# Dangerous dogs



## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

Can anyone give me any information about the process used to decide whether a dog should be declared "menacing" or "dangerous"? 

No professional training, or restricted breeds involved. 

I understand that if a complaint is made, and an assessment is (usually?) made... but what criteria do they use to establish whether the dog is dangerous, or whether, for instance, there has been a "one-off" incident?

I'm prepared for flames, but looking for any information anyone can give me on this. Yes, there has been "an incident" with one of my dogs at home that could result in a complaint - we are now trying to work out what the best solution for all is.

Thanks


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

These decisions are made the discretion people who have to be extremely risk averse and who usually do not understand animal behavior. If you really want help you would have to tell us what happened, I know that's what you're fishing for anyway.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

I'm not fishing for anything other than a solution, anouc. I don't know anything about the process/criteria of how a dog is declared dangerous or not, and would like to know so that I can better base my own judgement on the situation, and therefore, what course of action I should be taking with the dogs. Do you know anything about how the assessments are done and what sort of criteria they use?


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

Yep, In fact I have designed programs for doing so but without knowing what happened I can't give you any guidance. I have to get on with other stuff no so won't be able to help you.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

But you're not willing to help unless I say that I'm fishing? Or just not willing to help?


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## craig.a.c (Aug 1, 2010)

All dogs bite, therefore they are all dangerous.

What a joke, it all comes down to how the dog has been brought up and thats it.


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## Kitmin (Aug 1, 2010)

Kristy I think it depends on the council or local govt that you live under as well, you should probably google your local website. We had a dalmation cross that lived with small children that could do anything with her , however one day she got out of the yard , ran over the road and took a large bite out of the dog that was walking past. Completely unprovoked and completely my fault for opening the gate. 

They complained to our council and she was declared dangerous. Which mean she was to be locked in an enclosure and walked out of the yard wearing a muzzle. This was a one off complaint with no other prior incidents.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

Kitmin - I am facing a similar situation, although, from what I understand, there was not too much physical damage to the other dog (which will will be paying for, of course). I've just learned the assessment is based almost entirely on the incident, with no other background information or behavioural consideration taking place. 

Bit upset, not sure where this will go from here.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

Thanks, Kitmin.


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## hypochondroac (Aug 1, 2010)

Kitmin is right i think, it varies from place to place.
I know of a dogue de bordeaux that attacked and killed a cat that enetered it's yard, each of the animals owners discussed the matter but apparently while the dogs owners were out the council was called and the dog was collected and put to death, all without any notice or communication.

This happened a few years ago now, i believe the death penalty isn't as immediate these days.. though the dogs are required to be muzzled and contained like Kitmin mentioned.

A large part of the judgement call is with the victims and how they judge the situation, and if the dog happens to be of a certain breed they do tend to get more strict, small dogs are often looked over.

I hope things work out for you Kristy.


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## cosmicwolf4 (Aug 1, 2010)

I know in South Australaia there has to be signs on the house, the dog has to be muzzled at all times in public AND has to ear a special coloured collar to identify it as dangerous. The councils also check fencing etc to make sure the dog can't escape.
I have dogs who are well socialised, but for my peace of mind I have 2.5 metre fencing and a chain with padlock on the gate AND a link over the top of the gate. Not because mine are dangerous, but because other people DO have aggressive dogs who attack and your dog is at risk of being blamed for the attack


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## Dipcdame (Aug 1, 2010)

hypochondroac, that is pretty extreme!!!!!! What a sheme for the dog.

Kristy, if an agreement is made between the parties concerned, and it's amicable, then perhaps just leaving things be would be the thing to do, unless you aren't comfortable with that and feel you need to report it, even theough the other party is ok with things, so try making a hyperthetical call to your council, and see what info you can glean from them. If they are ok with the parties coming to an agreement, then perhaps you can edge in some information to let them know who it's about incase somebody else rings them to report it!!!!

Either way, good luck, I wish you all the best in this, keep us posted on how things go?


