to not understand why people have these types of dogs in their homes

[FunnysInLaJardin]

I've heard the arguments for and against keeping pit bull/mastiff type dogs and just don't understand at all why anyone would keep a powerful muscular dog as a pet in a family home. Yet another sad news story today in a village just down the road from my home village.

This isn't a AIBU really, just a 'why do they do it'. Is a pet really worth the risk? There are so many other dog types to chose from. I don't understand at all.

I have a rottweiler and two children aged 7 & 8. Ruby is the softest, loveliest, funniest dog I've ever had the pleasure of owning....however, she is very well trained, and from day 1 we have made sure she knows her place in the pack. People who let their dogs become the alpha in the family, are just setting themselves up for this kind of tragedy. It never fails to make me laugh when someone says about their small dog "he's a bit snappy" and laughs. I can guarantee no one would think it was acceptable if my dog was "a bit snappy".

It's always the owners, which is a real shame.

Having a dog with that level of strength and lets be honest reputation is a huge responsibility. You cannot have a conversation with it you have to act on instinct and professional advice and as someone else said if you allow these dogs dominance within the home (pack) then anything can happen

Pinkbutterfly, no excuse for a badly trained dog - but the stakes are quite a lot higher with a rottweiler than a tiny/yappy dog.

I love rottweilers, by the way - one of my university roommates had one. She was lovely, she would lie down head to toe to my head to toe and vigorously lick my face while I just died laughing. But I would not choose to own one.

My dsis has 4 children and a staffie she never gets time to walk poor bugger. He has the garden but not enough and my mum walks him as much as she can.

She has a 1 year old who is always trying to get through the stair gate into the kitchen where the dog is and a 6 year old who climbs all over him and was growled at by him.

I am terrified that my dsis is not training the dog or teaching the children how to treat him and something is going to happen

Can I point out that dog owners are not the only irresponsible adults - I regularly see adults failing to teach their children how to behave around dogs. Once, out with my dog, a little girl of about two came running up behind us and hit him on the bum, really hard. Her parents just laughed. I told them very firmly that you do NOT allow your child to randomly touch, hit or interact in any way with dogs. I regularly have to explain to people, adults and children, that you must always approach the owner first and behave in a calm, sensible manner. It should be fucking obvious, really.

A lot of research went into the decision to get a dog, and it was based on their calm temperament, and general excellence as a family dog which made us choose a rottie.

I do agree that a firm hand is needed though, as you absolutely need to be seen as the pack leader at all times. Also, I would never get a rescue dog when small children are part of the family, as you never know their background.

Pink, obviously no one would think it acceptable if a dog like a rottweiler was snappy, where as with a small dog which isnt capable of inflicting any damage it doesnt matter as much.

I dont see how anyone can be sure that a large dog wouldnt one day decide to go for a child, you can infer from it's behavior that it 'knows it's place in the pack' but you cant know how the world looks to a dog.

Sharp it is up to the dog owner. We cannot all have an indepth knowledge of animal behaviour

To me, well trained means that the dog listens to its owner's commands. So, for example, if I yell 'wait' at my dogs, they stop and wait for my next instruction. If I say 'come', they return to me. If I say 'leave' they leave whatever they were about to run off with, 'drop' means 'put that fucking shoe back you're costing me a fortune' etc etc. They also ignore people walking past when we're out walking so they're not a nuisance to others. I'm not an expert by a long shot, but a lot of these commands and behaviours can be easily taught just by being consistent. The poodley pup barks if someone knocks on the door, but the spaniel can't be arsed. Neither of them would do anything other than roll over or fetch my bastarding shoes something if someone broke in.

i have 2 springers and as docile as they are wouldnt leave them in a room with a small child. my 2 ds used to try and take toys off them and they got snappy. I dont think it has anything to do with the breed/age/sex of the dog in any situations any ANIMAL has the abilty to attack -dogs, cats, snakes, rats (horrible being bitten off a rat) etc.

I have never understood why a family would risk their child's safety by getting a dog. Absolutely any dog can turn on a child and anyone who 'trusts' their dog because of how 'soppy' they are, well, they need to realise that dogs are animals with animal instincts, not human ones - their behaviour can never be predicted. I work with Health Visitors and the amount of dog bites I have come across is horrific. A few months ago I went to visit the home of an 18 month old where the little girl had been attacked by the family dog - her face was a mess, scars, puncture holes, bruises, it was just awful. The dog involved had been part of the family for over 9 years and "had been fine with all the other children". I went to visit one of my friends a few weeks ago who has got a 16 week old baby and when I went into the living room there was the baby lying on his floor may with dog running around and I just froze. Apparently he's a lovely dog and wold never hurt anyone....

