Another bully XL attack in London

[MarkD]

I am a devout dog lover. Always have been. I grew up in a house with dogs. Dogs are the most brilliantest things ever. And that's a whole new word I made up!!

That said, some dogs are not so brilliant. Or are they? I put 99% of the problem on the owner. There is no excuse for not having your dog under control when outside.

I agree and yet I’ve discovered that even better than a dog that follows every command to a T is a dog hat follows them when given but uses good judgment at all times. My dog Sophie, a lab/golden cross was the best trained dog I ever had. She was the first I ever put through lessons and she was a star. Limitless stays, down or sit from a distance, walk at heel, the works. I took her to my in-laws for Thanksgiving and put her bed in a corner where we’re eating. During the meal I invited others to call her over afterwords who wanted to give her a treat. She went back to the bed each time.

Like most dogs she developed a sense of decorum about how things should go. When niece couldn’t keep her dog Matilda I took her in and Sophie soon dissuaded from charging up or down the stairs ahead of me. When my wife’s aunt and uncle died we took in the blue Merle Aussie Fletcher they’d adopted and he readily accepted her dominance even though he enjoyed staring contests and other tests of rank with other dogs.

He was 4 when we got him and seemed to regard commands as invitations to oppositional play. But he never did anything I needed him to stop doing and readily figured out what was needed in every situation. Socially he was a genius, great with people and dogs of any age though he always enjoyed lording it over young males. So I learned that as good as Sophie was her goodness was a reflection of my training whereas his goodness came from him. Now I try for something between the robocontrolled dog I’d created in Sophie and good hearted rogue we inherited in Fletcher. But their freedom in the world is limited by the e reliability they develop and that is our responsibility.

 

[VaughanJB]

Beautiful dogs.

My dog was a stray in Romania that I had brought to the UK. As such, he's a little strange. I don't think he's very smart. He won't fetch a ball, sometimes sits, not always. He's not vicious in any way, and I'd trust him implicitly, but at the same time he just wants to say hello to everyone. So if someone walks passed us on the street, he'll stop and stare at them as they recede. He's easily distracted.

A hangover from his puppy hood is that he simply hates to be shut in anywhere. He'll whine and cry if he is. All the doors have to be open, and that includes one to the outside. After I'm sleeping I know he goes outside, that's the place he prefers, apparently. He's an odd soul. His tail never stops wagging, I think he may have the brain of a goldfish. Each morning is a new day "YAH!" First snack of the day, "YAH!" First time someone goes into the kitchen "YAH!" He's funny.

But back to topic, when we're out, I am always in complete control. Not because I doubt him, but because I have a responsibility to both the dog, and everyone else we might meet. I don't think it's right to have dogs off a leach in urban areas. Let alone some of the nasty breeds. They're very strong, and it can take a lot of effort for even the owner to control some of those animals.

I guess it comes down to the question - why do you have a dog? My dog is a mix of breeds, while others want certain traits. I really can't think of a good reason to own a Bully XL. I don't live in a war zone.

 

[Pinky]

A very long time ago, late at night in winter snow, I took our lab out for a walk. He was leashed. A german shepherd appeared out of nowhere, and started to attack my dog. I was whipping the leash at him, but he managed to bite my dog's back. Finally, along comes his master, with a second dog, leashed. He was able to call his shepherd away, and I told him what had happened. I wanted to know if his dog had his shots.

I took my dog, via taxi, to the overnight vet, and was given surgical iodine to put on my dog's back. My dog had all his shots, so, that was good.

No matter how well-behaved/obedient a dog is, it should never be walked off-leash.

 

[Packerjohn]

The world is going dog crazy. Population of children decreasing year after year. Population of dogs increasing year after year. Guess where our society is going?

YA! TO THE DOGS!

 

[Nathan]

The world is going dog crazy. Population of children decreasing year after year. Population of dogs increasing year after year. Guess where our society is going?

YA! TO THE DOGS!

 

[Nathan]

I would say it is a certain type who keeps these Bully dog, it IS a status thing and therefore pathetic. How do these owners feel if their dog kills a child or anyone? Is thatwhat they want?

