Pit bull fatally mauls 3-month-old baby in Texas

[Midnight_Fairy]

deed not breed.

 

[KittyVentura]

I think, when you take on a dog you have just as much responsibility for their behaviours and traits as you do with a child. We put so much time and energy into teaching our children right from wrong and doing our best to ensure they grow up to be kind, empathetic, patient, loving etc etc. That same time and energy should be put into ensuring the same of our dogs.

Also, we need to be wise in the choices we make with pets while children are young. If you wish a dog, do your research. Be honest with yourself about the time you will have for walks, how much you will be home etc and make sure you only get a breed that you can meet the comfort and exercise needs of. Get a dog as a puppy when you have young children so you can have more control and reassurance over their adult behaviours and NEVER go for a breed because they are "trendy" or a status symbol. You might want a Great Dane... But if you work all day and can only walk for 10 mins a day... You're going to face problems... So give up on your Great Dane dream and get a dog that suits your life instead.

You can never rule out a dog turning and biting, but you can make wise choices to reduce the likeliness of that happening. We've done our research, once Amelia is walking fully and we no longer use a buggy etc we will be getting a Weimaraner, which suits our life.

No breed of dogs are "bad" as such, but some do become a trendy status symbol among those not responsible enough to meet the dog's needs. Some encourage vicious behaviour and enough stories get reported by tabloids that want to paint some in an overly negative light (*cough*DailyMailhatespeopleonbenefits*) to make it appear that the breed is at fault. Blame the owners.

 

[Liesje]

I'm not a fan of when people say things like "it's all in how they're raised" (or similar). I have two dogs from the same litter and both have had almost an identical upbringing and equal socialization. One is over-the-top friendly and the other is less than social. They're both working dogs and I spend about 10 hours a week at a formal training venue with both of them, so I have plenty of input from professionals and people with plenty of experience with dog behavior... None of them have ever said to me that their personalities are the result of how they've been raised.
Growing up, my best friend was an identical twin, their personalities/interests/demeanors were nothing alike either while I'm sure they received a similar upbringing and treatment.
It's hard not to take it personally when some people think all dogs with an attitude are that way because their owners mistreat them or purposely train them to be that way.

 

[Foogirl]

I'm always surprised at the insistence that all other dogs are just as dangerous and pit bulls are no worse. Can we say with certainty that there are children being mauled to death by all sorts of other breeds but it just doesn't make the news? I'd say any child being mauled by any dog is a story which would hit the news. And in fact wouldn't "child killed by poodle" be MORE likely to make the news?

I'm genuinely interested if a child has ever been killed by a poodle.

I did a quick google search and found this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_dog_attacks_in_the_United_States

Seems to me the statistics are pretty damning. Of course, this doesn't mean that every pit bull will attack a child and of course there is the nature v nurture issue. I know of may pit bull owners who love their pets and treat them well. And many pit bulls do seem to be loving, caring animals. But can so many attacks be purely down to people not raising dogs properly? I mean, it can't just be pit bulls who are badly raised?

 

[Liesje]

I'm always surprised at the insistence that all other dogs are just as dangerous and pit bulls are no worse. Can we say with certainty that there are children being mauled to death by all sorts of other breeds but it just doesn't make the news? I'd say any child being mauled by any dog is a story which would hit the news. And in fact wouldn't "child killed by poodle" be MORE likely to make the news?

I'm genuinely interested if a child has ever been killed by a poodle.

I did a quick google search and found this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_dog_attacks_in_the_United_States

Seems to me the statistics are pretty damning. Of course, this doesn't mean that every pit bull will attack a child and of course there is the nature v nurture issue. I know of may pit bull owners who love their pets and treat them well. And many pit bulls do seem to be loving, caring animals. But can so many attacks be purely down to people not raising dogs properly? I mean, it can't just be pit bulls who are badly raised?

It all depends on who calls the news. Officials (and the victims) absolutely love digging up stats on pitbulls and alerting the media about it.
I've personally, with my own two eyes seen one child brutally attacked by a Golden Retriever which I never saw surface on the news and saw my friend's child a day after being attacked by a Standard Poodle (his face was black and blue and full of stitches) and also never saw it on the news. My dad was attacked by some mixed black and white dog that was shaped like a lab... The hospital didn't even care, they just stitched it up and told him to make sure the dog had its rabies shots.
I'm willing to bet these were not the only two incidents of dog maulings by non-pitbulls.
The news only reports what they're made aware of.

 

[Foogirl]

I've personally, with my own two eyes seen one child brutally attacked by a Golden Retriever which I never saw surface on the news and saw my friend's child a day after being attacked by a Standard Poodle

Did they die?

