Fenced off kids area traps victims IN.

[Infinite Chaos]

Eleven children have been injured in a dog attack in a fenced-off play park.

~

Adam Mulvey, who lives next to the park, said: "I got a knock on the door from a little girl telling us that there were several children trapped in the park with the dog, and one of them was my little girl.

~

Fiona Richards, who lives opposite the park, said: "The dog was running around super fast biting every kid in there, I saw it grab a little one by the shoulder. It was bedlam."

Link.

I always get so angry when I see dog owners take their dogs to junior kids playparks. This story is just horrific, Blyth is a quiet northern town but "Staffies" and "Bull terriers" are a status dog for many owners - owners who like to come to kids playparks with their dog. This one seems to have been left there unsupervised and with only kids playing in there - in a fenced off (in this case - fenced IN) area.

Why do people feel the need for these dogs? Why get a dog that really needs constant supervision if a) you can't devote that time b) can't keep it under control? You always have to suspect this kind of thing can and will happen.

 

[roguenuke]

I always get so angry when I see dog owners take their dogs to junior kids playparks. This story is just horrific, Blyth is a quiet northern town but "Staffies" and "Bull terriers" are a status dog for many owners - owners who like to come to kids playparks with their dog. This one seems to have been left there unsupervised and with only kids playing in there - in a fenced off (in this case - fenced IN) area.

Why do people feel the need for these dogs? Why get a dog that really needs constant supervision if a) you can't devote that time b) can't keep it under control? You always have to suspect this kind of thing can and will happen.

This is very sad. I love animals but owners need to take care of their pets and absolutely should be held responsible for what their pet does.

I don't think the fact that this was a fenced in area is more than just a tragic part of the circumstances. If the owner had been there, and actually accessed the situation, rather than allowing the animal to run free (from what I read, with absolutely no supervision, not even in the area), then chances are good that no one would have been attacked in the first place. The fence is there for a reason unrelated to "trapping" kids inside with an attacking animal. There was almost certainly some way in and out of that park (beyond climbing the fence). In a panic, I can easily see children and even parents not being able to think clearly enough to all use it, but there had to be a gate somewhere. And it wouldn't make sense for it to be locked rather than perhaps latched.

 

[clownboy]

The gate can be seen in the picture - it's yellow.

I really don't get the dog attraction.

 

[Thoreau72]

Americans love their fences! :3oops:

 

[roguenuke]

Americans love their fences! :3oops:

This happened in England.

 

[Thoreau72]

This happened in England.

Thank you, obviously I did not read the article. Brits love their fences and their cameras.

 

[shrubnose]

Anyone who lets any dog run free in the USA will probably have a legal problem.

 

[roguenuke]

Anyone who lets any dog run free in the USA will probably have a legal problem.

Looks like the owner will face legal problems in England too. Not sure what that would be, but with 11 kids hurt, and one probably needing a skin graft, if it is to pay for those medical bills, it is going to be quite expensive.

 

[Skeptic Bob]

Thank you, obviously I did not read the article. Brits love their fences and their cameras.

The use of the word "bedlam" should have been a dead giveaway.

 

[Skeptic Bob]

The father of one of the injured children is the one who subdued the dog. His daughter had to get surgery. He said:

"I'm a dog lover and it killed me to sit on it and hold its face to the ground. But it was a powerful dog - not a nice thing to happen,"

He is far more cool headed than I. I like dogs as well but if a dog had just injured my child that badly it would have been dead before the authorities showed up.

 

[clownboy]

Looks like the owner will face legal problems in England too. Not sure what that would be, but with 11 kids hurt, and one probably needing a skin graft, if it is to pay for those medical bills, it is going to be quite expensive.

Chances are very good the owner would be unable to pay and there won't be real consequences for them. The dog might be put down, but the owner will probably have a new one or two before the ashes have cooled.

