They Just Terrify Me!

Do you know what I hate?

"I hate dogs....they terrify me!" wrote Kay Richardson from London.

Of course, not all dogs are dangerous. Most don’t bite anyone. But still, lots do and with the many serious dog attack cases, even recently, some breeds (eg Pit Bulls, Rottweilers) can be very terrifying indeed so I think that many will share your hate Kay....

Dog Attacks

Toddler injured in dog attack, The Australian, February 03, 2006

Scarred girl's plea over dog attack, Dan McMullan, ManchesterOnline, Friday, 3rd February 2006

Dog attack victim gets world's first face transplant, The Guardian , Thursday December 1, 2005

W A R N I N G !!!!!

The next section of this post shows some very explicit photographs surrounding a fatal dog attack in Nicaragua. At first I hesitated about showing these very explicit images but in the end I felt that it was in the public interest that this message be told straight. Vicious dog attacks are now a serious problem in our communities and there's no need to beat around the bush. These images depict the realities surrounding such attacks. This story has to be told as there has to be an answer to this problem. I'm sick and tired of hearing about fatal dog attacks year after year and nothing much really happens; something needs to be done about this problem and Kay's vent prodded me here. Having said this, if seeing explicit dog attack images will or is likely to harm or upset you in any way whatsoever, then I strongly suggest that you continue on and read the remaining part of this story. It's your call! To read and view the whole story simply click here.

Nicaragua Asks For Full Investigation Into Dog Attack, InsideCostsRica.com, Saturday, 12 November, 2005

The following two photos showing the remains of the Nicaraguan man attacked by two rottweilers were published on the front page of the daily Spanish language newspaper Diario Extra, reminding people of the mortal danger of a rottweiler attack (source: InsideCostsRica.com).

The article in InsideCostsRica.com describes the Rottweiler as having a massive, powerful body and a muzzle with a scissors bite.....it has a calm and reliable temperament and trainable, courageous, and devoted to their owner and family.....they are strong fighters that seem immune to pain.....they can be aggressive with other dogs and should be kept on leashes in public places.....when the Rottweiler is consistently brought up and trained, it will be a good playmate for children.....friends and relatives of the family are normally enthusiastically welcomed. Strangers can get no further than the sidewalk.

Rottweiler

Toddler dies after pet dog attack, BBC News, Tuesday, 12 July, 2005

Mother Expresses Guilt Over Dog Attack, KRON 4, June 5, 2005

Dog attack victim needs 5m of stitches, The New Zealand Herald, February 17, 2004

In Connecticut, Two Versions of a Police Dog's Attack on a Woman, Stacey Stowe, New York Times, November 17, 2003

Woman dies after dog attack, Theresa Gutierrez, abc7chicago.com, January 12, 2003

Other Information

The following are also interesting reads in this subject area:

Dog Bite Law, Kenneth M. Phillips

Topics covered include:

• What to do immediately after the attack
• Legal rights of a dog bite victim, and
• The process of resolving dog bite claims

How to Defend Yourself Against a Dog Attack, Adam Katz

Is there another side to this story?

Why are dogs such as the American Pit Bull terrier so overwhelming popular? I've read that pit bulls are one of the most popular family dogs in the United States today. Are we blaming the dogs when the problem is really the negligence of the owners?...Is it true perhaps that behind every dog attack is an irresponsible or negligent owner? There have been many children attacked by their pet dogs. Is this because irresponsible owners don't teach their children how to properly interact with dogs or leave their children unsupervised with them? Are attacking dogs

the result of irresponsible owners that train their dogs to fight and encourage aggressive behavior? Is it the irresponsible owners that let their dogs roam the streets freely or keep their dogs continually chained up and being deprived of necessary socialization, their dogs go on an attacking rampage when they eventually break lose? Perhaps there are answers here on this video about the American Pit Bull (just love the music)

The Pit Bull Rescue Central website is a virtual shelter and resource for owners and caretakers of American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers and pit bull mixes. Their video on Operation Save A Pet, is about the 100,000+ pets locked in homes and abandoned on the streets of New Orleans, without food and without water after the people fled huricane Katrina.

In my reply to Kay's vent I opened by saying that "of course, not all dogs are dangerous....most don’t bite anyone". I wanted to close on something a bit lighter so here is my type of dog. Small in size, with great personality and temperament. By the way, the dog's name is Bella and the way he sits there watching you work on the computer you'd think he was a Bill Gates devotee.

	Veikko from Finland kindly wrote in to say that not all big dogs are vicious. Here Veikko is shown with his 52kg Alaskan Malamute which he describes as being big but friendly and always likes children. Click on the picture to better appreciate how big Veikko's Alaskan Malamute is.