AIBU to think dogs should be muzzled in public now?

I often see this argument but have never truly understood it.
To me it would be like saying we shouldn't have laws against murder because bad people will still commit homicide, even if it's against the law, so it will only deter already law-abiding people. Surely we have laws in place so that, if someone does break them, the authorities have the power to sanction the miscreants. Yes, irresponsible dog-owners may fail to comply with legally enforceable measures like muzzles or registration, but if it were required by law then the police would have the powers to sanction law-breakers, including removing their dogs or issuing fines or even custodial sentences in some circumstances. This would surely improve the situation since fear of consequences does act as a deterrent in many cases.
I personally think we should bring back compulsory licenses for all dogs. If called to an incident police could immediately check if a dog was registered and act accordingly if a dog was unregistered. It would also have a beneficial effect on dog welfare since it would beeasier to keep tabs on the home situations of most dogs, their vaccination status, breed, health conditions, etc. and also to keep tabs on potentially dangerous breeds or dogs with any kind of history of aggression since it would be easier to quickly retrieve more coherent and thorough information.

You should need a licence to breed dogs.
Too many people breeding dogs unscrupulously for fast cash to subsidise their insta life styles.
No cares as to where the dogs go or how well bred they are, just interested in £££££s.

My 3kg toy poodle is smaller than most cats and is missing 16 teeth. If he needs to be muzzled, then it is only reasonable that all cats are muzzled in public too.

So by your logic, we should also ban children, a fashion status/accessory, status symbol, something to cuddle, to vicarously live out our failed dreams.

We should treat injuries/damage caused by children and teenagers as assault/criminal damage by their parents. Hopefully that would concentrate a few minds. Many parents are entitled idiots . . . . .

🙄o

Oh my god! Horrendous.

I remember the French lady who had to have a face transplant when her dog attacked her.

Yes, yes, yes to all this!

Dog licences might put off the irresponsible and feckless owners who get a dog like it is an accessory. Compulsory use of leads on dogs in public places unless a designated area. Heavy fines to the growing number of clueless dog owners who let their dog run riot.

This is not an anti-dog post. Love dogs when they are owned by responsible owners who train them well. Hate the dog owners who do not give a shit about how their dog impacts on others.

^ This, really. Before making muzzles compulsory, we need to enforce the existing law. Employing a couple of visible, community-based dog wardens with the power to enforce the law and remove dogs from unsuitable owners - with no questions - would cost my council very little compared to their overall budget.

I don't think it is fair to make make dogs have to wear muzzles. I do think it is fair that dog owners should be criminally responsible for the actions of their animal. If your dog attacks someone you get the asset charge, if your dog kills someone you get the murder charge. I think that would make people start to take impact of dog ownership seriously.

Muzzles aren’t what we think of- their mouths being kept shut, I’ve seen them on where dogs can still easily sniff around happily. I’d have no problem with my dog wearing one

Personally we muzzle our cows when we take them for walks and always keep them on leash in public

I'd be happy to see them muzzled as well, but it's the dogs that are doing the actual biting. This is about prevention rather than allocating blame after the bite has happened.

Can we please deal with the duff owners instead of demonising the dogs!

The owner has been arrested for murder. This doesn’t sound like a random dog attack, it’s a dog that has been deliberately trained to kill.

Making normal dog owners use muzzles would have made no difference.

XL bully dogs that take their owners for a walk.

The dogs on holiday snapping at/attacking other animals were all smaller, fluffy, doodle type ‘cute’ breeds. I’ve only ever been bitten by small, yappy dogs too. The three German shepherds we’ve had within our family have been the most intelligent, loving and loyal dogs I’ve known. But we train them adequately and raise them well and appreciate that, at the end of the day, they are a dog, an animal. And just to add, I love dogs, I would get another German shepherd tomorrow if my circumstances allowed.

I agree all with this.

I live in Ireland. My German Shepherd is a restricted breed along with

American Pit Bull Terrier
English Bull Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
BullMastiff
Dobermann
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Rottweiler
Japanese Akita
Japanese Tosa
Bandog

And the XL Bully is the only banned breed

This means he must wear a muzzle in public, be on lead and under control of an adult. Holiday let's, groomers, camp sites, dog parks - it's really hard to find one that will accept a restricted breed

My dogs got a steady temperament. He is a big boy, aloof but neutral. We stick to the rules. He often gets attacked by non restricted small breeds on walks and shrugs them off like it's no big deal, but I do wish those labradors, spaniels and yorkshire terriers had to follow the same rules.

One rule for all or none at all in my mind.

A muzzle isn't a punishment - it doesn't stop a dog from eating, drinking, barking, socialising or even playing with toys when properly fitted.

But am unmuzzled dog attacking a muzzled one is plain cruel.

Absolutely not. What a ridiculous question.

I have compassion for the man who has been attacked / killed but suggesting all dogs should be muzzled is absurb. You may as well suggest alcohol is banned as this can make certain people unpredictable and violent.

I'm a dog owner (dachshund) whos dog has been attacked by a large dog (with the owner declaring it was friendly, it actively ran at mine which was on a short lead). I agree there are far too many irresponsible dog owners, I am fed up seeing dog attacks, having other owners tell me their dogs are friendly when I ask them to keep them away from mine, lack of recall with dogs off the lead and dog poop bags all over the countryside, or in our village due to lazy dog owners. You cannot tar all dog owners the same

Cows are very easily avoided, you just don't visit farms or go into fields which have cows in. Dogs, on the other hand, are everyfuckingwhere.

A lot of them will be those lockdown puppies that people got on a whim

And yet still more people are killed by guns than by dogs

Maybe we should ban cars because they kill so many people

My dog doesn’t even have teeth. What would be the point of distressing many dogs just because some have terrible owners?

Possibly. Dogs can be a risk to other dogs too. Know one family who’s timid small dog was set upon and ran away. Through sheer perseverance and constant searching they got him back. Plenty of children and some adults are also terrified or allergic yet more venues than ever advertise dog friendly. I love dogs but need a balance.

Dogs need to be on leads unless in contained off lead areas. Allowing your dog off lead should be something you can be stopped and ticketed for. Multiple offenses should have escalating punishments.

Muzzles are unreasonable.