I saw an XL Bully today

R

Rose65

Senior Member
Location
United Kingdom
While out walking we saw one, muzzled, on a lead, calm and with a man who seemed pleasant enough. I assume he lives in our village.
I was terrified, rigid with fear until we were well clear of them. I couldn't stop shaking though my husband was ok. The thing was huge, heavy, muscular. It had a very steady gaze and though it's face was like a big Staffy, it was way bigger and all muscle. To me, after all the media stories, it was a monster and now I am afraid to walk our dog.

I can't sleep for worry. What if that thing was off the lead in the field we walk our dog in? What if it decided to get out of the owner's leash and they couldn't hold it back? I didn't know anyone even had one round here.

Do you know if people have them in your neighbourhood?
 

Rose65 said:
While out walking we saw one, muzzled, on a lead, calm and with a man who seemed pleasant enough. I assume he lives in our village.
I was terrified, rigid with fear until we were well clear of them. I couldn't stop shaking though my husband was ok. The thing was huge, heavy, muscular. It had a very steady gaze and though it's face was like a big Staffy, it was way bigger and all muscle. To me, after all the media stories, it was a monster and now I am afraid to walk our dog.

I can't sleep for worry. What if that thing was off the lead in the field we walk our dog in? What if it decided to get out of the owner's leash and they couldn't hold it back? I didn't know anyone even had one round here.

Do you know if people have them in your neighbourhood?
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To my knowledge no one has a T-REX as a pet in my neighborhood. But, even so, I don't think it would worry me. šŸ˜
 
Several families had pitbulls, along with my next door neighbor, where I grew up & there wasn't a problem. They stayed in there yard & didn't bother anyone.

Pitbulls were even at the soccer park when my kid was playing games on lead with their owners. Usually laid down while the kids were playing next to the owners.
 

Rose65 said:
While out walking we saw one, muzzled, on a lead, calm and with a man who seemed pleasant enough. I assume he lives in our village.
I was terrified, rigid with fear until we were well clear of them. I couldn't stop shaking though my husband was ok. The thing was huge, heavy, muscular. It had a very steady gaze and though it's face was like a big Staffy, it was way bigger and all muscle. To me, after all the media stories, it was a monster and now I am afraid to walk our dog.

I can't sleep for worry. What if that thing was off the lead in the field we walk our dog in? What if it decided to get out of the owner's leash and they couldn't hold it back? I didn't know anyone even had one round here.

Do you know if people have them in your neighbourhood?
Click to expand...
I have met many Staffordshire Bull Terriers in our huge off-leash dog park over the years, who were very friendly and socialized and always gentle and nice to my dogs, which were a Labradoodle and Standard Schnauzers.

The owners who abuse the dogs and train them to be aggressive are to blame for the bad ones. Owners who take the time to train, socialize and love their dogs, will have a friendly and loving pet. This goes for all breeds, Shepherds, Rottweilers, Dobermans, etc. My husband had a Dobie when I first met him, and she was the sweetest dog you could imagine.....because he raised her with love and positive training.
 
Rose65 said:
While out walking we saw one, muzzled, on a lead, calm and with a man who seemed pleasant enough. I assume he lives in our village.
I was terrified, rigid with fear until we were well clear of them. I couldn't stop shaking though my husband was ok. The thing was huge, heavy, muscular. It had a very steady gaze and though it's face was like a big Staffy, it was way bigger and all muscle. To me, after all the media stories, it was a monster and now I am afraid to walk our dog.

I can't sleep for worry. What if that thing was off the lead in the field we walk our dog in? What if it decided to get out of the owner's leash and they couldn't hold it back? I didn't know anyone even had one round here.

Do you know if people have them in your neighbourhood?
Click to expand...
I have never seen one in my Neighbourhood... nor has my daughter who is a qualified groomer and dog trainer ever had one in her kennels....

if the dog was muzzled , even if it broke away from it's owner, it wouldn't be able to bite...
 
