Police investigate dog breed after death

My hometown is all over the english media at the moment, why anyone would want one of these dogs as a pet is beyond me!

A post-mortem examination on a dog that killed a five-year-old girl will determine whether the animal was subject to the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Ellie Lawrenson, from St Helens, was mauled to death early on Monday morning by an adult pitbull terrier-type dog despite desperate attempts by her grandmother to save her.

The dog's owner - Ellie's uncle - had been officially warned about his pet's behaviour in June last year.

Owners of pure-bred pitbull terriers are legally to blame for attacks made by them under the provisions of the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act.

A spokeswoman for St Helens Council said the warning letter had been sent to the uncle, named locally as Kiel Simpson, after a neighbour said the animal had attacked his dog in May.

Several neighbours are reported to have said the animal had violent tendencies and at least one other person has claimed he and his dog were attacked.

Jackie Simpson, 46, had been babysitting her granddaughter while the mother, named locally as Lyndsay, was out celebrating New Year.

Ms Simpson also suffered serious injuries in the deadly assault. The dog was shot at the scene by police marksmen.

It is unknown at this stage whether Ellie was asleep when the dog pounced or what prompted the vicious attack, but officers will be investigating whether fireworks may have scared the animal.

Source

Originally posted by smoker4
The dog was shot at the scene by police marksmen.

Cool.

Stupid dog, the parents should have known the danger of that thing... But it always makes me wonder how the hell did that dog get to the child in the first place?

Pit bulls are banned here, too, if I am not mistaken...I sometimes think it's the owners. Sometimes a dog which is not known for biting or being agressive will attack, and I sometimes think this is due to the owners teaching it to attack. Obviously, not all pet owners are like this, but occasionally you get those who will teach their animals to attack.

The same can't really be said for Pit Bulls, as they are known for being agressive. I don't think they should be banned, just restricted. Perhaps the owners should have a special licence, and keep the dog on a leash, with a face guard when walking it. I think banning these animals is a little over the top.

The breed was banned here in the UK sixteen years ago but there is so many loopholes in the law that they are still around, i certainly agree with the owner being responsible, its so negligent to have a dog like this around a little kid especially on New Years Eve when fireworks and shit are going to be going off.

pit bulls are aggressive, but not naturally THIS violent. NO ANIMAL that you can legally own in your home is THAT violent on its own. this had to be an abusive act of the owners

Pit-bull and Rottweiler are not “natural” aggressive, it is the owners and how the dog was raised that makes it a problem. My wife has worked as a Vet Tech for over 5 years and trusts them more than most other breeds.

My cousin has a pitbull. That thing is HUGE! However its one of the most docile creatures I've ever met. Its according to how you train the dog, not what kind of dog it is. A chihuahua can be more violent than a pit, although it definitely can't do as much damage 😛 but still.

Oh that is so sad, heard about it🙁 poor child, feel absolutely sorry for her parents and family etc.

Originally posted by ThePittman
Pit-bull and Rottweiler are not “natural” aggressive, it is the owners and how the dog was raised that makes it a problem. My wife has worked as a Vet Tech for over 5 years and trusts them more than most other breeds.

They're not naturally agressive but there strength and power make them appeal to people who raise them to be agressive

That is true but you would also need to include other large breed dogs as well.

Originally posted by quickshot
They're not naturally aggressive but there strength and power make them appeal to people who raise them to be aggressive

and many generations of aggressive breeding can make the species themselves aggressive or at least everything that comes from that breed. Doesn't mean they have to become aggressive just that they are more likely too

Originally posted by Fishy
and many generations of aggressive breeding can make the species themselves aggressive or at least everything that comes from that breed. Doesn't mean they have to become aggressive just that they are more likely too

This guy was probably one of those idiot hicks who like hit his dog while it was growing to make it aggressive so it would attack trespassers, worked out well, didn't it?

Lol anyone who thinks that certain breeds aren't more aggressive or don't have a tendancy for increased aggression need their head examined.

PS after we ban certain breeds next we should ban the owners from areas as well, that would rock!

Turns out the owner is a convicted drug dealer who used the dog for protecting his "patch". And he bred the little bastards as well and trained them to fight to the death. What a lovely person. I'd smear his nads in dogfood and put him in a cage with 50 of them.

Originally posted by ThePittman
Pit-bull and Rottweiler are not “natural” aggressive, it is the owners and how the dog was raised that makes it a problem. My wife has worked as a Vet Tech for over 5 years and trusts them more than most other breeds.

This is very true. A Pitbull or Rottweiler is in reality no more naturally aggressive than, say, a Collie. It's all in how the dog is raised.

We used to have two pitbulls, and currently have a rottie. Sweetest damn dogs in the world. But it's because of the size and strength of these breeds that they were often historically trained to fight and as attack and guard dogs, which gives them their bad reputation.

Originally posted by Soleran
Lol anyone who thinks that certain breeds aren't more aggressive or don't have a tendancy for increased aggression need their head examined.

PS after we ban certain breeds next we should ban the owners from areas as well, that would rock!

Originally posted by ThePittman
No they don’t and you should read more about animal behavior. My wife has been bitten more by small dogs then ever by the larger breeds.

Which is to bad for your wife, sorry,

However man has bred dogs for herding (that maintain herding instincts with little to no training) border collies, collies, australian heeler etc etc

Dogs that retrieve and do so with little to no training, lab's, golden retriver, german short hair pointer, viszla's

Guard dogs, doberman, german shepherd etc etc

dogs for fighting, bulldogs, pit bulls, bullterriers etc etc

Dogs can have a predisposition to certain behaviors it's been shown over and over again to look past that is stupid. Training becomes a factor however dogs can be bred with specific purpose.

Originally posted by Soleran
Which is to bad for your wife, sorry,

However man has bred dogs for herding (that maintain herding instincts with little to no training) border collies, collies, australian heeler etc etc

Dogs that retrieve and do so with little to no training, lab's, golden retriver, german short hair pointer, viszla's

Guard dogs, doberman, german shepherd etc etc

dogs for fighting, bulldogs, pit bulls, bullterriers etc etc

Dogs can have a predisposition to certain behaviors it's been shown over and over again to look past that is stupid. Training becomes a factor however dogs can be bred with specific purpose.