Tragedy in SF...

[valerie]

Today a 12 year old boy was mauled and killed by 2

pit bulls. It is thought that the dogs were family pets.

Animal Control officials said they'd never been called to

the address with reports of any problems from these dogs.



A responding officer had to shoot one of the dogs, the

other has been impounded.



Police are investigating.

[babygirl]

valerie wrote: Today a 12 year old boy was mauled and killed by 2

pit bulls. It is thought that the dogs were family pets.

Animal Control officials said they'd never been called to

the address with reports of any problems from these dogs.



A responding officer had to shoot one of the dogs, the

other has been impounded.



Police are investigating.


omg thats bad. Poor boy what he must of went through and his family :-1

[koan]

I believe a law has been passed in Ontario and the rest of Canada is likely to follow suit. All pitt bulls have to be neutered or spayed. I've heard arguement that it is how they are raised that makes them "turn" but know of one that was raised in a really great home, experienced with pets, that suddenly had to be put down. They are time bombs.

[valerie]

I did hesitate to post this but remember, we don't know all the facts

yet (Darn, I sort of feel like LC now! ) if we in fact ever will, but

Koan, I'm sorry, pit bulls or German Shepherd Dogs or any other breeds

for that matter are NOT "time bombs"! Remember the 2 large Presa

Canarios that killed Dianne Whipple in SF a few years ago? They had

many instances of bites beforehand, they just weren't reported.



These dogs might not have been trained properly that all humans are

ALPHA, 12 years old or not.



A properly trained police K-9 can go home with the officer and play

with his or kids after work. And die of old age having never bitten

anyone other than the bad guys.

[cars]

What a tragic shame! :-5 Maybe "they" should make pitt bull owners responsible to pay a substantial fine. And even go to prision when this wrongfull situation occurs. It just might make them not so willing to harbor/own such a nasty breed of dog! The dogs probably just can't help themselves, it's just in their blood! :-2

(Nature of the beast!)

[BabyRider]

There are a lot of laws governing ownership of these dogs, and they vary from state to state. Here in Detroit, you may not own a pit bull if you are under 18. The problem is not the breed, it's the breeders. They are EVERYWHERE. The in-breeding and over-population and the continual battle against dog fighting rings is why we hear so much about these attacks.

The drug dealers here LOVE this breed. They are easy to make mean and aggressive. Notice I said "make" mean. These dogs are not born like this. They are born like blank sheets of paper, like any other dog. You get what you put into them. And when you allow a pit bull to become anything except the omega, (the proper place for ANY AND EVERY dog) you are asking for trouble.

While I was in the animal medicine field, I developed a training technique that has been proven over and over. I call it "breed specific" training, and it works like a charm. Each breed has strengths and weaknesses, and each breed responds to training, reinforcement and correction in different ways. Knowing them and learning that you can't train a pit bull the same way you would a Pomeranian is a big step in preventing these problems.

People buy and adopt dogs for all the wrong reasons: Drug dealers gravitate to pit bulls because they can be MADE aggressive, a family buys a terrier because "it's so cute", an elderly woman adopts a mastiff for protection. If people would just take the time to research breeds and the requirements to raise them and find what fits their lifestyle and family, so many of these problems could be avoided.

I cannot tell you how many times I've been called into someone's home to address a "problem" dog, and find out the dog is totally ill-suited to the family. It's damn frustrating, for me, the family, and the poor dog!

Well, I went off on a huge tangent there. Sorry for the hijack, Val. This stuff just aggravates the hell out of me. :-5

[koan]

I understand why you were hesitant to post it. Killing off a dog breed is equivalent to genocide. I didn't vote in the Ontario decision, that's the unfortunate job of the government.

However, the dog I spoke of belonged to my Aunt and Uncle. They know how to raise dogs. There was no sign of aggression prior to the attack. It is definately cause for concern...especially when people bring this breed into homes with children. There are more bad owners than bad dogs.

[valerie]

Hey, BR, I think I gotta give you another one of these:





:yh_clap



You're rackin' 'em up lately, aren't ya?



:D

[valerie]

I see what you're saying, Koan. I guess I shouldn't come off sounding

like it is all one way or the other, I'm sure there are some instances

like the one in your experience.



About a year ago, a family down the street brought home the cutest,

wiggliest little pit bull puppy, and my next door neighbor was pretty

freaked about it. I talked to her and I think she calmed down, but the

best thing has been seeing this puppy grow up and the neighborhood

kids all run around with it and play and dress it up and the whole deal.

