Posted on 12/13/2009 12:40:53 PM PST by WFTR
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. (Dec. 13) - Authorities say a Rottweiler attacked and killed a Florida toddler when the boy reached to pick up a cookie he had dropped.
(Excerpt) Read more at sphere.com ...
Here are more links on the story.
http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/dog-kills-toddler-121209
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/dec/13/132045/child-mauled-death-dog-identified/news-breaking/
The short version is that the dog had never been aggressive. The family thought that the dog was tied in the back yard, but the dog had gotten loose and come through an open door.
Dog chained up in the yard... doesn’t sound like a properly socialized dog - and I’d bet not “fixed” either.... So very very sad.
I meant with the dog.
Pure and utter ignorance.
Rottweilers were not bred for fighting. They were bred as herding dogs, and as draught dogs (they pulled carts).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rottweiler
Yes and the fact that he would kill if you tried to take the pouch.
I saw a report on TV several years back, where they interviewed the parent of a 7-8 yr old killed by dogs.
> am tired of reading about parents who say “I can always get another kid, but I can never find another dog like that one” when the reporters interview them after their child is found dead.<
Wow, I have never run across such an outrageous quote. Dogs are a dime a dozen. Not so your children.
That would be the dog doing its JOB.
now you've gone and done it....
Exotic doesn’t automatically equal big, dangerous, or predatory. Gambian pouched rats are considered exotics but many dogs and even quite a few cats are considerably bigger, and they tend to tame pretty easily.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gambian_pouched_rat
I’ll have to disagree. Rottweilers were, and some still are, herding dogs. That’s what they were bred for. They have since branched out into police and guard work. Pitt bulls have been and are still primarily bred for fighting. Different mentalities for the dogs.
I know. I have 5 snakes, one of which is a Yellow Anaconda. Man, I wish I had a nickle for everytime I was asked about him being dnagerous or ‘poisonous’.
I’ve been bitten by cats and dogs much worse than he could ever do to me.
“Yes, there are a few good Rots and Pits, but to deny that the breed as a whole can be a killer, is to deny the whole premise of dog breeding.
We have dogs that are good at retrieving, tracking, etc.....those breeds were breed for fighting....and they do it well... those dogs should not be pets.”
The vast majority of both breeds, literally millions of dogs, have never attacked a person. The ones that do are not, and should not be considered, representative of those populations considering the legion of non-aggressive, family pets that live their whole lives without incident.
Rottweilers, as has been previously stated, were not developed as a fighting breed. They were cart pullers, and eventually used for other things as many breeds have been. Pit bulls were bred for fighting ANIMALS and assisting the butcher, and concurrently, bred to be extremely trusting and gentle with people. We can’t have it both ways. The dogs were bred to fight animals, as were many, many other breeds, and for the same amount of time, they were bred to be human-friendly.
That means that (and studies actually support this statement) pit bulls are not inherently human-aggressive. They were bred against human aggression, just like labs were bred for retrieving and hounds for tracking game. The dogs causing the trouble are by far owned by more irresponsible people than caring, knowledgeable ones, and this is evidenced by the large percentage of dog bite fatalities coming from intact, chained, or loose dogs, whether in packs, breeding pairs, or strays.
I'm sorry to be slow getting back to you. I misunderstood the original question. In terms of mistakes with a dog, I can think of a few.
The most obvious mistake might be the situation that the family described. The dog had never been aggressive and often played with children in the back yard. They tied the him in the back yard just to have him out of the way. The back door was open, and the dog came into the house without anyone realizing he was there. If they normally kept the dog in the back yard but didn't have the dog tied, they may not have known the best method for tying the dog. I've seen dogs that found ways to get loose from the first few attempts at tying. I've even seen a big dog get a little momentum and straighten the links of a small chain. Do we know that what they did was different from what either of us would have done if we'd decided to tie the dog in the back yard?
Another mistake might be that the dog has never been aggressive towards a service man who has to read a meter or do some work in a fenced back yard. The service guy comes to read the meter and forgets to close the gate securely. The dog doesn't mess with him, but the dog gets into the front yard and attacks a child riding by the house on a bicycle.
Another situation may be that a dog has never tried digging out of the back yard in the year or two that he's been there, but he decides one day to dig his way out of the yard. I agree that the owners should be liable for damages in this case, but I'd have a hard time convicting them on criminal charges.
Yep,I can imagine. My ball pythons don’t get quite as much of that kind of question, but the problem is the same.
This article is about a rottie not a pit.
And I always laugh when someone says to trust them. Why should any of us trust you have a level of expertise to make that claim?
Rotties were not bred for fighting. They were bred for herding and guarding (cattle I think).
Unfortunately, with random breeding, I have seen golden retrievers that would also bite. It’s sad what can be done to a stable temperament in a breed when not breeding for it.
Friendly, reliable, and trustworthy. Quarrelsomeness or hostility towards other dogs or people in normal situations, or an unwarranted show of timidity or nervousness, is not in keeping with Golden Retriever character. Such actions should be penalized according to their significance.
So, should they also not be pets?
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