pit bulls (again)

[swelec]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/6223897.stm

When will we ever learn?

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/Dog Attacks 1982 to 2006 Clifton.pdf

Some interesting statistics here

Whilst my heart goes out to the family, its about time these breeds were gotten rid of

 

[gcol]

Very interesting link to the american site swelec.
Whilst that table is useful for displaying the actual number of attacks, it would have been useful to know how many of each breed are out there. i.e. How many pit bulls in the survey area. Then you could get a percentage of risk (i.e. 3 in 100 are likely to attack). For all I know, in america the amount of pit bulls might vastly out-number every other dog.
It also touches on the influence of the owner - we must accept that there's a certain sterotype of the pit bull owner - i.e. moron. And as such except that the figures are probably going to be higher than they would be with a responsible owner.

I have a Weimaraner, that fares well in that table, but could that be because there aren't many of them?

Whilst I do agree with you that certain breeds should be looked at, how do you restrict ownership/breeding? Do you totally wipe out the breed or limit it? If limited, to what number? Where do you draw the line?

Would it not be more sensible to force potential owners (of any breed) to undergo some testing to ensure that they are going to be good keepers. Again though, this would be difficult to enforce.

It's a definite problem swelec, but I'm not sure what the answer is.

I must admit that I did smile when I read about the old guy that died when a German Shepherd jumped up to greet him. Knocked him over and broke his bones.

 

[AndersonC]

Very interesting stats there swelec. I agree that this breed of dog should be gotten rid of. What joy can there possibly be in owning such a pet? They are hardly loving, loyal animals.

The people who own these dogs are no better though - all they want them for is to make a "I am well hard, look at me and my dog" statement.

 

[Richardp]

I was once attacked by a homeless guys dog (the dog came off worse and the guy was very apologetic) and although I sympathised with the guys homeless situation I can't help thinking that he would be better off without the dog, he's less likely to get a home or a job and if he can afford to feed a dog from his social he's getting too much.
Anyway my point is , It should be made more difficult to get one, maybe a test and a licence, I'm a bit biased as I don't like them but I accept that there are responsible pet owners......not many

 

[holmslaw]

All pit bulls should be exterminated and and their ****wit owners neutered.

 

[gcol]

In the current Ellie case, her uncle (who, as it turned out, looked to be the sterotypical pit bull owner) owned a dog that was banned by the dangerous dogs act 1991 - he shouldn't have even had the dog. The authorities were informed on a couple of occasions that he had this dog and it was aggressive. So who's to blame - her uncle for keeping it or the authorities for allowing him to keep it?
A few people on this forum harp on about the nanny state and it's restrictions - that all seems to go out the window when a child is involved. Don't get me wrong, I'm horrified about what happened to Ellie - I have a 2 1/2 year old daughter and it doesn't bare thinking about if that happened to her.

The only effective way to prevent people from owning pit bulls is to ban them full stop. That means that eveyone that has one must give it up. Either they have them put down or they go to a big pit bull retirement home where they are neutered and left to grow old and die. That way whenever someone sees a pit bull, they will know that it's illegal to have one and can report it.
Is that the right thing to do? Do we ban everything that isn't very safe? Do we enforce a compulsery scrapping order for vehicles that don't get 5 stars in the euro ncap saftey standards? Do we ban motorcycles? Do we ban air rifles? Shotguns? Gas fires? Circular saws? While we're at it, why not completely ban smoking? Why not prevent people from driving performance vehicles until they're 30? Oh and drinking - how many kids die through drink related incidents? The list goes on....

Is it that a pit bull is more likely to attack than any other dog? Most people have been or know someone that's been biten by a dog - was that a pit bull? The difference is that a pit bull has more potential to cause serious damage and that's when these attacks are reported - no one really reports it if aunty Susan's jack russel bites someone's finger.
If pit bulls are banned, won't the "thug" type owner simply find another "aggressive" dog like a rottweiler or doberman and give that a bad name?

Some pit bull facts here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_bull

Re-reading the above, it would appear that I've stuck up for pit bulls - this wasn't my immediate intention. What I was ultimately trying to say is, why is it ok to ban something because it is potentially dangerous when so many other issues go unchallenged that cause far more death and destruction?

 

[holmslaw]

I was once attacked by a dobbermann, came at me as i opened a door it was at head height, luckily I manged to re-close the door. Had known the dog for years and had just returned from taking it for a walk, got washed and changed to go out for the evening, thats when it went for me. When I eventually went into the room it had to be forcibly restrained from attacking me again. A few weeks later saw the dog again and it was its usual friendly self with absolutely no aggression towards me. A few months later it tried to attack someone else and was put down.
The dog was well trained, obedient and looked after.
The point is no dog can be trusted and they should never be left alone with kids.

 

[swelec]

Some good honest responses thank you

Not one "its not the dog, its the owner thats to blame"

 

[securespark]

Think you're wrong about the dog. Complaints had been made to the council, but because the dog was not a recognised breed, they were powerless.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/suecarroll/

 

[Richardp]

why not get a pet rat instead? very intelligent, does tricks, don't have to take them out on walks and when you go on holiday you can drown them and get a new one when you get back.

 

[gcol]

Think you're wrong about the dog. Complaints had been made to the council, but because the dog was not a recognised breed, they were powerless.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/suecarroll/

Where've you read that? There's no mention of that in the link.
From what I read/heard, the council just sent a warning letter to the owner. Nowhere have I heard that the dog was examined and not found to be of the breeds that are restricted.
The Dangerous dogs act 1991 states:
(a) any dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier;
(b) any dog of the type known as the Japanese tosa; and
(c) any dog of any type designated for the purposes of this section by an order of the Secretary of State, being a type appearing to him to be bred for fighting or to have the characteristics of a type bred for that purpose.

"Type" to me means that if it "has a look of" a pit bull it is classed as a dangerous dog. If the police have classified it as the "type" then why couldn't the council? Because they didn't look into the complaint properly.
The council did not operate to the fullness of the law and they should shoulder some responsibility. I see a payout looming.

Incidently though, I find it strange that in point C it allows the secretary of state to take a dislike to a dog, call it a pit bull and it needs to be treated as such even though it might be a poodle.

 

[libby lou lou]

why not get a pet rat instead? very intelligent, does tricks, don't have to take them out on walks and when you go on holiday you can drown them and get a new one when you get back.

e


Cos a pet rat don't make you hard, does it ? i saw the dog owner on t.v. walking with the childs parent? carrying flower, still having that "Jack the lad" walk, Tosser, would happily donate £500 towards prosecution cost

 

[gcol]

You should have spent that extra £500 on your laptop.

 

[keyplayer]

Well they all look the same don't they?

http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/findpit.html








clue - all in the collar innit.......

 

[ohmygodwhathaveyoudone]

I think all children should be taught that ALL dogs are to be treated with caution.i have a 3 yr old pedigree labrador that loves to play with my 7 yr old twins but i would never leave it alone in a room with the door closed(even though they decorated the dog with wrapping paper and sellotape at christmas )she's such a good tempered dog but it only takes a split second for a dog to turn on a child (fireworks etc..).
Its hard to explain to a child that they cannot just go up and stroke a dog they don't know that is left outside a shop.why do you think you don't get well off families with pitbulls instead of ****zu lapdogs or similar,would'nt have anything to do with image because that would be typecasting the pitbull breed has anyone seen a pitbull that was straining on the leash when they are out for a walk(thats if the moronic owner even bothers with a lead at all)would'nt look right having a dog walk to heel and would'nt look 'ard either. shoot the irresposible dog owners and their dogs aswell.hmmmmmmppphhhhh.