[BabyRider]

Hey, thanks, Val! There's a lot of stuff I don't know about. Dogs, however, have been my passion since I was old enough to read, and the problems surrounding a select few breeds could be SO easily overcome with just a little education. It's sad, really, because I think pit bulls can be great dogs, when placed in homes equipped to deal with them, and owners knowledgeable about them. I've known so many good ones through working in the field, that the bad reports we hear just irritate me.

Dogs, any dogs, any breed, don't just "go bad" for no reason. And if I had a dollar for every time I was told "Oh, I KNOW dogs...", well, let's just say I'd be retired at 34. People don't know near as much as they think they do, or near as much as they should. Otherwise I wouldn't have had so many training clients.

[abbey]

I remember the outcry from pitbull owners across Britain in the early 1990's when pitbulls were under attack, when under the Dangerous Dogs Act, which was enacted following a spate of savage attacks on humans.



Owners of American pit bulls were banned from breeding their dogs or bringing further specimens into the country. Existing dogs had to be neutered, registered with tattoos and microchips and kept muzzled in public.



I am in agreement that there are no bad dogs, just bad owners.

[john8pies]

This is tragic, and following something similar in the UK years ago these type of dogs now have to wear muzzles in public (I think) . Of course it`s almost impossible to legislate for some of the dumb owners though!

[koan]

I searched the net for more info after thinking about this for a while. My "time bomb" comment was a bit heavy. I researched dog breeds for three months before I chose my dog. I don't know how many people do that but there should definately be a dog education campaign. The concept that all dogs are "man's best friend" perhaps puts the faulty perception in people's heads that all dogs are cuddly and friendly by nature.

If some breeds need special handling to prevent aggression then it creates a problem that any joker with enough money to buy the dog can take it home and let it become a hazard. If we agree that it is the owners who made the mistakes...how do we prevent it? How do we enforce it? Do we do anything?

[BabyRider]

koan wrote: I researched dog breeds for three months before I chose my dog.
The numbers of dogs put to sleep every year that have been surrendered because a family or person could not handle them would be drastically cut if people would just take the time to do just that.

And "any joker with enough money to go buy one" is exactly what is wrong, and exactly why I saw SO many "problem" dogs.

I'd say that 95% of dogs are bought based on what they look like. (This number is a guess, based on what I have seen from my behaviorist days.) To buy a dog based on looks is like buying a motorcycle because it's a cool color and having no idea how to ride. I was lucky enough, when I was in this field, to help a few families research what type of dog to get. I recall one family that was heart-set on getting a Jack Russell terrier. These are great dogs, great family pets, but this particular family was very busy with pre-teen and teenage kids that had numerous after school activities. Very little time to devote to a dog that requires LOTS of attention and exercise, and becomes bored (read: destructive) when left alone for long periods of time. I was able to talk them out of the JRT and they ended up with a Basset hound, which is quite content to be a couch potato. (Tmbsgrl can probably attest to that!) Yet another family wanted a Pekingese, and they had 2 small children who were intent on picking up a dog by it's ears. They ended up with a Golden Retriever, who would sooner chew off it's own leg than nip at a child.

I truly wish there was some requirement for potential dog owners to devote some time to researching the type of dog best suited to their lives, but don't see it happening. All I can do is try to educate the people in my little corner of the world.

[valerie]

More to this story:



"Mother of Mauling Victim feared Dog"



http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... ITBULL.TMP





I don't have words for the way I feel about the mother of this boy.



:-1

[valerie]

Warning: Parts of the following video may be extremely disturbing to

some viewers. But the pictures in the latter part I think should be seen

by more people, and the statistics at the end are quite shocking.



Again, a warning, this is not for the faint of heart.



The Pit Bull Problem

[Peg]

The child in this story was locked in the basement. Excuse me? Shouldn't it have been the dogs that were locked in the basement?

"It's Nicky's time to go," she said in the interview. "When you're born you're destined to go and this was his time." She has lost her child due to her own ignorance and this is what she has to say?

[abbey]

valerie wrote: Warning: Parts of the following video may be extremely disturbing to

some viewers. But the pictures in the latter part I think should be seen

by more people, and the statistics at the end are quite shocking.



Again, a warning, this is not for the faint of heart.



The Pit Bull ProblemThanks for the words of warning Valerie, i could only manage to look at he first 2 pictures before putting my hand over the screen, very sad indeed!

But very true!

As for the mother of the boy that was mauled, words fail me.........

