Robbi

So I suppose this http://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/143478/puppy-killed-by-vicious-dalmatian/ is just a one off attack by a non aggressive breed so it is okay? Because Dali's heads aren't normally foggy with aggression. We aren't fighting to save BYBers and their over bred dogs. We are fighting to save certain breeds of dogs who are being discriminated against based on appearance. BYB's over breed many breeds of dogs, that isn't going to stop until legislation changes. You may not like bull breeds, but that is no reason for them to be eradicated. Laws like this are just the beginning It is bull breeds now, what is going to be next? Your head just seems to me to be foggy with hatred, maybe you need to channel your aggression into fighting BSL with the rest of us. You are not fighting to save certain breeds at all as the dogs people are fighting over are all BYB's of no specific breed as such that have no recognised standard. It's not the beginning of anything as the precident on what will be next was set with the Amstaff's exclusion from BSL although it's essentially a Pitbull of some degree. When a court determines that an Amstaff is a Pitbull and then specifically the Amstaff is excluded from BSL and not added to the list proves the point of where things are heading and confirms that ANKC recognised breeds are safe. If breed restrictions were on the agenda, the Amstaff would have been done and dusted..........and what happened??, the Amstaff being a recognised breed was excluded like any other recognised breed would be in the same instance. If they did for example try and add Dalmations onto the BSL list and ban them suddenly, the Amstaff sets the legal precident to overturn the decision immediately. Ask the question again what breed could be next?..........any breed or mixture of that is not ANKC recognised, again the choice is in the hands of the consumer if you want a dog that the rangers won't be scooping up, buy papered from a registered breeder or choose a cross breed or un-papered dog that doesn't resemble a restricted breed..........how hard is that seriously?? it's not hard at all. The only problem is that a lot of the numb nuts that want to own a "tough guy dog" are rejected as suitable owners by registered ethical breeders of Am Staffs.They have no choice but to go to the BYBs to get their "land shark". BYBs are accountable and should be stopped.

ALTERNATIVES TO BSL EDUCATION: Just one of the many things to learn from the model bylaw of Calgary, Canada is that education is the key to preventing dog attacks and promoting safer interactions between humans and dogs. Research shows that just 1 hour of dog safety training in grades 2 and 3 can reduce these attacks by 80%, and the city of Calgary spends a considerable amount of money, time and effort on dog safety public awareness and education campaigns. LEASH LAWS. Enact, strengthen and enforce leash laws. Owners are responsible for containing their animals, and far too many times, existing leash laws are simply ignored. Quite frankly, if a community cannot enforce the simplest of laws such as a leash law (where there is no question as to whether a dog is or is not on a leash), how can they possibly expect to enforce a breed ban, wherein animal control officers will be forced to question what breed a dog may or many not be? HOLD OWNERS ACCOUNTABLE: Strengthen and enforce penalties for irresponsible dog owners. Rather than create dangerous dog laws, we should instead focus on "dangerous owner" laws. Problem dogs are the result of irresponsible, negligent and careless owners, and greater focus on the cause of the problem will result in a community that experiences less issues with both "dangerous owners" and their dogs. Generic dangerous dog laws which address the underlying cause of most dog-related deaths and injuries – irresponsible dog ownership - are a key point in preventing dog related incidents in the community. Good dangerous dog laws place the owner in the position of ensuring that their dog(s) comply with all state and local requirements. Fines for violations can vary, but the leading principle is that dog ownership should be more costly to the irresponsible individuals. Experience has taught us that most bite incidents are examples of irresponsible ownership, not the specific dog breed involved. In other words, we need stricter regulations on dog ownership, no matter what the breed. Non-breed specific legislation is cost effective in comparison to outright breed ban and is more readily accepted for the most part. More importantly, a well-thought non-breed specific legislation addresses the root cause of most, if not all, dog related injures and deaths, which is the irresponsible dog owner. Strengthen animal abuse and dog fighting laws. Dogs can become aggressive as the result of cruelty, abuse, neglect and/or otherwise improper care, and proper attention needs to be focused on the owners who inflict these living conditions on their dogs. Regulate Dog Breeders. Breeders play an important role in the temperament of the dogs they produce and sell. Irresponsible breeding plays a very important role as the mating of two dogs with poor and/or unacceptable temperaments will no doubt result in puppies with unstable temperaments. Moreover, if irresponsible breeders do not screen the individuals they sell their dogs to, you have the potential combination of ill-breed dogs in the hands of irresponsible owners. A disaster in the making. Provide low cost spay/neuter options for communities. Unneutered dogs, particularly males, are far more likely to attack a human than either neutered males or spayed females. In analyzing over 448 dog attack cases, Karen Delise, author of Fatal Dog Attacks, determined that overwhelmingly, most dogs involved in the attacks were unneutered male dogs that were maintained for reasons other than to be household companions (i.e., yard dogs). Providing lost cost options for the healthcare of dogs, including spay and neuter services, is an excellent way to help dog owners better care for dogs and take more interest in their dog's healthcare and well-being. Interesting Reading: Breed specific legislation: Considerations for evaluating its effectiveness and recommendations for alternatives http://canadianveterinarians.net/Documents/Resources/Files/335_2005_August_pg735.pdf Will breed specific legislation reduce dog bites? http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1576444

