Oh dear, another fatal dog attack

[dinahsmum]

How very sad, all round :(
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/6222319.stm

[alexgirl73]

Extremely sad. Condolences to the family of the little girl!

It appears that it may have been new years fireworks that upset the dog!

[Jac]

OMG that is dreadfull. Poor little girl.
Personally I dont believe dogs attack for no reason.

[Fran]

Oh dear, there seems to have been a spate of these recently :( Poor little girl :(

[Kazz]

So very very sad, just seen it on the news. Very very sad.

[dandysmom]

Extremely sad. That poor family! We've had a spate of pit bull attacks here recently; they're not banned in some jurisdictions.

[Kim]

How very, very sad. :( I can't understand how they had a pit bull though - I thought they were banned years ago? :?

[smudgley]

They were, but lots of people still have them, there's a man in our village who keeps them :roll:

It's very difficult to keep tabs on who has what dogs

[kado]

Thinking of the littles girls family.

[dandysmom]

They were, but lots of people still have them, there's a man in our village who keeps them :roll:

It's very difficult to keep tabs on who has what dogs Here in the States, in the jurisdictions that banned them, existing ones were grandfathered in........

[Donna]

Another sad story to add to my list of reasons why I dont like dogs.

[smudgley]

:( sorry you don't like dogs Donna, but with stories like this getting more & more common & what happened to your children with that dog a while back, it's not surprising you don't like dogs.
They're not all bad though :)

& without starting a debate on who's right / wrong. The dog / the child or whatever, I will just say that there are some very irresponsible dog owners out there. :mad:

[teenytiny]

My heart goes out to the lil girl involved. xxxxx

I do not believe that fireworks could provoke a dog to savagely kill a child. I think there was more to it than meets the eye. I have read through various articles about this today, and it stated that the dog was commented on as a 'menace' and that the dog barked all day. This particular dog that done this to this poor lil girl had already been reported as a dangerous dog. The owner had already recieved a warning from the local council about the dogs aggression towards another dog recently.

I have never hidden my opinions that Pitbulls should be banned, they are a breed in which I do not trust 100%. Sadly though, the pitbull breed attract the macho image of young men, and although banned, there are still many of the breed about. I certainly know of a few Pitbulls, and Pitbull crosses in my area.

Many may say that the breed of dog is not at question here, but I say had it of been a Chihauhaua that savagely attacked, and killed a 5yr old girl would we be more shocked? It seems that there is a savage attack from a dog happening too often these days. Sadly, the majority of the time it is by a bull breed dog.

I think the law should clamp down on dog owners of bull breeds. Bull breeds were originally bred as fighting dogs, and although wouldn't think twice about showing aggression to another dog, they very rarely show aggression to humans- especially children. For a dog to have done this, maybe the dog was not properly socialised as a young pup, maybe the dog had never had firm training, maybe the dog was provoked, maybe the dog was even ill, who know's.

I am the owner of a bull breed dog, the American Bulldog is a highly strung dog, but I can honestly say hand on heart I have never heard of an American Bulldog savagely attacking someone.

In my opinion, I have an element of doubt the the way the dog had been bought up, but I could be wrong. My heart goes to that poor lil girl who had her life taken so soon. R.I.P lil one. xxxxx

[Amanda]

My thoughts are with the family at this time.. and that poor little girl.. :cry:

Without knowing the true story behind the events, then its hard to say why the dog did what it did. I can only assume that if fireworks were behind the dogs aggression, then this would be down to the breeding and not necessarily the manor of which the dog was raised. JMHO


I have a nervous dog myself that is sound sensitive, and if it werent for the fact that he has never shown any aggression towards anyone in any given circumstances, I still would never trust him 100%.
When we first adopted him, we had very little experience of sound sensitivity, and one of the first things we did learn was not to 'cuddle' a dog when it was hiding in its bed or behind you etc. Maybe this is what the little girl had done.. of which case, the reaction of the dog was to maul her as it felt nervous/insecure/threatened.. I'm making presumptions, I know, but it just goes to show that Nervous dogs are a liability at the best of times, but when you cross that with a pinch of aggression, and a very powerful jaw action.. well as we may have seen, this spells tragedy :cry:

Nervous Agression & Sound sensitivity, incidentally can occur in any breed and whilst a Chihauhaua may not have the ability to kill, it would still do some serious damage.

As for pit bull/crosses still being around? Oh yes.. they are rife! I know of at least 2 breeders nr me..:( Although, they claim that they are SBT breeders!! They are the biggest SBTs I've ever seen!

[Kim]

I heard on the radio today that they are doing tests on the dog and if it is a pit bull then the family will be charged.

