thinking its now time to get super tough on dog ownership?

[adam7485]

after what has happened in wales to that poor little boy i can't help thinking its time to not jus bring back dog licences but before you buy a dog you should have to take an exam to prove that you can look after it properly. not only that but if your dog attacks someone not only should it be taken away from you but from that moment on your banned from ever owning dogs. anyone agree with me?

I agree with dog licences, but not an exam, and every pooch should be DNA profiled as part of the licence.
I would prefer that there was also an official Dog Owners Code, like the Highway Code, that everyone has to adhere to, and that acting in contravention of this would result in removal of dog from owner.
That way people could be identified by their dogs mess left unpicked up, and there would be a framework for removal of pets from irresponsible, cruel and unfit owners.
I would be so happy if everyone was made to treat their dogs properly!

[quote MrsDThomas]@rrhuth and ensuring the breed is not a banned one.

I saw a video yesterday on Facebook of a bloke who trained his dogs (and they were big beasts like this presumed dog) and the trainer was a big muscular bloke, and the size of the dog beside him. I don’t see why you would need a dig like this, apart from to intimidate people.

What’s wrong with a lab, jack russel or a cockapoo![/quote]
There is nothing wrong with giant breed dogs. I have two and I'm only 5 ft 3 but they have excellent recall, I worked with a trainer to ensure they were fully trained and they are brilliant, the only thing I can't seem to control is her constant need to roll on fox shit every time she finds some.

No one seems to put dogs on leads any more, even though a lot of dogs have poor recall. If you don’t want some random dog coming up to you apparently it’s you who’s got the problem.

I know of someone who adopted a dog from Romania. Sadly they had to have him put down in the end due to biting. The poor thing had obviously undergone some awful psychological trauma and he just freaked out occasionally. They adored him and it was very sad, but although they didn’t have children living at home they couldn’t take the risk.

I think it would be a good idea to reintroduce dog licences but I think there will still be unregistered dangerous dogs and irresponsible owners.

Every pet dog and cat should be;

• microchipped and registered to the owner/keeper.
• wormed and vaccinated, have a regular vet, and visit once a year .
• insured for third part liability.

@Hummingbirdcake

No one seems to put dogs on leads any more, even though a lot of dogs have poor recall. If you don’t want some random dog coming up to you apparently it’s you who’s got the problem.

Yes you need to seek help for your "phobia" and "anxiety".

A phobia is an Irrational fear. It is not irrational to not want dogs slobbering over you at best and biting you at worst.

I agree with your entire post, LexMitior - except the very last sentence

Unfortunately too many of the types who own a powerful and aggressive "status dog" simply don't care. Knowing there's almost no enforcement they'll carry on in their own antisocial and destructive way unless someone stops them, so it seems to me the only real question is how to do that

I know of someone who adopted a dog from Romania

bringing in dogs from overseas needs to stop too. A friend of mine got one from Portugal. She is one of the good owners, he is much loved and well trained. But why from Portugal? She is part of a family of five with a big garden - there is always someone home and there was no reason why they couldn't have got one based in the UK.

@FlipFlops4Me

I like the German way. You need a licence to breed dogs, are limited as to how many litters your dogs may produce each year and there are inspections regularly. You can't breed a litter unless you can prove you have homes waiting (which is brilliant).

If you aren't a registered breeder your dog must be spayed or neutered to avoid irresponsible breeding.

Owners must have licences (and these are checked). It all sounds so much safer!

I grew up in Germany, and there were also strict rules about having dogs off-lead in public places. This is because of the risk of rabies I think, but I like the idea. I didn't see badly controlled dogs or obese dogs, people either had dogs of an appropriate size or they just took them for very long walks.

I'll definitely support any legislation against unspooling dog leads!

I love all dogs. Their owners often less so.
I had German Shepherd Dogs. All passed the Good Citizenship course at Gold level. It took months of training and daily practice. I loved doing it and the Dogs seemed to enjoy it to.
The lovely mongrel I owned was too traumatised by her previous life to cope with the GC scheme, so I used the same principles over a number of months, using a horse lunge line, lots of gentle praise and a cheese treat at the end.
She became a biddable soul, other than being overkeen to chat with rabbits!
RIP BeBe 🙏.

While I think it would be good if something were done, it would be an utter waste of time.

Who is going to enforce it? Police don’t have manpower or time. Councils don’t have manpower or time. Dog wardens barely exist anymore.

@Immaculatemisconception

I agree that peeps need to pass a competency test in order to own a dog. Dog wardens should do more to check on dogs and their owners. The owner of any dog that attacks should face a stiff prison sentence.

sadly our local council has seen fit to sack the dog wardens

I grew up in Germany, and there were also strict rules about having dogs off-lead in public places. This is because of the risk of rabies I think, but I like the idea. I didn't see badly controlled dogs or obese dogs, people either had dogs of an appropriate size or they just took them for very long walks

I also liked the set up in the Gruenewald in Berlin that they had different areas - dog-free, dogs-on-leads and dogs-off-leads, so you knew where you were. I wish we had more of that here, although people are so flippin entitled that they would just ignore it anyway.

The biggest thing I think would be for it to become socially acceptable to be a shit dog owner.

