Stella Locked Up For Two Years, Now For Euth. Bsl Uk

[_PL_]

I'm probably the last person to know about this but how the hell is this right??!! Does the 'dangerous dog' name mean we get to treat dogs like they have no right to the most basic welfare?

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-devon-35635935

A dog has been kept in a cage by police for two years without exercise, the BBC can reveal.

Stella was seized in 2014 and has been kept in a 3ft by 9ft cage in Devon ever since.

Devon and Cornwall Police refused to give specific reasons why the dog could not be exercised. They said she was considered potentially dangerous.

A worker at the kennels said they were told by police not to exercise dogs held under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Death row

A destruction order for Stella was passed by Torquay Magistrates' Court on 8 February. Her owner was given 28 days to appeal.

The latest on Stella's story and other news from Devon and Cornwall

Laura Khanlarian worked as an assistant at the private kennel used by Devon and Cornwall Police.

She said Stella left her kennel twice during her stay, only for behaviour assessments.

Ms Khanlarian said: "We were always told not to exercise or go into a kennel with any dogs, regardless of character, that had been brought in under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

"We were under no circumstances allowed to touch any of those dogs - which was hard.

"Animal welfare comes before anything, and that was my job. I don't believe I would be doing it properly if I would sit back and think that's OK. It wasn't OK - it's not OK."

Stella's story

Stella, a pit bull-type dog, was seized after police visited her owner, Antony Hastie, in Devon on an unrelated matter in 2014.

She was considered potentially dangerous because of her breed, her behaviour when police seized her and her behaviour in assessments.

Court proceedings heard from Mr Hastie, who said there were no incidents of aggressive behaviour prior to her being seized.

Evidence heard during the court case included video footage of Stella's behaviour after she had spent nearly two years locked in the kennel.

Mr Hastie attended court 11 times over Stella, but in February 2016 it was ruled she should be destroyed.

Stella was kept in a 3m (9ft) by 1m (3ft) cage for nearly two years

Kendal Shepherd, a vet of 30 years and animal behaviour expert, said: "It's terrible. It's unjustified. It's wasting huge amounts of money and it's not doing a single thing to prevent dog bites.

"It's cruel. But it's what our system forces us to do."

The RSPCA has created a guide to good practice for all police forces, which states: "Dogs must be provided with the opportunity to exercise away from their kennel at least once a day and this should be for a total of at least 30 minutes."

Dogs seized by police 7,000 put in kennels over five years £5m spent on kennelling

£650 - Average spent per dog

985 days - Longest period a seized dog was kennelled

Sgt Allan Knight, from the Devon and Cornwall Police dog handling unit, said the force has released dogs back to their owners during proceedings in the past.

He added: "There will always be some dogs, for whatever reason, that cannot go back, and cannot get walked by staff because of the danger they possess.

"We are bound by the court process."

In a statement, Devon and Cornwall Police said: "In the past two years, in the region of a hundred dogs have been seized by Devon and Cornwall Police.

"During this time Stella, an illegal breed that had to be seized, has been the only dog deemed too dangerous to walk due to her aggressive behaviour.

"Once the dog was seized, an initial review was made in which the decision was reached that Stella was too dangerous to be exercised by kennel staff. This assessment remained under constant review and a number of further examinations were made by independent external experts including the RSPCA, who were all in agreeance that the animal was too dangerous for staff to exercise.

"At all times we must balance the needs of the welfare of the animal and the safety of kennel staff. The long established, licensed and accredited kennel in question was in agreement with our assessment. The dog has had continual kennel enrichment with staff and remained in fine and fit condition throughout.

"This dog has threatened and shown aggressive behaviour towards two Police Community Support Officers. There were also occasions where Stella showed aggressive behaviour prior to being seized, which were fully described in court. Stella then attempted to bite a court appointed independent expert during the dog's assessment.

"The length of this criminal case is extremely rare. None of the adjournments were requested or caused by Devon and Cornwall Police."

