Egar- Article Observer Sunday

[kats n greys]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jul/27/ireland.wildlife

 

 

One woman's fight to save the pit bulls

Sara Gunther is providing a refuge for the 'dogs of death' that can be put down under British law

 

• <LI class=byline>

Henry McDonald, Ireland editor <LI class=publication>The Observer,
Sunday July 27 2008
Article history

He was once branded the 'dog of death' by a British tabloid. These days Raymond, a pit bull terrier, jumps and frolics playfully outside an Irish cottage that is offering a safe haven for dogs under death sentences in the UK.

 

The pup gained national notoriety this year when he was bought online by a British Sunday newspaper from underground dealers in fighting dogs. Like others, Raymond is illegal in Great Britain and could be put down at any time because of the Dangerous Dogs Act of 1991, which banned the breeding, sale or exchange of pit bull terriers and some other breeds.

 

The hyperactive ginger pit bull has now been 'rescued' and relocated to an isolated corner of Co Galway, where pit bulls and other dogs in danger live in exile. His saviour is German-born dog-lover Sara Gunther, who has turned her rented cottage into a refuge for breeds that are banned in Britain as well as dogs that Irish owners have either neglected, starved or exploited. On arrival, Gunther nervously asks for ID cards to verify who the strangers at her door are.

 

'I have to check you out because of the Farmers' Boys,' she said, referring to a notorious gang running illegal dog-fighting rings in Ireland. The Ulster Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals labelled the group the 'Manchester United of the dog-fighting world'.

 

'They know that I have pit bulls here, some of whom come from fighting stock,' added Gunther. 'I have received threats on mobile phones that these gangsters want my dogs and will take them from me.' She pleads that The Observer does not print the precise location of where she lives with 22 rescued dogs and her four-year-old son. 'I have to protect myself and my family,' she adds.

 

Gunther says that she grew up with pit bulls in Frankfurt. She says this is why she has no problem allowing her son to play with dogs that have such a fearsome reputation on the other side of the Irish Sea.

 

'The only dog that ever attacked me in my entire life was a golden labrador, but no one in the media will ever do a report about someone being attacked by an Andrex puppy lookalike,' she added, as Raymond leaped around with a fellow rescued pit bull named Bowie, after the rock star.

 

Gunther revealed that her cottage is home to yet another pit bull media star. Nipper was sold to Panorama, the BBC's investigative current affairs show, during a programme on dog-fighting rings. An undercover reporter bought Nipper from European pit bull dealer Paul Dunkel in Helsinki. Nipper was described on the programme as a lethal dog descended from a legendary Texan fighting dog called Little Killer. He was subsequently sold to the documentary makers but has ended up, Gunther claimed, at her sanctuary to avoid being put down.

 

'My son is four and he plays with Nipper,' she said. 'I am even able to foster him out part-time. Nipper has more scars and injuries than any of the other dogs we look after, but he sits and watches cartoons with my son.'

 

Asked if she was prepared to take in more pit bulls and other illegal breeds that face being destroyed in the UK, Gunther replied: 'I have to be very clear about this. I will not break the law in Britain, so I won't go over and take a dog there. But if someone comes to Ireland with a dog and hands it over here to me in the Republic, then that is different.'

 

The organisation that speaks for rank-and-file Irish police officers, the Garda Representative Association, is currently campaigning for an Irish version of the UK's Dangerous Dogs Act brought in by John Major's government in 1991. The GRA highlighted the lack of legislation after one of its members was subjected to a ferocious attack by a pit bull terrier in Galway earlier this year. The officer had to receive more than 100 stitches during a raid on a house in the city when he was savaged by the dog belonging to a suspected drug dealer.

 

The prospect of an Irish Dangerous Dogs Act which would outlaw certain breeds like pit bulls horrifies Gunther. She pointed to her T-shirt, which reads 'Deed Not Breed', referring to a campaign that fights against 'breed-specific legislation'. Gunther argued that legislation would only drive the problem underground and result in dogs such as Nipper and Raymond being put down 'just because of their looks'.

