Dangerous Dogs Act (UK)? Whats the point?

Question

The dangerous dogs act in the UK bans certain breeds in the country.
These animals cannot be owned or bred or sold.
They are 'apparently' so dangerous that everybody is at risk.
ANY dog can be vicious! ANY dog can turn against its owners and bite the hand that feeds it!
Whether it is a chuihuahua or a pit bull doesnt matter.
A dog is an animal, trained admitedly but still an animal.

SHOULD THE DANGEROUS DOGS ACT ENCOMPASS ALL BREEDS, ALONG WITH THE OWNERS, FOR BEHAVIOUR RATHER THAN BLOODLINE?

Answer 1

I have been around dogs all my life,and was very very badly attacked just once,guess what it was by,a labrador,it was a neighbours,so called family pet,I had to have over 100 stitches,
the dog had an illness,a type of brain tumour,and just turned,so shoulsd I now demand that all labs be destroyed,what a load of rubbish,no one could have foreseen this event,
as for the dog in the case of the poor child being killed,if in fact it was a pit bull,as has been reported,and we in the UK have the so called dangerous dogs law,why was it not removed before this,it had already been reported for being out of control last summer,so who's at fault,the police maybe,the council it was reported to,the government its their law,most definitely the owners,
obviously this is not as easy as ban the dogs,maybe something like a license for the owners of such dogs,kind of like a driving license whereby you have to proven worthy to handle a dog,pass tests on how to care for them,train them,up the good citizen scheme,so as all dog owners have to pass,
Wendy

Answer 2

Banning Pit Bulls would be like banning cars because people get killed in car accidents! Who's responsible, the car or the driver/manufacturer? Any car can be deadly in the wrong hands or if built with defective parts. Same thing with dogs... Any dog. Pit Bulls are no more responsible for the way they are bred, raised and trained, than cars are responsible for the way they are designed, built and driven.
Simply put, the best argument against breed bans is that they are costly and ineffective. Breed bans are often a knee-jerk reaction from politicians who want to say they are "doing something", after a highly publicized dog attack (of any breed). This is a useless exercise.
Criminals habitually break laws, so having an "illegal breed" may indeed be attractive to them and might make them want to breed and sell more "illegal dogs". If their dog is confiscated and killed, they really don't care. They will just get another one because breed bans punish the dog, not the owner.
BSL is a flawed concept from the moment it is conceived. In most cases the dogs are targeted leaving the owner, which is the responsible, rational thinking party, out of it.

Some impose fines along with their laws but are often not enforced to the maximum so the owner gets away with a slap on the wrist.
Dogs are not the problem and BSL does not reconize this. People are the problem and until we find a way to punish people for their neglectful actions which allow dogs to bite and terrorize the public we will never stop the problem.

First problem is, take one breed away, these people will find another breed to replace it.

Since the APBT bans the Rottweiler is now on the rise as the most popular breed.

Now these dogs are taking heat from the general public and the BSL supporters. Again they are restricting the dogs and not the people.
BSL can be compared to gender profiling or racial profiling. Simply because a dog appears to be a dog on the restricted list it is treated as one.

What if you were driving down the road and the police took you to jail, sentenced you, and placed you on death row just for looking like a certain ethnic group? BSL does exactly that to dogs.

So why is it then that more BSL laws are implemented daily? God forbid a person have to take responsibility for their irresponsible actions and BSL supports these people by not placing very harsh punishments on them.

Answer 3

Basic Training of the Puppy - Read here https://tr.im/tHhdO

The new puppy is certainly one of the most adorable and cuddly creatures that has ever been created. It is the most natural thing in the world to shower it with love and affection. However, at the same time it is important to realize that if you want to have a well trained adult dog, you need to begin the training process right away. The dog, like its related ancestor, the wolf, is a pack animal. One of the features of a pack is that it has a single dominant leader. Your new puppy is going to want that leader to be you, but if you do not assume that role from the very beginning, the puppy’s instincts will push him to become the leader.

The most important thing to remember about training the puppy during its first six months of life is that it must see you as the leader of the family pack. The essential thing is gaining the trust and the respect of the puppy from the beginning. You will not do this by allowing the puppy to do whatever it wants to do whenever it wants to do it. On the other hand, a certain amount of patience is required. Most people err in their early training by going to extremes one way or the other. Although you need to begin the basic training process at once, you can not expect your dog to do too much at first. Basic obedience training is fine and should include simple commands like sit, stay, and come. Remember that trying to teach the dog advanced obedience techniques when it is a puppy is much like trying to teach a five year old child algebra.

It is also important to restrain from cruel or abusive treatment of the puppy. You can not beat obedience into your dog, and it certainly is not going to engender feeling of respect and trust. House breaking is an area where this usually becomes a problem because of the anger that is triggered when the puppy fails and creates a mess inside the home. Although this issue must be addressed without anger, it most be addressed. If you allow the puppy to eliminate inside the house, it will continue to do so as an adult dog. The same thing is true of other destructive or dangerous behavior such as chewing and biting. Do not expect the puppy to grow out of it. You are going to need to train the puppy out of it, but you should do so firmly but with a sense of play and fun using positive reinforcement and lots of love and praise for good behavior.

