistics takeinto account the popularity of the dog? To be more clear did it say out of all the dogs in the UK collie and collie cross represent 10% of the population but account for 50% of dog related injuries? If not the stats mean nothing, it could be that Lab and collie bites are more commonly purely because there are more of them.
 
Keeping staffie's has become more and more popular - I remember when friend got hers years and years ago it was quite rare. Now you see them everywhere. Especially on a certain type of estate.
 
a lot is to do with jaw strength, and the capability of the dogs involved. Kids and dogs can be together in harmony but EVERY animal has its limits.

Its about education and people giving a damn, those involved were breeding anyway and probably fairly uneducated or simply didnt think it would happen to them (sweepy generalisation but I think its justified in this case).

Quite simply...how many times to you hear of a whippet mauling a child to death or a labrador or a shitzu...you dont...

So yes a lot is down to the breed, its "capability" as far as strength and upbringing. It DOES make it an automatically dangerous breed even if it is the soppiest dog alive on the planet. Which most are!!

It is sad that the pitties and bulls get tarred with the same brush but there is a reason for that. Some of you may remember the era when dobermans and GSD's were the "in dog", its all about bloody fashion these days...

Poor kiddie, RIP sweet boy xxxxxxxxx Such a pointless and avoidable waste of life.
 
[ QUOTE ]
A few years ago after a few "dog" related incidents hit the headlines I read a report with regards to People injured by dogs that went to hospital. The hospitals statistics were very interesting. The type of dogs that inflicted the most injuries were first of all Collies and secondly labradors. The supposedly "fighting type" dogs ie Staffies and Pitbulls came at the bottom of the list. Its just unfortunate that these so called pitbull types seem to inflict more serious injuries therefore hitting the headlines more often than other types of dogs that inflict injuries more often.

[/ QUOTE ]

Absolutely. The worse injury our local council investigated was a Lhasa apso cross (sp). The problem is that the morons are more likely to have bull type breeds. In my daily work if I get a gog complaint, like dog noise or breeding I can almost gurantee if its on a Council or HA estate and the house looks a mess it will be a staffie or rottie, and more recently husky and husky types. BTW I am a massive staffy fan and have a staffy border cross so am in no way biased.
 
a lot of problems associated with pitties and staffs are "some" (not saying all I know there are good owners out there) of types that have them and then go on to breed, are not professional so you have a lot of bad stock breeding, inbreeding which is going to cause problems in temperatment, it still doesnt excuse the people who call themselves "parents" that allow things like this to happen...I think even our dogs would tell someone to get lost at that time in the morning...
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]


A very simple way to get a fighting dog to release is to use a breaking stick. A wedge shaped piece of wood. The owner only has to grab his dog by the scruff of the neck and insert the stick into the rear dogs mouth, which forces the jaws open. All owners of certain breeds could be forced by law to own and in public carry one but my guess is that is to simple.
confused.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

but by carrying a stick would you be admitting liability that you have a dangerous dog and be leaving yourself open to litagation if the dog were to bite a human/animal? Its similar to having a 'beware of the dog' sign on your gate. You are announcing that you have a dangerous dog. And if your dog bites someone on your property after breaking in, they can sue you?!

What a terrible world it has become when one starts to think this way
frown.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

Owners of dogs have strict liability for whatever they do, so there is no issue of "admitting liability".
smile.gif


I do hope that this case results in a criminal prosecution.
mad.gif
RIP little one
frown.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
As I also said before, my friend live in Holland and American Pitbulls are as common place as Staffies are in the UK. They do not have these mauling incidents, I would imagine because the dogs aren't kept as staus symbols and mistreated, they are probably given the training and respect any dog deserves.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yup, that be me!!

We see pitbulls everywhere here and I must say both when walking and out riding they have been the best trained dogs I've come across here, never chasing or showing threatening behaviour. Obviously you do still get some used as status symbols but as they aren't illegal its less of a problem. In fact, I'd say overall they are the friendliest dogs I've come across here.

Totally agree with PS on this, any dog is capable of aggressive behaviour and every dog has the ability to maim and kill but some dogs have been bred to have these abilities more enhanced and therefore NEED to be properly trained. But then any dog can snap... anybody seen the episode of the dog whisperer with the killer chihauha?!!?!! Evil little bugger that was! But because it wasn't a bull breed its oh so cute as opposed to oh so dangerous.

Haven't read the entire thread yet so apologise if I've repeated anything.

ETS: You also hardly ever hear of dog attacks in the media here, but then the Brits (in generaly, I realise this is a bit of a stereotyping) have a tendancy to be a LOT softer on their animals and not assert the pack leader mentality as much. Just look at the animal rights groups in the UK.... the Europeans and Americans tell their animal rights groups to look at the UK to learn how its done. Slightly off topic but you get my drift.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Just heard on the radio that it was a pitbull type, surprise surprise.