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## dossy (Aug 1, 2010)

hypochondroac it is illegal to just take a dog from a yard even for councils and govornment. it comes with the tressparsing act and the entering of a property with intent to steal. but if they did give notice then it is normaly not taken to court because they will normaly lose. ok if your dog attacks a human inside the fence ( even if they jumped the fence) then it can be put to death if it attacks a human out of you fance it most probibly be put to sleep. if it attacks a wild animal and you do not do anything about it ie help it/ put it out of its misery the dog can be court orded to wear a muzzle and if it attacks some1 elses animal/ pet it is normly how ever far the person wants to take it. so if these people have taken it to the cops and ask it to be put to sleep then the chances are it will be ( i completly disagree with this but if you have decided to let a dog off the leash then the law basicly sees it as u are willing to accept that it will harm people and that is should be put to sleep.) if you had it on a leash and it bit the dog then its probly a warning. along with the muzzle most states say that you must have atleast 2 warning signes up warning people that you have a dangoures dog...my alsashion sits up on a brick wall just insie out fence and if people hang in the walk way next to our house to long she will stand up and normly they rack off. there was one incedent were she stole a guys hat but he wasnt game to take her on to get it back. ring up your local councile because they will be able to give you better / more accurate info bout this. but realy just try talking to the victms owners and offer to pay 4 the damage and mayb like 2 bags of kible or something. try 2 bribe them with out making it look like ur tryn to bribe them ...hope your dog is ok keep us posted on what happens

sorry about all the text
ps u can also challange the verdict in the local courts if it happens to turn out bad.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

cosmicwolf4 said:


> I have dogs who are well socialised, but for my peace of mind I have 2.5 metre fencing and a chain with padlock on the gate AND a link over the top of the gate. Not because mine are dangerous, but because other people DO have aggressive dogs who attack and your dog is at risk of being blamed for the attack



Ours are social, also, and unable to escape. The incident happened at an off-leash park.


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## Slinkstar (Aug 1, 2010)

*What is a dangerous dog?*

Under the domestic Animal Act 1994, there are two ways a dog can be classified as dangerous. They are:


automatic classification based on a dog’s role – When a dog is used to guard a non-residential property, or
assessment by the the local shire:
when a dog that has been trained to attack or bite someone or anything attached to or worn by a person
if a dog has seriously injured a person or animal by attacking or biting, or is declared a menacing dog.Dangerous dog owners have a responsibility to protect the community (including themselves) from any potential harm.
These responsibilities are outlined in the Act. Heavy penalties apply for owners of dangerous dogs, who do not comply with these requirements.
If you own a dangerous dog, you should receive information about your obligations at the time of the declaration. However, even if you don’t it is still your responsibility to make sure you fulfil all requirements. These relate to:
providing clear and always-visible identification showing that the dog is dangerous
registrating the dog appropriately (ie as a dangerous dog)
providing appropriate homing for the dog
providing appropriate control measures to prevent the dog from harming anyone or getting loose.


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

hypochondroac said:


> Kitmin is right i think, it varies from place to place.
> I know of a dogue de bordeaux that attacked and killed a cat that enetered it's yard, each of the animals owners discussed the matter but apparently while the dogs owners were out the council was called and the dog was collected and put to death, all without any notice or communication.


 
That is criminal, the owner could have sued the council over that as the dog was simply following it's natural prey drive (the drive to chase a moving object) which has nothing to do with whether it is dangerous or not. I used to know a service dog who lived in a house with a cat and the two actually got on very well. This dog had CRAZY prey drive and one day we were having a BBQ when the cat ran across the yard so the dog chased and killed it right in front of us. We couldn't believe it as the dog would let that particular cat eat from his food bowl and they would sleep together etc, it's just that his prey drive was so high he reacted to the cat running even though they were fine together inside the house.

