Dangerous Dogs Attack

I read about a man who lost an arm and a leg to a big dog. All the compensation he may get will not compensate for his pain and loss. I do not think having insurance for these XL Bullies really makes up for the threat which they are.

Even bringing out a fine for a "minor bite" doesn't help if someone has PTSD for life as a result. A fine doesn't prevent or cure.

As for exercising, it's up to owners to consider these things that dogs need before getting one.

A dog can't be a dog if it's on the lead all the time. Fields for dogs to run free are a great idea but not everyone can afford to pay for this, plus getting there twice a day is impossible for most people. I live in the happy knowledge that my dogs are harmless, as far as anything with big jaws can be! I do not know what the answer is. I have friends who have dogs (obviously) and nice, intelligent people behave so differently. One has a dog she knows is dangerous and she makes sure that people are protected from it, for the sake of the dog that she loves as well as the people. Another is very sweet and completely in denial, in a way I cannot comprehend. I actually saw her dog bite the postman, but she just says it didn't happen (luckily said dog has now gone to the happy hunting ground!). Maybe stronger penalties - e.g if your dog bites someone you're fined £10k, immediately, like a parking ticket? We manage to deter cars from being where they should not be but we can't do much about dangerous dogs!

BlueBelle

Well these fields are just a money making ploy you shouldn’t have to pay to take your dog for a walk or a run !!
There are so many bully type dogs without muzzles out being walked and they are so big if they decided to bolt the owner would be on the floor and as someone said upthread you can’t really tell if they are an XL so I would advocate all dogs over a certain size and weight should be muzzled in public.
There are too many dogs around, never left at home, but indulgently taken everywhere shopping, eating, won’t be long before they are given a seat in the theatre or cinema.

I disagree. My friend has a reactive dog so she is able to guarantee a good, off lead walk for her dog. As her boy is not reactive to my girl, we meet up so the her dog is able to socialise with other dogs. We are gradually introducing him to other specially chosen dogs who come along to "play" without reactivity. Many people have lovely dogs who are anxious whilst on lead with strange dogs which makes them unable to walk with them without considerable stress. Most of the fields in our area also have agility equipment to redirect excess energy.
I have never paid for a field because I don't need to but I can see the advantage of them.

nanna8

They have to be on a lead here except in specially designated ‘off lead ‘ areas. I wouldn’t have a dog these days, there’s no freedom for them unless you have a large secure backyard and I think that contributes to aggressive behaviour. We have had some marvellous dogs in the past but they used to go for walks with us and we didn’t need leads, they did as they were told.

DD used to have to take her cat for a walk on a lead over there, nanna8, when she lived in city suburbs.

They have to be on a lead here except in specially designated ‘off lead ‘ areas. I wouldn’t have a dog these days, there’s no freedom for them unless you have a large secure backyard and I think that contributes to aggressive behaviour. We have had some marvellous dogs in the past but they used to go for walks with us and we didn’t need leads, they did as they were told.

I dont pay because I have somewhere to exercise my (small) dog, planned and thought out carefully before getting a dog.

The dogs I see in cafe's are better behaved than most kids...and even some adults!

Well these fields are just a money making ploy you shouldn’t have to pay to take your dog for a walk or a run !!
There are so many bully type dogs without muzzles out being walked and they are so big if they decided to bolt the owner would be on the floor and as someone said upthread you can’t really tell if they are an XL so I would advocate all dogs over a certain size and weight should be muzzled in public.
There are too many dogs around, never left at home, but indulgently taken everywhere shopping, eating, won’t be long before they are given a seat in the theatre or cinema.

@Valdavi I wouldn't call a spaniel a "bigger dog" as I mentioned in my post. When I was thinking of bigger dogs, I meant like Collies, Alsations, Labradors, Huskies and bigger breeds than that.

My post was about why bigger dogs aren't suitable for urban areas (because they need more space to run free and there often isn't a large safe space for them in urban areas) There is a common near me where all dogs may run free, but it's rough play and smaller dogs often get hurt by the big dogs who pick them up and shake them, so I think it should be size graded.

I certainly would not let my (small dog) go to one of those dog places where there are larger dogs running amok, that's why I suggested a field that can be hired. Not asking anyone to drive anywhere, just making suggestions for dogs and their owners to stay safe. I'm sure you worked out where to exercise your energetic dog safely before you got them.

This is a brilliant idea Cossy!

There should be more of these spaces so others can enjoy them.

I think this Regulation was necessary to bring XL Bullies within the same regime as breeds covered by the 1991 Act, when nobody had heard of this particular breed. The Act was always a bit of a dog's dinner, from before it was even a Bill, with Home Secretary Kenneth Baker demanding that something must be done. It was one of those meetings with a cabinet minister that stick in the memory.

And the price at the bottom is what it costs to buy the SI from HMSO.

I walk my dog from the door, I'm lucky we have a variety of interesting walks. Our nearest rentable field is 20 minutes' drive away & not accessible by public transport. Do you want me to be making that journey twice a day by car? I could afford the petrol (not the time) but I couldn't justify using the car in that wasteful way. Mine's a young spaniel, he needs to chase balls & use some energy.He doesn't bother other dogs or people although he will play if another dog approaches him to play.The dog-fields are very useful if dogs are not reliable off the lead but not a practical proposition for everyday excercise.

