Authorities ID teen killed in north NJ dog attack

AP via Philly.com ^ | 03/02/2014 | staff

[Kid Shelleen]

Authorities have identified the 13-year-old boy who was killed when a 115-pound bull mastiff dog attacked him and another youth in northern New Jersey.

Paterson police say city resident Kenneth Santilla and another 13-year-old boy were walking along a street when the attack occurred Friday afternoon.

[yldstrk]

horrifying

[livius]

Horrible. The dog had bitten people before, but a lot of times in lower income neighborhoods, people don’t report it )sometimes because they’re scared of the dog’s owner).

[BeadCounter]

An utter nightmare. Self-Defense should be considered, I think Bull Mastiffs are listed among the more dangerous dogs, it looks like a “Brindle” Bull Mastiff.

[lee martell]

He had to stab his dog over and over to stop it from killing, but the dog would not be stopped. That is but one nightmare scenario, dreaded by any one who loves their pet. Terrible. In the photo provided, I see the owner, Paul Clarke with his dog, Trigger. Trigger is behind a chain link fence about four and a half feet high. That dog was a big as a small pony, and could have easily scaled that fence. Some big dogs become trained and stay that way, others, not so much. A large and powerful dog plus a low fence always equals a high stakes gamble.

[Mastador1]

I think Bull Mastiffs are listed among the more dangerous dogs,

The Bullmastiff is a devoted, alert guard dog, with a good-natured temperament. Docile and affectionate, but fearless if provoked. Although unlikely to attack, it will catch an intruder, knock him down and hold him. At the same time, it is tolerant of children. Intelligent, even-tempered, calm and loyal, these dogs crave human leadership. The Bullmastiff is extremely powerful and needs a firm master who is confident and consistent with the rules set upon the dog.

Uh, no. Sometimes you just have to accept that there are messed up individual dogs, just like people. What we don't know is what the owner has done to this animal or the breeder to its line. Bottom line a child has died because of it. Prayers for his soul and his family.

[Nonsense Unlimited]

It is definitely brindle.
Unfortunately, the media has take every dog that has Bulldog and Mastiff origins and has stuffed them under the all encompassing label of “Bull Mastiff”.
The correct term is actually “Bullmastiff” (one word), and they do not look like this dog. This dog looks much more like a Presa Canario or Fila Brasiliero to me.

[BeadCounter]

Whether you like it or not, there are lists of dangerous dogs out there, all I said is I think I have seen Bull Mastiffs listed. I respect your right to disagree with those lists.

http://dangerousdogs.net/

http://www.ukandspain.com/dangerous-dogs/

[matthew fuller]

He looks exactly like a mastiff to me, NOT a bullmastiff.

www.animalplanet.com/breed-selector/dog-breeds/working/mastiff.html

Tried to post the image, but that wouldn’t work for me right now...

[trisham]

It doesn’t look like a bullmastiff to me, either.

[Secret Agent Man]

remember it’s being written by people who interchange “magazine” and “clip”.

[FreedomPoster]

>>I think Bull Mastiffs are listed among the more dangerous dogs

I don’t believe they are. Not in the top 10 here, for instance: http://dangerousdogs.net/

Good friends have owned a series of Bull Mastiffs over 3 decades plus, usually two at a time. They’ve been sweet dogs. Their most dangerous aspect in my experience is the drool. It can be massive.

[Nonsense Unlimited]

There is no way to know exactly what the dog is without seeing papers (if it even is a pure breed and has then). Here are some things to compare ...
This is the dog in question.


This is the picture of the Mastif you referenced.


This is a picture of two Presa Canarios, one uncropped, one cropped.

Here is a File Basiliero (I owned 3 of them, and this one looks almost exactly like the male I had).


The one think to look at is the set and length of the ears. The Fila's ears fall back (more hound looking) when they are relaxed as the dog in the original picture seems to be.
I'm not excusing any breed or breeds, just trying to help people see the different. :)

[Nonsense Unlimited]

Sorry for grammar and formatting errors in above post. DOH!
I’m trying to get better with using the site interface for more than just text.

[BeadCounter]

You may well be right, I’ve been bitten by a German Shepherd on the wrist and I take care of dogs, there are different factors including sometimes bad owners.