I'm talking about fatal attacks. I'm certain there are also attacks by pit bulls where people are badly injured which go unreported. My question was, are there any fatal attacks on people, not perpetrated by pit bulls, or other "dangerous dogs" which have not made the news?

Just had a further look. There have been 5 fatal attacks by dogs since 2007, in the UK. 2 by rottweilers, 2 by pitbulls and one by a staffordshire bull and a jack russel.

 

[JASMAK]

I'm not a fan of when people say things like "it's all in how they're raised" (or similar). I have two dogs from the same litter and both have had almost an identical upbringing and equal socialization. One is over-the-top friendly and the other is less than social. They're both working dogs and I spend about 10 hours a week at a formal training venue with both of them, so I have plenty of input from professionals and people with plenty of experience with dog behavior... None of them have ever said to me that their personalities are the result of how they've been raised.
Growing up, my best friend was an identical twin, their personalities/interests/demeanors were nothing alike either while I'm sure they received a similar upbringing and treatment.
It's hard not to take it personally when some people think all dogs with an attitude are that way because their owners mistreat them or purposely train them to be that way.

I can totally relate to this, as I am an identical twin, and we are completely different. Same unbringing, sports, friends even...but different.

 

[special_kala]

Dogs have different traits.

A poodle wouldnt make a very good sheep dog because it hasnt been bred like that. My king charles spaniel would be a crap guard dog no matter how much training i give her.

Pitbulls have been bred for fighting for a very long time. Im afraid its in their blood so yes to me the chances of them attacking are higher and because of the way they attack its more likely to be fatal.

I understand that a lot of people who own these type of dogs respect them and treat them well which is great but i do think you cant fight genetics completely.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I think a dog most likely to be viscous against its owner is a dachshund!

I think people forget that yes there may be more "attacks" of some breeds but forgetting to take in the account that these dogs may be more popular etc.

Personally I would never own a "working" dog: collie, Labrador, spaniel etc thats just my choice, I wouldnt tar them all with the same brush. Some humans are pure evil. Some are not.

 

[lhancock90]

Tulisas filming a new music vid, pictures of her strolling down a street in it trying to look hard with, you guessed it, a staffy. Thats sure to help the status dog situation.

xx

 

[fidgets mammy]

ive always said she looks like a chav, her new vid must prove it.

where i live staffs are a chavs handbag.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

People own them because they really are the best dog!

Can we just add that the Staffordshire bull terrier are NOT pitt bulls, they are NOT on the dangerous dog act.

 

[willow25]

For thousands of years man has bred dogs for specific reasons, everything from guard dogs to lap dogs, they were all designed for a specific purpose, and through generations of breeding for purpose dogs have inherent traits , for example I have whippets, which were bred to catch rabbits and without any specific training all of my dogs are prolific hunters given the right conditions and with the exception of lurchers there isn't a dog that comes close that I have seen, working on that basis I think any breed of dog originally bred for fighting or guarding inherently has a predisposition to exhibit that behaviour, I don't doubt that there are plenty of great pitbulls, staffies etc but I'm not convinced of the ' blame the deed not the breed' saying, I think any dog has the potential to be dangerous but the sheer physical ability in jaw pressure and breeding , fighting bred dogs are - in my opinion more dangerous, and I really don't intend to offend anyone, just offering my opinion and experiences.

 

[Sarahkka]

Interesting news item:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/story/2012/10/18/wdr-chihuahua-designated-dangerous.html

 

[alaskagrown]

Interesting news item:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/story/2012/10/18/wdr-chihuahua-designated-dangerous.html

The comment - "That's not a dog, it's a rat on steroids." LOL!!!

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

But again, staffordshires are not pittbulls and staffords were bread to be around the family! If they showed any sign of people aggression they were culled. Simple. It is not in their blood to harm humans. Thats why they are so easy to train because they are submissive to their owners unlikes some other breeds.

The dogs would be put in the prams with the children if they were injured.

 

[lhancock90]

People own them because they really are the best dog!

Can we just add that the Staffordshire bull terrier are NOT pitt bulls, they are NOT on the dangerous dog act.

But again, staffordshires are not pittbulls and staffords were bread to be around the family! If they showed any sign of people aggression they were culled. Simple. It is not in their blood to harm humans. Thats why they are so easy to train because they are submissive to their owners unlikes some other breeds.

The dogs would be put in the prams with the children if they were injured.

Yes, i know they aren't on the dangerous dog act. I was simply commenting that they have become a status dog, which people view as viscious and are frequently crossed with other breeds in attempts to make a more menacing dog. As a staffy owner, people tend to reac badly to them.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I have a staffy cross and she is lovely There are idiots out there but there always will be x

 

[lhancock90]

I have a staffy cross and she is lovely There are idiots out there but there always will be x

Where i live is dog/idiot central.