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hollydolly said:
I have never seen one in my Neighbourhood... nor has my daughter who is a qualified groomer and dog trainer ever had one in her kennels....

if the dog was muzzled , even if it broke away from it's owner, it wouldn't be able to bite...
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It was powerful, huge, I was terrified. I can't help it. The media coverage has done it's work on me. I can't go near one and now I know one is living right round here and I do not feel safe.
Maybe I am irrational but I am who I am.
 
Rose65 said:
It was powerful, huge, I was terrified. I can't help it. The media coverage has done it's work on me. I can't go near one and now I know one is living right round here and I do not feel safe.
Maybe I am irrational but I am who I am.
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I don't think your fear is irrational at all. Pitbulls are illegal in Australia.

Pitbulls are a restricted dog breed in Australia. This means that you can only legally own one if you have been granted authorization from the authorities and you meet certain criteria. Pitbulls were banned from importation in 2011, with legislation put in place to protect the public and limit potential attacks from the breed.

Pitbulls are restricted in Australia based on a perceived belief that this is an inherently dangerous breed. This stems from their traditional usage as fighting dogs, combined with events that have involved bites, attacks, and even deaths.​


While this by no way means that every pit bull is a threat, or that they cannot be raised, and trained to be loving in temperament ā€“ the risk is still considered to be there.
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Rose65 said:
It was powerful, huge, I was terrified. I can't help it. The media coverage has done it's work on me. I can't go near one and now I know one is living right round here and I do not feel safe.
Maybe I am irrational but I am who I am.
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It is not irrational, Rose. It's important to never let anyone invalidate our personal feelings. They're ours alone and no one else gets to belittle them.
 
CallMeKate said:
It is not irrational, Rose. It's important to never let anyone invalidate our personal feelings. They're ours alone and no one else gets to belittle them.
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Thankyou. I am frightened to the core to have come so close to that creature. A dog that can and does kill. I had never seen one before.

To me it might as well be a tiger on a flimsy lead.
 
Here we go again....

A man and woman have been arrested after a boy was left with serious head wounds following an 'XL Bully' attack.



The attack occurred in Bootle, Merseyside, on Saturday February 10 where the boy, 8, was mauled by the dog while playing outside

The boy was taken to hospital where he remains in a serious but stable condition. Merseyside Police were called to the address at 5.20pm where they seized the dog which is believed to be an XL Bully.


Merseyside Police also arrested a woman ,49, and a man, 30, on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control and causing injury.

The man and woman are not related to the injured child, who was bitten on the head by the dog.
I want to reassure people that he is receiving the best possible care and treatment for his injuries, which are described as life-changing.
We have seized the dog and extensive efforts are underway to establish exactly what happened. I want to appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident, who may have information, to come forward as soon as possible.
81119373-13070819-Wadiham_Road_in_Bootle_where_an_8_year_old_boy_was_attacked_by_a-a-9_1707644704922.jpg

Eight-year-old schoolboy in hospital after 'XL Bully' attack
 
There were so many pit bulls around when I grew up. No one ever thought twice about them. We even had stray packs of dogs roaming the streets who never bothered people. I'm wondering if today's problems are due to breeding, and especially the humans who surround them. Is this caused by humans?

OUR GANG DOG
meta%3AeyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ%3D%3D.jpg

Pete the Pup (January 22, 1929 ā€“ January 28, 1946) was an American Staffordshire Terrier character in Hal Roach's Our Gang comedies (later known as The Little Rascals) during the 1930s. Otherwise known as "Pete, the Dog With the Ring Around His Eye", or simply "Petey", he was well known for having a circled eye that was added on by Hollywood make-up artist Max Factor[1] and credited as an oddity in Ripley's Believe It or Not. The original Pete (sired by "Black Jack") was an American Pit Bull Terrier named "Pal the Wonder Dog", and had a natural ring almost completely around his eye; dye was used to finish it off.
 
hollydolly said:
Here we go again....

A man and woman have been arrested after a boy was left with serious head wounds following an 'XL Bully' attack.



The attack occurred in Bootle, Merseyside, on Saturday February 10 where the boy, 8, was mauled by the dog while playing outside

The boy was taken to hospital where he remains in a serious but stable condition. Merseyside Police were called to the address at 5.20pm where they seized the dog which is believed to be an XL Bully.


