Hello,
Just curious, in the breed standard of the staffordshire bull terrier, why does it have "totally reliable" and affectionate especially with children" and yet you frequently hear about staffies that have attacked kids? Why do something like a ckcs not have that in their breed standard? I have yet to hear in the newspaper of an aggressive cav.
Charlotte

To be honest, Charlotte, you very rarely hear about staffies that have attacked children. The dogs that attack are generally untrained, unsocialised crossbreeds.

Staffies were never designed to attack people, and they are no more likely to than any other breed.

Its like any part of the breed standard-irresponsible people who do not try to breed to it and just breed for money end up with dogs that don't look or in some instances behave like the breed should.
Archer

Charlotte
NO dog in the world is TOTALLY reliable in any way.
I would say the reason you never hear of cavs etc attacking children is because of a biased money making media - where by because one dog may attack forwhatever reason , it makes a good story to follow this up with the same breed story - and a niave public beleives all that is written in the papers .
Anyone who can say there has never been a cav bite a child then I will eat my hat ( if i had one of course :D )

The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is known as the "Nanny Dog".
I have staffies and children and they are all fantastic with my children and all their friends.
I feel I can trust them 100% however I would never leave a young child unattended, not because I think any of them would attack but because it is the sensible thing to do as if ever anything did happen I would never forgive myself. That would be the same for ANY breed of dog even a tiny dog as young children have a habit of tormenting and ANY dog COULD react. I think that is just sensible dog ownership though.
Like it has already been said the majority of these attacks are usually crossbred.
My 5 year old daughter dresses ours up as all sorts and as long as she is giving the attention they love it!!!

I've only met a few staffies in the last few years, but every single one I've seen has been such a softie around people, kids etc. As said in another thread any breed with 'bull' in it's name has such a bad rep. It's a shame.

Wendy

Every stafford I've ever owned and this one is No 4, has been "daft" around kids. And friendly around people. But as you say "BULL" seems to mean "trouble/nasty" to some people.

The pup I have now has her own convoy everytime we step out for a walk at least 3 or 4 of the local kids will ask if they can come on Sal's walk! They come sometimes but realise that she is in "primary school just starting to learn the ropes."

The old bitch we used to have always had to wait for her own ice cream in the summer she joined the queue and moved up a place at a time got to the front and received an ice cream (f.o.c of course) the ice cream man loved her.
She also used to love the slide in the park (this was obviously before kiddies areas were dog free) she queued there to and moved to the top of the slide and came down belly first you had to see it really.

That's so sweet!! Our whippet girls LOVE ice cream and KNOW what an ice cream van is at shows and parks. They even knew when the one was coming round last summer because it played Teddy Bear's Picnic. The one just started coming round this year plays something different thank goodness so they don't 'tell me' it's here anymore LOL.

And lest anyone think I over spoil them - they only got ice cream twice from the van here last summer - but they still knew what it was! How's that for smart LOL

Wendy

Of course they are smart they aren't the ones that pay LOL

Karen

As previously said it is usually cross breeds that are in the papers and not actual Staffies. The reason why you don't see other breeds in papers and especially smaller breeds, I think, in the papers is because although I bet they are just as likely to go for someone the damage done would be much less so there's not as much hysteria and I bet that they don't get put down, even if they bite someone!

By the way I'm not calling small breeds as I've had pom's for years. Like everything else it's more about the people who own the dogs rather than the breed.