Souff

Yeah, get back in line Ceilidh! .... cant ya see how busy Poddlefan is!

A puppy farmer? Hardly. I am THE puppy farmer. You can still trust me Souffy. I can be trusted implicitly to engage in any dog breeding practice that swells my wallet. :rofl:

OMG ...... the penny just dropped! I trusted you PF ...... but you are one of those Puppy Farmers ! Souff

PF, you really do need to get some of those TDT superbreeders. Its not just 3 litters they can pump out, some do even MORE than that !!!! See here: "Some animals are kept in cages turning out three or more litters a year for five years, before being put down." Now wait, before you go rushing out to find these little beauties, if you do get your paws on some - promise me one thing. Before you put them down, that you will make them look specially pretty and put one of those fascinators on them, like the one you have on the Jungle Rockwheeler. They need to leave in style after pumping out all those puppies for you, dont ya think? Souff

3 LITTERS a year I think they said!

That's better ..... more like a real dog! Souff LOVES ROCKWHEELERS !!! and the new black ... ooooooh!!! :rofl:

Have just checked the Yellow Pages listings for hairdressers. Cant find one in there that says "We have a loose dog here - don't bring children". Get real Diablo - the dog was not supposed to be there! Souff

Huski That education is vitally needed, nobody is denying that. Educating owners that a dog is not a toy is also needed. A dog is an animal and can be as unpredictable as any other animal. Every day there are tragedies just waiting to happen. This was one of them. Souff

Shadowwalker , this is the sort of footage that every dog owner needs to see. Forget the breed, I have seen the same scenario with a Dachshund. I was similarly attacked by a Rough Collie, other children have been similarly attacked by ACDs, GSDs, terriers, little fluffies and other types. Read dog - not breed. The Dachsie's decision to lunge and bite a small child on the eye came totally without warning. The speed involved was mind blowing. Nobody saw it coming, nobody could have stopped it happening. I was one of 5 adults in the same room, some of us were within reach of the dog. Why the dog did it we will never know. In that attack, there was: - No food involved. - No warning signals. - No movement or threat from the child. This was a family pet with no history of aggression and had not had any bad dealings with children and was considered to be well socialised. He has never attacked anyone since but everyone knows never to trust this dog near children again. When this type of attack happens, as Shadow Walker says, your brain does not have enough time to process what is happening until it is too late. Supervision can be there, but cannot stop this type of attack because of the speed with which the attack occurs. To all those people who are pointing the finger at parents, please STOP. Educate yourselves to the power of our animals, and the unpredictability, and then make sure that you take the necessary steps to keep children safe. That way, you are also keeping your dog safe. If you dont, well don't bother coming on to boards like this moaning because there are "No Dogs" signs going up in your favourite places. The "blame-it-on-anyone-but-the dog" attitude, and failing to keep the necessary steps to keep children safe, guarantee that the "No Dogs" signs will be the end result for our society. Souff

We don't make the judgement call on the life of the dog DOglover06. The officers who have to deal with the dog have that awful task and many of them love dogs. We could dig into our conscience and spare a thought for the vet and nurse who have to give this dog his last needle. That is their grim role and I can assure you that they would rather be doing happier things. Every dog attack on children is yet another black mark against dogs in Australia. As owners and breeders we all carry the consequences as more and more legislation is written and tightened. It wont go away, let me assure you. None of this is necessary if people will understand what their responsibilities are as dog owners and carry out those responsibilities properly. We ALL have these responsibilities and we CANNOT always have our dogs everywhere we would like to have them. Souff

Unfortunately some will really only get the message when it happens to their child, or their baby sister. And while they have their head so firmly stuck in the sand, they remain one of the greatest threats to dog ownership in this country. Souff

Emotional blackmail? You have got to be kidding! As if I would bother ..... I just thought that you might like to spare a thought for the consequences of irresponsibility and stupidity. We all have to share the hairdressers, no matter what the age difference is. By the account that has been given by Lisash, this little 20 month old girl was hardly behaving badly. She was with her mother. And now she is traumatised and scarred. All too sad and totally unnecessary. Souff

Huski, Bottom line is that this dog should not have been in the hairdressing salon; neither should its bone. I think you will find that the local council's ordinances would not permit it. And I will say it again. Dog attacks like these happen with LIGHTNING SPEED. No parent or staff member would have been fast enough to prevent this child being injured, if it is anything like the attacks I have seen, and by Lisash's account is was exactly like that. For those who have never witnessed an attack like this firsthand, it would be educational for you to see some film footage, but I am not sure where to send you. If anyone knows where there is anything about dog attacks on film, you might like to direct these people to it. Ignorance of this aspect of dog attacks is not blissful; it is dangerous. Souff

well really that would suit me perfectly Then perhaps it might also suit you to offer to pay the medical bills that this family will be paying out for the rounds of plastic surgery for their beautful little girl, to repair hideous scarring to her face as she grows? Souff

