Melp

Hello everyone!! Long time no see, mainly because I can' work the buttons in here anymore:-( still busy with DNB still on facebook if anyone wants to say Hi xx

DNB and BBAS have consistantly refused to discuss or get drawn into discussions about the case. We weren't involved then, we're not involved now and we won't be involved at any point in the future. Not only has the reputation of DNB been called into question, so has my personal integrity and all for NOT discussig something we were never involved with in the first place. I won't even comment at all on any FB page anymore because of this and am saddened to see people who know me well, criticising me for remaining neutral at best and 'as bad as the people who want him dead' at worst. It's quite disgusting.

I've taken to bird feeding/watching since we lost our last cat [never liked to encourage the bird in before]. Regular visitirs are; Robin Sparrows Starlings [noisy greedy sods] Greenfinches Goldfinches [very pretty] Pigeons [wood and town or whatever they're called] Collared doves Magpies Blue tits Coal tits Great tits [very occasional] Chaffinches and my favourite cos I'd never seen them until recently- Bullfinches I also have a resident pair of Blackbirds Next door have bats in their eaves so I get to see them at dusk. I know they're not birds but they fly so...

Very sorry for your loss Cher. xx

Very sorry to hear this. Much love to Grandma Squirrel at this sad time:mecry:

I'm rarely online these days but think of you all often. Merry Christmas to everyone. Mel, Ellis, Sam and Alfie Moondog xxx:flowers:

Thankyou. Dennis was with us for almost 8 years and turned 13 in July. A good age for an ex racing greyhound! Sadly he'd been getting doddery for a while and we thought we wouldn't have many more months with him, but we didn't expect him to leave us just yet. Dennis slipped and fell whilst having a wee, cut his right hip and dislocated his left. Not only was it nigh on impossible to sort the dislocation out, he also had a blood disorder which meant any operation was a massive risk. There were also signs of kidney failure. He really wasn't a well dog. Many of you know of Dennis through his "Art" and we raised just over a £1000 for other rescues, all through The Refuge. Many many thanks to everyone who bought one of his pieces and to Sue from South West Sighthounds who let us adopt Dennis. Thanks again for all your kind thoughts. Mel, Ellis and Sam [and Alfie Moon who would say thanks if he could!}

Its brilliant and the more you read it, the funnier it gets. We've been snorting on and off for several hours now lol.

Posh? LOL. 20 minute interview and they show one sentence! Alfie looked nice though didn't he?

The case has been adjourned for skeleton arguements.

1) An extension of criminal law (i.e. section 3 of the 1991 Act) to all places, including private property I agree with Melf that postal workers etc should be safe on my property and that front gardens [or gardens to which people have free access] should be covered by legislation which they already are under the 1871 dogs act. This is a civil action which allows for control orders to be made regarding dogs who are acting dangerously and can be done before a bite occurs. Criminalising people whose dogs attack will not stop those attacks from happening, it will simply open the doors to people to join the compensation culture. 2) Additions or amendments to (including possible repeal of) section 1 of the 1991 Act We don't need any additions to, we need a repeal of. Any amendments should include the option to remove and rehome banned breeds from unsuitable owners rather than the destruction orders we currently have. 3) Repeal of the 1997 Dangerous Dogs Act to prevent any more prohibited types of dog being added to the Index No absolutely not. We would never ever agree to this. Neither would the RSPCA. Not a chance. Other options for consideration: 4) The introduction of Dog Control Notices To be enforced by whom? and what constitutes an offence worthy of a control order? We need to know what makes a person qualified to issue a notice and again, it needs to be a sliding scale. 5) A requirement that all dogs are covered by third-party insurance Whilst I don't have a problem with insuring my dogs, this just penalises responsible owners who already comply with existing laws. Its already the law that drivers have a licence, tax and insurance and most of us comply. The people who don't are criminals and criminals will not get insurance for their animals. Whilst insurance is a good idea to protect owners, it will not stop dog attacks and only compensates victims after the event. No insurance payout will ever compensate for the loss or serious injury of a child. There is NOTHING in any of these proposals to educate dog owners and make them responsible. Attacks will continue to occur and all this will do is compensate for when they do. 6) A requirement that all dogs, or puppies, are microchipped Fair enough, but who is going to enforce that? and again, people with a disregard for the law will not comply. What is the penalty going to be for non compliance? 7) More effective enforcement of the existing law, including a consolidation of existing statutes into one new updated Act Where are the resources coming from? The police don't have the resources, neither do local authorities. Are they going to create jobs and if so, who is paying for that?

I will never agree with Section 1 of the DDA however, while we do have it, it should be made easier and less stressful for owners and dogs, to apply for exemption. So in that case, I don't disagree with the petitioners request.

This has NOTHING to do with the police, it's all down to the local council, one councillor in particular. We're liaising with the police on this and they have NO plans to be involved in any amnesty and have in fact made it very clear to the council that an amnesty will not work. The only involvement the police would have is their usual role of responding to calls of illegal dogs which they do now anyway. This is their current position but if anything changes it'll be posted on here as soon as we know. Meanwhile the email address for Cllr Cyberchick [as Melf calls him] is- [email protected] he is the councillor for Picton ward. Please contact him.

Oh my word what a terrible shock. My condolences to Lesleys family and freinds.

From my loving husband- An airfix model of the HMS Victory A tin partridge [which was later sold in a refuge auction and bought by Clazook] A packet of lawn seed A lump hammer Wonder why he's my ex now?

Brilliant!

Love it!