 

[roguenuke]

Chances are very good the owner would be unable to pay and there won't be real consequences for them. The dog might be put down, but the owner will probably have a new one or two before the ashes have cooled.

Do you have some evidence for this, especially related to England and similar cases?

In fact, England specifically outlaws allowing a dog to be out of control in a public place. And this affected a lot of children/families.

https://www.gov.uk/control-dog-public/overview

 

[clownboy]

Do you have some evidence for this, especially related to England and similar cases?

In fact, England specifically outlaws allowing a dog to be out of control in a public place. And this affected a lot of children/families.

https://www.gov.uk/control-dog-public/overview

I watch a lot of Brit TV. Mostly COPS type shows and the council propo. It's interesting to see the differences in penalties - they are way, way lighter. The public there is expected to live with crime and criminals in most areas that would cause us to remove those people from society. Pick your poison, they seem to be okay with more "property" crime than we are. Sentencing is a joke.

And what happens in the UK if you are the subject of a judgment and you are on the dole. Is your dole affected? No. Roughly a third are on the dole.

I've seen many cases where dogs are taken away because they are savage. The dog owners just get a new dog.

Also note, that beside it being the law:

More than half of uk pet owners don’t have pet insurance

 

[joG]

I always get so angry when I see dog owners take their dogs to junior kids playparks. This story is just horrific, Blyth is a quiet northern town but "Staffies" and "Bull terriers" are a status dog for many owners - owners who like to come to kids playparks with their dog. This one seems to have been left there unsupervised and with only kids playing in there - in a fenced off (in this case - fenced IN) area.

Why do people feel the need for these dogs? Why get a dog that really needs constant supervision if a) you can't devote that time b) can't keep it under control? You always have to suspect this kind of thing can and will happen.

I don't know. But you like dogs, he likes kids and I like cats. If his kid pulls my cat's tail, your dog can have it the damn kid. eace

 

[Ntharotep]

The father of one of the injured children is the one who subdued the dog. His daughter had to get surgery. He said:
He is far more cool headed than I. I like dogs as well but if a dog had just injured my child that badly it would have been dead before the authorities showed up.

Also an animal lover. I also would drown the animal without thought if it attacked my daughter.

 

[roguenuke]

I watch a lot of Brit TV. Mostly COPS type shows and the council propo. It's interesting to see the differences in penalties - they are way, way lighter. The public there is expected to live with crime and criminals in most areas that would cause us to remove those people from society. Pick your poison, they seem to be okay with more "property" crime than we are. Sentencing is a joke.

And what happens in the UK if you are the subject of a judgment and you are on the dole. Is your dole affected? No. Roughly a third are on the dole.

I've seen many cases where dogs are taken away because they are savage. The dog owners just get a new dog.

Also note, that beside it being the law:

More than half of uk pet owners don’t have pet insurance

There are many reasons this particular case is more likely to actually lead to a prosecution. You have a lot of parents involved here. Not only the 14 (a different report says more than 11 children were bit) children actually bit, but also over 15 more terrorized (which is in fact a problem). And this dog was unattended (from another report, a girl brought him to the park/near the park, then took off his muzzle, and sometime before the attack on the group, the "staffie" turned on her, bit her, and she ran off, and that's when he started going after the other kids). Staffies or pitbull terriers are in fact banned in England. There are exceptions made, but this would definitely not likely be made one.

FactCheck Q&A: the facts on dog attacks

There are just too many factors at play here that lead a person to believe that this won't just be a slap on the hand. I doubt the community would stand for that.

 

[Mr Person]

I always get so angry when I see dog owners take their dogs to junior kids playparks. This story is just horrific, Blyth is a quiet northern town but "Staffies" and "Bull terriers" are a status dog for many owners - owners who like to come to kids playparks with their dog. This one seems to have been left there unsupervised and with only kids playing in there - in a fenced off (in this case - fenced IN) area.

