I feel this is a matter of public safety and people need to be informed.
Whilst working for a well known dog rescue charity I was attacked by a breed banned in many countries, but not here.
Because it was not banned it was taken in just like any other dog.
My story can be found on youtube.
With many years of experience in the dog sector what I see happening on our streets right now is frightening.
Those advising the government on dangerous dogs are giving bad advice and as a result putting people's lives at risk.
People do not understand dogs, especially genetics. Because of this attacks will keep happening and people are going to get killed.
All dogs have inherited characteristics. Certain ones are stronger in certain breeds depending on what they were originally bred for.
Although all dogs can bite, there is a huge difference in why they bite and this unless understood could prove fatal.
To communicate a dog will often give signals. So if it feels uncomfortable with someone coming too close it may put its ears back, cower, tuck its tail in etc.
If these signs are ignored the dog may resort to biting as a last resort.
Once it has effectively communicated, with the person moving away it will stop.
This is totally different to a dog biting because it has been bred to fight and has a strong drive to do so.
This drive has been bred into certain breeds of dogs on purpose. How strong that drive will be different for every individual dog depending on what has been passed down.
No amount of good will is going to change this.
This is your starting point before any external influences.
Instead of breeding that instinct out what we are now seeing is the result of the opposite having been done.
Individual dogs that have shown high aggression have been bred from resulting in literally ticking timebombs now out on our streets.
No amount of cute photos or affection will change this.
No dog trainer or behaviourist no matter how good can do anything because this is in the dogs genes.
All that can be done is for this instinct to be surpressed, it cannot be removed.
At some point under certain circumstances it will come out.
If you have a dog with a high drive to fight you could be in serious trouble and so can anyone who encounters that dog.
When it takes sometimes five people and tazers to get a dog off someone that is serious.
- This is what people are not being told but what they need to know.
Dogs are not good or bad, they just are.
Just because a dog brings you something because it was bred to retrieve does not make it bad.
This is the same for a dog bred to fight. It is doing what we have basically programmed it to do.
The fact we see one instinct as acceptable and one not is not the dogs fault, it is ours.
We are the ones who have brought both these dogs into our homes and labelled them as pets.
Certain dogs should never have been expected to fulfil this role.
Dogs are not morally driven, they will not sit and contemplate what they are about to do they just react.
They have the mental age of a toddler, a young child at best.
It is so important we understand and remember this to keep everyone safe.