Toddler dies after pet dog attack

[Caligula]

toddler dies after pet dog attack

Oh god I always feel sick when I read news stories like this one - that poor family and that poor child. I feel so paranoid about DS going to friend's houses where there are dogs. Especially after what that woman from the RSPCA said about the heat.

[MrsDoolittle]

Awful, awful, awful. Unfortunately, I think someone should have seen it coming. I mean a bull mastiff? in this heat? You can hardly blame it.

[mandyc66]

Mrs Doolittle that comment although I am sure was not intended in the way it read sounds a bit like 'serves them right' I feel for this family it is a tragedy.

[MrsDoolittle]

No Mandy, of course I didn't mean it like that.
However, owners of large and dangerous dogs should be aware! Bull mastiffs were originally bred for hunting!!

[Fimbo]

My fil was brought up on a farm and maintains that all dogs are hunters. Stories like this really make me angry at dog-owners who think it is acceptable to let their dogs off the lead in children's play areas and why do they always trot off the same catchphrase - oh xxxxx won't touch them. SOME CHILDREN ARE FRIGHTENED OF DOGS.

Oops sorry rant over.

[mandyc66]

I accept your rant!! It is a tragedy and maybe the dog shouldnt have been there but the parents have still lost their baby!

[mandyc66]

and we dont know the facts! The family lives about 5 mins from me. But i dont know anything

[moondog]

I have posted before of scary dealings with Staffies. Imagine therefore my anger when on a country walk last week,dd was running ahead when round the corner came a Staffie and a teenage girl. She knelt down and beckoned my dd to come and stroke it.

Stupid bitch!!!!

I was yelling at her to move awy.

All dogs are dangerous and need to be treated with caution around small children.
What a dreadful thing to happen.

[Janh]

This was an American pitbull though, moondog - I think they're supposed to be worse than Staffies (by about a smidgen)

Awful awful story.

[Janh]

Oh, there's a new report now and it says "bull mastiff type" dog, not pit bull.

yeuch.

[moondog]

They're all potentially bad bastards JanH. The sight of a Staffie nearly ripping my hefty sheepdog to pieces will stay with me forever,as dd was with me and all I could think was...what if it had been her dear little 2 year old face?????

Sorry to sound overdramatic,but I know now what people mean by 'flashbacks'.

[serah]

The majority of dogs were originally bred for some reason other than domestic pets. I would never leave my dog alone with children, even though he is number one child-friendly breed - he is, after all, still a dog and capable of acting like a pack animal.

Sad that some people don't recognise this. Sad that some people also inflict their dogs on others Fimbo - possibly the same ones that leave the bl**dy great turds in the middle of the pavement that get stuck in my pushchair wheels when I'm too busy gassing/gawping to be looking where I'm going. Graaah!

[wheresmyfroggy]

I was attacked by an alsation (with absolutely no provocation) when i was 8 and although i am comfortable with dogs myself now (it took a while) i am very uncomfortable about them being near my children. dogs are animals with a strong sense of instinct, and a lot of dogs instincts are to hunt and kill, makes my skin shiver at the thought, poor family

[Caligula]

I do get worried about dog-owners who appear to mistake their dogs for children. I have a friend who is hysterical about every single aspect of health and safety... except her dogs. Suddenly, when it comes to the dogs, it's OK to leave the kids alone unsupervised with them. I just can't understand such a mental block that some people have about them. Yes, they're your family pets, yes they're loyal, faithful, wonderful creatures, but at the end of the day they are pack animals who can't be expected to behave as humans, and to imagine that a child could ever be left alone with one, anymore than you would leave them alone with a box of matches or a paddling pool, just seems so stupid to me. But whenever I insist on the kids being supervised with the dogs, she makes me feel like I'm a neurotic loon.

[smellymelly]

Was it their pet dog? Or someone elses? I think it is just horrible and sad, what an awful way to die

I've always had dogs until very recently. I had a staffie before I had kids and she was gorgeous, but I would never let them run around kids, and would normally keep them on one of those flexi leads.

I'm sick and tired of being told by an owner half a mile away from their dogs who are running around my kids ' IT'S OK THEY DON'T BITE' ....That has got to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard!!!!

I had 2 small dogs when I had young kids, one was a chihuahua, who was a little territorial but had really tiny, tiny teeth, and a french bulldog bitch, who was really sweet, and are known for being great with kids, but I would never trust them 100% around my kids you must be aware that they are still animals....I can't even trust ds1 and dd1 around the twins 100% on their own as they will take things too far, so why would I with a dog?