The HT of the primary school here is really unpopular with a certain section of parents atm because she’s banned them from bringing their badly trained lockdown puppies onto school grounds.
She’s very bluntly said “Too many of them are badly trained. It’s an accident waiting to happen so no”.

Also the local dog friendly pub has banned 8 lockdown puppy dogs. The landlord is absolutely adamant he won’t change from being a dog friendly pub, but he also won’t become a pub with a rep for badly behaved dogs.

It’s having an effect as two people I know have finally got themselves into good dog training classes.

No, and I say that as a dog owner.

Like anything the great majority of dog owners are very responsible about their pets, spoilt by a minority like everything

I would accept licensing if the same applied to cat owners

@Claudethecat

Once upon a time, if there was nobody in the house during the day who could care for a dog and take it out for walks, then you didn't have a dog

Or you just let it roam the streets all day...used to be fairly common at one point.

People had dogs, they just used to leave them at home. But I think at that time there were a lot more SAHMs so although they might have gone out from time to time, they weren't for example out 9-5 so the dogs might have only been home alone for a few hours at most. And yes, some people just used to let them roam, I remember being chased by a neighbour's dog when I was about 10 (and "saved" by another neighbour!)

I have a puppy, he's 6 months old. I don't understand why so many dogs are off lead. He's walked on his lead and is off lead in the garden. His recall isn't great, still working on it so why would I have him off lead? That wouldn't be ok. I don't understand the amount of dogs you see off lead.

I would accept licensing if the same applied to cat owners

Cats are completely different, they do not cause a danger or anxiety to other people and they look after themselves, they don't "need" taking to pubs or shops or offices.

Has anyone ever been killed by a cat in the UK? I would be extremely surprised!

I would accept licensing if the same applied to cat owners

Perhaps you start a petition for a 'Dangerous Cats Act' and highlight the shocking numbers of people killed by aggressive cats each year....

after all there is a 'Dangerous Dog Act' because dogs and cats in your opinion pose exactly the same dangers...

Happy for my Dcat to have a licence. He is a real menace to his toy mice and my carpets are ruined.

I grew up in Germany, and there were also strict rules about having dogs off-lead in public places. This is because of the risk of rabies I think, but I like the idea. I didn't see badly controlled dogs or obese dogs, people either had dogs of an appropriate size or they just took them for very long walks

How wonderful and sensible and fair for everyone.
Dearly wish it was like this in the UK.

My dog is chipped, wear ID tag as required by law, is insured both medically and third party and she attends obedience classes.

I would willingly buy a 'licence' and prove she is adequately insured. It could be a lucrative income stream for local councils.

Whilst they were at it they could also ensure that cyclists, mobility scooters were also taxed and insured.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

I agree with your entire post, LexMitior - except the very last sentence

Unfortunately too many of the types who own a powerful and aggressive "status dog" simply don't care. Knowing there's almost no enforcement they'll carry on in their own antisocial and destructive way unless someone stops them, so it seems to me the only real question is how to do that

I agree about enforcement! That is why you fund it via making dog ownership expensive. There needs to be resources for it to work. I know people don't care, and they are often the same people who do not have a driving licence, or act criminally. But this is a matter of public safety, and I think its worth doing.

To person who said cats should be regulated, we make laws in the UK based on evidence. Uncontrolled dogs are a public safety issue. I'd be disappointed if otherwise sensible dog owners were oversensitive to the point of claiming that cats represented anything like the same risk as a dog. Its silly to claim so, or pretend that there is some sort of equality between the two species.

@ColinTheKoala

I would accept licensing if the same applied to cat owners

Cats are completely different, they do not cause a danger or anxiety to other people and they look after themselves, they don't "need" taking to pubs or shops or offices.

Has anyone ever been killed by a cat in the UK? I would be extremely surprised!

They cause a lot of anxiety to other people. Especially, when other people have to worry their toddler may come across cat shit playing in their own garden.

They don't look after themselves. Many cats attack other cats or small pets. What about those owners?and yes, everyone has cute pictures of their cat and insists their cat wouldn't do that. But ita the same as dog owners.

Besides which this thread has decended into talking about dogs in general, not just dogs that kill people.

As I said earlier, keeping dogs on leads in public places won't stop these fatal dog attacks that usually on private property.

No one, is actually talking about how to prevent these deaths.

People who own these dogs, that kill people are usually irresponsible owners. They won't take an exam, buy a license or a pay attention if they get ban.

The problem is, some people (some of whom own dogs) don't give a shit and believe they have special license to do what they want and everyone has to suck it up and accept it. Whatever way you group people....dog owners/cat owners/cyclists/ car drivers/parents/people with no kid...

You will find these dickheads. We need to make more specially unacceptable to be a cunt in general

@StopGo

My dog is chipped, wear ID tag as required by law, is insured both medically and third party and she attends obedience classes.

I would willingly buy a 'licence' and prove she is adequately insured. It could be a lucrative income stream for local councils.

Whilst they were at it they could also ensure that cyclists, mobility scooters were also taxed and insured.

Really? Mobility scooters present the same kind of hazard in public safety terms as dogs? Don't be bitter and pull in irrelevant considerations. A child has been mauled to death by a dog and this is not uncommon - perhaps you'd like to explain why that's even faintly equivalent to the use of a mobility scooter.