I think I have mentioned this before, but my lovely old rough collie, Brandy was killed by a pit bull. He was out walking with my dad, minding his own business, the dog came out of nowhere. Poor Brandy was 10 years old. This was 17 years ago, so before the ban. I don't undestand how people get hold of these dogs if the ban was so long ago?

[smudgley]

They get hold of these types of dog very easily Kim.
There are lots of people still breeding them.

[kado]

My friends jack russel ,nipper was attacked about two years ago by two rodesians ridgebacks he hasnt been the same since. All dogs canbe dangerous if not properly handled

[Kim]

They get hold of these types of dog very easily Kim.
There are lots of people still breeding them.

Think I must be quite naive Smudgley. It is so sad. :(

[dinahsmum]

I don't believe everything I read in the newspapers but I guess this must be true or there would be a libel action and the papers are usually careful about that
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23380085-details/Owner+of+dog+that+killed+girl+'is+a+convicted+drug +dealer'/article.do

[janey83]

Poor little girl. I recognised the pics of her the first time i saw them, must of seen them in town or somethin.
Cant believe its happend again... but dogs are a wild animal all together, you can trust any animal really. and as someone said earlyer, it cant just be the dog to blame... So sad.

[Kim]

I have read that the dog was a pure bred pitty and the owner trained him to be aggressive, goading him with people and other dogs. As far as I am concerned HE is the responsible one, not the dog. I don't believe dogs are born vicious, people make them like that or simply don't train them.

The current Dangerous Dog legislation desperately needs to be reviewed and enforced. As usual the media has hyped this whole incident out of all proportion to the fact where Joe Public is scared of every staffy, GSD etc. On another forum I go on one of the members was not allowed on a bus with his dog! :? (not even a 'bull type) I feel desperately, sorry for the child and her family. As a mum myself I can't begin to imagine what they are going through. However I also fear for hundreds of innocent dogs who face losing their lives - or worse :(

[alexgirl73]

It is tragic that the dog was 'trained' to be vicious and I agree that the owner is the one responsible for the little girls death. I hate to think of the hatred and fighting this is going to cause within the girls family group because of this, at a time when they will need so much comfort. x

[borderdawn]

I have read that the dog was a pure bred pitty and the owner trained him to be aggressive, goading him with people and other dogs. As far as I am concerned HE is the responsible one, not the dog. I don't believe dogs are born vicious, people make them like that or simply don't train them.

The current Dangerous Dog legislation desperately needs to be reviewed and enforced. As usual the media has hyped this whole incident out of all proportion to the fact where Joe Public is scared of every staffy, GSD etc. On another forum I go on one of the members was not allowed on a bus with his dog! :? (not even a 'bull type) I feel desperately, sorry for the child and her family. As a mum myself I can't begin to imagine what they are going through. However I also fear for hundreds of innocent dogs who face losing their lives - or worse :(
Yet an elderly man stopped him attacking his pet dog with a walking stick!

Im not getting into this on here, I did on Dogsey, my basic thoughts are the dogs should not be here anymore with regard to the law, if it was upheld this child would still be here.

I do not subscribe to "responsible ownership" of Pit Bull Terriers, these owners are KNOWINGLY owning a banned breed, NOTHING responsible in that!
Dawn.

[dinahsmum]

Don't think you'll find anyone arguing over here Dawn. As you say, if the law had been enforced all those years ago PBTs would exist only in our memories.

[smudgley]

Agree totally with Dawn.

[Kim]

Yet an elderly man stopped him attacking his pet dog with a walking stick!

Im not getting into this on here, I did on Dogsey, my basic thoughts are the dogs should not be here anymore with regard to the law, if it was upheld this child would still be here.

I do not subscribe to "responsible ownership" of Pit Bull Terriers, these owners are KNOWINGLY owning a banned breed, NOTHING responsible in that!
Dawn.

Dawn, not sure if you are agreeing with me or not!!! :? I absolutely agree with you though, pit bulls should no longer be here, unless they are very old indeed! Anyone owning one, in my opinion must be doing so for the wrong reasons, as illustrated in this tragic case. I saw some video footage today of some pit bulls seized in a raid, many were wagging their tails and not one appeared vicious. They didn't ask to be born and they are innocent. :(

[borderdawn]

Hi Kim, I kind of meant it like the guy who's dog was bitten may have exxagerated a little, I mean its incredibly difficult to get these dogs to loose, but he managed by himself, disabled and with just his stick. Probably media hype again Kim.
Dawn.

[Kim]

Yes Dawn, the media have a lot to answer for