The definition of a dangerous dog as far as the law goes is fuzzy at best and depends on your jurisdiction. Depending on the circumstances a legal challenge would have a good chance of success given that most people in the council know FA about dogs.


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## dossy (Aug 1, 2010)

Kristy_07 said:


> Ours are social, also, and unable to escape. The incident happened at an off-leash park.



then it should be fine it will be dismissed (probibly) and u just pay 4 damage


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

Kristy_07 said:


> Ours are social, also, and unable to escape. The incident happened at an off-leash park.


 
I made a post about the dangers of dog parks a few weeks ago. You should NEVER take your dog to an off leash dog park, it's one of the worst things you can do for a number of reasons, this being just one of them.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

Thank you, for the info, dossy & Slinkstar

Unfortunately, it isn't a very clear-cut circumstance as to who initiated the aggression or why, which will be a determining factor in the investigation. The other dog has been aggressive in the past, and ours was on-lead when the fight started (until he slipped his check-chain). But, ours is bigger, and the other dog walked away with some damage to his front leg, either a puncture or ripped skin, we're not sure. We're unsure whether the damage was caused by our dog or one of the 6 others that jumped on board, or of how much damage was done. Regardless of what happens to our dog, we will try to contact the owners to resolve the financial side of the matter.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

Thanks, anouc. You've been very helpful. If you have any insight into how we can avoid having our dog declared as dangerous, please let me know.


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## hypochondroac (Aug 1, 2010)

Yeah i know, According to the owners they got a payment from the council to replace the dog and the council was blaming the ranger who was called out, he was fired.

This is all second hand information, i was told what happened by the dogs former groomer.


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## Slinkstar (Aug 1, 2010)

Might be fined or or have to pay for vet bills depending on how far the person wants to take it


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## dossy (Aug 1, 2010)

if there were other dogs involved they will not put 6 dogs to sleep because of 1 attack and if it is just a little bit of damage then it will be ok and also they can not prove that it was your dog who did the damage only asume it. im sure your dog will be ok in the end of this...what type of dog is it?


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

Kristy_07 said:


> Thanks, anouc. You've been very helpful. If you have any insight into how we can avoid having our dog declared as dangerous, please let me know.



LOL, I feel like you're being sarcastic. Seriously though it will depend on the circumstances and if your dog was attacked by an offleash dog then your case is looking good. You should treat this like a criminal case and admit to nothing, which would not be wrong given that you don't know for sure whether your dog was the one that inflicted the damage or not.

As far as you know your sufficiently restrained dog and his/her handler were attacked by a dangerous offleash dog with a history of aggression and as a result, your dog escaped and was then attacked by another group of dogs. They will need proof and admissions that your dog was responsible for the bite before they can proceed and it doesn't sound like they will get that. Just make sure your partner does not accept blame unnecessarily


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## Laghairt (Aug 1, 2010)

I should add that it always helps if there is a human victim, i.e. if your partner felt threatened by the aggressor and that's the reason you're dog got loose then it is a very different scenario to dog vs dog aggression in the eyes of the law. Just something to keep in mind.


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## dossy (Aug 1, 2010)

yes anouc is correct you can claim that your god was standing to protect you ( if the other dog got close enough wen the attack was started) i had this happen with my dog. i had the alsation off her leash at an on leash park and was geting "picked on" by 4 18 yr olds ( i was 14 at the time) and lucey came runing back to me once she saw one of them strike me ( grabed my shirt) and she jumped and took him down gave they guy a scratch across the face a split lip from hitting the ground and a ripped shirt she then stood between me and the other guys who hung around no longer then 3 seconds. there was a off duty cop on his way over and he explaind to me that the dog was in no trouble because it was protecting a person and it backed off once it had the advantage over the guy on the ground. its all about position and wether its on a leash and stuff. but normaly if an off leash dog approches you you and your dog have the right to protect your selves


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 1, 2010)

The dog was definitely not protecting my partner from another person. 