Answer 4

Can a law that bans or restricts ownership of specific breeds of dogs—called a “breed-specific law”—protect the members of your community from dog attacks? According to experts, the answer is no.
Why? Popular breeds come and go. When ownership of one breed of dog is outlawed, those who want a dangerous dog simply turn to another breed. The Doberman pinscher—known as the dangerous dog breed of the 1970s—was replaced in popularity by the pit bull in the ’80s and the rottweiler in the ’90s.
Breed-specific laws require that someone be able to prove that a specific dog is a member, or a mix, of that breed—not always an easy task. Boxers and bulldogs, for instance, may be mistaken for pit bulls. Any medium-large sized black and tan dog with a long tail may be mistakenly labeled as a German shepherd.
Breed-specific legislation doesn’t acknowledge the fact that a dog of any breed can become dangerous. The law should protect your community from any such dog.
Breed-specific laws are difficult, costly, and sometimes impossible to enforce. It’s one thing to require that every rottweiler in your community be muzzled whenever outside of the home; it’s another to fund and support adequate animal control staff to ensure that this happens.
In 1987 the Cincinnati City Council banned all pit bulls within the city after a series of severe maulings and one human fatality involving the dogs. The ban was passed even though the state of Ohio and the city of Cincinnati already had statutes that allowed authorities to seize any dog known to have injured or killed a person or another dog. Nearly ten years later, the council’s law committee recommended that the ban be repealed, saying that it was unnecessary. The council recommended that pit bulls be handled like any other dogs and that owners be prosecuted only when the dogs were unrestrained or exhibited dangerous behavior. It made this recommendation in part due to the cost of enforcement. Confiscated dogs spent up to five months at the city’s contracted shelter while the cases against the dogs’ owners were being litigated. Many of the confiscated dogs were family companions with no history of aggression.
Legislation that restricts breeds may actually create a population of dangerous dogs within your community. When a community imposes strict regulations on a specific breed of dog, owners of those dogs may end up chaining or caging the dogs for long periods of time. Dogs so chained or caged can be so desperate for activity that they become uncontrollable should they escape. Restricted dogs often receive little veterinary care because it is difficult for their owners to transport them to a veterinary facility without violating restrictions. Most importantly, restricted dogs who don’t get to experience normal opportunities for socialization and training will undoubtedly act in an unpredictable fashion when exposed to the real world

Answer 5

Banning pit-bull-type dogs is not the answer ["Rein them in before they attack again," editorial, Nov. 9]. In 1991 when the United Kingdom banned pit bulls it was found that even after the pit bull population steeply declined, the number dog bite incidents remained the same. Why? The number of irresponsible dog owners stayed the same. The fact is that dog bites rarely happen randomly to people walking down the street. Most dog bites (77 percent) happen to a family member or a friend. The majority of bites are perpetrated by un-neutered male dogs.

Answer 6

Your right it should. I believe all owners should pass a test about whether they would be a good dog owner...I also believe training classes should be enforced..and any owner who doesn't attend these with their dog for up to a year should have their dog taken away. Its true all dogs have the ability to be dangerous...but it all depends on whether they are treated like babies..which is what happens alot nowadays. Dogs aren't dogs anymore. They are family. Its still a predator and should be treated as one

Answer 7

It is true that all breeds can bite the hand that feeds them, but l would rather be bitten by a small dog and not a big one. little dogs can hang on too. but their neck muscle isn't as strong as a large dog. and l seen the large dogs shake a toy to ribbons. So l think the aggressive large bred should have more tameness bred into them and l think only a real good breeders might offer that. So until then , l think they should be band.

Answer 8

The breed is a major problem.

If a Dogo is on the loose in public, you are going to need a gun (not normally needed in the UK) to shoot it down. Even if you had a pet cougar there would be a problem.

All mastiffs are a problem in public though.

Dogs are not inanimate objects like motor cars (more dangerous in practice) but living entities.

Answer 9

The dangerous dog act has defined dogs that are bred for fighting and as such are bred with the tendency to attack and be aggressive.It is these breeds in particular which cause the problems not other breeds which are more docile.
It is interesting that it appears that those who like to own these sort of "dangerous"dogs are easily recognisable. 1 brain cell, cropped or shaved head,track suit,sovereign rings,chain necklace,tattoos,spit in the street, have asbo's. Am i generalising too much?
sorry if i offend anyone with this comment, it is not intended as such.

Answer 10

yes if a dog attacks unprovoked the owner should be punished.
I know some dogs don't like certin things but the owner should be in full control of that dog at all times even at home in garden.
I ave a staffie he doe'snt like bigger dogs so he has harness on with retragtable lead when ever walking.
If he attacked anyone, i would be upset but the dog would be put to sleep and maybe me in court.
They need to make the law harder for any dog that attacks no matter what the breed......