To limit the number of dogs

[TooJoy]

I’ve just watched the dog attack video in London where a woman is being attacked by 3 dogs.

The man is able to restrain 2 but every time he tries to grab the 3rd, another one gets loose and it keeps happening and the dogs basically take in turns to attack her (she doesn’t have life threatening injuries fortunately).

I don’t know if these were all his or if she was with him or not but I do see many people with multiple dogs and we know that pack mentality is a real thing and this is usually when people get killed or injured.

Of course they should be on a lead but I can recall a few times when they’ve got out of the lead somehow during an attack.

I am not anti-dog at all and I have a massive bull breed myself who most MNers would hate but I just have the one and I have her on a lead at all times. I will hire an enclosed dog field where she can be let off with her other dog friends.

I used to let her off the lead in a public dog park because she was so well behaved but she was attacked by other dogs on 3 different occasions.
None of them were bull breeds or strong breeds but each time the owner had multiple dogs and could not restrain them and it was very scary.

So AIBU to think that we need to limit the number of dogs that one person walks at a time?
Not just by professional dog walkers but by owners too.

I think you should walk a maximum of 2 dogs, else you are not properly in control.

If you own more that 2 then you need to hire private spaces or be prepared to walk them 2 at a time.

And if you own a powerful breed like myself then you should only walk/own one at a time.

I’d be interested to see others opinions on this.

YABU - people should be able to walk multiple dogs (3+)

YANBU - people should be limited to walking 1 or 2

I do think there should be much tighter restrictions on dog ownership in other areas too but I think walking 1 or 2 as a maximum could be a good start.

There should be limit public places where they are allowed at all. Rather than allowed unless explicitly prohibited, it should be the opposite and designated areas only.

Yes sensible to limited the number per person but also there are many breeds that should be banned entirely, no dog should be off a lead in public, all should be muzzled and owners should be required to have insurance covering any potential injuries to people. To get the insurance all health requirements and registration of owners should be up to date and the dog chipped. Any found without meeting these requirements should be taken away.

It all needs clamping down on really hard. It's completely unacceptable that not only children but adults can't walk around public spaces safely because of dogs.

I think this isn’t the answer.

most dog attacks seem to happen in the home, not in public. I know that this recent one did, but more stories seem to feature attacks in the house or garden.

I do think dogs should be on leads in certain areas. I do think licenses are a good idea. I also think a limit of two is arbitrary and not helpful. 2 chihuahuas is nothing like two Dogue de Bordeaux is it!

3 on lead well behaved whippets is not statistically a greater risk than 1 cane corso off lead, surely?

Potentially a good idea.

What's apparent is that the government needs to immediately look at all current legislation, decide what's going wrong, and bring in a raft of measures to get the dog situation under control.

most dog attacks seem to happen in the home, not in public. I know that this recent one did, but more stories seem to feature attacks in the house or garden.

Adults have a choice whether to enter those houses and gardens. I agree that extra measures should be brought in to protect children, and prevent people keeping dogs in homes where young children live.

But people who don't choose to keep potentially dangerous animals or enter houses where they are kept should be able to use public spaces without being at risk from a random attack, so unleashed/ unmuzzled dogs need removing from all public spaces, and dogs removing entirely from most. Why should people have to share this space with dogs? Nobody expects to bring any other type of animal into parks/ along pavements/ into cafés/ pubs/ playgrounds etc. They can have their own designated field areas specifically for dogs and then everyone else can be left in peace.

3 whippets or chihuahuas may be less risk, but it is still more dog than you can properly restrain if out of control. No one needs three or more dogs per person.

No one would be allowed to breed dogs then, right?

Because you couldn't plan to have <= 3 dogs in the household when breeding, unless there were selective abortions.

Why is everyone afraid to mention that this breed - American Bully XL - is responsible for most of these attacks (recently at least). In my part of South London (not Lambeth) there are loads of them and I give them a very wide berth whenever I see them. The people walking them look like they'd fall over if the dog tried to run.

What caused those dogs to attack someone? Are they just inherently aggressive dogs?

Before 2022, fatal dog attacks were not increasing in England & Wales.

Most likely breeds to bite, Merseyside police data from < 2021:
JRTs, staffies, pit bulls, alsatians, rottweilers. Don't think that's adjusted by population base, presumably there are few pit bulls but lots of JRTs in UK.

As a dog owner, I'd support strict breeding laws requiring licenses and permits (s breeding of 'dangerous' breeds could be better monitored if necessary), owner licenses, compulsory dog training & socialising classes for anyone who adopts or purchases a new dog so they understand how to train their dog and how to read their body language, and would also love to see laws on microchipping actually being enforceable because it signifies a responsible owner who is willing to invest in their dog's wellbeing and safety.

Too many people treat dogs like lifestyle accessories and fail to understand that a dog is both a commitment and a responsibility, and most of them do need socialising and training.

I think so many people seem to have zero control of their dogs these days that soon something will have to happen to keep dogs under control. Where we live it’s very pleasant and I’ve never seen one of those Bully dogs, but out on walks here there are these ineffective (mainly women) calling their dogs to heel all the time while the dog totally ignores them and bounds up to us anyway.
I don’t mind dogs, but I don’t want to interact with them much on a walk because i don’t want to be pawed at by a muddy dog. I can imagine it’s terrifying if it’s a big scary dog because even something like a lab or similar size is nearly as big as a child.
I would definitely support dogs on leads in all public areas and then the development of more specific “off leash” areas so that non dog owners knew where they could avoid.

While it seems like a sensible idea, really it won’t have any impact as most people (not all) who have this breed are complete halfwits who don’t give a damn.

They won’t follow the guidelines or law, and there is no one to police it.

There is a man on gum tree trying to rehome his adult XL bully at the moment. Lives in Richmond. States his dog has patchy recall and is reactive to other male dogs yet there are loads of photos of him this dog plus other off the lead in Richmond. The man is utterly irresponsible. There is no chance this type of owner will give any mind to laws around dog ownership.

As a fellow bull breed owner, who has also been set upon by packs of small yappy out of control dogs, i whole heartedly agree!!