Full story: We have 2 dogs, a 3.5yo mastiff x, and a 10mth old wolfhound x. We take them to the dog parks regularly. While they need supervision because their play is often rougher than some of the smaller dogs, they are not aggressive, and come when called.

There has been a rescue rotti, about 6mths old, coming down to the park for the last 3mths or a bit less (I was over here before this dog arrived, so I don't know them). I'm told he was very scared and defensive-aggressive, hiding under the table, and snapping and snarling at any dog that approached, including my two. The last couple of weeks he has been a bit less nervous, and has been running around instead of only hiding. My two and the rotti have never played or interacted in a friendly way, only aggressively, or indifferent if left alone. The rotti must be between 9-12mths now. 

Today, my partner took the dogs down, entered the gate on lead, made the dogs sit (as normal) and turned his back to shut the gate. Before he turned, he noticed that 3 or 4 dogs were coming over to greet ours, although he didn't notice whether the rotti was included in this number. As his back was turned, he heard the mastiff start to growl, then as he was turning to see what was going on, mastiff managed to back out of his collar and *nearly* grab the rotti. The rotti ran, mastiff chased, the other dogs (including our wolfhound - my partner's unsure whether she pulled away or he dropped her lead in trying to grab the mastiff) chased and jumped on the two fighting, and about 10m from the gate, the mastiff grabbed the back of the rotti's head/neck and held on. No shaking or mauling, but no letting go. It took 3 guys giving him the boot 15-30secs before he let go. 

The rotti's owner grabbed his dog, noticed blood from his leg (there was NO broken skin where our mastiff had grabbed his neck), yelled blue murder and walked off with the dog. My partner was concentrating on controlling and leashes both our dogs, and couldn't chase him down to grab details etc. 

Who's to say what set the mastiff off to react so uncharacteristically. All I can think he is he's been approached quickly and purposefully (whether in greeting or aggression) by the rotti who, previously, has only showed fear and aggression towards him. The fact that my partner was knocked off balance by the dog backing out of his collar makes me wonder whether the other dog was in his face and that's what caused him to back up - he's never been clever enough to back out of a collar before. But that's just my speculation. All I really know it that it's very out-of-character for him, but that he's now under investigation, and the assessment will be based on the incident, not on background information or a behavioural study.

I had both the dogs assessed for training about 6 weeks ago, and told while their obedience was promising and could continue into advnced level, that they wouldn't be able to be trained in property defensiveness or personal protection because they were both wusses and showed almost no prey drive or natural aggression/defensive tendencies, and we should enjoy them as good pets, but good wussy pets. And now he's under investigation.


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## dossy (Aug 2, 2010)

oh well hope all goes well for you and your dogs


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## Jeannine (Aug 2, 2010)

*as other dogs were involved i would personally challenge even a one sided investigation

it could have been a bite from any other dog and not yours 

also if the other dog has been observed by others acting aggressive etc then i would get statements from all the others that go to the park to support a claim it was and has been aggressive in the past 

also the fact your dog grabbed him behind the head says a lot, 'most' dogs if they are fighting try to go for the other dogs throat, its how they kill prey remember, so it wasn't trying to kill the rottie more like showing who is boss

i certainly wouldn't be sitting around waiting for them to declare my 'maybe' innocent dog as vicious *


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 2, 2010)

Thanks, Jeannine. We're not friends with anyone at this particularly park, as it's not our chosen one, more a convenience. I doubt that the other regulars will be on our side at this point, if the reactions of people after today's fight is anything to go by. 

At this stage, we plan to try to be in contact with the other owners to sort out the financial side, prepare a statement that alleviates our dog of as much fault as possible according to the dog aggression laws, and go from there. I'm not aware that there's much else we can do at this stage.


