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Original poster

To think bull terriers and other dangerous dogs should be banned from parks

124 replies

Gangle · 22/10/2009 15:45

I know they have to be walked somewhere but sick of seeing horrible savage dogs on the loose just looking like they're ready to maul a child. I stick to the dog free areas with DS but you occasionally get dogs in there and usually with owners too scary looking to question. And why of why do people let their kids near them or even thinking about having those types of dogs if you have young children?

OP posts:
4GHASTLYGHOULSandnotout · 22/10/2009 21:29

Yawn that time of the year agin when we get another staffy, rottie bashing? There should be a repetition smiley.

TotallyAndUtterlyPaninied · 22/10/2009 21:31

YANBU
YANBU
YANBU

They are a hazzard and should be at least kept on a lead unless in a place with no other people/ children.

All dog owners say 'my dog never bites'. Rubbish. They could turn and maul a child at any time.

These people are completely inconsiderate. If they can't look after a dog responsibly and keep it on a lead they should have the dog taken off them.

Rollmops · 22/10/2009 22:18

Valhalla, I think the job - getting dangerous strays off the streets- done by the pounds is rather more important. I do NOT want staffies ect. anywhere around me or my kids. End of.
No further discussion needed.
very very

Vallhala · 22/10/2009 22:25

Rollmops - in my experience stray does not generally mean dangerous. Many of the dogs I have had a hand in rehoming to families or have seen rehomed to those with children via the various rescues I assist are ex strays from pounds which have been properly assessed as suitable.

Its not the strays which are dangerous, its the sort of generalisaton which you've just made which costs lives.

Monsterspam · 22/10/2009 22:27

True Vallhala, neither does Staffie.

2shoescreepingthroughblood · 22/10/2009 22:36

Vallhala omg that is awful, i can't bear to think of staffys being hurt

Dragonfly73 · 22/10/2009 22:39

apologies everyone. my bad. i didnt even think about the connotation.

ShinyAndNew · 22/10/2009 22:45

You sound very passionate about your work Vallhala. It can't made any easier than the ignorant and ill informed majority who prefer to get thier facts from The Daily Mail et al rather than trained professionals such as the Kennel Club.

FWIW I would love to rehome a STB and intend to do so after our holiday next summer.

TrickOrNinks · 22/10/2009 22:48

YANBU to think that dogs should be kept out of dog-free areas.

YABU to suggest that dogs should not have the option to be properly exercised in a park.

I have a massive problem with people who do not appropriately train their animals and therefore cannot let them off the lead because they are then a danger to themselves and others. So more often than not, the dog is cooped up because they can't be bothered. I get pretty aggressive when I'm in that situation

Don't know what can be done about that though.

Maleeka · 22/10/2009 22:48

I've always wondered why we never see these kinds of dogs in adverts, its always the cute little dogs or fluffy little balls of adorableness.

Has to do with their bad rep i guess.

TrickOrNinks · 22/10/2009 22:50

And please don't be disheartened Valhalla, your posts are certainly making my views on this issue more reasonable, and I can't be the only person re-thinking

Vallhala · 22/10/2009 22:51

I am very passionate about it Shiny and I do appreciate that I get backs up and am very outspoken but if others saw the things I have they might see my point.

If I came on here and said that all black youngsters should be taken off the streets or killed because some black youngsters commit violent crimes I'd be shot down in flames and rightly so... yet it seems to be ok to do this about dogs, especially certain breeds????

Beats me.

When you come to looking for your SBT pal,if you'd like to find me on the forum of my local rescue please do and I'll pass on my email address and phone number and do my best to help.

The forum is at:

z10.invisionfree.com/PFK/index.php?act=idx

MrsArchieTheInventor · 22/10/2009 22:53

Dogs not on a lead in public are frightening and intimidating, full stop, doesn't matter what the breed. All dogs should be muzzled in public and kept on a leash unless in designated dog areas that are clearly marked as such, and people entering those areas have a free choice to enter said area knowing that they can be approached by a dog.

Not all dogs are friendly. Most dogs look frightening when they're running towards you. I grew up with dogs and until a few years ago quite liked dogs. An incident with a 'friendly' labrador changed that. Even 'friendly' dogs have the nature to bite.

Vallhala · 22/10/2009 23:00

Ninks, thank you.

I think that the fluffies are chosen for appeals and the ads for the big rescues such as RSPCA and the DT simply because cute 'sells' better.

Thia rescue www.dogsos.co.uk/ has a different approach and features many SBTs or cross SBTs as they are the majority which are in need.

