Dnb Update

[Melp]

We've been a bit crap at keeping people updated recently but we haven't been sitting on our bums doing nothing. Here's an update for you now [this was taken directly from our NDWA presentation so some of it you already know ]

 

Deed Not Breed and the Bull Breed Advisory Service have worked in partnership with each other from the start of our campaign as we share common aims and our skills complement each other.

 

The Bull Breed Advisory Service was formed almost 20 years ago, and offers advice and support to the owners of all dogs, but particularly Bull breeds. Their aims are to promote responsible dog ownership, help to explain the many issues that face dog owners, from their responsibilities under current legislation and everyday good ownership, to health and welfare issues.

 

DnB was formed in response to the Merseyside police amnesty which took place after the tragic death of Ellie Lawrensen who was killed by her uncle's pit bull terrier on New Years day 2007.

 

We are a group of ordinary like-minded people, many involved in animal welfare, but by no means all of us. We joined together to specifically oppose the amnesty because the types of people who create dangerous dogs were extremely unlikely to be those who would hand their dogs in. We felt sure that the only result would be that good dog owners would see their pets killed. The public may feel safer, but the dangerous owners and their dogs would still be walking around the estates of Liverpool.

 

We campaigned against the police by holding public demonstrations, started petitions and had email and letter writing campaigns with the intention of stopping the amnesty from going ahead.

 

However, it soon became clear that it would go ahead with or without the support of groups such as us, the RSPCA, Kennel Club and Dogs Trust – all of whom publicly opposed the amnesty.

 

We quickly realised that rather than campaigning against the police, we needed to help the owners who would be caught up in this amnesty and opened a number of help lines to run in conjunction with those already run by BBAS.

 

We began to raise funds to financially assist owners who didn't want to hand over their dogs voluntarily, but instead wanted to fight for them by asking the courts to enter their pets onto the Index of Exempted Dogs.

 

We began also to build a much better understanding of the work of the police and the dedicated officers responsible for implementing the amnesty.

 

This growing awareness of the broader picture has made us look hard at what we we do.

 

We continue to want a change in legislation, whilst realising that the police and local authorities are just implementing a law that we all agree was introduced in haste by politicians who did not fully understand the issues.

 

In order to be of assistance to dog owners, we also have to be of assistance to the authorities.

 

We assist owners in their court cases in Merseyside and across the whole of the UK and we have developed some excellent working relationships with several police forces and local authorities.

 

We were part of the consultation process when Neil Davies wrote the new policy for Merseyside police and which appears to be working very well.

We support responsible owners going through the court system, whether it is under the 1991 Act or other dog related legislation. This includes giving muzzle training & behavioural advice, free legal advice and help with court preparation.

 

Both Mel Rushmore and I attend many of the court cases and act as Mackenzie friends wherever possible which means we act as an in-court lay advisors to the owners.

 

Where a solicitor is needed for a particular case and where legal aid is not available, we may instruct and pay for legal representation if we have the funds available and the owners are facing financial hardship. Our efforts have so far ensured that we have been able to assist over 200 owners in court cases – and many, many more via the help lines.

 

We have become a mediation service between authorities and owners. This means that we can and have liaised over welfare issues, nutritional requirements, and behavioural issues arising from stress and general enquiries from owners regarding their pets.

 

Since lasy year there appears to have been a real change in the public debate in the issue of so-called dangerous dogs

 

Despite media attention still focusing on so called "Devil Dogs" the general public do appear to be understanding that the real problem is with irresponsible ownership. We accept that it is the damage that can be caused by a large powerful dog that causes concern, but to a child any bite is a traumatic experience mentally as well as physically. In recent research by the University of Pennsylvania, statistics concluded that the most aggressive dog breed of all is…...

 

The dachshund!

 

This report was treated with great hilarity by the world wide press, but any breed of dog biting is no laughing matter to those who are bitten.

 

Over the summer the RSPCA held a conference to consider the whole question of the behaviour of dogs in society trying to arrive at conclusions we can all agree upon.

 

Policies and proposals for changes in legislation from various groups including the Pet Owners Parliament, politicians, Cuthbert Jackson and others are all clear in their belief that education is the key to stopping dog attacks though there is still a long way to go to producing a workable solution that everyone agrees on!

