What’s with all these dog attacks?

[xxcatcatcatxx]

Seems like there’s loads and just read about another. Not sure if it’s always been this was or if the news is just reporting it more.

it always seems to be disproportionately terrier types involved, I’m not a dog person so don’t know if it’s their natural temperament etc. Just feels like there’s so many at the moment. I wonder if they’ll add other breeds to the banned list of dangerous dogs or if it’s more to do with owners and upbringing.

if a dog doesn't have PERFECT recall then they shouldn't be off a lead. Owners should not be letting their dogs go up to any stangers.

In short - there are TWO sides to this.

That's the long of it too.

(Grabbed my daughter btw ...NOT the dog)

You know you are going to get the 'same with your kids' response to this!

I don't disagree. When training my not particularly biddable dog to come back when called we used all sorts of long leads, dog friendly spaces, etc. Now we know there is only 1 way to guarantee his acquiescence - a ball. At which point he does nothing else but chew and chase the ball.

So he is clipped up at all times unless in a dog friendly space, at which time we play with a ball.

That's all any dog owner need do. Know their dog and act accordingly. It really isn't rocket science.

And the other side of that is....

It’s definitely owners not training or understanding/researching how strong they are (bully breeds).

Just today I had someone tell me xl bully breeds are ‘cute’. They aren’t, they’re powerful and dangerous. They tried to convince me they are softies really while telling me about someone who struggles to control one. I’m fairly sure they’ll end up getting one, insist it needs off lead exercise and not train it, it’s scary.

I love dogs but I can’t fathom why people want these breeds.

www.google.com/amp/s/www.express.co.uk/news/nature/1590763/Dog-news-Warning-attack-lockdown-puppies/amp

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/apr/15/dog-bite-britain-the-problem-with-the-pandemic-puppy-explosion

Yes actually. Human safety does and should take priority over an animals rights to savage them because they feel overwhelmed. If your dog is unpredictable, as every dog is, it should be appropriately supervised.

You cannot control what people do or how they react to your dog. But you can ensure your dog isn't in a situation where it may feel threatened or defensive. Using harnesses that say "nervous/unfriendly/don't touch" or not letting it off lead in populated, non dog designated areas.

The onus is on the dog owner to ensure the safety of the animal and the people around it.

Too true Stella

Mine is only 30kg and is a truly pully bullie. The amount of time and effort it takes to persuade any terrier that it really should be as biddable as labradors and other dogs bred to be obedient is astronomical.

Yet people with little experience get all sorts of 'stubborn, independent, characterful' dogs and then just bloody ruin them.

Clicked on the thread thinking, is this about the attack in Liverpool? Or the one in Derbyshire? Or the one in Hampshire? It’s just relentless.

And the same tired victim-blaming arguments saying it’s not bad dogs, it’s bad owners. Exactly like the gun crowd with their “guns don’t kill people, people kill people”. Yeah. But the guns help. And it isn’t just bad owners, because what are the dogs – figments of our collective imagination? There need to be much stricter limits on dog ownership. Costly tests and licences to deter and limit all those bad owners from being able to have one.

How many people have to be killed by ‘bullies’ before it’s acted upon?

Regardless of the reason (social, genetics, bad training or any other excuses the people who defend these breeds would like to state) out of 14 deaths since 2020 11 have been some sort of American bullie/American bulldog/cane corso or SBT.

Anyone arguing with those statistics stating crap like but labradors bite more is an idiot.

I'd agree but the number of unlicensed drivers in the UK gives me pause...

The same selfish behaviour would mean that the worst dog owners would carry on regardless.

And it would need to be actually policeable.

Apart from a societal upheaval I have no idea what an effective answer would be.

In a lot of instances it is down to the owners and the fact a bigger dog can cause more damage.

Yesterday I was walking along the beach with my 4 year old when a suasage dog ran at us snapping at my child in particular. No contact was made but the owners were a second behind it and obviously being small could drag it away (and give it a smack which hardly helps but there we go)

They did apologise but I still had a go, their dog scared my child and it should never have had the opportunity to run at us. Every other dog was on a lead and we walked past several big and small without drama.

Being a small dog it was easy enough to drag it away before it could cause harm but had it been bigger we wouldn't have stood a chance if it was set to attack.

I'm sure the heat doesn't help either and it's a combination of poor ownership, the nature of the dog and the size that makes these attacks so bad.

Some dogs can be abused every day for years and wouldn't last out, some are abused and finally snap, some just lash out out of nowhere despite impeccable ownership and some have impeccable owners and are lovely. Goes for big and small.

I do think kids especially should be taught how to behave around dog's and shouldn't run up to one but toddlers especially have no impulse control and accidents happen. No dog should immediately rip the child's face off and that's where socialisation comes in for the dog as well.

