Staffs / Pitbulls / Dobermans etc

[HampshireSeagulls]

My neighbour has a boxer. The only danger you are every likely to be in is a crushed toe because the useless article sits on your feet. Or drowning in drool.

However, it does tend to come back to letting the dog know where he stands in the pecking order. You need to be firm with the dogs (not violent or aggressive though, which I think is where a lot of this goes wrong). The boxer always tried to assert authority over people when they came in the house, mainly by standing up and putting his paws on your shoulders, then leaning into you, which at 8 stone with foul breath tended to have the desired effect...he was taught by using a clicker that it was not appropriate and there was never a problem after that.

Training techniques are key - read the book "Don't Shoot the Dog". Applies to training dogs, kids, adults....dog ownership should come with a licence, some people are too stupid to own one.

 

[Muhammad - I’m hard - Bruce Lee]

i posted this the last time we had a debate on the subject..

i have 2 staffs, they have been with me since pups and have been brought up properly. they love people but hate other animals. i am confident they would never attack anyone..BUT, i would never put them in a situation where they could become over excited.
when im out with them they are on a lead.
this may seem a contradiction (as i stated that im confident they wouldnt attack anyone) but the trick with any dog of this nature is to be aware of what they ARE capable of and not taking liberties..

if that makes sense?

 

[Easy 10]

The bottom line is, you're trusting a dog not to eat your toddlers face. You're putting your trust in a dumb animal.

When all is said and done, whatever its behaviour is USUALLY like over however many years or over an entire lifetime, a dog is just an animal, it is not responsible for its actions, and has no concept of consequences. I could never fully trust a dog with a child because they have their own set of instincts, their own rules, their own tolerences, and any number of random things could cause it to turn, or to suddently snap or set it off.

Its a risk thats never worth taking IMO.

 

[Easy 10]

i posted this the last time we had a debate on the subject..

i have 2 staffs, they have been with me since pups and have been brought up properly. they love people but hate other animals. i am confident they would never attack anyone..BUT, i would never put them in a situation where they could become over excited.
when im out with them they are on a lead.
this may seem a contradiction (as i stated that im confident they wouldnt attack anyone) but the trick with any dog of this nature is to be aware of what they ARE capable of and not taking liberties..

if that makes sense?

That makes perfect sense. And if all dog owners were like you, we'd have far fewer tragedies where people have allowed their confidence in their pets to override their basic common sense.

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

More to the point - in the thread about Peter O'Sullivan it is quite clear that he has a boxer dog. If it is good enough for the flying 'tache, then it is good enough for everyone. Boxers should now be compulsory.

 

[Smythe]

Ive got an 8 stone Rotweiller, obviously has the strength and power to be very dangerous but my only worry with him is that he never looks where hes going and has a habit of running into people and knocking them flying!!!! He's never bit a person or another dog and im confident he wont but having said that i would never leave him with children as i wouldnt any breed of dog.
Bring them up properly from a puppy, making sure they know their place in the pack, make sure they have discipline and boundries in the home and any male dogs as painful as it may be for the poor things should have their knackers chopped if you dont intend to breed them.......when they get over the loss it generally really calms them down.
Im convinced its the owners and not the dogs, but as has been said always be aware of what they could be capable of if they're having a bad day.

 

[The Spanish]

Not too hard to make that mistake as they are closely related however a Pit bull is bred for fighting plain and simple, they have the genes of forebears with an aggressive streak. However a badly brought up Staff can be very dangerous but that can be said of most breed, it's just that the Staff has a very powerful jaw and do more damage than most.

pitbulls were bred to be cattle dogs. alright they may not be now but that is how the breed came about. nothing to do with fighting in the breeds origins. total myth.

