I've got 3. 2 Amstaffs and one regular garden variety. People often seem more concerned with me than the dogs tbh.

Most Staffy owners are just ordinary people, not yobs.

If you read it all I was sympathising because you get treated so badly!

It is sad, people used to cross the street when I was walking my DDB, turn around or pick their children up, my dog didn't even notice their existence but it was upsetting to me. I just think it's a shame that kids especially are being taught to fear dogs. As dog owners I think its better to advocate for responsible breeding and ownership than demonising certain types of dog as the trends change all the time

Thank you for this. means a lot. even made me well up
its very hard when your dog is lonely and just wanting to say hello like other breeds are allowed to.

I always say its OK he is friendly its no good though. Ive gave up on that and will just take him once a week to my mate's house for a good rough and tumble.

It is sad and as much as you are meant to socialise dogs it's difficult when other owners won't give you a chance even if the dogs are quite happy to get to know each other. I was hoping that she might have a playmate as my mum rescued a staff mix but she hates bitches on sight so that didn't work. As she has so much energy I know she isn't fulfilled to the level she could be and the last time she was truly knackered out was when I took her to the beach last bank holiday and she went swimming for the first time. Now the weather is getting better and I have time off uni so my weekends are free I'm going to take her on designated dog treks, trying to socialise her and tire her out all at the same time.

Really all she wants to do is run but she doesn't have that freedom around here.

It is lonely being a staffy owner, it is very much just you are your dog and walks can be quite melancholic, in as many instances as possible I try and avoid her meeting with the other dog if I get body language signals from the owner that they are judging my dog because I know it'll just be another snub for her that has her tails and ears drop.

Sometimes I will let her touch noses with a dog who the owner is trying to drag away (dog wants to say hello owner doesn't) and after a nose touch and a bum sniff both of them are on their way happier and my girl hasn't mauled their dog or anything else they associate with staffs much to their surprise.

I know now why most people who own staffs have more then one, if I lived in a house with the space I would get her, her own playmate but for now I do what I can.

I also appreciate your kind words and actions and there have been a few occasions where people have said the same to me, it does make you feel better as a staffy owner to know some people can see beyond the stereotype.

Some people avoid us especially as up to xmas when we lost Sapphy we had 3 greyhounds and a whippet but because they have their own pack to play with I'm quite happy about that but I understand how hard it must be for you when your dog wants to play. Years ago when GSD were demonized I used to see a gorgeous huge long haired one regularly and my small/med rescue cross breed loved him, she loved GSD's, no idea why but she was such a little flirt with then. Never had a problem at all and lots of owners said how rare it was that other dogs were allowed to play with them which opened my eyes.

Perhaps 'Yet another dog attack' should be made a pinned thread.

Unfortunately as with everything it's the small antisocial minority who get you all a bad name

This, spot on! The idea that such a dog is ideal around children is ridiculous! I can't think of a more unsuitable breed for a soft easy going gentle family pet! After virtually every incident the same thing is said over and over "oh their 'nanny dogs' great with kids and soft as butter" yet their not are they? As can clearly be seen virtually every time it's announced what breed it is. Ok you might get the odd rare attack off another breed here and there, but nine times out of ten you know exactly what breed is going to come out of the reporter's mouth. Yet people still think these dogs are 'nanny dogs'? Maybe that's why there are so many incidents involving them? People wrongly believing that 'fact' about them and getting lackadaisical about their real nature so they drop their guard and don't keep firm enough control. Their a strong willed, highly motivated powerful dog that require firm handling if only the more desirable traits are to show, get slack about it and you've got a potential loose cannon running about.


Yes any breed can attack, but they wouldn't inflict the same amount of damage. All breeds can bite but not with the same severity.



I thought you were in the US, but it appears your in Britain? With a pitbull? I wouldn't go broadcasting that, if the authorities discover you've got a pitbull you could easily have it removed and put down, as their an illegal breed here.

Very true we are careful with our lab because she is nervous, a nervous dog is more likely to bite IMO what I can't understand is anyone not admitting their breed or some of their breed may be a problem I know lovely calm labs who look like the won't hurt a fly, mind isn't like that after a bad start, I am honest with myself and other people not all labs are the same.

Sometimes it does matter what dog you are walking I had a retriever such a gentle soul but show her a gsd and she looked very scary, just one attack when she was 6 months old left her completely biased about them for the rest of her life. So a dog may react even if yours is friendly because of earlier problems with your breed.