Merseyside Police also arrested a woman ,49, and a man, 30, on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control and causing injury.

The man and woman are not related to the injured child, who was bitten on the head by the dog.
I want to reassure people that he is receiving the best possible care and treatment for his injuries, which are described as life-changing.
We have seized the dog and extensive efforts are underway to establish exactly what happened. I want to appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident, who may have information, to come forward as soon as possible.
81119373-13070819-Wadiham_Road_in_Bootle_where_an_8_year_old_boy_was_attacked_by_a-a-9_1707644704922.jpg

Eight-year-old schoolboy in hospital after 'XL Bully' attack
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It's horrifying.
 
So why do people need a protection dog?
Ordinary people, even women, with no business premises or such that need guarding, are walking around with powerful dogs. Is it a form of inadequacy being made up for by owning a dog with a magnificent physique? Like small weak men owning big powerful cars. Certain breeds of dogs are a loaded gun. There is an unspoken wish for respect from everyone through spreading fear. I find that repulsive.

Do such people really want these dogs to tear another human being apart? A grandmother, a child?
 
Rose65 said:
Do such people really want these dogs to tear another human being apart? A grandmother, a child?
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I suspect they are so afraid of other people that they have dangerous dogs as a sort of private security force, and don't care about the risks to other people.

When I first had a horse, there was an incident of a couple dogs (I don't remember if they were pitbulls or rottweilers) getting out of their owner's yard and they came to the horse stable and chased a horse and then they attacked the goat. The goat was in bad shape but eventually recovered. Animal Control seized the dogs, they euthanized one (I think that one had goat blood on it) but returned the other to the owner.

When I lived in Colorado there was a woman in the next suburb (small rural properties type suburbs) killed by her neighbor's dogs. One of my coworkers bought a property in that area and I asked him if he'd had trouble with neighbor dogs and he said one challenged him when he came out of his barn, but that he had a gun and shot the ground in front of the dog and that scared it off. (My opinion is he should have shot the dog, since what if it happened to his wife or kids and they didn't have a gun?).

When I lived in Nebraska my neighbor let his dogs run loose and it was scary to come out of the barn after dark and get barked at by a pack of unknown dogs -- tho eventually I met the dogs and they were all friendly types (one being so happy to be petted he got all drool-y and about toppled me over leaning on me).

I wonder if bear spray works on dogs, maybe you could carry bear spray when you go out?
 
HoneyNut said:
I suspect they are so afraid of other people that they have dangerous dogs as a sort of private security force, and don't care about the risks to other people.

When I first had a horse, there was an incident of a couple dogs (I don't remember if they were pitbulls or rottweilers) getting out of their owner's yard and they came to the horse stable and chased a horse and then they attacked the goat. The goat was in bad shape but eventually recovered. Animal Control seized the dogs, they euthanized one (I think that one had goat blood on it) but returned the other to the owner.

When I lived in Colorado there was a woman in the next suburb (small rural properties type suburbs) killed by her neighbor's dogs. One of my coworkers bought a property in that area and I asked him if he'd had trouble with neighbor dogs and he said one challenged him when he came out of his barn, but that he had a gun and shot the ground in front of the dog and that scared it off. (My opinion is he should have shot the dog, since what if it happened to his wife or kids and they didn't have a gun?).

When I lived in Nebraska my neighbor let his dogs run loose and it was scary to come out of the barn after dark and get barked at by a pack of unknown dogs -- tho eventually I met the dogs and they were all friendly types (one being so happy to be petted he got all drool-y and about toppled me over leaning on me).

I wonder if bear spray works on dogs, maybe you could carry bear spray when you go out?
Click to expand...
The OP lives in Great Britain, did you notice that fact ? Not much call for Bear Spray in her country where there are no bears, except at the zoo.
 
Rose65 said:
It was powerful, huge, I was terrified. I can't help it. The media coverage has done it's work on me. I can't go near one and now I know one is living right round here and I do not feel safe.
Maybe I am irrational but I am who I am.
Click to expand...
How do you feel about Great Danes?
 
I hadn't thought about it before but, no, I haven't actually seen any XL bullies at all, only in the media.
 

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