Dangerous Dog law heading in right direction

From the Kennel Club:

The Kennel Club has welcomed proposals for new draft guidelines on dangerous dog offences but remains concerned that dangerous dog legislation still urgently needs reform to include genuinely preventative measures.   

The Sentencing Council has launched a consultation to obtain the views of the public on the new draft guidelines, which aim to ensure that there is effective guidance for the courts when sentencing owners, or those in control of a dog, who commit a dangerous dog offence.
 
The draft guidelines aim to ensure that the penalties for owning a banned breed will now be applied to owners of dangerous dogs of any kind, making it easier for offenders to be banned from keeping dogs, for genuinely dangerous dogs to be put down, and for compensation to be paid to victims of dog attacks. These proposals will apply in any public place and will mean that owners of dangerous dogs could potentially face up to two years in prison under new guidelines for the sentencing judges.
 
The Kennel Club believes that this is a step in the right direction in reforming current flawed dangerous dog legislation but is concerned that these measures alone will not fully protect the public from dangerous dog attacks as it is reactive rather than preventative.

A word from the Kennel Club 
Caroline Kisko, Communications Director for the Kennel Club, said: “The Sentencing Council’s draft proposals are a step in the right direction but ultimately do not go far enough as legislation needs genuinely preventative measures in place.
 
“It is all well and good having tougher penalties and better guidelines for judges, but what is really needed are ways of reducing dog bite incidents in the first place. The Kennel Club believes this must be done through education, more resources and power to the police and local authorities to deal with irresponsible dog owners and the use of Dog Control Notices to encourage responsible dog ownership.
 
“There are currently huge amounts of funding and resources being wasted implementing breed specific legislation to seize and kennel dogs that are suspected of being a banned breed or type, regardless of whether or not they show any signs of being aggressive. All this time and money would be better spent dealing with genuine problem dogs, and indeed the irresponsible owners of dogs of any type, in order to reduce the number of cases having to go before a judge in the first place.”
 
The launch of the Sentencing Council's proposals comes as the Kennel Club joined with over twenty leading animal welfare and veterinary organisations, trade unions and MPs yesterday to appeal for urgent government action on the issue of irresponsible dog ownership and dog law reform, demanding the Government brings forward a Bill in the Queen’s Speech next year that consolidates and updates dog control legislation.

Get involved 
To sign the petition calling on the Government to bring forward the relevant Bill in the Queen’s Speech next year, please visit:
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/22631
 
For more information on the Sentencing Council’s consultation on new sentencing proposals for dangerous dog offences, please visit
http://sentencingcouncil.judiciary.gov.uk/sentencing/consultations-current.htm
 

No such thing as a dangerous dog

Today saw the happy return of one of my favourite little clients, a small Yorkshire terrier called D. D was a fairly regular client of 4Paws along with his 'sister' B until earlier this year. Tragedy struck when D and B were being walked on Hampstead Heath, near the South End Green fair ground site. Out of the blue the dogs were attacked by a staffie/mastiff cross and poor B was mauled to death. The killer dog was being walked by a couple of youths who fled with their dogs after the attack. That's right, once their dog had savaged another in an unprovoked attack they turned around and left it to die. Despicable.


Despite D & B's owners' best efforts the owners and dogs responsible for this attack have not been brought to justice. After all they don't care, nor apparently do the police. Today was D's first day of daycare since the attack and he brought with him his new baby sister 'G' a beautiful 5 month old Yorkie.


But this sad tale isn't over . A few weeks ago G and D were once again attacked by a pair of staffie/mastiff crosses on Hampstead Heath. This time on the tree lined avenue leading from East Heath Road, just near the water fountain. At the time of the attack G weighed just 1.5 kilos, she was set upon by a much larger dog who made a beeline for her. Despite the dog wearing a muzzle G suffered serious injuries, her eye was prolapsed and it was feared she might lose the sight in it. However, after several weeks of hospital treatment G is doing really well and we were happy to meet her properly today.


When B was attacked I offered my sympathies to the owners and tried to reassure them by saying it was an unlucky, one in a million event. Yet less than 6 months later the very same thing happened in the same place. Despite living only five minutes from some of the most beautiful outdoor space London has to offer D's owners will no longer walk him and G on Hampstead Heath, and who can blame them?


Such attacks are clearly not random or isolated, if you ask dog walkers on the Heath all know of someone who has had a dog recently attacked. Almost without exception these dogs have been attacked by staffie/mastiff mixes and Rottweilers. 


It is outrageous that such a large dog walking community should live in fear of these animals. Just the other day I met a man with a young staffie that was being walked off the lead and without a collar. I asked myself how he expected to control the dog should a dangerous situation present itself. Similarly there is an owner who is now being avoided as he has an out of control young staffie and an older rescue Rottie. Too many people who have seen the animals 'at play' have mentioned that this pair are an accident waiting to happen. 


We in the UK are known to be animal lovers yet it appears to be a twisted combination of naivete and political correctness that allows dangerous dogs to walk the street leaving death and destruction in their wake. Far too many people hold staffies up as loyal and friendly dogs yet they are the number one animal killer on our streets and their presence has left many dog owners terrified. 


Staffordshire Bull Terriers were bred to fight and kill, they have a strong prey drive and tend to be very dog aggressive. Anybody who tells you otherwise is lying. Yes, there are some that are lovely but I would never trust one not to turn, it is in their nature. I don't judge the staffies for being like this anymore than I judge a lion for killing its prey. I lay the blame at the feet of a society that is burying its head in the sand and is unwilling to accept that we really have created a monster.


Mainly, however, I feel sad, sad that so many of these dogs are being bred, sad that they are being used as a status symbol and encouraged to fight, sad for the hundreds of pet owners (myself included) who have suffered the heartache of having their pet savaged by someone else's, sad for every dog who is killed unnecessarily, sad for the scarred and traumatised survivors like Dulce and Gigi, and sad that so many of these killer dogs end up being euthanised.


This problem is already out of hand. I, like many other small dog owners, no longer walk my dog in the local parks of Islington, nor on the streets near my home. Why? because I can guarantee that I will see staffie after staffie, many of them without leads or even collars and I don't want to have my dog dicing with death. 


Did I mention that there's apparently no such thing as a dangerous dog?

Dog attacks continue in Islington

Sadly it seems that dog attacks are becoming even more common in Islington. In recent weeks I have heard reports of a Yorkie being killed just off Essex Road, a Bedlington Terrier being attacked twice - once on Upper Street and once on Chapel Market and now a Lhasa-Apso being killed on York Way.

Unfortunately even when these incidents are reported to the police little is done. The owner of two dogs which attacked a local terrier was visited by the police but protested that his dogs had never attacked before. As local dog owners know this was untrue - but unfortunately as the previous victims had not contacted the police there was no evidence to disprove the owner's assertions.

Frustratingly these two dogs continue to be exercised off the lead and unmuzzled in the park where the attack took place. Having spoken to the police they confirmed that this was permitted and they could only intervene if the dogs were reported as dangerously out of control. When I suggested that a dog which has a history of vicious attacks and which is allowed to run around loose and unmuzzled could be considered the very definition of dangerous and out of control I was told this simply isn't the case.

I strongly encourage all dog owners in the Islington area who are victims of dog attacks to let the Barnsbury Dog Blog know of their experiences, even if they do not wish to involve the police.