[lady cop]

bane and hera, the dogs who mauled diane whipple to death, were presa canarios, a much bigger heavier version of the pit bull, and they were specifically trained to kill,they were imported from the canary islands for the sole purpose of intimidation by skinhead gangs. the story is riveting, and can be found here.............those dogs had no business living in an apartment building, the owner had virtually no control....whipple was ripped to pieces.



Amazon.com: Books: Red Zone : The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the ... In this riveting book, noted true-crime writer Jones goes behind the headlines ... Given the notoriety of this case and the horror of Diane Whipple's death, ...

[valerie]

Abbey. let me see if I can time that video or something to let you know

when it's okay to watch the rest of it, only the first part is the really

bad part, after that there are some VERY touching photos...

[lady cop]

the mother of the little boy killed has been charged with child endangerment..............• Mom charged in fatal dog mauling

[mominiowa]

I don't know if I have posted this before - but this lil girl was a cousin to my kids..She was a beautiful little girl. Her family adopted these dogs from an abusive situation - and now they do not have her..People need to think about what they are doing..You can not take an abused dog and think its ok to put them around kids... I feel for my cousins and their loss - but damn...(this happened a couple years back)



By CINDY TOOPES, Courier staff writer



OTTUMWA Only CharLee Shepherd and the pit bull know exactly what happened Tuesday morning and they can't tell us.

CharLee, age 21 months, is dead after an attack early Tuesday morning by one of her family's two pit bulls in the back yard of her home at 819 E. Mary St. Both pit bulls have been euthanized at the request of CharLee's parents, Richard and Darcy Shepherd.

At a 3:30 p.m. press conference, the Ottumwa Police Department confirmed the child's identity and the fate of the dogs. An autopsy on the girl is scheduled for Wednesday morning and will confirm which dog was responsible.

Ottumwa Police Chief Massey said the E911 Center received the call about 7:21 a.m. Tuesday and 'responding emergency personnel were unable to save' the girl. Officials believe CharLee left the house and entered the fenced-in back yard. They are still investigating and aren't sure why she did so, other than she 'was a normal toddler.'

Sgt. Michael Tupper said the OPD had received animal calls in the past 'and a variety of other calls' concerning the Shepherd residence. He added that investigators were still 'trying to sort out' if there had been complaints about these particular dogs.

Lt. Mike McDonough said the dogs were companions and 'were thought of by many people as gentle dogs.' He said there was 'nothing that can be done for the victim' whose life ended tragically.

'But we will try to determine as accurately as we can what course of action to take to prevent this from happening again,' McDonough said.

Officials weren't sure if counseling was under way for the Shepherd family but did say the city was considering counseling for officers, firefighters and medics who responded to the call.

After the press conference, The Courier contacted John Shepherd of Ottumwa, who agreed to speak for the Shepherd family.

'They're staying with her side of the family,' John said Tuesday afternoon. 'Richard's mom and his aunt are also helping and so are the neighbors.'

John said Richard and Darcy and their other two children, ages 10 and 11, needed to go somewhere to be away from their home for a while.

'It's a terrible thing,' John said. 'Something needs to be done about kids and pit bulls. CharLee's life is gone now but maybe other kids can be saved.'

John said he went to the Shepherd house Tuesday morning. 'Richard just sat there and stared, then he was outside beating on his truck and shaking it,' he said. 'Some of them tried to stop him, but I told them to let him go ahead and get it out.'

About 9 a.m. Tuesday, The Courier observed three animals in the backyard a white-and-brown dog lying down quietly in a pen on the west side of the yard, a brown pit bull chained to a dog house on the east side and a third, smaller, mixed-breed dog chained up a few feet north of the brown pit bull.

OPD officers guarded the front and rear entrances to the residence, which is mostly surrounded by a wooden plank fence, more than 6 feet high.

Neighbor Joyce Graham, who said she is well-acquainted with the Shepherds, claimed the dog 'has never offered to bite' any of her family. Graham said she has seven children and all of them have played in the Shepherds' yard.

'That's the safest dog in the neighborhood,' Graham said. 'And those kids are good parents. They don't use sitters they take care of their own. The mother has diabetes and about died having that baby.'

Graham also said the Shepherds 'took that dog in because it had been abused and neglected.'

Henry Kellar of Ottumwa said he also knows the family.

'They found the girl in the backyard, with the dog chain around her,' Kellar said. 'The girl got outside and went into the pen sometime between 4 and 7 a.m. ... The Shepherds are good people and what happened this morning is a tragedy.'