Dangerous dogs

[footychick]

My nana has a staffy and he's the most soppiest dog ever but there is no way I'd leave him alone with a child and certainly not a 3 month old.
He's also built like a brick shithouse (I think thats the saying).

 

[footychick]

Another one

BBC NEWS | England | Bristol | Six people injured as dogs attack

 

[chimneys]

I didn’t want a dog but through my job I ended up taking an unwanted 6 week old staffie puppy home as the dogs trust was closed at that time of night.
My kids saw her and we’ve now had her for two years and she’s bought us a lot of pleasure.

People will cross the street when they see her coming and others will not let their dogs near her. I can honestly say that she’s as soft as the proverbial and never been a problem other than being a bit greedy and a bit windy.
That said, If she did have a go at anyone she would be out.

My point being:

At the end of the day it’s how you treat them and bring them up. Bring a dog up like a chav and it will behave like one.

What a coincidence Dennis, as it looks as though that's pretty much what the parents of the dead mite said:

"Jaden's parents, named locally as Alexandra and Christopher Mack, were out at the time, and his grandmother was taken to hospital to be treated for shock.

In a statement, the family said: "We would like to stress to all families with young children and pet dogs that no matter how much trust you have in your dog, something like this is always possible.

"We never thought it could happen to us, but we are now grieving the loss of our " little man" who will always be in our hearts and loved very much by all of his family and friends." "

I pray your kids are old enough to protect themselves should the impossible happen Dennis as it might be too late to kick her out after an attack!!

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Well judging by the experience of Staff owners on here plus my own I have to say I think your stats are rubbish. As I said earlier I think that a lot of people confuse Staffs with Pit Bulls. In the part of Georgia I lived in Any Pit Bull that was running loose was rounded up and euthanised straight away such is the fear of them there.

So i'm basing it on compiled stats and your basing it on your biased opinion?

If a group of people who had crocodiles for pets insisted they were docile and made great pets would you take their opinion or go with the actual stats compiled by a givernment body?

The thing with Pitbulls is, they aren't a purebred dog they are just bitza mongrel breds.

Their stud books are a joke because they include half bred animals which do indeed have American Staffordshire in them but not the British version with the similar name.

No other recognised breed would allow a half bred animals to be recorded in its stud books or the whole purpose of it would be undone in a short space of time.

 

[Mackenzie]

No child should ever be left alone with a dog, no matter what the breed or nature of the dog.

 

[1066familyman]

I have Mastiffs and a greyhound, the greyhound is soft as a brush with people and bitches but with small dogs and entire males he is a twat! He is muzzled to go out, as he sees all small dogs as prey! That isnt because he is a nasty dog it is what he was bred for! I do however find small dog owners because my dog is muzzled allow their dogs to come sniffing at him, it is then they get my scouse tongue! Mastiffs are loyal family dogs and when I have a litter of puppies it goes in the contract that puppies will be returned to me if the new owners cannot keep them. If they are for pets they are speyed before going to their new home. I also insist that they are enrolled into a puppy class, as it is a learning process for the owner as well as the puppy. Before choosing a dog the breed should be looked into and people need to learn as much about them as possible, ie what they were originally bred for and then make an informed decision as to whether or not they can fulfil the dogs natural needs. When bred properly it is not the dogs who are at fault it is all down to ignorance on the owners part! "Here endeth the first lesson"!

Good post. Responsible dog ownership and breeding in a nutshell

My mum used to keep Bull-mastiffs but nowadays a little french bulldog is all she can manage.( thankfully we talked her out of getting a kune kune pig ). I'm not a great lover of the mastiff family myself to be honest, but only because I'm not keen on the slobber

 

[1066familyman]

How can you say they prove nothing?

There are more of the following breeds than staffys in the nation(Australia).

German Shepherds, Boder Collies, Golden Retrivers, Greyhounds, Labradors, Fox Terriers, Shitzhus, Chihuahuas, Blue Heelers, Kelpies, Rottweillers.

And yet the Staffy even though lesser in numbers counts for a far higher % of dog bite attacks than the breeds listed above.

And I'm not talking about the UK, I'm talking about another nation where they are actually owned by alot of normal families with kids.

So even though both nations are 1000's of miles apart the breed itself seems to have built a reputation and in my opinion a justified one of a breed of dog that is far more likely to bite you than most other breeds.

I still think your statistics are a bit vague to be honest and therefore prove nothing. Fair play to you that you've listed breeds that you believe there to be more of in Australia than there are Staffies, but even that list begs further questions to factor in when trying to give a truly accurate picture.

1) Reporting of biting incidents ? - What incidents actually get reported to make up the figures. My guess is that very very few bites from Chihuahuas or Shitzshus will ever get reported ( this is NOT to say though that even the toy breeds couldn't do damage to a small child ).

2) A lot of the breeds you mention are working breeds. Perhaps you are saying that the breeds you mention are more numerous as family pets than staffies ?, in which case my next point might be irrelevant ?. But I'd imagine that a fairly good percentage of the working breeds you mention are actually more likely to be working over there than they would be over here in the UK. I believe that the percentage of bites per head of breed population from a worked dog would be massively lower than that of dogs kept as pets. Example : how many border collies are kept as pets as proportion of their total population compared to Staffies ? And what are the number of recorded bites per head of breed population for working border collies compared to pet border collies ?

In all honesty, when you start using statistics the permutations are endless. Are stats better than objective experience ? Thoroughly researched and without an agenda they probably are, but it's not without good reason that that famous phrase about lies & statistics was coined

I must admit that of the breeds you mentioned above, if I were pushed to generalise, I'd be least likely to trust Border Collies and GSD's myself. Border Collies because they are probably the most intelligent of all breeds of dog and if not worked can be extremely highly strung. GSD's because a lot of the ones I've seen kept as pets seem to be of a nervous disposition and likely to go off at any moment ( cue Border Collie & GSD owners defending them to the hilt )