Eleven children injured in Blyth park dog attack
Discussion
pidsy said:
the obvious issue is the fact that there are a lot of other small, fluffy but extremely nippy breeds out there - no shortage of people with stories of nipped fingers or ankles from shi-tzu's, Pomeranian's, puggles, labradoodles etc, but they dont have the bite strength or mouth capacity of bigger bull breeds.
the small bites might be more common but arent as savage as the ones that make the press.
Interestingly the most feared dog according to postmen are "collie" types, with the highest amount of bites from any breed. the small bites might be more common but arent as savage as the ones that make the press.
The theory being that collie's tend to go a bit mad in a domestic environment due to the lack of "work".
Jimmyarm said:
No it isn't, its just the mainstream media target 'these' type of dogs.
It used to be Rotweilers and various other breads before that.
Two rotweilers 'escaped' and bit a child round our way a few months back and it didn't make the mainstream press. I am sure there are plenty of other incidents that aren't national news and so go unnoticed.
It's just because 'Staffy' that it makes the national papers the majority of the time.
Spot on there Jim.It used to be Rotweilers and various other breads before that.
Two rotweilers 'escaped' and bit a child round our way a few months back and it didn't make the mainstream press. I am sure there are plenty of other incidents that aren't national news and so go unnoticed.
It's just because 'Staffy' that it makes the national papers the majority of the time.
I always make a point of thanking people when they scoop up their dog and ask if their dog is dangerous as i walk my staffy. It leads to some interesting conversations and a bit of education for them.
TwigtheWonderkid said:
So surely you can breed inherent aggression into a dog. If you picked the 2 most aggressive staffies you could find, mate them, pick the most aggressive puppy, mate it with another aggressive puppy etc, surely you could end up with a dog that was just a wrong 'un, regardless of how nice it's new owners were.
But that's an explanation for why Staffies are not aggressive towards people. If you're going to put a dog in a fight you don't want one that's likely to turn around and go for you, or start attacking the crowd or ref (apparently they did have referees!).Also, historically it would be poor people who owned and bred fighting dogs, and lived in small houses but have large families. I'm sure any dog showing aggression towards the kids would be booted out sharpish.
el stovey said:
What's the attraction with a staffy though? There are plenty of other breeds with much better reputations, why get one that all the chavs go for and people cross the road when they see?
I walk my dog and people smile and come over and say hello to it. I wouldn't want a dog that makes people scared, or is that the attraction of them?
We chose a Staffy because we wanted a dog that doesn't slobber or moult, doesn't bark all the time, doesn't have many genetic health defects to worry about, and is good with kids.I walk my dog and people smile and come over and say hello to it. I wouldn't want a dog that makes people scared, or is that the attraction of them?
As for her reputation; she'll probably outlive it as the scumbag owners and media move on to another breed. As they do every ten years or so.
Oh, and when we walk her people smile, come over and say hello too. I took her when we dropped the boy off at primary school yesterday and a few people came and said hello. If anything she may get more attention in public because people are often keen to come and make the point that they know how friendly they are.
I can recall a handful of negative responses over the five years we've had her, so they've been hugely outweighed by the positive response when we're out and about.
Staffies have just been the bad dog of choice for the media in recent years. When I was growing up it was Rottweilers. I think Dobermans and Alsations preceded them. It's worth remembering that the dogs haven't changed.
The other notable thing is that in other countries Staffies don't have the same reputation. The dogs are exactly the same but their reputation isn't. I think that says it all.
markymarkthree said:
Spot on there Jim.
I always make a point of thanking people when they scoop up their dog and ask if their dog is dangerous as i walk my staffy. It leads to some interesting conversations and a bit of education for them.
That made me chuckle. Every time I see Staffy's l always go up to the owner for a chat and a stroke of the dog. Lovely dogs with the right owner.I always make a point of thanking people when they scoop up their dog and ask if their dog is dangerous as i walk my staffy. It leads to some interesting conversations and a bit of education for them.
tankplanker said:
I brought a Staffie (Morris) from the RSPCA, before him I've owned a Belgium Sheepdog and an Alsatian, also both rescues. I wanted a smaller dog as the kids were little at the time. I did research with the help of the Kennel Club and the RSPCA for the best breed of dog for young kids, the choice came out to a Springer or a Staffie, chose the Staffie as they require far less grooming and less exercise (an hour a day vs. at least a couple of hours).
When we adopted Morris he had very little training (this we knew in advance), it took about 18 months of training every day to get him fully trained. Most owners of any breed simply do not put in enough time or effort training their dogs. If you can't call back your dog from/before something really interesting then I don't consider it to be properly trained and it shouldn't be off the lead anywhere near other animals.
If I had a pound for every time Morris gets followed around our local fields by other dogs with the other dog owner repeatedly shouting the dogs name while their dog just ignores them I could afford my dream car.
Morris is a cracking name for a dog and he sounds ace. In fact all the staffies I've ever met have been lovely.When we adopted Morris he had very little training (this we knew in advance), it took about 18 months of training every day to get him fully trained. Most owners of any breed simply do not put in enough time or effort training their dogs. If you can't call back your dog from/before something really interesting then I don't consider it to be properly trained and it shouldn't be off the lead anywhere near other animals.
If I had a pound for every time Morris gets followed around our local fields by other dogs with the other dog owner repeatedly shouting the dogs name while their dog just ignores them I could afford my dream car.
But.
You used the word "brought" incorrectly so now anything you say is rendered unimportant and Morris is ashamed of you.
