To wish dangerous dog breeds and all breeds closely resembling them were banned in UK?

[DustOfALongSleeplessNight]

There are so many nice friendly breeds, why chose a breed that was developed for aggression and fighting? I know individual dogs have different temperaments, but if they were selectively bred for bull and bear baiting, how can they make good pets?

Pit bulls (illegal in UK) are frequently kept illegally and passed off as Staffy-crosses until the police find them.

I think they should ban all dobermans, rottweilers, staffordshire bull terriers, malamutes, huskies, german shepherds and any other dog with aggressive genetics, plus all the breeds that closely resemble them. I frequently see these breeds in local park, off the lead, running amongst small children!

freudian

They're popular. The more of them there is the more incidents will happen involving them.

And you're dismissing things that are very real considerations in this debate. The type of people favouring the breed has a massive impact on the breeds name.

Once staffs go out of fashion with the idiots thinking they're 'hard dogs' they'll chose another breed. Then that breed will be collectively mistreated, be involved in incidents due to bad ownership and get a bad name. It's happened before with other breeds and the cycle will continue.

You said in you post that these dogs were running round the park, amongst small children. No incidents. just dogs running. How odd that this is a problem.

When my children were younger and went out with their friends, to town and to the park, I was more worried that they'd come to harm from older children and teenagers than from a dog.

Get a grip.

I have not heard of Labradors killing people though having just done a google search a report came up on an American site of a Labrador retriever killing their owner

I know some breeds have high incidences of biting (I believe collie is one of them) but we can deal with that it's an awful thing to happen but that derails discussing dogs attacking and killing in the most horrific way and why this is happening the talk of other breeds are more likely to bite is shutting down a discussion

But why do some breeds cause more fatal injuries than other breeds? Why are some breeds predisposed to attacking children? I don't believe it's all down to bad ownership or selective reports by media. Many breeds are as popular (or more so) than Staffies but you don't hear about them mauling or killing children.

If a Jack Russell attacked me it would be easy to restrain it. If a Rottweiler attacked I'd be in trouble. Part of my concern re these big powerful breeds is if they do attack you or a child, you can't easily fight them off.

stars they sound just like my German shepherd. he is so protective but so loveable with us. he is long haired and I call him my rug dog

I'm not deluded enough to ever fully trust him alone with my children while they are young but this is a dog who has taken the impact of a fall down the stairs from my eldest and has stopped people who have attempted to break into our home I luffs him loads and he puts up with me putting hats on his head! poor dog probably a good job he knows I'm pack leader and not to hurt us.
as for toys/food my 1 yo DD shoves her head in his dish to see what he's doing and takes toys out of slobbery chops. she teases him with biscuits and he is always gentle and laid back

"but that derails discussing dogs attacking and killing in the most horrific way and why this is happening the talk of other breeds are more likely to bite is shutting down a discussion"

Breed details discussion though there is research on fatal dog attacks and what common factors they have.

Huskies, Alsatians, Staffies can all be lovely, lovely family dogs OP!

Fatty GSDs are just the best aren't they, I'd be lost without my 2

Oh and btw PP who called them "Alsatians" - the name is incorrect and no longer used, Google your heart out

I don't understand people saying "it's not the dog, it's the owner, and then regaling us with tails of how they had one dog that was nice and the next that was horrid... Make your mind up!

Not read the thread, but just wanted to say when we got our Staffie we chose a Staffie as DD2 was 6MO at the time and I did some research and found that Staffies were great with children. They are, after all, the nanny dog. Our Staffie has put up with a lot from all my children in the 3 years we have had him and has never given me any reason to worry about his behaviour. Of course Im not saying that he will never turn one day (especially if feeling threatened), but so far he' just a biggish friendly dog.

I do keep him away from other people when out and about though unless people have come to him or asked to stroke him. I am aware that other people probably dont want my dog to jump all over them, which he will. Not in an aggressive way, just being friendly, but other people/animals dont know that.

YY MrsDevere

Just joining the choir of 'deed not breed'.

Op, do please get informed a bit better.
YABVU.

they are amazing. I love big dogs though, I would be constantly tripping up over a little thing! I was raised with two Rottweilers who behaved like puppies their entire lives. I literally had a Rottweiler Sat on my knee. as for my rug, he just loves cuddles and has been known to assist my DCS in getting up to mischief (lying under furniture and allowing them to climb on him to reach things they shouldn't)

Rottweilers-
Would-be Rottweiler owners should keep in mind that Dogbite.org stated that from 2005-2013, 74% of all dog bites could be attributed to Pit Bulls and Rottweilers. Frequently employed as guard dogs or police dogs, Rottweilers’ fierce reputation is not built upon thin air. They have proven numerous times that they can be dangerous and even deadly.