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## euphorion (Aug 2, 2010)

the fact that you have had your dogs assessed for obedience recently stands you in good stead, thats assessment may prove useful. perhaps contact an animal behaviourist for their judgement on the matter (to be a behaviourist they must first be a quailified veterinarian so take what they say with a grain of salt)

as anouc said, admit to nothing, from what you have said it sounds as though your mastiff was reacting defensively regarding your partner having his back turned when they were approached by the rotti. as your previous experiences with this rotti have been anything but good (and this being a failing on the rotti's owners by not having the animal trained and socialised adequately) you could argue that your mastiff was assuming the worst (not to anthropomorphise or anything) in the rotti's approach an reacted to control the situation. of course ideally your mastiff would not have reacted, but dogs will almost always react to another dog that does not behave following the prescribed script of doggy language (unoffencive approach with suitable unthreatening body language, greeting, etc.) with your dogs being socialised (lets assume that they are) have they reacted in this way or similarly before to having an unfamiliar dog approach them while they are on the leash. being on the leash, while good for your case because they were restrained/under your control (for arguments sake) can provoke defencive reactions from most dogs as they know they are restrained and therefore cannot utilise the flight reaction if threatened, and therefore jump straight to the fight reaction. 

ANOUC - i know you know more about me with this, please jump in here and correct me if i have said something stupid, i am only posting with what i would suggest, but i am no expert!


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## Wild~Touch (Aug 2, 2010)

Google "menacing dogs", you will be shocked, p..ss....ed off and disgusted (even if your dog had been tormented, harrassed or provoked in it's own backyard.)

There was a law SNEAKED in lasty July 2009 to cover any incident concerning dogs...it's enough to make any responsible dog owner
"nauseous"
Good Luck Kristy - just fight for your dogs rights


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## Kitmin (Aug 2, 2010)

Good luck kristy, maybe they wont complain to the council. In our case they did, and the council were on our doorstep that night, as soon as the incident happened I told them I would pay for all the vet bills , but they decided that our dog was dangerous, and the council (whether they are right or wrong I am not debating that) just followed the law.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 2, 2010)

shooshoo said:


> the fact that you have had your dogs assessed for obedience recently stands you in good stead, thats assessment may prove useful. perhaps contact an animal behaviourist for their judgement on the matter (to be a behaviourist they must first be a quailified veterinarian so take what they say with a grain of salt)
> 
> as anouc said, admit to nothing, from what you have said it sounds as though your mastiff was reacting defensively regarding your partner having his back turned when they were approached by the rotti. as your previous experiences with this rotti have been anything but good (and this being a failing on the rotti's owners by not having the animal trained and socialised adequately) you could argue that your mastiff was assuming the worst (not to anthropomorphise or anything) in the rotti's approach an reacted to control the situation. of course ideally your mastiff would not have reacted, but dogs will almost always react to another dog that does not behave following the prescribed script of doggy language (unoffencive approach with suitable unthreatening body language, greeting, etc.) with your dogs being socialised (lets assume that they are) have they reacted in this way or similarly before to having an unfamiliar dog approach them while they are on the leash. being on the leash, while good for your case because they were restrained/under your control (for arguments sake) can provoke defencive reactions from most dogs as they know they are restrained and therefore cannot utilise the flight reaction if threatened, and therefore jump straight to the fight reaction.
> 
> ANOUC - i know you know more about me with this, please jump in here and correct me if i have said something stupid, i am only posting with what i would suggest, but i am no expert!



Thanks, shoo. I agree with everything you've said, and this is basically how we will be playing this out. I agree that it wasn't ideal for my partner to enter the park with them on lead for the reasons you mentioned, but other owners have the responsibility of controlling their dogs, as well, whether on lead or off lead. The onus is not entirely on me - in fact, while it's ideal if everyone knows not to bring their dogs through the gate on-lead, it's unlikely, so their should be MORE responsibility on those owners with dogs already off-lead who run over and harrass the new-comers. 

As Kitmin said, a complaint was filed, so there were council guys on our doorstep last night to check that the dogs couldn't get out, and a regional officer showed up this morning to book an appointment with my partner to give his statement, and also check out the dogs. Luckily, when he was let in the front gate, the dogs didn't even get up from their morning nap, just gave him a few blinks and a yawn. He commented that they looked like good dogs. Which they are. 

