'Dangerous' dog breeds - should they be banned?

[jimmy jazz]

Not always no, there's multiple references of "family dogs" doing this. I will quote some for you later but I'm just about to start work. I don't believe the answer to XL bully's is more XL bully's.

There was a woman here who got killed by her own dog recently.

XL Bully.

She'd been posting on TikTok about how her dear old pooch woukdnt harm a fly or some shit when the bans came in.

RIP.

[Trollheart]

Isn't that from raising them badly though?

Also my analogy still kind of works because people die at the hands of their own guns.

Guns don't have hands.

[Guybrush]

That's kinda the problem with the breed as a whole though. It's not really their fault, but we as humans bred them specifically to be rough and aggressive.

The victims are mostly adults, attacked suddenly and often without provocation. Only a small number of injuries are fatal, but many are life-changing. In 2023 xl Bullies made up less than 1% of Britain's dog population and yet, according to Bully Watch uk, the dogs were responsible for 44% of dog attacks on people. They estimate the breed is 270 times more deadly than all other dog breeds combined.

Their ancestry helps explain their aggression. Pit-bull terriers were bred to win dog fights, contests which begin with two animals and end with one. Though illegal in Britain since 1835 and in America since 1976, dogfights' popularity as a forum for betting means many continue underground. With money to be made by breeding the best fighters, handlers selected those with tenacity and "gameness"—the ability to keep fighting despite serious injuries. Over decades, the pit-bull terrier developed the ability to attack suddenly, and sustain grave injuries without retreating. This genetic history is present in the xl Bully. "These dogs, being bred for aggression, are likely to inherit aggression," says David Sargan, a geneticist at Cambridge Veterinary School. "However well you treat them, a proportion of them may explode."

The quote says it all, I think. There's no point in people owning dogs that are some hundreds of times more likely than other dogs to just kill someone.

People overemphasize their own abilities to raise and handle dogs, not realising how big a part genetics play when it comes to this risk.

[SGR]

The quote says it all, I think. There's no point in people owning dogs that are some hundreds of times more likely than other dogs to just kill someone.

People overemphasize their own abilities to raise and handle dogs, not realising how big a part genetics play when it comes to this risk.

Yup, I completely agree. We were the cause of this problem, and now we need to decide how best to handle it. Any claims that pits are inherently no more aggressive or dangerous than other breeds, and it's all about how you raise them are not based in reality. You can make that argument for some breeds, but not pits.

[DJChameleon]

It was a joke, not an analogy. And it was still better than your gun analogy lol.


You're saying getting a dog for protection after being attacked by a dog is like getting injured ( I assume we mean attacked) with a gun and then buying a gun for protection. The difference is a gun would also be better defense against a dog than having your own dog around to fight it. So why would you not just get a gun in both cases. You're assuming the person who gets shot wants a gun for protection simply because that's the weapon they were injured with. Which is a strange assumption.

Bruv you speaking about the UK it's not as easy to just get a gun to protect against the dog maybe a knife.

Also I don't see it as such a weird assumption to make that a person shot by a gun would want to protect themselves with a gun. You think they would become some passive monk that views all guns as evil and not want to protect themselves with a weapon?

[FETCHER.]

Knifes over a certain length are illegal too.

It's not a weird assumption, I completely agree but it feeds in to the vicious circle doesn't it?

[DJChameleon]

Yes it does feed into a cycle that's why gun violence in certain areas of the states is pretty high.

[Jwb]

If someone attacked you with a Molotov cocktail would that cause you to start hoarding bottles? Or would you just want a gun regardless of what the threat is. Give your head a shake.

[DJChameleon]

If someone attacked you with a Molotov cocktail would that cause you to start hoarding bottles? Or would you just want a gun regardless of what the threat is. Give your head a shake.

I would become an expert Molotov cocktail throwing. I would want to be the best of the best and start working on my angles while throwing.


Idk why you are acting like this us a strange behavior.

People tend to want control over things when bad stuff happens to them. They don't want to be harmed by the thing that harmed them before.

[Trollheart]

Looks like we're on our way to banning XLs in Ireland. Can't say I'm sorry.

Minister Heather Humphreys has said she fears attacks by XL bully dogs "will become more frequent" if action is not taken, as she announced that the breed are to be banned under new regulations to be introduced later this year.

The Minister for Rural and Community Development said the ban, which will be implemented in two phases between October and February, is in the interest of public safety.

It follows calls for tighter dog control measures after a number of high-profile dog attacks.

Last month, 23-year-old Nicole Morey died after being attacked by an XL bully dog at her Co Limerick home.

The first phase will commence on 1 October this year, when it will be illegal to breed, sell, rehome or import XL bully dogs.

The second phase will be introduced on 1 February 2025.

This will see a ban on owning an XL bully dog, unless the owner has a Certificate of Exemption.

The certificates will only be issued to owners who can prove their dog has a licence, is microchipped and is neutered.

Further criteria for this exemption will be discussed by the Stakeholder Group on Dog Control.



In a statement, Minister Humphreys said: "If we do not take action now the number of these dogs in the country will grow and my fear is that these attacks will become more frequent.

"It is my strong view that Ireland should not be out of step with neighbouring jurisdictions in Northern Ireland and the UK on this matter."

"I know a lot of people will not agree with this decision. I'm a dog owner myself and I know people love their dogs," she said.

"We must be mindful however that no dog's life is worth more than human life. Ultimately, that is what guided me in making this decision."

When asked about enforcement, Minister Humphreys said that the responsibility initially will be with dog wardens, who also work with An Garda Síochána.

However, the minister said that more dog wardens are needed. There are currently around 70 around the country.

Minister Humphreys said that there would now be a "big focus" on recruitment to ensure that these regulations will be enforced.

Owners of XL bullies who do not comply with the new regulations after 1 February next year will have their dog seized and euthanised.

XL bullies are already among 11 breeds of dogs, including crossbreeds, on a "restricted breeds" list in Ireland, but there are currently no bans in place.

Restrictions mean that while in public, these dogs must be muzzled, be kept on a strong lead by someone over the age of 16 and wear a collar with the name and address of their owner.

The measures are being introduced following consultation with the chair of the stakeholder group on dog control and the Attorney General.



In March, Ms Humphreys established the group to examine dog control issues.

That working group is chaired by former garda assistant commissioner John Twomey.

Taoiseach Simon Harris has also previously said he would like to see a ban and that there was a "clear need" for Government action.

The new measures will bring Ireland in line with the UK.

Last week, a similar two-stage approach on XL bully dogs came into effect in Northern Ireland, so the announcement means the rules will be broadly the same on both sides of the border from October.

In a statement, the DSPCA said it was concerned that "people will panic and abandon their pets".

"We understand that Minister Humphreys has had a difficult decision to make and we will wait to see how this will work in practical terms. As a charity our fears are that people will panic and abandon their pets or look at already full rescue centres to rehome them."

[Paul Smeenus]

[Trollheart]

The point is that pitbulls and XL bullies are often owned by people who have no real interest in a dog, other than as a status symbol or weapon. Nobody worries about German Shepherds or Great Danes or dogs like that because they're kept primarily as pets. And in the case of German Shepherds, guard dogs. But they don't have the inbuilt aggression that XLs do, and those dogs have been involved in far more attacks - some of which have been fatal - than all the other breeds combined. All my life I've had dogs and never once were any of mine involved in an attack on a human. With XL bullies this seems to happen all the time, and they're massively powerful and lethal dogs, which is why people are so worried about them.