I'm currently 20 weeks pregnant with my first baby and a few days ago my PIL passed a comment that when they retire in a few years they will consider getting a dog!! My heart just stopped! They will be seeing a lot less of their grandchild if that happens....

A big dog+tiny one bed flat+ban on keeping animals by housing association+dog with abuse in its history+small child= One very stupid and irresponsible 'owner'.

And a dog and a child have paid the price.

Sharp it is up to the dog owner. We cannot all have an indepth knowledge of animal behaviour

Noddy, I've been very clear on the need for responsible dog ownership all through the thread, but you don't need to be an animal behaviourist to work out that it's not a good idea to go around hitting strange (or even unstrange) dogs. It's basic common sense, surely.

alark, I don't know anyone who thinks it's OK for their dog to bite anyone. My dog knows he has to 'guard the ranch', but his habit is to pin intruders against the wall and bark, rather than rip their throat out - and by intruders I mean unwanted nighttime marauders, not postmen etc.

A lot of dog behaviour can be predicted, in fact, but most of us aren't very fluent in 'dog'. They tend to give subtle body language warnings when they're not happy about something, feel threatened, or want to be left alone. I only know this as I've done the research thanks to the spaniel who isn't exactly keen on other dogs. It seemed to come from nowhere from my perspective, but actually, once I'd consulted a behaviourist and been taught the signs, he was telling me loud and clear that he was uncomfortable.

It seem the behaviour was very predictable in this case, and the breed involved is only a very small part of the equation. As Mignonette says:

A big dog+tiny one bed flat+ban on keeping animals by housing association+dog with abuse in its history+small child= One very stupid and irresponsible 'owner'.

It should never have happened.

Never leave your children alone with a dog. But to choose a dog to have in the family a Labrador is probably the best; not staffies, mastiffs and the like.

I hate things like this where everyone who owns a dog is deemed irresponsible.

I work in a vets. Most dogs are lovely. I can count on my hands the amount that have euthed for biting family memebers and the total is less than 5 in 5 years bearing in mind I see 100s of dogs a day and I work in the biggest practice in the north. Of those 5 none of the family members were hospitalised. It's very rare that a dog seriously attacks someone further than a warning snap and media hysteria fuels the whole thing.

I have two gsds and neither bite. German shepherds have some of the strongest jaws of all dogs, stronger than a dog de Bordeaux (who's jaws don't even meet together half the time) I am not however an idiot and wouldn't leave the dogs unattended with any child. Surely common sense is the thing missing here. If a dog isn't left with children and is trained correctly there should not be a problem, then again there is danger with everything in life. Any dog or animal has the potential to bite.
Obviously problem dogs should not be around children but not all dogs are baby eaters.

I don't understand people who hate dogs just as much as they don't understand why love mine. I don't think a ban or muzzling all dogs is the answer.

I would just like to point out from what i have read the child was not 'left alone with the dog' she was asleep in bed and her mum was there comforting her. The mum didnt leave the child and dof alone. And this still happened

when we were thinking of getting a dog, pre-dcs, we asked our vet for advice - he said all dogs had the potential to bite and do damage but in some breeds there is an instinctive tendency to bite, hang on and shake - all breeds that were originally bred to fight and/or kill rather than round up or retrieve. It is those breeds that are most deadly because of that instinct. We went for retrievers who, historically, are bred to be 'soft mouthed' - to carry without damage and release on command. So to some extent I think it is the dog, not just the owner, because we have created breeds with certain inbuilt characteristics.

Being a ''responsible dog owner'' - doing all the things listed at various times in this thread like socialising, exercising etc, - buying from a reputable breeder, having the dog from a pub ... none of these thing give 100% guarantee the dog wont bite.

My parents were 'responsible' dog owners - all the above applied them - but their Sealyham terrier was a pain in the arse who bit me, my friend, and a random stranger. Had it been a large breed i expect the dog may well have to have been PTS.

As it was my parents just carried on with the dog - and no one except them were ever able to touch it. Not good IMO.

pub?
pup !

i'm currently 20 weeks pregnant with my first baby and a few days ago my PIL passed a comment that when they retire in a few years they will consider getting a dog!! My heart just stopped! They will be seeing a lot less of their grandchild if that happens...

Surely you can't expect your PIL to be lonely and bored and not have a dog on the off chance you pop round.?

Why don't you at least ask for the dog to be taken out or shut in kitchen/garden while you are there. If they refuse and don't take request seriously by all means don't take them round there but it's a little unfair to be like that before even talking to them.

The dog has been identified by Leicester police as a bulldog. There's a picture out there of the child hugging the dog around the neck - they'd only had it a few weeks! Children should not be draping themselves over animals like that, and this animal was practically unknown to them. So, so predictable and sad.

i wonder if the fireworks had anything to do with "setting it off" we will never know the truth, I suppose