Durbster, you may be right about Staffies. I've never had a dog so know little about them. What I know about dogs you could right on a name tag. I wouldn't know an Alsatian from a German Shepherd.
But from an evolutionary and selective breeding point of view, that I know marginally more about, I disagree with the "there are no bad dogs, just bad owners" mantra.
If selective breeding can make a dog prone to round up sheep, or go down tunnels after rats, or sniff out and chase foxes, then selective breeding can be used to inbreed viciousness and a propensity for violent attacks.
And if an unknowing owner gets a puppy like that, it may well flip regardless of how well the owner treats it.
But from an evolutionary and selective breeding point of view, that I know marginally more about, I disagree with the "there are no bad dogs, just bad owners" mantra.
If selective breeding can make a dog prone to round up sheep, or go down tunnels after rats, or sniff out and chase foxes, then selective breeding can be used to inbreed viciousness and a propensity for violent attacks.
And if an unknowing owner gets a puppy like that, it may well flip regardless of how well the owner treats it.
Cotty said:
How do you gauge someone as the right owner, before risking having your hand taken off.
Personally, I always ask the owner whether it is okay to say hello to their dog, as I would expect anyone to do with my dogs. I understand that not all dogs are comfortable with strangers.
durbster said:
The other notable thing is that in other countries Staffies don't have the same reputation. The dogs are exactly the same but their reputation isn't. I think that says it all.
Staffies are Category 1 Dangerous Dogs in Bavaria. Each state has its own set of rules, but there is IIRC, a nationwide ban on importing staffies into Germany.There are a billion other breeds of dog, so why get one that has been bred to rip other dogs to bits ?
s3fella said:
The poster who said don't go near a dog you cannot take in a fight may have it about right.
How do you know if you can take your dog in a fight? I've never really tried, mine looks a bit dopey but he's got big teeth. Presumably he'd only be fighting me if he'd developed some mental disorder and gone nuts . Wont he then have the strength of ten truckers? 
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Durbster, you may be right about Staffies. I've never had a dog so know little about them. What I know about dogs you could right on a name tag. I wouldn't know an Alsatian from a German Shepherd.
But from an evolutionary and selective breeding point of view, that I know marginally more about, I disagree with the "there are no bad dogs, just bad owners" mantra.
If selective breeding can make a dog prone to round up sheep, or go down tunnels after rats, or sniff out and chase foxes, then selective breeding can be used to inbreed viciousness and a propensity for violent attacks.
And if an unknowing owner gets a puppy like that, it may well flip regardless of how well the owner treats it.
It's a fair point that all dogs of different types have inbuilt traits that can come out. Our staffy x whippet runs in large circles given the opportunity and earlier in the week very efficiently hunted down a rat in the bottom end of our garden.But from an evolutionary and selective breeding point of view, that I know marginally more about, I disagree with the "there are no bad dogs, just bad owners" mantra.
If selective breeding can make a dog prone to round up sheep, or go down tunnels after rats, or sniff out and chase foxes, then selective breeding can be used to inbreed viciousness and a propensity for violent attacks.
And if an unknowing owner gets a puppy like that, it may well flip regardless of how well the owner treats it.
When he isn't running he likes nothing better than to curl up in the lap of his favourite person who is sat down at the time.
Our lab is a much lazier and lumbering beast.
One of the biggest differences between the two is they way that they bite on things. The lab (as you would expect) is soft mouthed and will carry things for miles. The staffy is much more likely to pick up a stick in the back of its mouth and bite straight through it. Occasionally he will get hold of something to play with (usually the lab) and then he only uses the front of his mouth and there is no danger of him causing any damage.
Collies were obviously bred to herd sheep and one of the things they can often do is nip at peoples heels if they are running.
The worst dog attack I have personally heard of was by a golden retriever - it disn't react well to it's owner becoming distraught over something and went for her - ripping her hand and wrist up and only getting off when hit with a chair - had been a family pet for years.
Appearances are certainly not everything when it comes to knowing how a dog will behave.
Cotty said:
durbster said:
BOR said:
There are a billion other breeds of dog, so why get one that has been bred to rip other dogs to bits ?
Because they're very loving dogs and make great family pets.BOR said:
durbster said:
The other notable thing is that in other countries Staffies don't have the same reputation. The dogs are exactly the same but their reputation isn't. I think that says it all.
Staffies are Category 1 Dangerous Dogs in Bavaria. Each state has its own set of rules, but there is IIRC, a nationwide ban on importing staffies into Germany.There are a billion other breeds of dog, so why get one that has been bred to rip other dogs to bits ?
I got my Staff because personality wise they are loyal, overly friendly, boisterous, stubborn and VERY charismatic. Being bred to rip other dogs to bits didn't even come into my elimination process. And to be fair, I find many other dogs either toys or boring in comparison.
They are very quiet, hardly shed hair, don't require extreme amounts of exercise and they don't drool. Also they are one of I think 2 dogs which the KC register recommends for children. These are the common and proper qualities and anything other isn't a Staffy in my opinion.
durbster said:
And all humans behave exactly like Fred and Rose West?
Some do and some go nuts and kill people like today’s stabbings at the Hampton’s Sainsbuys. If there is even the slightest/tiniest percentage a dog could turn don’t get one that’s built like a brick s
t house that can shake a child around like it’s a rag doll. I don’t care how nice and loving a dog is, that’s negated once it kills someone or something
Edited by Cotty on Friday 20th May 14:55
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