I'm sorry if anything I said yesterday was over the top or perceived as rude. I was pretty distraught, thinking of the worst possible scenario (my best mate being put down), and overreacting. There really isn't a lot of evidence to suggest that Kaiser viciously attacked the rottweiler for absolutely no reason, and that we are totally responsible. We are certainly prepared to do what we have to do - pay the vet bills (which I doubt will be more than antibiotics and a couple of stitches at the most), not take the dogs to the park anymore, continue their training - but I'm hoping that they won't have to be registered as anything other than our pets. 

At the end of the day, there was a fight down the dog park. It happens. And hopefully the council realise this without thinking that every dog that gets into a fight down the park needs to be declared dangerous or menacing. Kaiser shouldn't have reacted, but the other owner should have also had control over his notoriously snappy, aggressive dog, as well. There is no reason for us to believe that Kaiser's reaction was totally unprovoked, and it is entirely unlike him to bite another dog, especially without reason. I will be putting all of this and what happened into a statement, and passing it onto a friend for legal comment before my partner's interview with the regional officer. I'll also be contacting my obedience trainers for some sort of statement, since they assessed both our dogs only weeks ago to determine whether both dogs could start training in property defense and personal protection, to which they said no, because neither dog was naturally driven, defensive, or aggressive enough to take on this kind of training effectively. 

My partner will be attempting to make it home early enough to make contact with the rotti's owners over the next couple of days, and being seen to try to resolve the issue by the other regulars down the park. Hopefully, they will see reason, and that, in the context of an off-lead park, sometimes things like this happen.

If anyone has anything else to suggest PLEASE DO! Thanks all for your input so far.


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## morgs202 (Aug 2, 2010)

What a crap situation! Hope it all works out for you Kristy


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 2, 2010)

Thanks, Morgs. I'm sure we'll sort it out. Beer when I get back?


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## morgs202 (Aug 2, 2010)

Hellz yes!


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## euphorion (Aug 2, 2010)

Kristy, what dog park was this at? I still do take my dogs to off-leash parks and would probably prefer to know which park we are talking about so that i can avoid it or at least be fore-warned.

I suppose i am lucky in having a dog park to go to where my dogs and i know the regulars and their pooches, there are a few we know to be wary of but other than that there are few problems.


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## Wally (Aug 2, 2010)

I've given up on the parks. My boy and I wander the paddocks now. I've had one too many off leash dogs come at the both of us and given the breed that he is will be guilty until proven innocent in any situation. We've even had a very aggressive mutt swim across a creek to have a go at him. Good luck Kristy it sucks that you've been put in this situation.


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## Paulie (Aug 2, 2010)

my mate has a staffy x pitbull and a bull mastiff x with a 6 foot high fence all away around their backyard, a few months back they got a call saying someone attempted to break in, this lady jumped the fence in return this she was mauled by these two dogs and just left there. the cops arrived walked to the fence and laughed at her for jumping in the yard with these 2 dogs, they called my mates and they went over, they lady was arrested and nothing got made of this incident because of that 6 foot high fence. just a story i thought id share.. paulie


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 3, 2010)

Thanks, Wally - yep, as much as I and the dogs enjoy the socialising at the park, we will probably not be going back, either. We'll find some nice paddocks or a creek or something to run around in from now on. 

Thanks for the story, Paulie. Nice to hear dog-protects-property stories that don't end in a public liability law suit.

Shoo - I'll PM you the details of the park...