 

Debate in parliament has seen members from all three major parties talking about the need for developing responsible ownership and moving away from a knee-jerk reaction against "Devil Dogs" and whilst the DEFRA ministers didn't feel the law needed changing, at least they didn't rush out to ban more breeds as we feared would happen last year and as might have happened in the past.

Although much has changed in public perception on dangerous dogs, there is still much to be done. We continue to stress our beliefs that not all illegal dogs are dangerous, just as not all legal dogs are safe.

 

 

Children are far more likely to get bitten than adults because of the way they interact with dogs. For example, they move faster, are often unpredictable, and are more likely to try to interact with the dog in a way that unexpectedly provokes aggression. Children are more likely to approach a sleeping dog - or one that is eating - and decide to kiss it or cuddle it, they do not see the signs that the dog is uncomfortable or realize that leaning over or putting arms around the dog is seen as a threatening situation by the dog, the child is then bitten and the dog could ultimately lose its life.

Adults do not always understand and address the safety issues. Many children are bitten while adults are present, even in the same room. Sometimes an incident still occurs much too quickly for the adult to intervene. By teaching people to recognise the signals given out by dogs we believe many incidents can be prevented.

 

Some dog owners feel that their dog should accept petting by any stranger or child, but this is a practice that can actually be seen as threatening by many dogs.

 

We need to educate and encourage responsible ownership starting with the owners of dogs and children. Deed not breed and bbas plan to release advisory leaflets in the coming year.

 

You know as well as we do that there are huge numbers of aggressive dogs of all breeds. The problem is not with the dogs, it's with indiscriminate breeding, selling and advertising and with irresponsible and ignorant ownership. The overall number of dogs in circulation far outweighs the number of responsible homes available, and as such we feel that the breeding, advertising and sale of all dogs needs stricter control.

 

But firstly we want to start dealing with the problems at source. We want to see a crack down on the advertising of dogs and especially of illegal dogs. Currently there are hundreds, if not thousands of advertisements on the internet, in local papers and in pet shops for pit bull type dogs. Often they'll be advertised as red nosed terriers or leggy staffies. People who want this type of dog for a specific purpose, for example fighting, know exactly what to look for. The problem is that the general public don't. As we've seen over the last 20 months, the vast majority of people buying type dogs have no idea!

 

It is illegal to sell or advertise for sale an illegal breed yet rarely is anything done about the people who are providing the vehicle for breeders to sell dogs. It is not enough for them to claim ignorance, and the only thing that we feel will successfully discourage this is for charges to be brought against those allowing these advertisements to be published.

 

Those who are illegally breeding and selling as well as having no regard for the welfare of the puppies they produce beyond money changing hands , are also the least likely to make sure that the new owners are suitable or responsible enough to own any dog.

 

 

We would also like to see an extensive campaign to encourage neutering of dogs to reduce the numbers of dogs overall. Our dog pounds and rescues are full, and healthy dogs are dying due to the lack of suitable homes.

 

Currently, some rescue centres and RSPCA branches offer free neutering on all bull breeds, but this needs expanding to cover the whole of the UK and to include all breeds of dog.

 

We will continue to build relationships with authorities all over the country and feel sure that what we do can be beneficial to them, as well as to owners of dogs unwittingly caught up in legislation, in particular those authorities who have little or no experience in dealing with the intricacies of our current, very confusing dog legislation.

 

Although some authorities have successfully dealt with the welfare issues they had, there are still dogs in kennels across the UK who are suffering from kennel stress and avoidable disease. Welfare issues are a major concern to us and we would like the opportunity to assist authorities in dealing with these issues.

 

We would also like to see a new method of registration for illegal dogs. Responsible owners who are unwittingly in possession of section 1 dogs should be able to have their animals entered onto the Index without the need for prosecution or civil action. It needs to be easier to apply for registration without the dogs having to be seized

 

We would like to see a campaign to encourage registration whereby owners can come forward voluntarily. We're not suggesting an amnesty situation here, rather an opening of the register. Pit Bull Terriers may be illegal in this country but the definition of pit bull 'type' means that many crossbred family pets are and will continue to become 'type' in the future. Ultimately of course, we want to see a repeal of section one of the DDA. Owners of all breeds need to be equally responsible for the actions of their dogs, but the option to be able to register existing dogs is, in our opinion, the best way forward for the time being.