The full story will be shown on BBC Inside Out South West on Monday 29 February at 19:30 and will be available on BBC iPlayer.

Stella's owner said there were no incidents of aggressive behaviour prior to her being seized

[Little Gifts]

The RSPCA should be bringing a cruelty case against police. If any of us kept a dog in a 9 x 3ft cage for 2 years we'd be facing fines and in fact those who are responsible for law and order should be held to a much higher standard than your average joe. How anyone could think that any living thing could be kept confined and without comfort or stimulation for two years and not change in personality and behaviour is ludicrous. If I were the owner I would be suing the police for damaging and loss of property. I'm glad it is not my dog or I'd have busted Stella out after 6 months.

[_PL_]

Exactly! It's basically police sanctioned cruelty because she is a BSL breed. Basically being treated like an object while she's waiting for legal proceedings. It's so wrong. 'Guilty' or not, a tiny concrete run for 2 years is unjustifiable and if she isn't kennel crazy or institutionalised by now it would be a miracle.

[melzawelza]

The police insinuate she could not be walked due to her behaviour. Even if this was true, how is anyone supposed to build a bond with her and interact safely with her to ensure she is getting her social and physical needs met if they aren't allowed to interact with her? There should have been no issues with a dog savvy person building a safe relationship with her gradually over a couple of months and that person being her primary carer from there on in, ensuring her needs were met.

All that aside I suspect the police are making excuses anyway. This isn't unusual in the UK or even here in Australia. Once dogs are deemed as 'restricted' they are not seen as dogs anymore and all sorts of things that would be considered cruel to any other dog are suddenly permissible.

[aussielover]

If she was that dangerous she could not even be handled for a walk why was she not put down?

A dog is better off dead than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction.

[BarbedWire]

A dog is better off not being born than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction. Why do people breed dogs that could end up like this?

[melzawelza]

A dog is better off not being born than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction. Why do people breed dogs that could end up like this?

There's lots of reasons, mostly stuff like:

- Accidental litters

- Breed enthusiasts who do not want to see the breed die out and good genetics be lost forever

- Random crosses (deliberate or accidental) from parents that are not of any of the prohibited breeds, however the puppies come out with genetic shuffling that make them 'type' (i.e they fit the visual standard the government uses to identify prohibited breeds). Remember that the legislation isn't based on breed, it is based on appearance.

[Sheridan]

A dog is better off not being born than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction. Why do people breed dogs that could end up like this?

I don't think people deliberately breed litters where they go, 'Hey, I wonder how many of this litter will end up locked in a box for two years.'

[Simply Grand]

A dog is better off not being born than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction. Why do people breed dogs that could end up like this?

There's lots of reasons, mostly stuff like:

- Accidental litters

- Breed enthusiasts who do not want to see the breed die out and good genetics be lost forever

- Random crosses (deliberate or accidental) from parents that are not of any of the prohibited breeds, however the puppies come out with genetic shuffling that make them 'type' (i.e they fit the visual standard the government uses to identify prohibited breeds). Remember that the legislation isn't based on breed, it is based on appearance.

Plus rules changing after the fact, plus people not knowing about the laws and/or it not even occurring to them that there may be laws regarding dog breeds and breeding, plus of course some people not caring about the law.

Poor dog

[Simply Grand]

If she was that dangerous she could not even be handled for a walk why was she not put down?

A dog is better off dead than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction.

Presumably the owners hadn't agreed to either surrender her or have her put down and were hopin to get her out so it had to go through the whole court battle before anything could happen. And the welfare of the poor dog probably wasn't considered in expediting the court case

[BarbedWire]

A dog is better off not being born than locked in a small cage for 2 years with no interaction. Why do people breed dogs that could end up like this?

I don't think people deliberately breed litters where they go, 'Hey, I wonder how many of this litter will end up locked in a box for two years.'

Maybe it is time they did, That is my point. They are judged by their appearance Poor dogs!