I own 2 dogs. Both large breeds. Both breeds that, if not properly trained, raised, socialised etc could do serious damage to other dogs, wildlife, kids or adults.
However, my job as a responsible dog owner is to do everything to ensure my dogs know how to behave both inside and outside the house. Stanley, a Kangal, is only 14 months old, so still very much a bouncy puppy. He is always on a lead when outside (unless in a secure dog field) as he does not yet have a fully reliable recall and, whilst WE know he is just a big, soft, lollopy giant pup who wants to say hi and play, I’m sure anyone he went running towards on the street/in a park would probably sh@t themselves, as THEY wouldn’t know that!
Fiona is 7 and is a Belgian Malinois- a breed used by police and military for serious roles. They are amazing dogs (lots of them are now being used across Africa to protect Rhino and other wildlife from poachers) but are not a typical “pet” breed and require lots of physical, but more importantly mental exercise/stimulation. Fiona’s recall is excellent, and whilst she can walk off lead to heel very nicely, she is also walked on a lead if outside on the street for her safety as there’s always the chance something could startle her and I would be devastated if she darted into the road in front of a car.
A lot of time, effort and perseverance goes into training my dogs and it’s not work that ever stops, as training is as much about the humans (me, DH and all my family and friends who interact with my 2) as it is about training the dogs themselves. Like humans, they can both sometimes have their off days; they may be feeling especially stubborn or (particularly Stanley!) decide they have developed teenager style selective hearing 🙄 But with consistent correction, reinforcement and repetition, my dogs are happy, healthy and fulfilled and do not present a threat/danger.
I agree with PP that the minority of bad, irresponsible and neglectful owners will continue to flout any rules and fail to raise their dogs correctly and they would be the ones not muzzling their dogs even if laws were introduced, whilst the rest of us would comply.
It would be awful to have to muzzle and put on a lead my dogs every time they were outside just because of a small majority. I know for mine, if they were unable to have that off lead exercise, I would be genuinely concerned how fulfilled and happy their lives would be.
I’d rather the government overhaul the DDA and Breed Specific Legislation currently in place which is woefully inadequate and unfairly penalises certain breeds and dogs that are “types” based a set criteria, impose proper controls on irresponsible backyard breeders and reintroduce a dog licence or something similar that mandates dog owners to demonstrate a minimum level of care and competency as part of owning a dog. Who knows, if we do this we may actually find that people finally become worthy of having the privilege of having dogs in their lives?