Exactly Aussie3, hatred of crossbreeds seems to be the main point that m-sass has to support bsl. what an awful thing, to condemn a dog simply because it lacks the "right" paperwork seems completely unethical and inhumane. I know that this is a pedigree dog forum but most people here surely have the compassion not to kill a dog just because it doesn't look like their ideal of a perfect dog. Looks shouldn't Kill

Whilest it is very unfortunate what has happened to the little boy I would not put one of my dogs down due to this incident, who knows if the child had been teasing the dog or not but the child should not have had any part of himself over somebody elses fence. Animals should be safe in their own property without risk of being pts....

I couldn't agree more, it is the fools that are breeding these dogs that need to be hunted down and punished not the dogs. Once these dogs are bred responsibility needs to be on the owners to make them good canine members of society. Most people who rescue Bull Breed type dogs are very much aware of training and socialisation and know what potential these dogs often have, it just needs to be nurtured and trained like any other breed or type of dog. Make Pit Bulls legal and a lot of these bybers will lose interest in breeding..... I absolutely refuse to believe that dogs are born bad m-sass, there are no dogs on this planet that dont deserve a chance once they have been brought into the world. I certainly dont support bybers or those people who breed cross breeds but I will not condemn the dogs produced by them.

Some very deserving dogs looking for loving forever homes through no fault of their own in this gallery of photos, the Blacktown dogs break my heart.

m-sass the term "land shark" is hyperbolic and should have NO place in describing any dog behaviours, I hope that you realise that by condeming the Pit Bull to death you are allowing media bias and blatent half truths to win out over common sense and honesty. There are thousands of innocent dogs that are being faced with death due to intolerence and idiocy, as dog lovers we should all fight bsl not support any part of it.

We have just bought our tickets and now want the pajamas for Abbie as well(they look so cute :)) but I think she would be too big for them unfortunately.

Thank goodness, it was like watching a train wreck and knowing that the only victim was going to be Ned. Thankyou so much to everyone that went the extra mile to give Ned a chance :)

Well, I stand by my opinion that we will be a long time waiting for a Labrador or a Standard Poodle to be reported in a killing rampage upon passive targets??. Breed and breeding has everything to do with genetic aggression unfotunately??. I don't think poodles are represented at all in bite statistics, and I would bet that would have to do with the type of person who owns them. Labradors figure much higher in the bite statistics in Aus than pitbulls ... and always have done. Labradors mostly belong to reasonable, responsible people, but once they decide they will bite, they are worth watching. In this case, I would apportion 98% of blame to the bogan owner, who provided no training, and didn't have the wit to see that a $1.50 plastic collar with studs from the $2 shop was NEVER going to hold that dog ... if he was the one in the Sunrise video. But he would have bought it for the studs, not the strength (oh, and the price!!) People seem to have no respect these days. He had none for the other poor dog or its owner, or his own dog. Almost not quite human The owner is a neanderthal, my heart goes out to the lady and her small dog who lost its life. I also feel very sorry for the dog who was owned by this fool as it never was given a chance and in all ways was set up to fail. This idiot would never have socialised or trained this dog to behave as a canine good citizen and probably actively encouraged "tough" behaviour. I completely agree with Jed about owners making all the difference to a dogs behaviour.

Rest in peace sweet Lennox This is just so wrong I have no words to express how upset I am about this.....

Please share, I found the poem on an anti bsl site, there was no author's name on the bottom so I assumed it was fine to share :)

We can argue semantics until we are blue in the face but ultimately bsl kills innocent dogs. There are always going to be crossbred dogs that fall into the danger zone when it comes to the ridiculous 22 point checklist, if their owners don't have the resources and the knowledge to fight the councils in court many innocent lives will be lost. We have to stop blaming bybers(not that I support them at all)and saying that people that adopt pound dogs know that they are at risk from bsl,we need to band together to fight bsl..... Rest in peace sweet Bear and Kooda

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse The stockings where hung by the chimney with care In the hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there But at the North Pole sudden changes arose All down to Rudolph and his ruby red nose Clipboard in hand, a breed expert arrived He motioned to Santa saying," please step aside". A smooth haired coat and a muscular build A broad deep chest our Rudolph did yield The breed expert's pen, created pages of ticks Then he suddenly called out "good lord, we've been tricked!" "This creatures no donkey and clearly no horse! I know these things! I've attended the course!" Look at my clipboard the boxes are full! It's very obvious to me: Rudolph is a pit bull! Out with the measuring sticks, he explained to Santa the law And he measured poor Rudolph from shoulder to floor. As the spectacle continued Santa said with a sigh He's a reindeer you fool! Why must he die? "The law is the law" the expert said standing tall, Then picked up his mobile and made a quick call The sound of sirens filled the peaceful night air and Rudolph removed .to who knew where? Days turned too weeks and confused and alone Rudolph pined, for the place he called home As the first snow started falling Rudolph gave up the fight And he took his last breath on a cold winters night You may think this is funny, if a little untrue. But how would you like it, if it happened to you? If your dog was taken because of its look? Because it ticked enough boxes in some silly book? Regardless of parentage it doesn't matter what breed If it ticks enough boxes then it's a done deed So humour me here and pretend this is true Think how you would feel if it happened to you. Cuddle your hounds while you have them close by For some spend this Christmas, waiting to die. Now back to the story, it doesn't end there One more short verse I need to share Santa fetched Rudolph's body and cried for his friend And swore to himself, this would not be the end And I heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight "The law is wrong, please help us to fight!"

