Dogs are dogs, people are the problem.

The death yesterday of John Paul Massey has brought up the perennial debate about dangerous dogs.

Although four specific breeds are banned from being bred, sold or exchanged under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, any dog considered to be dangerous or out of control in a public place can bring censure for the owner - in theory.
Getting away from this particular case, which is now the subject of a criminal investigation, there is a machismo to strutting around the streets with a fearsome looking mutt. It is, sad to say, particularly evident on the streets of Liverpool. I have seen it many times with even young children dragging dogs that look suspiciously like Pit Bulls or Pit Bull crosses around the streets. I have often wondered what they would do if the dogs turned. I've also seen police pass them on the streets without pausing step to ask what type of dog it was on more than one occasion.
The powerful pooch is the new flicknife, the new CS canister, the new firearm. The problem is that police generally see dogs as an RSPCA problem, not theirs, and will only attend with RSPCA officers as a rule, when they have been requested to.
How often have police gone into a situation and requested the RSPCA to help them contain a dangerous dog, unless as part of an operation to crack down on dog-fighting?
We have to live with the threat of these animals each and every day, or rather the threat from their owners.
You see, it's the owners that should bear the brunt of any action, as it's they who acquire, train, neglect, harden and desocialise these poor animals.
True, some dogs will turn even if well treated but these are the exception rather than the rule, in much the same way as some people can turn bad.
Yet an unintelligent young man, as many owners of dangerous these dogs appear to be, turns even the most docile animal into a weapon with ill treatment and neglect.
None of us want dangerous dogs near us but how many times have people alerted the police, only for them to ignore or fail to act appropriately? In the face of this, the public will stop reporting the problem and everyone assumes everything is ok.
If someone is breeding, selling or exchanging dangerous dogs, jail them for 12 months. No questions, no debate, no remission. If they do it again, make it longer, say five years with no remission. It would make those who flout the law so readily now think a little about the risk involved, whereas now they might get six months and be out in three. That's a price most are prepared to risk.
My fear is that now there will be a knee-jerk reaction from government, designed to hit the headlines. Pit Bulls, Tosas, Brasilieros, Argentinos and their cross-bred ilk should all be rooted out and homed in secure places away from children, as should their owners.
As a Staffordshire terrier owner and someone who sports a shaven head, I am all too aware of people's reactions to dogs that look mean, notwithstanding Staffs are family oriented, loving and faithful animals.
Although my dog is soft as any, I still wouldn't leave him alone with next door's five-year-old. I never forget he is an animal, not a reasoning person. It will be my fault if he bites someone, not his.
Therefore, these poor dogs need saving from pig-headed and intellectually challenged owners. Let's strengthen and enforce the laws we have and quickly.

 

My Dog. He may look and act docile, but I wouldn't leave him with a kid without me being there.

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