XL Bullies to be destroyed now!

[Babycatsarenice]

Sick of these monsters still being on our streets (I never see them muzzled as their irresponsible owners don't comply) and worse still knowing that they are still in homes with children.

AIBU that they should be put to sleep NOW

Lets not forget 'he's my son' <boots rubbish bin down hall >
One's son would be charged with GBH if he launched a biting attack on a passer by!

Absolutely classic demographic of an XLB owner.

Allows it to hurt others then throws a mega strop in Court.

They aren’t great “ Breed type” ambassadors.

Then we get back to the whole "responsible owner" debate and around we go again. Any unfortunate instance is far more likely from an owner who isn't following all those rules.

And I'm not saying I agree that they should have to, but there is always the option of a better barrier between them and the garden next door.

When one of the boy’s relatives asked Legemah to bring Hugo out,

I notice you don't think that the relative of the child who asked for the XLB to be brought out to a child is unstable in any way? This is a completely avoidable instance.

I hear what you're saying, but are the dogs the source? What is the source? (I don't know, its a rhetorical question). Surely these people will just go on to the next designer "fighting" dog. Most large breeds dog could, theoretically, kill a human.

I notice you don't think that the relative of the child who asked for the XLB to be brought out to a child is unstable in any way? This is a completely avoidable instance.

If the dog is too dangerous to be near a child then it is too dangerous to be kept as a pet in a residential area.

It is legal in the UK (sadly) to keep lions and tigers as pets. They need to be licensed (as do XLBs now).

Can a child be introduced to those too?

As I have said repeatedly, I don't disagree about XLBs, they have become a problem for various reasons, however some accountability needs to be taken by the relatives, parents, etc. Whether you agree that the animal should / should not be kept as a pet, you surely can't then argue that because it is, that it was OK for the parent / relative to put the child potentially in harm's way?

What is being discussed in the thread is that the current law is insufficient and doesn't strike the right balance between freedoms and protections. There should be much stricter licensing of dogs, which would enable these breeds to be eradicated. The licensing regime should impose sufficient fees on dog owners and breeders that the full cost to society of dog control and ownership is borne by dog owners and the licensing regime can be properly enforced, with stringent conditions placed on dog ownership and any dog whose owner cannot prove compliance confiscated and destroyed and the owner prosecuted.

I don't think there's any legitimate argument for people being allowed to own lions or tigers as pets. Aside from the dangers, they are wild animals and it is cruel.

And no, I don't think what that parent did was ok. It was utterly stupid. The problem is that stupidity is incurable therefore we need appropriate laws that protect people from completely avoidable, dangerous things.

You cant legislate for stupidty though. The problem is, whenever you make something idiot proof, someone comes up with a much better idiot.

I don't think additional restrictions for owners will be enough either, despite the fact that many need it. It's the breeders that need more controls.

I think about it like guns. If you prevent access to guns, they can't be used. If you prevent access to potentially aggressive dogs, they can't be owned. There will always be outliers, and cases where something slips through, but those people then advertise themselves more obviously in the same way I would stand out if I walked down the high street carrying an Ouzi 9mm.

In Yosemite there are many signs explaining why the bins cannot be bear proof.

the general gist is…..

there is not much difference between the intelligence of a smart bear and an average human. And if we make bins bear proof at least half the population will dump their trash as they can’t work the bins!

Bears are very bright...Probably easily brighter than 50% of humans.
Son did a ''year out''working in Whistler, Canada, and saw mother bears showing their cubs how to open the 'bear proof' bins.
Maybe the bins weren't properly fastened , but they are the Canadian equivalent of Foxes here when it comes to bin raiding.
For a large 'pawed' animal, they are surprisingly dextrous.

Bears.....

I rest my case.

If bears are so clever why haven't they built zoos, put us all in them and are now running the world for their benefit?

They probably decided that their lives are simpler the way they are. Humans aren't exactly doing s great job of managing the planet, but that's a whole other thread.

Honestly, is a difficult and convoluted situation where you can look at it from many angles. Lots of XLs are lovely and have amazing owners. However I had one that was lovely at first then turned on me when I did something it didn’t like, the owner panicked and let it go. Thankfully it just gave me a warning but I must admit I was frightened it was going to kill me. I’m pretty lax about muzzles and get through 99.9% of dog consults without one as I can read body language well and build up with positive reinforcement. This dog gave me no indication it was going to turn.

Vets are not the police and have been told we cannot type a dog. We do not get to decide what is and what is not an XL bully. There are so many lovely bull breed dogs that aren’t XLs that are now muzzled as owners exempted them as they were worried about the ban. Others roam free

@AUDHDVET

Having an incompetent owner lose control of it must have been alarming.
Hopefully that particular dog now has a strong, well fitting muzzle.

Their pumpkin 🎃 heads aren’t a great shape for muzzles.

Greyhounds locally wear well fitting Baskerville type muzzles when they are fresh off the ship from Eire- these gentle dogs can have a varying prey drive and the rescues keep them muzzled on walks til they have first hand knowledge of what the individual Greys are like.

Edit: Our vets also say XL types are far less likely to give any warning before being aggressive.

Most other dogs show their discomfort or fearfulness and give fair warning in their body language.

YouTube showed me a compilation of owners being interviewed after their pitbulls turned and did serious damage or killed. Dozens of brief 30 second interviews. All terribly shocked owners who's partners or children or relatives had been mauled or killed, or whose neighbours had been attacked. Without exception saying they would never have seen it coming. Their lovely, gentle, family friendly pet had never done anything before, not a sign. It seems like it's a common theme that these dogs really are great pets, wonderful family pets - until some sort of internal switch flips and they become hunter-killers in the blink of an eye. And after the event, revert back into the family pet.

My friend had a saying in her country that fits. "The dangerous dog is the one that sometimes bites. If it never bites, you're safe. If it always bites, you'll know and keep yourself safe. But if it sometimes bites - that's the one that will get you"

Today's victim of this "rare" occurance.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-68364173

From that same article:
Ms Sebastian (the child's mother) described the attack as a "freak accident", and said her "heart breaks for the dog's owner".

Even in these circumstances, the mother had some perspective of it being an unusual thing to happen. Doesn't make it any less serious. No mention of the breed either. It is still being established.

I’d euthanise the breeders before the animals, tbh.

Status dogs. Nothing more

all the owners look the same, dress the same, talk the same, decorate their homes the same

Of course there has been wide spread government ordered euthanasia of animals... Foot and mouth a few years ago??

F&M was 22 years ago. I recall very specifically becuz I was pg with eldest DD.