Lady on Crystal Palace Road whose Staffie ran out of the house and attacked our 5 month old puppy

[first mate]

Curmudgeon,

Many thanks for the reply. I am so glad your pup seems to be okay- what breed/type is he?

Clearly lady has rehomed dog with best intentions.

You are right, Battersea should be first port of call. If dog came from there the owner should be able to go back for some dedicated, tailored behavioural work. Given dog came from Battersea he is almost certainly castrated. Sometimes, even after extensive testing in rescue, certain issues won't come through until a number of months in new home. I would beg the woner to go back to Battersea and ask for help.

[Mscrawthew]

Tarot Wrote:

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> Most of these type dogs are given anabolic

> steriods by brainless owners.

> The illegal dog fights that are held use over

> muscled up dogs that are deranged and have been

> fed these drugs since birth almost, just like a

> body builder who cheats, in time will become

> aggressive ,deranged and eventually get very sick

> and unfit for society

> So the breed that has beeen described is no longer

> true to form or pure owing to the drug

> intervention, just like people really.

> Sweet old bird or not she should not have a dog

> escaping and attacking anything that moves. It

> could have been a kid.

Have you been reading The Sun again Tarot?

[Tarot]

Maybe the daily tit has been reading my columns.

[new mother]

Which end of cp road was it, please? Thanks

[aquarius moon]

I have years of experience with dogs & know for a fact that every breed profile on the staff has always stated how they are 'people' dogs. They love children & make good family pets.

However, most of the breed profiles also warn that they are not very sociable or friendly towards other dogs. This is precisely why staffs/pit bulls etc were always used in dog fighting.

I was the one who First Mate was referring to in an earlier post, whose small dog was attacked by a staff who ran out of a gate. (It happened in Nunhead, not ED)

Although my dog was fine, it has made me very wary of any staff I see when out dog walking. I now walk my dogs one at

a time, so that I can pick mine up if I see one walking off-lead.

I love all dogs, including the bull breeds & don't have a problem with them if I don't have my dogs with me.

But they are unpredictable with other dogs & there should be a law passed, that all these types of dogs should be kept on a lead in public places.

[Mscrawthew]

A very small percentage of dogs out of thousands (because of irresponsible owners)cause problems. Are you saying that the majority have to be punished because of this?

[bonniebird]

Can't tar them all with the same brush..................

[jumpinjackflash]

I feel sorry for those Staffies owned by these morons who want them purely for status then abandon them when they get bored. I was on the Battersea Dogs Home website on Monday browsing through all the dogs that need rehoming - at least 80% were Staffordshire Bulls.

[Marie81]

Otta Wrote:

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> Being as you are completely hypothesising, allow

> me to try one. If the puppy had been a child, and

> the staffie escaped accidently, and attacked it,

> would it matter if the child was unhurt, or should

> the staf be destroyed because basically it has

> shown that it is capable of attacking a child?

Otta: A child is not a dog so I really don't see how you can turn it around. A dog would not be put down for attacking another dog but obviously would be for attacking a child!

I was in a similar situation recently when my dog escaped and attacked another dog but I would like to point out that he is never off the lead and wears a head collar/muzzle so this was a rare occasion where he was in a secure enclosed area but overnight someone had made a small hold in the fence and he found the gap and chased after another dog. It was more boisterous play, the other dog was completely unharmed. Although it looked a lot worse and the owner of the small dog was screaming at him to stop but just standing there. I ran over and grabbed him and whilst he was in my hand the owner of the other dog came over and kicked him really hard! Now I can understand if this was to split up the fight but it had stopped and he was in my hands. Fortunately for the owner my dog was not hurt, he didn?t even yelp just looked up at me. He is as strong as an Ox, luckily for him! We are and have been working with a behaviourist for about a year now! On our daily walks he can be walked past other dogs and is fine as long as they don?t bark at him or charge over towards him!

[Mscrawthew]

jumpinjackflash Wrote:

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> I feel sorry for those Staffies owned by these

> morons who want them purely for status then

> abandon them when they get bored. I was on the

> Battersea Dogs Home website on Monday browsing

> through all the dogs that need rehoming - at least

> 80% were Staffordshire Bulls.

Despite thousands of staffie and staffie crosses being put to sleep every year, Complete idiots are still breeding them thinking they can make money. It is also the same for other breeds and Cats as well. Websites like Gumtree etc (and sorry to say even EDF) just encourage people to use their animals as cash cows as they allow them to list them for sale and line their pockets( Before anyone starts screaming, I do know that mistakes are made and am talking about repeat offenders). No thought for the health of the animal or the conditions they are kept in and therefore you will find that their offspring come with all sorts of health problems, uneutered, unvaxed or treated for worms.

If you go to any decent rescue all this is already done and the animal has lifetime back up as well as advice when needed. This basically means if the animal ever has to be re-homed for whatever reason it returns to the rescue. Animals bought from Gumtree etc have no health checks and are forgotton as soon as the money has changed hands :-(