I think a lot of it is more owner bias and that telegraphs to the dog which makes the dog more reactive, dogs know a damn sight more than we do about which dogs are friendly or aggressive. You see it every day owners getting nervy and shortening their dogs lead sending them the wrong signals instead of getting their dog to sit or walk past on a loose lead or even change direction, or in the case of small dogs picking the bloody things up

Yes picking them up is difficult our 5lb chi I have taught to just keep walking, she isn't keen on other dogs so keep walking past stops her yapping or biting, but times I have had to swiftly pick her up because someone has ignored my telling her to just walk on and deliberately brought their dog over to say hello ! Idiots I call them their dog may be happy to meet and greet mine isn't but instead of allowing us to avoid trouble they have to prove a point .....

yeah I know does my head in so many idiots out there...just wish they could be respectful if a dog is on a lead keep your loose dog on a lead or under control not let it come over and say hello whether I have a friendly dog or not, it is on a lead so it is therefore not play time even if it is friendly, let alone if it's aggressive

I like to let my dog run loose at times. I wouldn't have a dog if I didn't live in an area where I could do that. But if I see another 'dog with person' I always put her on the lead and sometimes we come to a mutual agreement to let them greet each other.
In fact she goes on the lead even if it is a 'human without dog' as she always wants to meet and greet. She doesn't jump up but not everyone is comfortable with it. If we encounter kids who want to say hello that's fine but I always warn them that they have to be careful around dogs.

I get so fed up of owners who think it's ok to let their dogs go up to onlead dogs. My girl had a ruptured disc removed from the bottom of her back 3 wks ago. Took her out on sun for her first short lead walk and had a boxer that wouldn't leave us alone. Half her back is shaved and down to the top of her thighs so it's not hard to see she's had an op. The owners actually scowled at us because our other dog barked at theirs.
Maddie's feeling fragile, they just allowed their dog to be so rude when we were changing direction and moving away from them. It's my pet hate.

I wish there were more owners like you Mrs grumpy and mollipops!

If you were breeding a dog to fight in a pit against other dogs, during which humans would be in the pit, and pulling dogs apart during these ferocious fights, what trait would you breed into the dog? Perhaps a trait that would lend it toward being averse to biting humans?

This is a trait in all pit dogs.

Those pit dogs who do bite and attack humans have been badly managed and in many cases cruelly treated. It's likely that any other dog breed would have behaved similarly in similar circumstances.

Pit dogs like pit bulls or staffies are certainly not more inclined than other dogs to bite people. In fact the opposite is the case, for reasons given.

Because these dogs are fearless and strong, they are a target for the wrong sort of owner.

I don't disagree but when you take away the work a dog has been bred for it will redirect it's work ethic in other ways which can make it dangerous IMO collies round anything up we had a collie cross biggest challenge was stopping her rounding up children because she would nip them into place and that was left over from her far past when her ancestors were bred to work. Terriers used to be bred to rat, when they had that job removed they have maintained that murderous quality and it's now that which has got some of them the rep for being difficult with other dogs and a bit snappy.

I see you've fallen for all the guff in the papers about "devil dogs"

it seems you misunderstood what CW was saying.

No I haven't, and why do owners of these dogs always respond the same way to someone daring to question these breeds? Always the same 'oh you've been reading the rubbish in the papers' and a rush to defend the breed and come up with numerous excuses. I've never seen one, not one, admit they shouldn't be viewed as cuddly family pets, that they need strong firm handling to keep them under control and that yes actually they can be unsafe and 'devil dogs' under the wrong circumstances, they just jump in with the 'nanny dog' excuse. I've not fallen for any guff in the papers about them, I'm going off knowledge , facts and common sense. Knowledge that it's always the same breeds that pop up in attacks which can't be a coincidence, facts being that they were bred to kill, and common sense of putting the knowledge and facts together and not leaving a staff around children anymore than I'd leave a beagle near a pet rabbit. It's nothing to do with believing hype, it's to do with using common sense to keep both sides safe. The dog can't help it's nature but the owner can by not putting it in a position to trigger it into acting on it.

Well said !

But as your last sentence states it's owner issues, some of the nastiest dogs I have met have been collies personally. You also need to look at numbers as a whole there's a lot more Staffies out there than other breeds so it stands to reason that there will be more examples of issues especially depending on where you live. Here it's ill mannered labradors and retrievers

No its not well said.. its ill informed crap.

Honestly some people here are a complete joke. You cant train your tiny dog to be non reactive , so you really do believe its imposable for others to train a stronger dog like a staffie to be able to walk past other dogs and people without snapping.

Seems to be JR and Yorkies here, neither of them the best with children.. JR are better than a yorkie.. but only with really good training can they become a friendly sociable dog.