Another baby killed

Very, very sad. Without seeming judgemental, I think the men of the house, prefer to have large dogs…..it’s a macho thing.
Poor baby girl ?

BlueBelle my children grew up with dogs, as did I. Never had any problems at all.
I worry about the number of puppies being sold on, they haven’t been socialised or trained.
People need better education about bringing animal, especially dogs, into their family life. There’s an epidemic of poorly socialised, badly/or not trained, dogs around. I love walking my two but confess they’re not getting the freedom they pre the increase in dogs around here
Rest in peace little girl. What a hideous way to lose your child or for that infant to be killed

Such very sad news. Poor soul. The family will never forgive themselves.

Poor little soul. What a horrible thing to happen.

It happens all too frequently. And more often than not it seems to be a particular breed of dog - or its variations.

But we don't know anything about the dog's previous history, how it was trained and the police are trying to trace its former owner(s). Which, if it was chipped, shouldn't be too difficult.

And people have been commenting on other social media sites that they shouldn't have left the child alone with the dog - when we don't even know that they did. A dog can still attack a child even if its sitting with you, and inflict fatal wounds before you have time to pull it off.

But I am concerned that it is nearly always the same type of dog. I know people will say that their Staffie is a gentle creature and wouldn't harm a fly. But a Staffie, like all dogs, can be unpredictable. Like humans, they can have 'off' moments... feel unwell, irritated ( and can't communicate this to you), or just instinctively attack a small sentient being that it regards as another animal.

It's just tragic. Poor, poor child. What an awful end to such a short life. And I doubt this will be the last toddler that is killed or maimed. But I seriously don't know how it's to be prevented...

latest news states that;
Locals claimed the animal was either a Staffordshire Bull Terrier or Pitbull Terrier

It's terrible. There is a couple around here who walk about with two small children, one in a pushchair, and this enormous dog with huge jaws. I don't know what's the matter with people. I would never have a dog but if they must, why do they have to have such fierce ones?

Very, very sad.
Can you imagine the bitterness in the household if one parent wanted the dog and the other didn’t?
I’m not saying that is the case but it might be.

Apparently it was an adult dog and they’d only had it one week. I’ve known Staffordshire Bull Terriers and they’ve been lovely. I feel that there is such an increase in certain types having these big Bull Terrier type of dogs and they seem to encourage them to be aggressive. They aren’t treated as pets and given affection and care and they’re often passed on. It’s another terrible death of a child by a dog that’s new to the home and it’s back story probably not known. I’d never bring an adult dog into a home with children, only a puppy.

I've had lots of dogs and of various breeds and if these dogs have proved to be dangerous with babies, toddlers and children - they are put down as quickly and humanely as possible .
Each of my rogue dogs has been a rescue one and not one that I've raised from puppyhood.

They aren't rehomed in case another child is attacked in a lapsed moment .

I've seen children with mutilated faces ,though I don't know any that have been killed apart from seeing horrendous news items .
It is not worth the risk .

tickingbird

Apparently it was an adult dog and they’d only had it one week. I’ve known Staffordshire Bull Terriers and they’ve been lovely. I feel that there is such an increase in certain types having these big Bull Terrier type of dogs and they seem to encourage them to be aggressive. They aren’t treated as pets and given affection and care and they’re often passed on. It’s another terrible death of a child by a dog that’s new to the home and it’s back story probably not known. I’d never bring an adult dog into a home with children, only a puppy.

... and a Staffordshire or Pit Bull having had a previous owner... did the parents know anything about them or how they raised and 'trained' the dog?

I read the comments some time ago of a volunteer worker in animal rescue who said that these are the most common breed in shelters.

They are dogs that need to be well socialised and trained because they are energetic, powerful and muscular. They also have a reputation as great 'family' dogs because they like humans - including children.

So something's going wrong. My guess is, and I might get jumped on for saying this, they are attractive dogs to a certain type of male. They are highly trainable - therefore obedient - and powerful. But how are they trained, and to what end? And why do so many end up in animal shelters?

we grew up with dogs and so did my children, all rescue dogs
nothing ever happened
I suppose that might be because rescue dogs are generally matched with owners properly, especially breed specific

I feel awful writing this as presumably when the family bought the dog they had no idea whatsoever this would happen and it it is an absolute tragedy

Iam64

BlueBelle my children grew up with dogs, as did I. Never had any problems at all.
I worry about the number of puppies being sold on, they haven’t been socialised or trained.
People need better education about bringing animal, especially dogs, into their family life. There’s an epidemic of poorly socialised, badly/or not trained, dogs around. I love walking my two but confess they’re not getting the freedom they pre the increase in dogs around here
Rest in peace little girl. What a hideous way to lose your child or for that infant to be killed

I couldn't agree more. We have always had Labradors and our children grew up with them, just as my grandson is growing up with our dog and his parents' two smaller dogs. We lost our old beloved boy in June 2020 and we did look into rehoming a rescue dog, but none would even consider us as our grandson was living with us at the time. Far too many people get a dog without thinking about training, socialising etc - not to mention the fact that children need to be taught how to behave around animals too. It's very tragic when events like this happen - but I still maintain that there are no bad dogs, only bad owners.

Dickens well a lot can be prevented by nor buying a new dog when you have a toddler and treating an already established dog as a possible danger by always being on ‘duty’

What happened about the child that was killed by a Husky recently. There was very little news about it and I don’t know if the dog was owned by the child’s parents or if it was a random attack?

this one?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-60640561#:~:text=Baby%20girl%20died%20after%20husky%20dog%20attack%20at%20Ostler's%20Plantation%20%2D%20police,-8%20March&text=A%20three%2Dmonth%2Dold%20girl,23%3A13%20GMT%20on%20Sunday.

We knew someone who had a very old Labrador which was placid. This lady had a baby and when the child was about 18 months old, the lady was hanging out her washing when she heard the baby screaming.
The dog had savaged the baby's face. She was scarred for life.
I've been called nasty, not a nice person and much more because I don't like dogs, which I don't.

You are all beng so kind and generous to this family. Frankly I think anyone who goes out and buys a large dog of a breed or range of breeds that are in the papers or on the news for savaging and killing small children at least half a dozen times a year is criminally culpable of that childs death and should be prosecuted.

I can see little difference between them and a parent who kills a child with a blow.

We'll said Monica.

Well

In the past Staffies were known to be wonderful family dogs and very good with children. Unfortunately now they are seen as fighting dogs and trained to be aggressive. I think taking on an adult dog of any breed is dangerous if you have small children unless you all know the dog very, very well. And even then I wouldn't leave the children alone with the dog. We took on our friend's middle aged Border Collie who was an exceptionally well trained dog. He was not a lover of small children and, while I don't think he would have bitten, he made it quite clear when he had had enough and we would remove either him or the children. This was a dog we had known very well for a long time, not one we had brought home on a whim.

No one has said it’s a staffy though deedaa the breed hasn’t been spoken of yet just that they were checking to see if it was on the banned list which I think is more pit bulls than staffies isn’t it ?

Blame the deed, not the breed. There was a time when Dobermans were the 'devil dogs', then it was Rottweilers and now it's Staffies. All I can say is that the biggest, softest dog I've ever known was a Rottie - while the most bad-tempered, vicious dog I've ever met was a Jack Russell.

It not only upsets me, it really annoys me, it should never have happened. Poor little mite.