In my view that certain type is the criminal class, the druggies and petty career criminals. They like to have pits or rottweilers in the yard to intimidate other crooks, and the cops.
Edit: I know responsible dog owners that keep bully dogs, those animals are powerful but disciplined and well socialized.

 

[MarkD]

Beautiful dogs.

My dog was a stray in Romania that I had brought to the UK. As such, he's a little strange. I don't think he's very smart. He won't fetch a ball, sometimes sits, not always. He's not vicious in any way, and I'd trust him implicitly, but at the same time he just wants to say hello to everyone. So if someone walks passed us on the street, he'll stop and stare at them as they recede. He's easily distracted.

A hangover from his puppy hood is that he simply hates to be shut in anywhere. He'll whine and cry if he is. All the doors have to be open, and that includes one to the outside. After I'm sleeping I know he goes outside, that's the place he prefers, apparently. He's an odd soul. His tail never stops wagging, I think he may have the brain of a goldfish. Each morning is a new day "YAH!" First snack of the day, "YAH!" First time someone goes into the kitchen "YAH!" He's funny.

But back to topic, when we're out, I am always in complete control. Not because I doubt him, but because I have a responsibility to both the dog, and everyone else we might meet. I don't think it's right to have dogs off a leach in urban areas. Let alone some of the nasty breeds. They're very strong, and it can take a lot of effort for even the owner to control some of those animals.

I guess it comes down to the question - why do you have a dog? My dog is a mix of breeds, while others want certain traits. I really can't think of a good reason to own a Bully XL. I don't live in a war zone.

Yep we are responsible if our dog hurts somebody or another pet and if our dog is destroyed for doing so that too is on us. In the end we have to be responsible. The dog is in no position to reason about any of this.

But I sorely miss my last dog because he could go anywhere at all off leash because he wanted to be with me - right with me and wanted nothing to do with strangers. If a lawn was full of picnickers he would not approach any of the food because of all the strangers. My young one now is still to reactive to sounds and movement as a herder to trust off leash many places. Just today we were at a big public dog beach where she has started to show a positive interest in meeting people since so many have patted her or given her handouts. A welcome change but reason for a new concern too.

 

[Pinky]

We have enclosed off-leash dog parks throughout the city, where people can let their pets run free. So far, we've never come across any "incidents". The nicest/biggest one, is at Cherry Beach, down by Lake Ontario. We took our daughter and her dog there very recently. It was great to be greeted by so many well-behaved dogs.

 

[VaughanJB]

Yep we are responsible if our dog hurts somebody or another pet and if our dog is destroyed for doing so that too is on us. In the end we have to be responsible. The dog is in no position to reason about any of this.

But I sorely miss my last dog because he could go anywhere at all off leash because he wanted to be with me - right with me and wanted nothing to do with strangers. If a lawn was full of picnickers he would not approach any of the food because of all the strangers. My young one now is still to reactive to sounds and movement as a herder to trust off leash many places. Just today we were at a big public dog beach where she has started to show a positive interest in meeting people since so many have patted her or given her handouts. A welcome change but reason for a new concern too.

I was walking my dog this morning, and I came across an old gentleman walking his two spaniels. I've never spoken to him other than a somewhat shouted "Morning!", but his two dogs are off leash. They are glued to his feet! They see my dog, my dog wags back, but the guy doesn't even need to issue commands, they follow him step for step. Kinda cool. The two dogs look like twins. I'd forgotten about this guy.

Pretty cool to see, but then have anyone ever been intimidated by a spaniel (this being the internet, I'm sure there are lots of horror stories )

 

[Rose65]

I was walking my dog this morning, and I came across an old gentleman walking his two spaniels. I've never spoken to him other than a somewhat shouted "Morning!", but his two dogs are off leash. They are glued to his feet! They see my dog, my dog wags back, but the guy doesn't even need to issue commands, they follow him step for step. Kinda cool. The two dogs look like twins. I'd forgotten about this guy.

Pretty cool to see, but then have anyone ever been intimidated by a spaniel (this being the internet, I'm sure there are lots of horror stories )

We all know friendly dogs. We all know that sixth sense of dread when we see a large powerful type whose tail is not wagging.