Thanks, all. After further consideration yesterday, I've come to the tentative conclusion that the situation will probably resolve itself throughout the course of the investigation. With my dogs' temperaments and history (or, lack thereof), combined with the aggressive history of the other dog involved towards our dogs over the past 3mths, there is no way that this could be construed as a completely unprovoked attacked, or that that kind of aggression or behaviour is reoccurring in my animals. The feedback from the regional officer was that, while the investigation is based primarily on the incident, that people's statements and evidence that they gather about our dogs along the way also counts. He was very impressed by the fact that when he entered the backyard (where the dogs were) to check out the security of the property, they thumped their tails at him a few times, but couldn't even be bothered getting up to say hello. He said it goes to show that they are 1) definitely not naturally, insanely aggressive about anything and everything, 2) not excessively protective of the property when one of us is home, and 3) that point 2) probably indicates to them that we are the leaders of the pack, and that they're generally happy letting us take the lead and make the decisions (true).

I can only imagine that Kaiser has reacted (and, admittedly, probably overreacted) either defensively because he felt hassled when he was still on lead, or, protectively (of either my partner, or the puppy, or both) as they were approached by this dog that has been nasty to them every time they've met in the past few months. 

It is something we need to keep it mind - he's simply too big to be making mistakes. So he (and my partner ) will be undergoing further training, and the equipment that we use to walk them will probably be upgraded to something more secure (pinch collars), as well. At least until they get the point. 

Personally, while it's a serious issue having a big dog that feels that it's his job to protect the pack, I'm struggling to feel that it's a bad thing when he has also stopped two burglars, one suspicious character walking towards me on the street one night, and stopped a serious attack on the puppy when she was young, as well. I still love him to bits.

Do you think these faces are dangerous?


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 6, 2010)

Quick update - the council officer has been around this morning and made some positive comments. 

It turns out it was the owner of the Rottie that made the complaint, and the officer said he was obviously pissed off that the incident had occurred and admitted to making the call out of the "safety of the public" but, also, straight out vindication toward us. Good work, mate.

The owner hasn't submitted a vet report with his statement, and without one, it will be assumed that the Rottie's injuries were superficial. It strikes me as odd that if the injuries were substantial, he would have submitted a report with his statement. 

The officer also said that in 9 years on the job, he'd only ever had to declare 2 dogs. 

His final comments were that, without putting the cart before the horse, we probably don't have too much to worry about at this stage. 

We may still decide to have the dogs independently assessed for our own piece of mind. But, in the meantime, we keep our fingers crossed for 6-7 weeks until a decision is made. 

The officer was very late to our appointment, because he was called to an emergency situation. A seemingly normal pet german shepherd was being walked by its owner when an elderly lady walked by them and the dog attacked her. The lady's injuries were bad. His comment was that that will probably be the 3rd dog he will have to declare. Kaiser must have seemed positively angelic by the time he got to our place. 

It's be a very stressful week  but hopefully, we're through the worst of it, and can move onto happier things.


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## Jay84 (Aug 6, 2010)

That sounds really positive Kristy!

Fingers crossed on the outcome, but going by the assessors comments it definitely looks promising!


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## euphorion (Aug 6, 2010)

The faces of angels! Hope everything works out okay for you all. Look into wag tails training, they have a website, i'm planning on taking both of my young dogs there for further training soon, they seem like the best place so far for my needs


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## Laghairt (Aug 6, 2010)

That's great Kristy, really happy to hear that. I just handed in my assignment so I'm going to try and do some posts this weekend re agressive dogs, dog parks etc. I didn't think there would be too much interst on this forum but I've had a few PMs suggesting otherwise.


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 7, 2010)

It sounds promising, at the moment. Thanks for all the comments. I'll keep you updated.

Anouc, even though it's a reptile forum, everyone has dogs. I say post away!

Shoo - my guys have been trained by redgum kennels - they're fantastic, especially with the bigger dogs!


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## shellfisch (Aug 7, 2010)

Kristy_07 said:


> Anouc, even though it's a reptile forum, everyone has dogs. I say post away!



I agree. Some of the dog related threads on here are some of the longest, especially relating to issues like this


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## da_donkey (Aug 7, 2010)

here is my killer dog!!!!View attachment 157989


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 7, 2010)

no pic, donks! I wanna see!


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