Dog attack bill

[blueboy]

i've been following along here, and i think an important piece of information may be missing. the statistics that are often quoted are compiled by emergency rooms. so, if the bite victim isn't injured seriously enough to justify an ER visit, it doesn't get figured in to the overall stats. so, smaller dogs, that are less physically able to do serious damage, don't appear to be involved in as many attacks according to the statistics reported. my point is, these "aggressive" breeds appear to be involved in an inordinate number of attack simply because they are capable of doing more damage. some of the most aggressive, and unpredictable dogs i've ever seen have been "toy" breeds or lap dogs. on another note, i always find it interesting how whenever the news reports a bog bite, they always show some stock footage of some pit bull in a pound, even when the report says it was another type of dog. pits definatly get a bad rap, but they're also definatly dangerous in the wrong hands, but then so is a car, or a knife, or a tree branch. unfotunatly there just isn't a way for us to legislate away stupidity, but that probably won't stop the politicians from trying!

[Ram_Puppy]

unfotunatly there just isn't a way for us to legislate away stupidity, but that probably won't stop the politicians from trying!

umm... if they succeed then they woudl be out of a job!

[gkarshens]

I would have to agree with those that have stated that the bigger dogs get a bad rap because their bites by nature do more harm. It is also the problem of the culture that thinks it is cool to have an aggressive dog and don't know or care how to train it. Then you have a large potentially dangerous dog with no socialization skills that can cause serious harm. I agree that if a dog attacks a human it should be put down. But there is a big difference between an attack and a bite. Many dogs, labs and poodles included, will snap at you if you hurt them, even on accident. This does not make the dog "aggressive". It makes it an animal. I also think that the circumstances should be taken into account in a biting case. Did the person enter the dogs territory uninvited by the owner? Were they tormenting the dog? I think a one bite and put it down law would be a mistake.

[67Demon]

Great thread!!! I feel that Ram Puppy has made a very good recommendation: "having a law that stated large breed dogs, or aggressive dogs must go through an approved training curriculum with their owners, and BOTH must pass." But how about medium sized dogs? Ones that weigh 35lbs. or are at least 18" in height (to the shoulders)? Should they be excluded from this evaluation process? I love this idea and am confident my dog would do fairly well in this approval process.

Personally, my wife and i own a large breed dog that often gets mistaken for a pit bull. She is an American Bulldog. But on more than one occasion when taking her to pet retail stores, i have been astonished by people who quickly clutch their children close to their side and exclaim to the child "don't get near that dog, it'll bite you ... or it'll eat you." Craziness, but funny!!

[jc]

In my experience most people just call a large short haired dog a Pit bull. Makes you wonder how many times a dog attack was blamed on the wrong breed. Kind of like when i'm riding my suzuki and people tell me "nice harley." 67demon have you been to http://www.bulldogbreeds.com/ they have a good forum.

[67Demon]

In my experience most people just call a large short haired dog a Pit bull. Makes you wonder how many times a dog attack was blamed on the wrong breed. Kind of like when i'm riding my suzuki and people tell me "nice harley." 67demon have you been to http://www.bulldogbreeds.com/ they have a good forum.

I've never been there. Thanks so much for pointing me in the right direction!!!