dogs shot by police

Had to show you all this...
What's going on at the moment???????

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/m...de/5133326.stm

Just read this Ailsa, appalling state of affairs. Just wonder if they have got the breed right though - the press are notorious for getting things wrong. Pity the Bull Mastiff owners out there now as fingers start to point.

My own father used to tell me to 'get rid' of my Dobes whenever there was anyone attacked/bitten by a Dobe. Didn't matter how much I argued that it wasn't my dogs that had done it he still wanted me to part with them.

I hope the poor lady involved is not seriously hurt.

Think the whole story is just really sad for everyone concerned. As you say, masiff type dog owners are now in for it,to be honest though, the police and RSPCA seem to be on a crusade here against certain breeds and their owners, was reading an article last week about how they were working with the council to 'educate' people in specific areas, with high visiblility patrols...

Well, I could actually understand this if the dogs were in the actual act of mauling this woman, after all, they wouldn't want to have been bitten themselves and they would have had to rescue the poor woman, BUT, to do this at whim (trigger happy) after locating the dogs really shocks me!!!!

For once Ailsa, you may not agree with me!!!!

Theres not that much information given in the story but from what is in there it sounded like a serious unprovoked attack, maybe the owner was scared of the dogs also and if the owner had decided to euthanize the dogs for the attack then as long as the cops made it quick then does it make a difference if they were shot or if they were injected with euthanizia solution? (emphasis on the cops making it quick).

I would hate to think that the owner wanted them dead as a 'punishment' or to save his own neck seeing as it is the owners responsibility to not allow the dogs to be out on their own. It would be interesting to see if these dogs have a history of attacking, if the owner has history of or been reported before for allowing the dogs to roam. The owner should be held accountable for this along with any history and the circumstances in which the dogs were loose taken into account.

This is a perfect example of why the German Dog Laws work.....this type of owner with this breed of dog (including a mix breed) would have had to gone through all kinds of testing, would have had liability insurance so there would at least be some kind of compensation for the victim.....if the attack was bad enough, and it sounds like it was....then it could effect her entire life, her job, her ability to walk.....would have had to have city regulated enclosures for the dogs so they couldnt escape over the fence or something....and if those laws were broken by him then his dogs would have been removed, undergone testing by a professional and more likely put up for adoption rather than be killed...thats if theres a history, if theres no history on the owner for offences then he would be court ordered to abide by the rules and it would be followed up, if he had a history he would be looking at a large fine and possibly jail time.

Helena, the owner asked them to shoot the dogs.

Thanks Flipper, I missed the "with the owner's consent" bit. In which case, then as you say, maybe the owners were frightened of the dogs,maybe they'd been affected by the heat and went a bit haywire, I don't know how I feel about it now, as these could have been dangerous dogs in fact like you say, and it could happen again.

I remember what happened to my guide dog puppy trainer when she was down the Town training little Simon and the big german shepherd escaped from a nearby flat and seriously attacked poor little Oscar, and if the guy hadn't come out, maybe that dog would have then attacked her or some other innocent people

I really don't think it's right that people should even own dogs that attack another human being on sight, unless provoked of course. It's like keeping a lethal weapon at your fingertips isn't it really?

I am terribly sorry for the poor woman who was attacked, but I have to say that I am very uncomfortable about the dogs being shot. By the sounds of things, the dogs were contained at the time the police caught up with them. I'm sure that they died quickly, and without much suffering, but this doesn't detract from the fact that a person (the copper) has killed another being (dog), unnecessarily with a gun. I grew up in a country scarred by violence, and it disgusts me that people would choose to be the agent of a violent death. What was the advantage of this over calling in a vet to euthanise the animals in the usual method?

Hi this is a sad story and i feel sorry for the lady attacked and for the dogs!!! call me cynical but maybe the owners asked the police to shoot the dogs so they didnt actually have to catch them and PAY for a vet to euthanise them!!!!! just a thought

Bit off topic and this probably wont make me any friends ...


But we had a dog when I was child and it was sheep killer, we lived in a rural area of Western Australia and had had the dog 4 weeks before we found out the hard way that the dog was a sheep killer, we came home and found one of our two pet sheep dead, where she had been mauled and we had gotten home in time, to save the other pet from being killed.

That dog didnt go back to the rescue as the woman at that particular time wasnt a true rehomer with the dogs best interests at heart, I dont need to go into details but the dog didnt make it to the vet and we kept a gun at the house.

I think it's a disgusting if the owner has used the police as a method of euthansia for these dogs, but if she/he was genuinely frightened of the animals why should she put herself at risk of being attacked herself ? A gunshot to the head aimed correctly is a quick/humane death. If the owner was able to get them to the vet to be PTS humanely without fear themselves then I think it was disgusting to call the police.

Good point there Willow, they used to shoot horses like this before we had the injection, and in fact, it's still used today, very quick and painless, and I would have thought these armed police were expert marksmen?