 

 

About this article

Close This article appeared in the Observer on Sunday July 27 2008 on p18 of the News section. It was last updated at 23:59 on July 26 2008.

[celeste]

Way to go Sarah

 

It must get pretty scary for Sarah, if the Farmers Boys did come to her door what on earth could she do about it , I bet all those killer Pit's would just wag their tails at them.

[alisonsophieb]

Sarah is quite disappointed as the reporter took loads of photographs but didn’t print any of them. Not the best picture but the most recent I have.

 

 

Raymond

 

[celeste]

Aw, bummer about the photo's, perhaps he would have printed them if the dogs had been snarling at him

 

Raymond is a stunner, looks so like my Spuddy.

 

Bit off topic but did anyone see Send in The Dogs last night ? that dog that was seized by the transport police for being of type , looked more like a Staffyxlab to me, I'm not usually one to play the racisim card, but I wonder if the person on the other end of the lead had been white and middle aged, would the dog have come under suspicion ?

[alisonsophieb]

No I didn’t watch send in the dogs last night. After seeing, I think the first one which sparked a little debate in doggy chat I will not watch any more. In my humble opinion it is not doing anything to help the breed only over dramatising certain situations as again in my opinion police documentaries often do.

 

Such a shame ITV at prime time don’t make a documentary filmed at Sarah’s with Raymond, Nipper, Bogey and the rest playing with Nate or sleeping on her bed. But I suppose that doesn’t do anything for the ratings. Like you say no snarling teeth. As we all know that’s what these programs and gutter press like to portray

 

I don’t know if its me being over sensitive or that I’m just a stroppy mare and looking for a row but only yesterday a shell engineer turned up to mend my boiler and seemed to make it his business to walk all around my house only to end up at the back of my house trying to find my back door with the large attached dog run to greeted my Akita and American Bull dog and some of the others. For a start he had no business opening my gate at the end of the drive as it clearly states “dogs running freeâ€, and a bell on the gate post rings in the house, none of them are ever loose on my property because of such idiots, and the sign is only their as a security measure - hubby used to work away Monday to Friday, but that’s my little secret.. He went on to tell me how he didn’t like my dogs how they can’t be trusted and that you can’t read them. I wont print my reply. And that he is a GSD man. Being a “GSD man†I would have hoped for a little more empathy, growing up I lived on a lane with a couple of scrap yards, they were “guarded†by GSD’s these poor dogs spent their lives on chains living amongst scrap. As a young child I was always told to stay away from them as they were “dangerous guard dogs and must never be touched or trustedâ€.

 

Earlier on in the morning I had a “door fitter†call to quote me on a back door as “mad mol†(staff x) had thrown her new kong toy and smashed one of the panels of glass. Again my dogs were outside. He saw my dogs through the porch window and went on to tell me “how vicious they lookedâ€, erm I see his point stupid Brian (am bull) looking up at him wagging his whole body, head included.

 

I went to bed quite early last night, hubby asked me what was the matter as I looked agitated - is there any wonder.

 

Sorry slightly off the subject but I’m stressed anyway as the step children are here for the week and I need a rant then to have 2 idiots in one day commenting on my dogs well……..

 

[Yantan]

I do worry about Sarah's safety

 

alisonsophieb when you are next talking to Sarah can you tell her Dan, formerly Anam, is doing ever so well. He has everyone wrapped around his little paw. He is fit enough now to do long walks, loves swiming, preferably underwater and has had his dental which went well

[alisonsophieb]

Aww great news about Anam/ Dan, I’ll pass on the message

 

[DanishPastry]

Has she managed to find another place to live then?