If other people's kids came to visit who were scared of dogs, then I would shut them away.

[beatie]

Wasn't there a dangerous dogs act passed in the 90s where these dogs have to be muzzled in public places?

It's a long time since I have seen one of these types of dog with a muzzle on. I went to the park on Monday and wanted to sit in a shady area under a tree but couldn't as there was a bull terrier of some description, unmuzzled and unattached to a lead, roaming around the shady area with its owners sat quite far away.

[nikcola]

poor child and family,

im scared of dogs, we ilve in a flat and in the flat undernealh us live a man and his son the have a big sharpe(sp) dog the one with the scrunched up face and his owner lets him roam around the flats on his own so when he is out there me and dd cant go out or come in cause we would have to walk past him one day we had to wait for 2 hours in the car untill the owner got him in

[Lizzylou]

Horrendous, absolutely awful

[smellymelly]

People only have dogs like that to make them look 'ard!! I bet they are lacking in the trouser department

[serah]

Beattie... its American Pit Bull Terriers that had to be muzzled in public places and they are no longer allowed to be bred. Of course, they still are bred even though its illegal, but you won't see one with a muzzle, because, of course American Pit Bulls are illegal to own...

There are other types of bull terriers which do not require muzzling in public - Staffordshire and English.

Don't tar staffies with pit bull brushes though Janh - they are a completely different animal - pit bulls (I think) have some sort of man control element in their breeding, whereas staffies were bred to fight other dogs (as moondog unfortunately experienced).

BTW Nikcola - keep your local dog wardens number handy - they will come and pick up the dog as a stray as that is exactly what it is if not under owner supervision.

[Nbg]

I haven't read the story as it's not coming up but it sounds awful.

My MIL is looking after dd tomorrow. They have a rotweiller who is 13 stone and the size of a Donkey (I am not kidding) He's a lovely dog but MIL said he's not coping well in this heat so will mention for them to be kept seperate.


Apparently white staffies and mastiffs are the worse to have. They are more aggressive than others for some reason.


I do have to say that not all dogs are bad. There are some idiots out there who think it's good to encourage aggressiveness to their dogs and will teach them to attack other dogs or people.

[Done]

www2.the-kennel-club.org.uk/teachersNotes/sas_teachers_notes.pdf

This is quite interesting.

[moondog]

Nbg...insist that they are kept separate. I'm all worried for you now!

[Iklboo]

I've got a whippet/greyhound cross who is the gentlest animal you could wish to meet. She never growls, you can take her food off her while she's eating, take her toys off her etc. She's got her own 'fan club' of kids where we live who rush up to stroke and pat her when we take it out and she laps up the attention. When she's hot, all she want to do is cuddle with her head on your lap.

BUT - We will NOT leave her alone for a minute with the baby when it arrives in November. We've already got the safety gates etc. You really can't be too careful with dogs and children, no matter what the breed.

[spidermama]

My gorgeous collie cross, now departed, was so fantastic with the kids. He was present at the births of my first two and was very protective of them.

He was so gentle and loving towards them.

To him they were clearly young members of the pack to be looked after.

Mind you, he never killed rabbits or squirrels even given the opportunity.

Most dogs wouldn't hurt children so let's keep this in proportion.

[serah]

I honestly have never heard of white staffies being more aggressive! I can't even think of a reason why that would be so. Still.

Completely agree with you over the idiot variety of dog owners who encourage aggressive behaviour - I came across the sweetest lady whilst out walking my dog (at 7 months pregnant) with two rescued staffies. We stopped and chatted for a bit and 2 minutes later after going our opposite ways, I was aware of something "not beig quite right". Turned, and there was her male staffy dragging his lead behind him hurtling straight towards my dog. Didn't even stop to sniff, just came round the front and got his throat. Lucky for me, he hadn't quite got a lock on so I manged to strangle him with his collar and he came off (then the little fella started wagging his tail when he looked at me - a breed of such opposites!) It was obvious to me that her rescue dogs had been taught to fight before being rescued - so sad - they were both put down when they got out of her car and killed a passing dog. A case of "not their fault". Some heinous person had taught them to do this.

Everything seems to attack my dog. Last time he went to the vets he'd lost a toenail when running away from a poodle, and the time before that he'd been bitten on the nose by a passing yorkshire terrier. The shame.

Hope all goes well with the Rotty Nbg.... have you got a room big enough for him to go in to keep him seperate???!! My god!!