19 October 2011

Future Pit Bull Warning

| The_Cassowary
Join the conversation
19

Hi Rioters,

I’ve read most of the posts about dog owners and pit bulls on this site. I’m a dog owner, but not a pit bull owner, and I side with those that believe most dogs (even pit bulls) can be safe and rewarding pets with the right training and the right owners. On the other side of the coin, I believe neglect and ignorance can turn even labradors and schnauzers into potential child maulers.

I wanted to set the record straight about my stance before I brought this match to the Riot Act kindle. There is a guy in our neighbourhood (Northside) who owns a pit bull. I believe, from observations and discussions, that this animal has never undergone any form of training, is rarely (if ever) taken for walks, has not been socialised with any outside dogs, is not registered (no tags I could see) and is kept specifically to ‘protect the property’. I am loathe to comment on the character/situation of the owner for fear of claims of ‘stereotyping’ and ‘not being fully aware of their background/history/life story’. I am also fully capable of admitting that I can’t unequivocally prove, and therefore may be completely wrong, about any or all of the things I’ve listed about the animal, it’s all an educated guess based on, as I said, observation and discussions.

There are many young families in our area (including his), lots of kids playing in front yards and on the streets. Many dog owners as well, with many different breeds walking to and from parks and ovals. There’s probably a 9 in 10 chance (figure plucked out of the air) that nothing will ever happen, and nobody will get hurt, and I hope that’s the case, I really do. But you know when you hear about dog attacks and dog owners (myself included) are all “It’s not the dogs fault, it was neglected/not socialised/trained to attack”, and I’m sitting here watching all the boxes get ticked off, except for the ‘pet/child mauled’ one at the end.

I know the government is pretty powerless to do anything, and I’m not going to tell him to get rid of it, I don’t have that right (plus I’d rather not spend my waking hours mulling over the various reprisals that could happen to me, my family, my dog or my property). So you know what I’ve decided to do? Step 1) Post this ….. and Step 2) Write a letter to whatever agency deals with these pets, voicing my concerns about the possibility of future incidents, so that if (not when) something happens next year, or the year after that, I can ask the agency why they didn’t come up with a plan to stop this happening, waving my letter and waiting for the s**tstorm. How’s that for Passive Aggressive 🙂

Do I have any other options? Am I a spineless coward too scared to protect our town from this menace, or am I a Fascist fear-monger sowing the seeds of social disharmony for my own nefarious ends.

Time will tell.

Join the conversation

19
All Comments
  • All Comments
  • Website Comments
LatestOldest
creative_canberran10:52 am 20 Oct 11

I know, and the way he says “dali” all the time… whoops, wrong Pitbul.

Poor dog. People who treat them merely as furry burglar alarms with no needs of their own should not be allowed to have pets. But I don’t think that this would be classed as mistreatment by the RSPCA, if it’s properly fed?

There are no restricted breeds in the ACT as each dog is assess on its individual behaviour and history.

• a dog which has been trained as a guard dog, or is kept as a guard do for guarding premises other than residential premises.

Wow. That would hold up in a court of law.

Looks like TAMS needs a new proofreader.

I moved into a rental place in McKellar in 2003 after my first wife gave me the boot, and a few weeks later a very very dodgy looking bloke moved in next door. He immediately knocked down the old wooden fence and put up a surprisingly tall colourbond fence all around the property. A couple of weeks later, a huge savage dog appeared in his back yard that he did nothing for except swear at regularly in a foreign language.

People started to come and go from his place 24 hours a day, mostly serious looking teenagers with spiky bleached hair driving shiny new sports cars that I could never afford.

So, there are sometimes reasons why people have dogs like these and treat them as they do.

Perhaps the plods would be interested in this person/dog/premises. Just sayin’.

dvaey said :

Can we start expecting to see warnings here now of these sorts of potentially dangerous situations?

When will we receive a warning of a new aboriginal family moving into a suburb? After all, statistically, indigenous people are involved in more crime than non-indigenous, so if youre going to point ouf the stats of the pitbull gene over other dog genes, then surely you’ll follow that thinking through to your human counterparts?

The problem with that argument, is that statistically, pitbulls arent even the most dangerous dogs for biting people. As discussed in a previous RA thread about pitbulls, where stats were given to prove that the most dangerous dogs (especially for biting children) are Blue Heelers, followed by Kelpies and Border Collies.

No. The stats were misused. It was shown that nore attacks in total occurred from these breeds. However, attacks per 1000 of each dog were never provided. Also, the figures did not look at the end results of these attacks. A couple of bite wounds is not the same as a mauling that ends with a crushed skull.

“There are many young families in our area (including his), lots of kids playing in front yards and on the streets.”

You’re lucky!

In my area, the drug dealer up the road and all his customers prevent our kids from playing in the front yard or in the street.

Doesn’t matter how many times this dealer is reported to the cops or how many times he is locked up he still gets out and continues. He does excellent business every Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

#9

“When will we receive a warning of a new aboriginal family moving into a suburb? After all, statistically, indigenous people are involved in more crime than non-indigenous, so if youre going to point ouf the stats of the pitbull gene over other dog genes, then surely you’ll follow that thinking through to your human counterparts?

The problem with that argument, is that statistically, pitbulls arent even the most dangerous dogs for biting people. As discussed in a previous RA thread about pitbulls, where stats were given to prove that the most dangerous dogs (especially for biting children) are Blue Heelers, followed by Kelpies and Border Collies.”

I’m pretty sure these two paragraphs contradict each other. Perhaps it’s just me but the logic here doesn’t work.

dvaey said :

Can we start expecting to see warnings here now of these sorts of potentially dangerous situations?