Dogs should be on a lead in urban and residential districts and taken to an enclosed dog field to run free. There are rentable spaces for this. If people love their (bigger) dogs and are able to look after them adequately, they will have considered a safe space to run freely and not mind spending the money.

Smaller or older dogs may be happy to run around a reasonable sized garden, but no dogs should live in flats or places without gardens.

XL bullies have to be neutered so (if all owners comply) will die out rather than the 10000-15000 of them being forcibly euthanased.
There are many other rules, muzzled, walked on lead by adult, registered with Defra and insured etc. All listed below

www.gov.uk/guidance/ban-on-xl-bully-dogs

Put! Not out!

Wheniwasyourage

In Norway dogs must be on leads in public places. Notices make it clear that if you are the owner, you are responsible for the dog's behaviour and are to blame if it attacks or threatens any person or other animal. It is possible there to walk along a road or in a park without worrying about the danger of a threatening dog suddenly appearing - something which is not always possible in this country. There are not nearly so many dogs as there are here and they are on leads and also the pavements are much cleaner.

How have we got to the stage where the dog is thought by so many to be more important than human children (see various threads on GN)? I have known some lovely dogs, but I am in no danger of promoting their interests above those of the young of my own species.

(Puts on tin hat and hides behind sofa.)

I absolutely adore all the dogs I’ve ever had, but never ever would they be out before our children.

Wheniwasyourage

In Norway dogs must be on leads in public places. Notices make it clear that if you are the owner, you are responsible for the dog's behaviour and are to blame if it attacks or threatens any person or other animal. It is possible there to walk along a road or in a park without worrying about the danger of a threatening dog suddenly appearing - something which is not always possible in this country. There are not nearly so many dogs as there are here and they are on leads and also the pavements are much cleaner.

How have we got to the stage where the dog is thought by so many to be more important than human children (see various threads on GN)? I have known some lovely dogs, but I am in no danger of promoting their interests above those of the young of my own species.

(Puts on tin hat and hides behind sofa.)

It’s only my opinion, and I appreciate where you’re coming from, but dogs (most dogs) do need exercise off the lead and to run free.

Some enterprising farming/landowner folks around here have started to rent out portions of their fields, totally dog proofed, for a couple of hours, up to 4 dogs at a time (friends or same family)

This seems like a great idea.

Oldbat1

It is the breeders who are at fault!

Breeders and owners!

Enforcement is the issue, both for existing laws and those proposed.

In the country park near where I live part of it is only available to people with dogs on leads as there are sheep grazing nearby. I have yet to see any dogs on leads and I visit most days.
There was a dog fight there a few days ago with a dog being badly bitten.
Owners need to be more responsible and nobody should have a dangerous dog.

In Norway dogs must be on leads in public places. Notices make it clear that if you are the owner, you are responsible for the dog's behaviour and are to blame if it attacks or threatens any person or other animal. It is possible there to walk along a road or in a park without worrying about the danger of a threatening dog suddenly appearing - something which is not always possible in this country. There are not nearly so many dogs as there are here and they are on leads and also the pavements are much cleaner.

How have we got to the stage where the dog is thought by so many to be more important than human children (see various threads on GN)? I have known some lovely dogs, but I am in no danger of promoting their interests above those of the young of my own species.

(Puts on tin hat and hides behind sofa.)

There should have been an amendment to the Dangerous Dogs act that gives more protection to the public, and in return the dogs are less likely to be given the opportunity to attack (then be euthanased)
It would not be too difficult to make it law to put a muzzle on.

It's not always the dogs, but bad owners and prison is not an answer when our jails are already overcrowded. The only sensible answer is to ensure that no dogs attack in the first place by making the conditions of keeping those dogs to be enclosing gardens and muzzling dogs in public spaces.

It should be against the law to keep a dog in a flat without access to a garden. Things should be better regulated, but that takes a government that's not overwhelmed with rioting and is committed to public safety, to be determined to prevent attacks.

My neighbour and I were arguing about discussing XL bullies a month or so ago.

We were both pretty unsure about the law.

All I will say is that someone in my block got one, kept it mostly in the kitchen, then passed it on to someone else.

So that's three homes the poor thing has had in it's short little life.

OnwardandUpward

Actually I meant under Rishi Sunak when it was much discussed. I lost a few months due to serious illness but catching up now and what they have written seems just like words on a page, meaningless.

I would like to see the current government doing something to change this but as they're so new and have to sort out all the other messes that have been left....and at the moment with all the rioting it's not likely.

Sorry, I will be serious. Hope you're feeling better now.

We've already got a Dangerous Dogs Act in place, this was just an amendment to it, I think.

In the UK, five breed types have now been identified as dangerous or unmanageable. These are the Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro and, most recently, Bully XL dogs. Despite the term banned breeds, deciding whether a dog should be banned is based on its appearance and behaviour rather than its name. For example, if your dog displays characteristics similar to those of a Pit Bull Terrier, it may be considered a banned breed.

As XL Bully dogs are not a specific breed, it could be difficult to identify one.

There are conditions to owning existing dogs as set out well on this website:

www.myfamilyvets.co.uk/banned-dog-breeds-explained#:~:text=In%20the%20UK%2C%20five%20breed,most%20recently%2C%20Bully%20XL%20dogs.

It is the breeders who are at fault!

MissAdventure

They've had a whole four weeks.
You'd think they'd be on top of dangerous dogs, rioters, immigration already.

It's not as if they have anything else to do.

Slackers, all of them.