[celeste]

 

Such a shame ITV at prime time don't make a documentary filmed at Sarah's with Raymond, Nipper, Bogey and the rest playing with Nate or sleeping on her bed. But I suppose that doesn't do anything for the ratings. Like you say no snarling teeth. As we all know that's what these programs and gutter press like to portray

 

I don't know if its me being over sensitive or that I'm just a stroppy mare and looking for a row but only yesterday a shell engineer turned up to mend my boiler and seemed to make it his business to walk all around my house only to end up at the back of my house trying to find my back door with the large attached dog run to greeted my Akita and American Bull dog and some of the others. For a start he had no business opening my gate at the end of the drive as it clearly states "dogs running free", and a bell on the gate post rings in the house, none of them are ever loose on my property because of such idiots, and the sign is only their as a security measure - hubby used to work away Monday to Friday, but that's my little secret.. He went on to tell me how he didn't like my dogs how they can't be trusted and that you can't read them. I wont print my reply. And that he is a GSD man. Being a "GSD man" I would have hoped for a little more empathy, growing up I lived on a lane with a couple of scrap yards, they were "guarded" by GSD's these poor dogs spent their lives on chains living amongst scrap. As a young child I was always told to stay away from them as they were "dangerous guard dogs and must never be touched or trusted".

 

Earlier on in the morning I had a "door fitter" call to quote me on a back door as "mad mol" (staff x) had thrown her new kong toy and smashed one of the panels of glass. Again my dogs were outside. He saw my dogs through the porch window and went on to tell me "how vicious they looked", erm I see his point stupid Brian (am bull) looking up at him wagging his whole body, head included.

 

I went to bed quite early last night, hubby asked me what was the matter as I looked agitated - is there any wonder.

 

Sorry slightly off the subject but I'm stressed anyway as the step children are here for the week and I need a rant then to have 2 idiots in one day commenting on my dogs well……..

 

 

Your right about the programm, just another chance to whip the public into a frenzy of accusations and misinformation

 

You rant away any time, I'd have been just as pizzed off if it had been me, we seem to be lucky where we are, any workies that have been in have loved the dogs, even when Daisy ,stotes, them from behind when they are kneeling down . Don't get me started on so called ,GSD men, I used to be plagued by them when I had my white GSD Louie, you wouldn't believe the crap that I had to listen too, from "you can't trust the white ones, they turn on you" to " the white ones are scared of their shadows" what a load of balls.

[Laurel n Hardy]

brilliant job sarah

[dave the dog]

Don't get me started on so called ,GSD men, I used to be plagued by them when I had my white GSD Louie, you wouldn't believe the crap that I had to listen too, from "you can't trust the white ones, they turn on you" to " the white ones are scared of their shadows" what a load of balls.

 

He he I always thought of myself as a GSD man but I guess I'll have to think again now!

Two of my favourite dogs in the Army were White/Creams. Lovely dogs. Bit awkward on patrol in the summer but bees knees in the snow!

Oh well, plan B.

[celeste]

Two of my favourite dogs in the Army were White/Creams. Lovely dogs. Bit awkward on patrol in the summer but bees knees in the snow!

Oh well, plan B.

, Aye, it was quite amazing how Louie could camouflage himself in snow, and mist. He was a fantastic dog, steady as a rock and took everything in his stride, I used to be able to take him absolutely everywhere and anywhere, ah, those were the days.

[EGAR]

That article pee-ed me off big time as I got misquoted and some is a downright lie. I do not *foster Nipper out part-time* nor has he *scars*. He tool what I said about Glor and quoted me as saying it about Nipper..

 

And here is Henry McDonald and his photographer with Raymond:

 

 

 

3 guesses: which if of the lads is the reporter :p

[celeste]

3 guesses: which if of the lads is the reporter :p

 

De one on de left ?

 

Bit daft to send someone who's not that confident with dogs

[EGAR]

Yes, the guy in the suit.. And as per usual, he didn't have a clue. But that is nothing new, the lady who interviewed me for an article in the *Garda Review* re Pit Bull Attacks admitted freeely that she is terrified of dogs and doesn't have a clue about them nor was she interested in learning about them.