[/ QUOTE ]

In other words they cannot identify the breed. End of story. It could be anything then.
 
[quote)

Owners of dogs have strict liability for whatever they do, so there is no issue of "admitting liability".
smile.gif




[/ QUOTE ]

I agree, but carrying a tool to open a dogs jaws if its bites indicates that you know there is a high risk your dog will bite and that you knowingly took your dog to where it was likely to bite. In that case maybe a muzzle would be more appropriate.

I was not saying that dog owners are not responsible for their dogs.

Im not very good at putting into words what I mean
crazy.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
but by carrying a stick would you be admitting liability that you have a dangerous dog and be leaving yourself open to litagation if the dog were to bite a human/animal? Its similar to having a 'beware of the dog' sign on your gate. You are announcing that you have a dangerous dog. And if your dog bites someone on your property after breaking in, they can sue you?!

What a terrible world it has become when one starts to think this way
frown.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

It is all very sad I agree. Regards the stick if it were a legal requirment then no, the owner wouldnt be admitting anything tbh. With regards to actual dog attacks why have we not got to have liability insurance for our pets. I had to for the pit bulls we used to have and it was very cheap. Pit bulls by law still have to have it if they are registered but of course, if your cute puppy starts to look 'of pit bull type', you cannot register it and abide by the law as the registry is closed. ONLY a judge can order it open for a guilty 'dog', if it is 'arrested', and taken to court. The DDA is a complete farse and does nothing to protect the public.

As for burglers they deserve to be bitten.
 
Seri, I see no reason to be very honest why ALL dogs cannot by law be forced to be muzzled in public. Problems on the streets solved. Any dog not muzzled is destroyed.
 
The problems aren't on the street though are they, they are in the homes of the idiots who own them.

Besides that is such a knee jerk reaction. Why on earth should all dogs be muzzled in answer to the very few who bite. Much more sensible to say no-one who's a chav allowed to own anything other than a [****] zhu or nothing over 12 inches tall.
 
Many of the problems are on the streets though, agreed not this case.

We have a law and it is a joke. Your suggestion is actually just a silly about the chavs whereas my suggestion would be workable and protect all of our children and adults.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I see more pitbull types as pets than I see collies and labs. Maybe I should move to a more upmarket town eh?

[/ QUOTE ]

According to the kennel club the labs are top

http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/887

collie don't really feature as they are generally not KC registered, I just think they are popular as it's all your see in rescue shelters, all collie x etc

ETS where I live it's all rescue greyhounds! Not sure what that says about the class of people
wink.gif
 
I still think there should be something like a written/practical exam for dog ownership, especially of certain breeds, and a moratorium on breeding anything, for a certain time period.

Also restrictions on what type of breed can be kept where. I am so sick and tired of seeing Akitas kept in urban 2-up 2-downs and taken for a little bimble around the block for ten minutes once a day, they seem to be the dog du jour around here...and then people wonder why they are difficult once they get to a certain age.

You should have a license to breed in the first place anyway, IMHO.
 
Hmmm I think we'll disagree on this one.

The Chavs are the problem, not the dogs. Its always the same with these type of people, others suffer whether they be children or dogs. And whose gonna make sure the Chavs put muzzles on their dogs it'll be the same old story the responsible law abiding owner will follow the law and those it was brought into forcing to be responsible won't.
 
Is it me, or has the recent 'maulings' (over the last few years that have hit the headlines) all happened in winter months? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/8386902.stm
Seems like its a pattern? Maybe it is just coincedence (sp) but maybe its a case that winter daylight = less activity for the dog, less walks etc.. Working people are often said to suffer from tiredness in the winter so depriving their dog of essential exercise?
Might be a factor?? Bored dog brains?? Who knows!?
 
Labrador's are just as capable of killing and mauling children im afraid.Type it into google and you would be shocked at what you could find, mostly the cases seem to be in america but it happens.Its just deaths arent very common

At the end of the day any a large dog has large jaws and therefore has the potential to do damage when they bite.
Yes the bullbreeds bite and lock on but still all dogs can bite, and can do damage.

I heard of a small child getting stitches lately in hopsital from a bite from her grandparents cavelier king charles spaniel!

I'd blame the owner and the parents for lack of supervision and understanding of dog behauiour,more than the dog.
The dog has the excuse of being a animal.

Theres an intreasting study on dog bite's in children, from an american pediatric hospital if anyone is intreasted

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/117/3/e374
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top