Not meaning to get at you Ramble This is just a topic that really gets me hot under the collar

Ramble
I realise you weren't aiming your thoughts directly at me, I was commenting on thoughts.
And the last comment about heads in sand even if not directed at anyone is still aimed at anyone who doesn't believe in muzzling their dogs. I appreciate you were thinking aloud but on a forum it will be commented on. I am simply questioning your comments.
I do agree with you that the government are faced with a problem. This problem has been going on for years though and every few years the press get hold of it and sit on it and report it to death.
A short fix now is not the solution. A long term plan put in place getting the irresponsible owners and breeders is the better if not harder option for the government. They are trying to do something quickly before the elections happen again.

I voted that I don't have a problem, but that's because I went straight in without giving it too much thought. Having now read all the subsequent posts I am having my doubts.

The comments about "my dogs are ok" is all well and good, so are mine, I can trust them 100%, BUT, if legislation came in that told me to muzzle them, then I really wouldn't have a problem with it. The only problem I would have, is if everyone else didn't follow the law, and we had dogs on the loose without muzzles, and I wouldn't like the idea of my dogs being unable to protect themselves, so in which case I would only muzzle mine if I knew explicitly that everybody with a dog was doing the same thing, so how would that work then? I don't think it would somehow! Unless I knew for certain, that any unmuzzled dog would be seized immediately (in the hope that most people would abide by a new law)or fined on the spot £1,000 (yes, as much as that! That would make them abide by it!)I know I wouldn't stick to the law for reasons already stated.

It springs to mind the way the schoolkids all carry knives, they know it's illegal, but unless they stop others from doing so, they are going to carry them to protect themselves. It really is a no win situation for those of us who are responsible dog owners who want to abide by the law too, if there ever is such a law as this!

if muzzeling is wot it takes to stop certain breeds being victimised then so be it,i dont have a prob with the idea

im sorry i have to say i voted for only in parks were children are.but iv changed my mind

i dont think it would work as decent law abiding people would do it leaving yobbos to please themselves,and its not the decent people it would be aimed at,because decent ppl will have trained dogs those that dont bite ppl and small children,
its the law bending yobbos that have gotten decent ppl into trouble yet again,not muzzling,there vicous dogs,its down to these people that have gotten bull breeds a bad name(sorry off topic)

It wont stop certain breeds being victimised, as the people who have it in for these breeds are going to think they have been proved right, as the dogs will be muzzled.

The people in goverment who think up these ideas should ask themselfs would the huge cost of coming up with ideas like this and keeping dogs on leads all the time be better spent on educating the people that not breeds of a certain type are nasty and also going after the idiots who allow their dogs to be nasty and roam wild instead of giving responsable owners more rules and laws to abide by as they know they will be followed and it show the "all dogs are bad brigade" that they are doing something.

I voted no as i dont think my dog who is well behaved has been going to training since she was four months loves playing ball and has never been agressive to a dog or person (adult or child) should have to stop enjoying her exercise due to responsible owners having to make up for irrisponsible ones!

I leave you lot for a couple hours and come back to 4 pages!!

I take aboard all your comments and I thought I'd post the question after all the problems of late.

Way I see it, is if a dog is muzzled it cant bite, so if all dogs were muzzled nobody could get bitten. I know we are never going to stop bites in the home and of course the irresponsible owners are always there, but at least it would be a target for police etc.. a dog out loose, if its owner was present then he/she could be "on the spot" heavilly fined, they may think twice then. A stray dog is a stray dog, the same would apply as now.

Shows, working dogs/assistance dogs would be fine, obviously these dogs are controlled at all times and 99% of the time are on a lead anyway.

My thoughts anyway.
Dawn.

Having read through and had a thought, I think I come down as a 'NO' too. At first I thought yeah I don't have a problem, but now I think it won't actually solve anything - with many attacks happening on private property, and those that happen in public tend to be loose/poorly controlled dogs whose owners probably wouldn't bother to muzzle them anyway, whilst all us responsible owners have well controlled, well socialised dogs muzzled on their daily walks unable to retrieve etc.

I think a compulsory dog licence (ie fee) is a good idea, with dog wardens having the power to enforce training/improvement orders on irresponsible owners. The licence fee would pay for the training, more wardens and more poo bins etc. Perhaps wardens could enforce muzzling orders on individual dogs if they see fit.

These orders would completely be portrayed by the media as doggy asbos, but I think they could work.

I know!!!!!!!:smt002 I don't feel got at really, I was just thinking aloud!:smt002 It's an emotive subject and I'm still thinking!