 

In order to get our voices heard, we all need to work together. Currently there are numerous organisations all in agreement that the DDA in its current form is difficult to enforce. None of us can campaign for change effectively unless we are all singing from the same hymn sheet.

 

We continue to forge relationships with local authority dog wardens and have excellent working relationships with several police forces including Merseyside, the Met, Bolton and West Midlands, all of whom work hard to ensure that good dogs are returned to responsible owners.

 

We'd like to end with a couple of case histories. Hopefully these will show you just how difficult it is to work with current legislation and how badly it can affect both owners and dogs when mistakes are made.

 

Mr Adlard faced a section 3 prosecution after his dog Henrick became involved in a fight with another dog. During the course of this fight, the owner of the other dog was bitten. It was assumed at the time that Henrick was the biter.

 

Henrick was not seized at this point and lived at home for almost a year after the initial incident. He was then voluntarily handed over a few days before the section 3 hearing, during which the judge ordered destruction.

 

Mr Adlard immediately appealed and in a subsequent hearing, the destruction order was overturned and a control order put in place instead.

 

Unfortunately it transpired that a breed identification officers report stating that the dog, in her opinion was a pit bull type, had been mislaid during the appeal. The dog could not be returned home unless exempted. The crown court judge refused to exempt the dog at this point and the police had no choice but to apply under section 4b of the act for an exemption order.

 

Sadly the judge in the magistrate's court again ordered destruction and yet another appeal was lodged.

 

Mr Adlard maintained from the outset that his dog was a Staffordshire bull terrier and not an illegal breed. Experts brought in to examine the dog for the defence agreed.

 

Several adjournments later and the case was finally heard on 4^th September this year, almost two years since the initial incident and 18 months since the dog was seized.

 

The owner decided during the hearing not to fight type if his dog could be registered, even though experts and Mr Adlard himself all agreed that his dog was a staffy. Basically he'd had enough and would have agreed to almost anything to get his dog home.

 

The judge agreed to exempt the dog and Henrick finally came home last Tuesday, 18 months after being seized and held in secure kennels.

 

 

This case should never have taken so long to reach a conclusion. Henrick suffered from ear infections, lameness and stress during his time in kennels and cost the police thousands in kennel and vet fees.

 

Neo Ahmed was seized as a suspected pit bull type in November of last year and his owner faced a section 1 prosecution.

 

Neo was held in police appointed kennels while the CPS prepared the case but just 6 weeks after this young healthy dog was seized, he inexplicably died.

 

The police contacted the CPS to advise them of the dog's death and ask that the case be withdrawn as it was no longer in the public interest to pursue it. The CPS refused and the case went ahead.

 

Neo's owner, already distressed at his dogs death still had to prove that his dog was not a pit bull type. Trevor Turner, breed id expert and vet brought in to examine the dogs body with the conclusion that Neo was in fact a mongrel.

 

In court, the judge listened to the evidence and agreed with the expert that Neo was not a pit bull type. Ordinarily he would have been allowed home immediately but in this case, all the owner was able to take away was the fact that his pet had died alone from an unknown cause in a kennels where he should never have been.

 

 

Whatever the breed or type of dog and whatever the offence, none should ever be allowed to suffer in confinement.

 

All in all we've had a busy year. We are looking forward to working with you over the coming months to assist the good and responsible owners of all dogs – no matter what breed – so that we can all be safe, without compromising the welfare of the dogs.

 

 

If you have any questions we would be very pleased to try an answer them.

 

Thankyou.

[dave the dog]

You forgot the "Hellooooo" at the start!

 

 

Sorry, I'll go now

[jacqui d]

keep up the good work you guys

[Rumpole]

You forgot the "Hellooooo" at the start!

 

 

Sorry, I'll go now

 

 

[Yantan]

Well done DNB and BBAS. I think you do a marvellous job

[Laurel n Hardy]

Well done DNB and BBAS. I think you do a marvellous job

 

 

a bloody marvelous job

[tracyb]

You've done an amazing job & I'm sure there's a lot more happy dogs & owners because of you. It saddens me that people who dont even recognise a breed can decide that it's 'pit bull' As you have said you've come a long way in getting people to understand what makes a dangerous dog & it isn't the size or shape of it.

Good luck & even more success to follow

[buddyboy]

Thank you for all your hard work.