Oh they're good names!

I like 'em :-)

Could never even contemplate some of the more 'macho' names that are about!

lol, you see the same with bullmastiffs, Diesal,Spike etc...mine are Kismet, Horatio and Keeper :)

Kate, your post seems to highlight the root of the problem - perhaps if there was better breeding and raising of humans the issues raised in these posts would never happen.

on this site we continually advocate how necessary it is to socialise dogs well, ensure consistency, do not breed from animals with poor temprament, ensure that all needs are met etc etc.  Perhaps if these principles were applied to the human race life would be different.  But then the moral debate kicks in about the ethics of eugenics. :rolleyes:


Throughout history, eugenics has been regarded by its various advocates as a social responsibility, an altruistic stance of a society, meant to create healthier and more intelligent people, to save resources, and lessen human suffering.- wikipedia description

I will heed your advice Lea thanks! ;)

We are going to name our new boy 'Turbo' we think thats quite fitting for a Stafford :D :D

We never use those heavy leather harnesses or collars as they seem to project the wrong image where I live. Mitz has a soft funky collar and normal rope lead :)
Same will be for Turbo, nice soft collar and normal lead.

I dont think people who have young families should be allowed Rotties or boisterous guard dog breeds

Sorry ,but what a ridiculous statement,  Any breed can inflict harm,  I take the point that  the larger more powerful the breed, the more damage can be inflicted.

By implying the above statement ,  you are assuming and being a little condersending as to peoples ability  to own  a particular breed.

I have  what can be deemed a guarding breed, (not as high instinct than others maybe)  but I know my breed,  my 27 yr old son learnt to walk , hanging on to old Sonny`s collar (even back then  , we new never to leave children alone with dogs)

I have a friend how owns a Rottie,  along with her cousin,   I wish I could post a pic , of her grandson (aged 2 then, he is now 3)  sitting on the lawn, surrounded by 4 Rotties all sharing his ice cream.... all sitting waiting in turn for *****  "to give em a lick", my other friends Rottie, (all from the same breeder)     is the most of gentle of dogs around Kids,  (she is a thug around me though )  she likes to barge and jump on my knee.

Said breeder,   has some of her dogs doing "PAT" work, now if a Rotti can go into a hospital to visit the elderly and young children,  and give them pleasure,  surely a reponsible owner can also  put the same effort and training into there own dogs. and they do!!

Irresponsible owners will be irresponsible whatever the breed.....

Anyone buying any breed should be looking to the temperament of the pups parents....it all comes down to you get what you pay for....I wonder if   we looked into the breeding and nurturing of all these dog who have been in the news late,   where they came from  , what sort of breeders?   I wouldn't mind betting any of them   where well bred .

I know sometimes things 9even with the best care and attention) can go wrong,   but on the whole if you "look to what you buy"  hopefully you will have a well ajusted pet.

The "Rottie that killed the 1yr old"  was not a pet, it was a chained up guard dog,  it payed with its life for human mistreatment .

These are the sort of people who should not be allowed to own  big strong powerful dogs.......any dogs for that matter.

If you take the time to read the thread again and not jump to conclusions, :rolleyes: then you will see what I meant was that people who do not train theyre dogs or act responsibly with larger breeds, then they shouldnt be allowed any dog let alone one of such strength like a Rottie espicially if they have young children, isnt that reasonable and responsible?

If you had read again you would have seen that Lea already mentioned that I need to make sure what I say comes out as I mean it on here as things come across differently, I have already thanked her for her advice so please, dont start shouting at me with your cast in Iron views as I share the same views as you do.

dont think people who have young families should be allowed Rotties or boisterous guard dog breeds

Rachel, I did not jump to any conclusions , I read your words as you said them.   What you really meant, was not added till later, when you where picked up on it.

I agree sometimes we  need to read what we write before posting it... as you have taken on board.

I dont think people who have young families should be allowed Rotties or boisterous guard dog breeds.
Same as it breaks my heart when I see a huskie in a normal family who dont have any idea of how much exercise it actully needs to stay sane and they more often then not have behavioural problems dont they due to not being challenged enough.

If you read the whole statement you can see what I was getting as I immediatly said afterwards in the same context that families who cant abide for the needs of Huskies shouldnt have one either, guess I have to litrally spell things out from now on but like Lea said it can come out differently when you cant see a person speaking etc.

Anyway I still believe young families shouldnt have a rottie etc unless they take full responsibility for it, that doesnt just mean saying ''ooo be careful he might knock you over' but implanting from a young puppy the boundaries they are allowed and to give them the training they crave, as all dogs love to be trained!! :) :) For the treats if nothing else! ;)

I had 2 Rotties when my kids were under 5,and the male was named Tyson :o :p The thought of either even harming a hair on my kids head never even occured to me.I dont know if i was over confident or irresponsible.
Both my dogs went to training classes from puppies into adulthood,and both were very protective of my children.My daughters favourite story is when she was sitting in her pushchair in the front garden and Tyson had her hand in his mouth ever so gently and gave a low growl whenever anyone walked past.
I cant remember ever keeping them apart when i wasnt in the same room,but my children dared not ever tease,pull their hair or hang off them,they were taught this from day 1! Infact they pretty much ignored the dogs.
Both my dogs came from a responsible breeder who had small children themselves.

Neither of them ever displayed any aggression to people or other dogs,ever!

I went to our country park and we passed two Rotties along the path with my and other dogs going both directions and people with babies on their Sunday river walk, and no-one acted off towards the Rotts or their owners and the dogs themselves were just mooching along good naturedly, so glad to see that at lest the public down the river walk where most people walk their dogs were not taking the breed hype on board.

what do you mean by full responsibility? i'm wondering what you mean and why this should apply to guarding breeds and not other types

I think is is why there will be more restrictions on dog owners - genuine dog lovers being penalised for the actions of the minority of idiots who think they are above the law.

I am coming round to the idea of compulsory neutering of all dogs (unless you are a recognised/registered breeder) and the lisensing of people who own certain breeds, with temperament tests for both dog and owner carried out on a regular basis.

>.......and the licensing of people who own certain breeds, with temperament tests for both dog and owner carried out on a regular basis.

In an ideal world great....but realistically who's going to carry out these tests, administrate, record keep, who's going to dedicate resources to do all that, which costs money........ unless of course prospective owners pay which may cause dog ownership to go out of fashion due to the expense making those that are adamant to get a dog pay more....  

And why should certain breeds be singled out? - all dogs can bite!

and the licensing of people who own certain breeds, with temperament tests for both dog and owner carried out on a regular basis.

And no doubt this would be carried out/policed by council officers..... Possibly recruited from people with very decided opinions on who should and should not own/breed certain dogs or haven't got a clue and read from a book of instructions.
You can just imagine the job interview for the post of 'Dog Owning Enforcement officer'.................
"Have you ever owned a dog?" "will you work for £12,000 a year?" ......You've got the job!!

Have you considered this, there are very good reasons not to neuter as well as reasons for and it should be a personal decision: http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

Also Licensed breeders are commercial breeders, and most ethical good breeders do not belong to this category, it is in fact dogs from that category that are lest likely to have had high selection criteria applied to their breeding stock regarding temperament and health.