Why do people feel the need for these dogs? Why get a dog that really needs constant supervision if a) you can't devote that time b) can't keep it under control? You always have to suspect this kind of thing can and will happen.

I do a lot of running and my main gripe on the dog front is the owners who cannot control their dogs, so that the dog will leap across the sidewalk to try to play with (hopefully not to try to bite) me, forcing me to jump into the street to avoid being tripped, etc.

Oh, right, and the ones who leave dog**** on the ground, especially when it's snowing. At least people around here are starting to tie it up in a bag but then leave the bag. I guess that's a bit better if you were to step in it, but really, don't own a dog if you aren't willing to the work.

 

[clownboy]

There are many reasons this particular case is more likely to actually lead to a prosecution. You have a lot of parents involved here. Not only the 14 (a different report says more than 11 children were bit) children actually bit, but also over 15 more terrorized (which is in fact a problem). And this dog was unattended (from another report, a girl brought him to the park/near the park, then took off his muzzle, and sometime before the attack on the group, the "staffie" turned on her, bit her, and she ran off, and that's when he started going after the other kids). Staffies or pitbull terriers are in fact banned in England. There are exceptions made, but this would definitely not likely be made one.

FactCheck Q&A: the facts on dog attacks

There are just too many factors at play here that lead a person to believe that this won't just be a slap on the hand. I doubt the community would stand for that.

The "community" doesn't have any say and the police don't have time for dog crime, heck, they don't even have the resources for real crime. The magistrate will most likely issue an offense order against the owner and suspend sentencing. They may rule that she is barred from dog ownership in the future, but there's no check on that whatsoever.

 

[roguenuke]

The "community" doesn't have any say and the police don't have time for dog crime, heck, they don't even have the resources for real crime. The magistrate will most likely issue an offense order against the owner and suspend sentencing. They may rule that she is barred from dog ownership in the future, but there's no check on that whatsoever.

They just changed the laws on this less than 3 years ago, increasing penalties for these things. I guarantee the community has a say, influence when it comes to 30 kids terrorized, 14 of which bitten. It's already cost money.

 

[Infinite Chaos]

The "community" doesn't have any say and the police don't have time for dog crime, heck, they don't even have the resources for real crime. The magistrate will most likely issue an offense order against the owner and suspend sentencing. They may rule that she is barred from dog ownership in the future, but there's no check on that whatsoever.

They just changed the laws on this less than 3 years ago, increasing penalties for these things. I guarantee the community has a say, influence when it comes to 30 kids terrorized, 14 of which bitten. It's already cost money.

There was a case 2 years ago where 2 women had a Presa Canario / Bull Mastiff cross which they seem to have starved one day while they went off to a barbecue, the dog jumped a fence into a neighbour's garden where he'd been cooking his evening meal and the dog attacked and killed him (eating his arm while still alive) - the incident happened before the new law and they were sentenced to prison for a year but also banned from keeping dogs. Clownboy is right they could try and get dogs - however if they are found to have dogs again, they can be seized but it depends on someone letting the police know.

Update on the OP, a 37 year old woman has been arrested and is likely to be sentenced. The dog will be destroyed.

 

[roguenuke]

There was a case 2 years ago where 2 women had a Presa Canario / Bull Mastiff cross which they seem to have starved one day while they went off to a barbecue, the dog jumped a fence into a neighbour's garden where he'd been cooking his evening meal and the dog attacked and killed him (eating his arm while still alive) - the incident happened before the new law and they were sentenced to prison for a year but also banned from keeping dogs. Clownboy is right they could try and get dogs - however if they are found to have dogs again, they can be seized but it depends on someone letting the police know.

Update on the OP, a 37 year old woman has been arrested and is likely to be sentenced. The dog will be destroyed.

I just don't see this woman getting off easy in this case because of the carnage the dog caused. That's a lot of kids. And you better believe if she stays in that neighborhood after this the parents are going to be watching to get her for anything, especially if they view her as getting off easy.