When will we receive a warning of a new aboriginal family moving into a suburb? After all, statistically, indigenous people are involved in more crime than non-indigenous, so if youre going to point ouf the stats of the pitbull gene over other dog genes, then surely you’ll follow that thinking through to your human counterparts?

The problem with that argument, is that statistically, pitbulls arent even the most dangerous dogs for biting people. As discussed in a previous RA thread about pitbulls, where stats were given to prove that the most dangerous dogs (especially for biting children) are Blue Heelers, followed by Kelpies and Border Collies.

Do you think you may just be missing the bigger picture stuff………? Hmmm…………?

First of all I do agree that some dogs can be neglected and become a worry towards the future. Just a few questions tho;

1. How do you know for sure that the dog isnt taken for walks? Do you watch thier house for at least 12hrs each day?

2. Has this dog so far shown any agression towards anyone in the area? Or is it becasue its a bulldog its automatically agressive?

3. Not all dogs need to attend training (puppy/dog schools) some are just the ‘pick’ of the litter, others yes, need close attention and traning, tho if its at home all the time how do you know if its isnt trained by the owner?

4. If its unregistered that could be a concern….tho if its such a dangerous dog I wouldn’t be sticking my head over the fence to see if its registered or not (since it never goes for walks)

IMO if you are concrened write a letter and drop it in the letter box one day/night, just expressing your thoughts (since he sounds like the the wrong person to mess/deal with), maybe he will pick up his act if what you say proves to be right. Main thing is he wont know who you are and you get to voice your opinion 🙂 .

No hard feelings just my thoughts – Eyl ><

jules_from_latham5:39 pm 19 Oct 11

Agree that you should do something. Have you considered talking to the owner and explaining your concerns? I appreciate this approach wouldn’t suit everyone, but I would think a direct approach is the best. You could ask the owner if the dog is registered, and at least confirm this aspect, and perhaps have a broader discussion on some of the other issues that you have raised.

Can we start expecting to see warnings here now of these sorts of potentially dangerous situations?

When will we receive a warning of a new aboriginal family moving into a suburb? After all, statistically, indigenous people are involved in more crime than non-indigenous, so if youre going to point ouf the stats of the pitbull gene over other dog genes, then surely you’ll follow that thinking through to your human counterparts?

The problem with that argument, is that statistically, pitbulls arent even the most dangerous dogs for biting people. As discussed in a previous RA thread about pitbulls, where stats were given to prove that the most dangerous dogs (especially for biting children) are Blue Heelers, followed by Kelpies and Border Collies.

Good on you for taking initiative.

Not sure there is much you can do. Does the dog display aggressive behaviour? Or is it just because it is a pitt bull you are worried. If thats the case not sure there is much that can be done. If the owners have it locked up and it is not jumping the fence or anything. It is 100% the owners responsibility and it is sad that certain breeds get more flack then others. In my honest opinion I think chihuahua’s are the most likely to cause injury ;p
It is a shame that not all are like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUV1oTciznE&feature=relmfu

That’s not passive aggressive.

I think that’s a good approach.

The question you have to ask yourself is; “How would I feel if this dog did maul someone and I had not done anything?”

If the government agency responsible for this this area is as toothless as the TAMS dog-noise registrars then yes; it is a case of wait until an incident does happen ( if it does) and then trawl out the ‘i told you so’ response and hope it triggers the political folk to get their acts together.

Could I also point out that while you are right about any dog being capable of bad things if the upbringing has been bad; it is proven that some breeds are more disposed to acts of violence than others. They are not call Pit Bull’s for nothing…. You dont hear of Collies or Chiuaua’s being used in years past as fighting dogs?

You may be wrong, and most probably are, and the dog is a sweet cuddly cutie with you looking like right wally. But that has to be better than not saying anything and hearing that a two year old has had his/her face eaten off….

Personally I appauld you – and shamefully admit I’d probably take the cowardly route.

Dangerous Dogs
There are no restricted breeds in the ACT as each dog is assess on its individual behaviour and history.

A dangerous dog is:
• a dog that the Registrar of Domestic Animal Services has declared to be dangerous usually because of attack behaviour, or
• having been declared dangerous in another State or Territory, or
• a dog which has been trained as a guard dog, or is kept as a guard do for guarding premises other than residential premises.

If a dog has been declared dangerous, the owner must apply for a Dangerous Dog Licence from DAS. License will only be granted if the Registrar is satisfied that the dog can be kept in accordance with strict condition designed to ensure public safety.

http://www.tams.act.gov.au/live/pets/keeping_dogs_in_the_act#dangerous

The last one is your best bet but it’s kind of hard to prove that it’s specifically “kept to guard” the premises unless the owner admits it. Good luck.

This is one of my pet hates (pardon the pun here).

My advice is to do exactly what you are planning – and good luck. You will have the usual morons jump on here and cry fowl (another pun) and how your a dog hater, dog activist or dog molester (or a combination of all three) but you really need to do something.

And good luck with the dog services – I had to contact them recently and found them to be probably the most useless department that I have dealt with in some time.

I’ll get in quick before the rests of the RA community go to town!

The regs talk about dangerous dogs needing to be licensed. If you think it’s not registered, contact Domestic Animal Services and let them know. I have dealt with them once and it was incredibly painful, but we got there in the end. I believe they may be a little better these days.

Understand your concerns though.

Secret Squirrel1:26 pm 19 Oct 11

Let me know how you go, there’s one across the road from me that sounds much the same. This one has attacked two other dogs (that I know of) when on lead so has proven to be dangerous.

Some dogs are “accidents” waiting to happen.

Daily Digest

Want the best Canberra news delivered daily? Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Sign-up now for trusted local news that will never be behind a paywall.

By submitting your email address you are agreeing to Region Group's terms and conditions and privacy policy.