Just when are you (and others) going to GET IT? A hairdressing salon is open for business to cut the hair of adult and junior humans - i.e., CHILDREN! Having children there to have their hair cut is how they make their money to open the doors and stay in business! THAT IS THEIR CORE BUSINESS AND CHILDREN HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE THERE IN SAFETY. A hairdressing salon is not the local DOGGY DAY CARE CENTRE - nor is it the DOGGY LUNCH ROOM! ;) (steam is now coming off this keyboard!) Souff edited for grammar yes because hairdressers are all about safety with their scissors, spiky objects, hot presses, crimpers, bleach etc.. Sorry but a child shouldnt be allowed to roam around a hairdressers period because it isnt a safe area.. What if the kid decided that cup of bleach next to an old lady getting her hair done might be yoghurt.. A person has every right to take their pets to work if they wish, its their workplace, possibly even their home, the same rights as a mother has to taking her own kids to work to her own business. Pets in the workplace has been a slowly growing fad as it lowers stress levels, many high end companies like google allow and promote people on bringing their pets to work (so long as they behave) to increase working abilities. There is no black and white in a business, you cant say something doesnt belong in the workplace just because you think it doesn't, there is actually a day celebrated overseas which is take your pet to work day in june annually. Oh dear, another one. ;) This child was NOT "roaming" around the salon. Do you know anything about Occupational Health and Safety laws? Do you know anything about the responsibilities that business owners have in relation to creating a safe environment for their customers? Do you realise how much damage is done to the rest of the dog world every time a child is attacked by a dog? No, I dont think you would. Souff

:D Just when are you (and others) going to GET IT? A hairdressing salon is open for business to cut the hair of adult and junior humans - i.e., CHILDREN! Having children there to have their hair cut is how they make their money to open the doors and stay in business! THAT IS THEIR CORE BUSINESS AND CHILDREN HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE THERE IN SAFETY. A hairdressing salon is not the local DOGGY DAY CARE CENTRE - nor is it the DOGGY LUNCH ROOM! :D :rofl: (steam is now coming off this keyboard!) Souff edited for grammar

Because the dog was in the salon?

Lisash, Thank you very much for coming on and telling the parents side of the story. I will remove my comment about being with her father, but I give an apology for it first. I am sure he is a great dad and I am very sorry he had to have this nightmare explode into his life on a simple trip to the hairdressers. Please pass on my warm wishes to the family and I hope their little girl recovers quickly and that both the girls can hopefully not have too great a fear of dogs in the future. Dogs in the right places can be wonderful friends to children. Souff

My dad used to manage to take us children safely to such places, but we were a bit older . But there wasn't a dog in sight in Dominic's hair establishment. Old Dominic would have chased it out with the broom! Dominic was from Europe but he definitely did not subscribe to dogs in his salons. Souff

That really depends on the laws if the dog should have been there or not. If the law in that area prevents dogs being in the workplace accessable by the public the dog owner has breached the law. If not, the situation is arguable. I never said that anyone was breaking any laws. It is my opinion that the hairdressing salon was not an appropriate place for the dog to be because of the dangers that are inherent in a place that services the public. Rightly or wrongly, I am entitled to my opinion. What the Victorian health laws may say about having dogs in hairdressing salons is another matter altogether. Souff

Because the child got bitten while the parent was having a haircut. It probably is a friendly dog, but its a dog. You dont leave babies to do what they like. Under the right circumstances (ie messing with the dog while its eating) the risk of a bite is 100 fold. Well now he knows better (I hope). Lo Pan, tell me .... have you ever witnessed a dog attacking a child? Have you any idea of the SPEED involved in such attacks? As I said before any warning growls from the dog to the child would not be heard over the noise of hairdryers in a salon. There may have been no audible or visible warning to the parent, or the hairdresser, that this dog was about to attack. On two occasions I have seen dogs attack toddlers and there was no warning, none at all. Bang! It is like a bullet out of a gun! Those dogs were of two different breeds and in two totally different situations, and have nothing in common with this breed or this situaiton - but the attack in both cases was lethal and swift. Both dogs were family pets. I love dogs but I also know what they are capable of doing and the speed with which they can attack. I was attacked by a Rough Collie as a child, a dog that I played with every day. A trusted pet. A gentle Lassie dog. No warning. None at all, and all I did was to walk past it! I was about 8 at the time, not a toddler, and I have a very clear recollection of the incident. Nobody could have prevented that attack from happening, because nobody saw it coming! The dog went on to attack several people after it mauled me and was eventually PTS. Anyone who has witnessed such an attack, and I have, will tell you that these attacks usually happen with lightning speed and no adult would have been fast enough to have prevented it from happening. That is why I say the dog should not have been in the salon in the first place. Souff

Very true about the blaming. Blame does not achieve much at all. Perhaps other dog owners and parents might learn something from it all - one can only hope. The reputation of the breed? No, these attacks damage the reputation of DOGS as a species. The entire dog world suffers from these attacks ultimately. Souff

All of those things can happen in salons, in restaurants, and in other places that the public frequent, and at home - and all children need to be kept safe from their own spirit of adventure. But none of those things leapt at the toddler with the speed that an animal can move. That is the difference. A laid back approach by the owner of the dog, and possibly a laid back approach by the parent of the child. We dont know what the parents attitude was. And the child got bitten by the dog. Souff

When you see one adult and one toddler in a salon, with the hairdresser, you can safely assume that there are no minders around. Or did the last client forget to take their child home. Now, there is a novel idea! I dont like to ask small children their ages, because they tell me all about their NEXT birthday and when it is going to happen - little hopefuls that they are! Souff

Then why have the OH & S people not put signs in hairdressing salons demanding that all loose children must be kept harnessed and under effective parental control at all times ? Most toddlers cannot reach the height of the benches where the scissors are. When a toddler slips on hair on the floor they land on a bottom that is well padded by nappies. Some toddlers have been known to rearrange the plastic bottles of shampoo near the cash register but I understand that to date this has not resulted in harm to the toddler - though the staff have wished the little sod further. Much nicer for all concerned if the little darlin is somewhere else, but I havent seen toddler injuries in hairdressing salons featuring in the news much. The toddler is not the primary cause of the problem here. Souff