If I owned a dog and it bit anybody seriously I wouldn't be putting it to sleep because I don't think it's safe to have in public. A warning nip from being provoked or startled I would let slide but I would likely muzzle in public just to be on the safe side regardless of its size.

If you mean me I was not saying it isn't the over sized American type Bullies that are the issue. It is. I am saying that saying "all bull types" causes issues, not least people screaming at me and my fully in control bull terrier because he isn't muzzled and is a 'pit bull.'

Many people act very angrily when they perceive something to be wrong. Misinformation only makes that worse.

Focusing on actual behaviour rather than breeds (banned breeds excepted) is counterproductive.

It's the Teddy Bear effect.

Dogs are cute, cuddly sweet....
But then, you wouldn't run up to a bear or throw your arms around it.

Same with dogs, weather you have them as pets or you meet them out and about, just treat them with respect.

They are and animals and have predatory instincts, no amount of breeding or training can eliminate this.

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Too many thick owners and far too many dogs. Needs policing but won't happen. Both dogs and owners should have training, dogs should ALWAYS be on the lead anywhere outside the owner's property. Owners should have to have their garden/land securely fenced to contain them etc etc, but nothing will be done. My relative was helping a neighbour in their garden, next door's dog jumped over the fence and attacked him, needed hospital treatment and unable to work for some time. Police did nothing as they said there was no proof which of the two dogs did it. If it had been a child it would probably be dead. No outcry, nothing done, dogs free to do it again.

I am increasingly wary about the XL bully types we see at work. I fear it is only a matter of time before one of us is badly hurt. Irresponsible breeding during lockdown has a lot to answer for.

@ForTheLoveOfSleep - Most dog attacks are the victims own pet or someone invited into the dogs home.

I am increasingly wary about the XL bully types we see at work. I fear it is only a matter of time before one of us is badly hurt. Irresponsible breeding during lockdown has a lot to answer for.

@SicknessAndDiarrhoea Veterinary practice?

I'm currently back in practice locumming and cannot believe how many dangerous dogs we see compared to pre pandemic. And yes lots of these xl bullies, torso's etc. These dogs weigh more than me. It's got to the point I'm refusing to deal with dogs displaying aggressive behaviour unless the owner can bring them in muzzled. If you can't muzzle your own psycho dog then I'm not losing a hand attempting it. Totally over this profession. A few more months to save some ££ and I'm out. Even muzzled I'm currently sat here covered in bruises from trying to control these dogs and currently have a badly bruised tit! I've well and truly had enough. Litter after puppy farmed litter in for vaccines and being sold on for thousands, fucking backyard breeders have ruined the industry.

That has to be bloody scary and annoying. I know my vet was uncertain about my dog. It has taken almost 4 years of her subjecting him to a wide range of indignities for her to be able to relax just a little bit with him.

With bigger, less happy dogs I can't imagine how you manage to approach them with equanimity!

You’re probably right. My 3 month old was to blame when laying in her pram whilst I sat on a bench having a few minutes peace, for the dogs that ran over and bothered us, sniffing about the pram and trying to jump up. I must tell her to learn how to behave around dogs 🙄

At the park and saw a huge Pitbull mastiff being led by a tiny boy aged around seven.
Really the boy was being led by dog. The adult with him was sitting on wall laughing.
The dog was just a slab of muscle, I moved my children to a different area totally.
Complete owner stupidity.

Heat's not helping - our dog's struggling and quite nervy at the moment when she's not farting in front of the air con
School holidays and nice weather - both people and dogs are out and about more - so coming into contact more, or back doors are open so dogs can go into gardens more freely
Boom in dog ownership from the lockdown puppy crowd
Lockdown puppies which didn't have proper socialisation now no longer being cute little fluff balls and being stroppy canine teenagers with no dog-social skills
Fair weather dog walking crowd are out and about - there used to be one around our way who owned a terrierist called Trevor and at the first shriek of "TREV GERROVER 'ERE OR IM GONNA SKINN YOU ALIVE"... the sensible dog owners would vacate the park.

I'll also add in - from a healthcare community staff point of view - we're seeing more dogs take a snap at colleagues because the face masks and PPE confuse them when we're out on home visits. I had one very confuddled Akita not quite sure what to make of me for several home visits because of the face mask thing! (He was a real sweetie trying to look after his Dad bless him - just could see and was aware of how vigilant he was being until he relaxed a bit).

Too many thick dog owners unfortunately. There should be a mandatory IQ test before you're allowed to have any kind of pet.

A lot of cruelty is the result of thick people owning animals. This includes rabbits and Guinea pigs who are never let out of the hutch.

Love him! 😍💕