Also the RSPCA has a high Put to Sleep rate. The Dogs Trust claim to be no-kill (but their criteria for this is wider than most independent no kill rescues so their claim is debatable). The Dogs Trust are also fond of 'cherry-picking'... sure they will take into their rescues a cute young Yorkie or a healthy labrador but they generally won't touch the harder to home, older dogs, dogs with illnesses such as epilepsy, aggression problems (many, if not most of whom can be rehabilitated), or the staffs such as those in the appeal for rescue places which I mentioned earlier in this thread. These are the dogs left to people such as myself to save, to independent rescue to take in or to die by the vet's needle.

ShinyAndNew · 22/10/2009 23:03

Thanks Vallhala. I have saved the links in my favourites.

There are loads of SBT's that need rehoming here too. I am not sure if they are from a kennel that euthanises healthy dogs, but I will look into it before deciding where to get my dog from. I'd rather rescue a dog that would otherwise be destroyed than one who is going to kept safe untill a suitable home is found.

Those two Staff's in the picture look adorable. That black one reminds me so much of my pup .

TBH I would love a dog now. I really miss not having that company and some one to walk with, but I agreed with DH that we would wait.

2shoescreepingthroughblood · 22/10/2009 23:04

dh helped our local staf rescue ladie rehome dogs, you all do an amzing job

Vallhala · 22/10/2009 23:05

MrsArchie - dogs off lead in public are not frightening.... they are frightening to you and to some other people. That I accept, though I am sorry that you feel this way and have had such a nasty experience.

That experience sums up what I've been trying to say - it is not the case that SBTs are dangerous and Labs are cute family dogs... the problem is at the hand end of the lead, not the collar end and it is the deed which should be punished not the *breed8.

My own Lab X is far less unreliable than my cowardly and placid GSD for example.

OrmIrian · 23/10/2009 09:52

valhalla - I don't blame you for getting angry. Not at all! I'd take a staffie off your hands like a shot but we have neither the room nor the time and I care enough about dogs to know we need plenty of both.

moffat · 23/10/2009 09:58

yanbu

MagnolianMonsterMash · 23/10/2009 10:00

Oh hear we go again

Yet another person who hasn't got a clue...

We have a dangerous dogs act over here, all the breeds on that list are banned from breeding and have to be muzzled in public.

The only bull terrier on that list is a pitbull which I very much dount you have ever seen in your local park!

All other bull breeds are not on that list because they are not dangerous.

Whats dangerous are bllody crap owners who don't train their dogs and get them from non registered breeders not knowing the history of the parents etc...

The other dangerous thing is people like you you [agry]

Rollmops · 23/10/2009 13:51

I beg to differ . The really 'dangerous people' as you ever so eloquently put it, are the horrid, vile jobs that breed these dogs, yes, staffies etc. who ARE dangerous. For crying out loud, these animals are bred for a single reason - to intimidate and kept for fighting. The dangerous dogs act should be amended.

LetThereBeRock · 23/10/2009 13:58

They were bred for that reason.Some people still breed them for that reason undoubtedly but now good breeders breed them as family pets and a well trained well bred staffie can be an excellent pet.

And has been explained dog aggression is quite different from people aggression and many breeders are working on toning down the dog aggression too.

RainRainGoAway · 23/10/2009 14:07

I have sewn up many a child/adult, owner/stranger from many different kinds of dog in my job.

There are bad owners whos dogs bite, good owners whose dogs bite and this is the first ever time and they 'never did anything like that before', dogs that are well trained, dogs which aren't, young dogs who know no better, old dogs which have been 'wound up' dogs which have bitten for no explainable reason. The only common thread seems to be that it is sudden, often for no apparent reason and that the owners never saw it coming and are in deep shock. And yes, a very large proportion of the dogs that bite are the ones that are stereotypically feared as 'nasty' (ie Staffies etc)

It has made me incredibly wary around dogs with children. I do love dogs but having seen the terrible damaged much loved pets can do I can see why anyone would object to them being around children. That includes the soppy, wouldnn't hurt a fly ones.

RainRainGoAway · 23/10/2009 14:07

Apologies for spelling and grammar, doing 3 things at once.

ArghhhhmazingBouncingSpider · 23/10/2009 14:15

My staffie, like the many thousands that are responsibly owned was bred to be a pet. She is far from intimidating (see photo on my profile) and the only fighting she does is for space on the sofa in the evening.

"The dangerous dogs act should be amended."

Thats rather ridiculous.