It is not infrequently that I see people who have been bitten by dogs, sometimes missing half their face at the hospital.
It's terrifying and I hate them running off their lead up to my trusting child in the park and in the street. I don't particularly care what breed of dog, but I agree with OP sentiments - I'd rather know children are safe.

"Many breeds are as popular (or more so) than Staffies but you don't hear about them mauling or killing children."

KC registered staffies are no 5 of most popular...it's estimated that if non registered and crosses were included they'd easily be no. 1.

There's plenty of newspaper reports of other breeds mauling children, they're reported differently to be fair and they use much nicer stock photos if it's a lab or a collie, but they happen.

Also, because people are talking about very very different breeds...

Staffies are not large dogs, they are smaller than springer spaniels.

Agree MrsD

There's a prime example just a few posts upthread of a dog owner who knows absolutely nothing about dog behaviour...

If we're having a mass ban on breeds of dog who've done nothing wrong -> as, you know, blame the owner not the breed!!!

Can we ban all dogs that won't grow to knee height? They're small, yapping trip hazards often dressed in daft outfits and owned by people who use them as an accessory/substitute baby.

Of course I can't get them banned even though they are the dog most likely to bite me in my area of the country... ;-p

We own Akitas, German sheppards and Dalmatians (scary dangerous beasts) wouldn't trade any of them for a 'nice safe' lab

Your ignorance is breathtaking, go and talk rubbish elsewhere if you can't be bothered to research your story. You've condemned thousands of wonderful family pets through stupidity.

fatty German shepherds are lovely dogs, we had them growing up and I have fond memories of dressing them up, poor things . Much like your dog, our CO's walk next to ds when he's walking (he's only just learnt) and let him hold onto them, then flop down in front of him to cushion his fall if he wobbles. Sounds like your dd will have a wonderful friend as she grows up. I think making it clear that you're pack leader really is the key, a happy well loved dog, secure in its position in its pack will not challenge/show aggression at pack members.
Our dogs have one downside though - our chickens are cocky little bastards now they know they've got two staunch protectors, and they were pretty annoying birds before

wayward I agree. my uncle owns two chihuahuas and I am always nearly falling over them! what's the point in having an animal that no one can see?!

Theatre- I agree. Dogs should, in my opinion, be on leads in public areas. I think people should always supervise dogs where there are children, however fabulous they believe their dog to be.

Of course, any breed ban assumes that aggression in dogs is genetic, or mostly genetic. It can't be entirely genetic, as we know that things like upbringing, how the dog is treated, and whether or not it's spayed/neutered have a lot to do with it. It doesn't look likely that it's a simple Mendelian gene, where there's one "aggression" gene that a dog either has or doesn't, at any rate.

There could be an association between certain dog breeds and aggressive dogs without a genetic tendency to aggression. If you wanted an aggressive dog, for whatever reason, you'd probably gravitate toward breeds that had a reputation for aggression. Then you'd keep your male dog unneutered, and treat it in ways that promote aggression. Your dog of whatever breed would then contribute to the reputation of that breed for aggression, thus making that breed more attractive to people who want an aggressive dog. Eventually, the breed gets such a reputation for aggression that people who don't want an aggressive dog might shy away from it, and most of the dogs of that breed are owned by people who want aggressive dogs.

The breed with a reputation for aggression wouldn't even have to actually be particularly aggressive, just to have a reputation for being so- think about stereotypes of people who own certain kinds of cars. Subarus here in the US have a reputation of being owned by lesbians, but obviously there's nothing in the manufacture of the car that would make it inappropriate for someone else to own one (at least I hope not- I'm getting a Subaru, and I'm not a lesbian).

Of course, if that's the case, banning a particular breed isn't going to stop people who want aggressive dogs from getting them, any more than banning Subarus would stop lesbians from driving. They'd just find another breed to get. The breed with the worst reputation for aggression has in fact changed during my lifetime here in the US- I remember when it was Dobermans, now it's pit bulls. They're going to want a large dog, but other than that they could probably get a lot of different breeds to act aggressive with the right kind of treatment.

German Shepherds-

"Just this year a thirty-five-year-old woman was attacked and killed by the family German Shepherd. Statistics show that these dogs are among the top five most likely to bite".