 

[Gully]

What Dave says makes perfect sense, but I would add that the dog normally reflects the behaviour of the owner...it is very rare that you hear stories of a golden retriever, border collie or springer spaniel attacking a toddler as most of them are brought up in situations where they are treated well and raised to understand that aggresive behaviour is not acceptable...not that I am saying that there aren't Staffies, Alsatians and Rottweilers brought up in similar conditions, because undoubtedly there are.

However, I would dispute the fact that dobermans have been given the same reputation. A few years ago I stayed at a B&B where the land-lady had a couple of dobermans, have to say that I am generally not a fan of dogs, but these two were incredibly friendly and followed me around the garden...one of them even sat at my feet while I was having a cuppa and reading the paper. The lady explained that there are largely two types of dobermans, being English and Continental bred...the English variety have a really good temperament and nice personalities, whereas their Continental cousins are largely produced as guard dogs. Now, I don't have a dog myself, but if I were ever to get one my choice would probably be for an English doberman.

 

[Easy 10]

A ten year old girl is in hospital, attacked by two Rotts in Dundee yesterday. She's got a dislocated jaw, and is undergoing reconstructive surgery.

BBC News - Girl mauled by two Rottweiler dogs in Dundee street

 

[Del Boy]

I saw that on the news, how many more times before something is done?

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

Yep - kill 'em all. Or then again, you could read the rest of the article where the MSP responsible for changing the law in Scotland refers to an "unnamed breed" that was also present, and mentions Jack Russells as being nasty aggressive little shits.

But never mind that bit, let's just kill the devil dogs, huh?

 

[Del Boy]

Yep - kill 'em all. Or then again, you could read the rest of the article where the MSP responsible for changing the law in Scotland refers to an "unnamed breed" that was also present, and mentions Jack Russells as being nasty aggressive little shits.

But never mind that bit, let's just kill the devil dogs, huh?

Yep

 

[bhaexpress]

pitbulls were bred to be cattle dogs. alright they may not be now but that is how the breed came about. nothing to do with fighting in the breeds origins. total myth.

Originally they were but they were interbred with various breeds to be good fighting dogs. At the end of the day they just should not be allowed end of story. Also, as a dog lover myself I agree totally that no matter what bread of dog you can never fully trust any dog although certain breeds are more likely to turn. However there's no doubt that those who do have not been properly socialised hence poorly trained which is of little solace to their victims.

 

[bhaexpress]

Should just mention that life can be dangerous and I would bet more people get stabbed than attacked by a dog.

 

[tedebear]

Supposedly no bad dogs only bad owners. Zef had a Doberman once, called Tania the Doberwoman. Good dog after some 2 or 3 years of training (was traded in at the tool hire shop aparently as she was too much of a handfull), although rather daft. Once ate the entire marmite jar (glass included) with luckily no consequences...got hit a few times by cars too...

You'd NEVER leave a dog of that size and potential ability alone with a child. Common sense really has been removed from some of these idiots with the dogs who are attacking small children. I'd be more happy for these dogs not to be put down but their breeding and ownership to be seriously restricted.

 

[Seasider78]

Dogs are like knives, cars and many other things if you put them in the wrong hands they can be very dangerous. Bring them up well and act in a responsible manner and you will not have any issues.

 

[e77]

Make owners pass an exam and bring back the dog license.

 

[thebazillionaire]

Make owners pass an exam and bring back the dog license.

Totally agree. Goldfish are C**** too

 

[bhaexpress]

Make owners pass an exam and bring back the dog license.

Should do the same with children. Actually do you know why they stopped the dog license ? It was too expensive to collect. Rather like fishing licenses, driving licenses and TV licenses do you actually think that people who don't bring up a dog properly would buy one ?

 

[zefarelly]

In most instances I'd save the dog from the bullet and use it on the owner, similarly chirdren are born pure, they only faulter through upbringing

Should do the same with children. Actually do you know why they stopped the dog license ? It was too expensive to collect. Rather like fishing licenses, driving licenses and TV licenses do you actually think that people who don't bring up a dog properly would buy one ?