I love Whippets and Greyhounds, Bull Breeds and their wiggle butted crossbred cousins. Kelpies and working dogs are up there on the list as are the little tenacious Terriers. I love the elegent big sight hounds and the determined little Beagles :D

Yogi and Abbie missed out on the fun last time, I hope it happens again :D

What a handsome lad, thankyou for stopping and helping the sweet boy :D I think you have a new family member.

So glad to hear about a dog being saved from the clutches of BSl but why wont people register their dogs as it would give them a SLIGHT safety net to try and protect their pets. Hopefully Tess's owner will keep her safe now :)

Dulcie is looking beautiful Miss Squish, you have put so much hard work into her and the littluns. I am sure Dulcie is not far off finding her forever family

These boys have melted my heart, only full bellies and warmth from now on for these two :) We are sending them gentle Whippet kisses from Yogi,a Bullie hug from Abbie and a little donation from me.

Hi there, this really needs to be a new thread so that it attracts maximum attention. There are some people on this forum that will be able to give you some very helpful information to help you and your dog, good luck.

Welcome to you and Hamilton I think he looks to be one of those wonderful 100% pure lovehounds, often hidden in pounds throughout Australia. What a happy boy he looks, thankyou for giving an older dog a loving home.

With Yogi I spend much of my time saying "No, he is not a small Greyhound, he is a large, well muscled Whippet" No, he is not a Tasmanian Tiger(He has similar markings apparently " "Yes, I know he is a big Whippet but he is definitly a Whippet" Poor Abbie gets called all sorts of breeds but when people ask me I tell them that she is a 100% pure love Hound!!

Hey Robbi I got Justice's backpack from here and postage was $13. I had a look for them from Australian retailers and the ones I found are charging more than double this price. Justice is loving it. We just got back from a 45 minute walk and he was so happy and focused during his walk although he was starting to slow down quite a bit by the end of it.. lol. He's come home and crashed on his bed with a huge, relaxed grin on his face while he waits for me to get his dinner. I might just be seeing what I want to see but he really does look like he thinks he's doing a job when he has it on, even with just the way he walks. I'd be surprised if a 600ml bottle of water weighs 600grams? Justice is about 24-25kg (I tried to weigh him at Petstock a couple of weeks ago but their scales are way out and he came in at 19kg even though he's a tad heavier than normal.. lol) and I started him with a 420g can of spaghetti on each side (so 840g) and he was perfectly fine with that. I didn't want to start out too high and risk accidentally hurting him so we kept that weight until this week and I've now added a 505g tin of soup to each side so in total he's carrying 1.85kg now. You can definitely see the difference the added weight makes just by how much it slows him down but he was still perfectly happy the whole time and during the part of our walk where he gets to go off leash (in a cemetery so no other dogs around) he was still trotting ahead of me to check things out then coming back to me every time I practised his recall and then trotting off again (which I imagine he wouldn't be doing if the backpack felt too much for him). I'll keep this weight for at least two or three weeks until he's completely used to it and it isn't really slowing him down. I'm going to teach Justice the Look at That game to reduce his reactivity to other dogs. The difficult part is finding an environment where there are other dogs but absolutely no risk of any of them approaching him. I'm going to see if it's okay to stay back after our obedience class when they start up again next week and work on it with him while the second lot of classes are running and was thinking about taking him to a dog park but sitting outside the fence, so he's protected from dogs rushing up to him but can still see them and be rewarded for looking at them. The Look at That game might be something work looking in to (pardon the pun) for Abbie? Thanks Snook :) I will be hiking the hills with Abbie and her backpack in no time

Snook where did you get Justice's backpack from? I think Abbie would benefit from wearing one on walks, she is the sort of dog who loves to feel she is doing a job and helping out :) I think she would be fine carrying two 600ml bottles of water, she weighs 36kgs so 1.2kgs shouldn't be too heavy for her do you think? We are never going to be able to go to dog parks with Abbie(thats Yogis forte) but she is getting less reactive to dogs on walks slowly but surely, I do find the biggest problem is off leash dogs on our walks and find myself yelling at people to call their dogs back to them rather loudly sometimes but it seems some people dont realise a reactive dog doesn't want to just say hello to their dog