Wow Jazz I'm seriously impressed at your dedication! Noo man has just had a lump removed but refuses to send pics. Said something about not trusting me when I promise not to share them......

It hasn't really been implemented though. The Met are the only force to have remained proactive. Most other forces have done absolutley nothing. Currently, the most active forces are the Met, West Midlands and Merseyside, with Cheshire, Lancashire, Devon & Cornwall doing a very few cases [1 or 2] Nottingham, where I live have a massive problem of illegal breeds and dog fighting, as does Derbyshire, yet Derbyshre have one inactive DLO and Nottingham don't have anyone at all.

I disagree. Ellie Lawrensen didn't die because the police failed. She died because of irresponsible ownership and a law that failed. The police enforce the law, they don't write it. As far as I can see, the police are not blaming the breed, the media are doing that! The police have merely stated what breed [type] the dog was. The amnesty was a disaster for more than one reason; Many dogs died and many families were devastated by the loss of their pets. It was a typical knee jerk reaction to a terrible tragedy and those dogs died because of the way they looked. The costs of the amnesty, kennelling, vet fees and court cases was massive, and continues to this day [to a much lesser degree]. Hundreds of thousands of pounds were spent. Rescue centres locally and further afield were overwhelmed with the numbers of dogs being abandoned. Undoubtedly many more animals died during the wave of panic than have been accounted for in the offical amnesty figures. Would John Paul Massey have died if the police had responded to the initial call? Quite possibly. Even if they'd visited, decided the dog was type and seized it, the courts may well have exempted the dog. Would that have saved this young boy? No, because the restrictions state that the dogs must be muzzled in a public place. NOT in the home where this incident occurred. The police have a policy in place whereby they carry out a risk assessment [among other things] on dogs they say are type. If the dog and owner pass the assessment, the dog is left at home prior to the court hearing. Typically, dogs are now only in kennels for a couple of weeks. When this policy was introduced, we all thought it was wonderful. I still do. Suppose this particualar dog had passed its risk assessment [no reason why it shouldn't. According to some neighbours it was a nice dog] Suppose the police then left this dog at home and this tragedy had occurred. The police would be hung drawn and quartered for their decision. Does that mean that no dogs should be left, just in case? Would be really be happy with that? The police are damned whatever they do. I hated what they did in 2007. I hated the Chief Con for holding the amnesty and the officers for following orders. I hate that children have died and that people suffered serious injury in dog attacks and that people ALWAYS blame the breed. I hate that people think it'll never happen to them. It can and it does! I hate the law and I hate injustice. This law is unjust. Most of all I hate ignorance and ignorance is what keeps on killing children. We have a law that states that certain breeds and their types are illegal to own. What we need is to educate people on responsible and safe dog ownership no matter what the breed. We need to understand why [in a case such as this] a dog has bitten and then gone on to kill. We need to know what triggered that [and other] attacks and we need to teach people how to properly raise and care for a dog, stay safe and keep others safe. These incidents will happen time and time again unless we can educate everyone. Not just dog owners but everyone. Kids learn that if you put your fingers in the fire they'll get burnt. Whats so different about teaching them that if you poke a dog in the eye, eventually it'll bite? [thats an example, I don't personally know of any child poking a dog in the eye] Whatever has happened in this tragic case will eventually come out. What will be learned from it? God help the next child if the answer is nothing.

In the wake of the tragic death of Jon Paul Massey in Liverpool in the early hours of Monday 30th November, Deed Not Breed and the Bull Breed Advisory Service urge dog owners to remain calm. If your dog has never shown any aggressive behaviour, it is unlikely to do so without warning. All dogs have the potential to injure or kill a person but thankfully, serious incidents are extremely rare. There is no need to panic and no need to abandon your dog. If you are at all concerned about your dogs behaviour, contact a vet or a qualified behaviourist in the first instance. If you see a dog behaving dangerously in a public place, contact the police immediately. Deed Not Breed offer free legal advice and assistance to owners of dogs, police forces, local authorities and solicitors. Our help lines are open 7 days a week until 10.30pm. Calls are charged at national rates. By Telephone General Enquiries - 0844 815 6630 Help Lines - 0844 815 6620 & 0844 815 6610 By Email \n [email protected] Press Enquiries - Press & Media ONLY \n [email protected] Website Enquiries \n [email protected] In the vast majority, if not all cases, a dog will give signs that he or she is about to bite. You, as a responsible dog owner should be aware of these signs and know how to react to them. As owners of dogs of ANY breed, it is our responsibility to ensure the safety of both children and adults. If you are faced with the immediate threat of being bitten. STAND STILL. Back away slowly, avoiding direct eye contact with the animal. DO NOT RUN. Do not corner the animal, make sudden and loud noises [such as screaming] or sudden movements. Educate yourself and children. The majority of bites occur in the home and almost all can be avoided. Do not allow children to stroke, prod or otherwise disturb a sleeping dog, one that is eating or caring for puppies. Do not allow children to hug dogs around the neck, lean over [and therefore threaten] a dog, grab and pull ears, tails, fur etc. Do not leave any dog unsupervised with any child, even your own. A dog can bite several times in a matter of seconds.

Whilst I agree with Roger that it would be helpful to keep dogs alive for behavioral examination, there are cases where that's just not possible. I think given the circumstances in this case, the police had no choice but to shoot the dog. DNB have been asked to appear on BBC Breakfast. Given the kind of reaction those defending dogs recieve, I don't think so.

Another tragedy. Almost certainly avoidable.

What do you mean Kathy?