Hi everyone. Looking for some advice about what to do about the following. My sister is looking after our house and kitten while we are in cornwall, she is there with her dog Amber. Today while amber was playing in the back garden a dog from over the back came running into the garden and attacked Amber. Amber was just laying on the garden and it just went for her, seriously damaging her back end and front legs. Amber didnt fight back she just tried to get away. My sister didnt realise she was badly hurt till she had kicked the other dog off, which wouldnt let go and got Amber inside. Now she has phoned the police and they say that there is nothing they can do because it wasnt a child. :rant: I have looked through other posts on the subject so knew this about public places but is there anything else we can do as it actually came on to our property? I probably wouldnt have had a kitten to come home too if he had been on the garden, luckily he had just gone in. Im so angry at the minute. I cant believe police turn a blind eye to this as the lady with the dog walks it all the time on the carpark behind our house and I feel my animals are now not safe. :rant:
Any help would be great.

Whether on a public highway or not, the owner has to have control of their dog - even on their own property, let alone someone else's.

Have a look at the DEFRA guidelines.

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/cruelty/documents/ddogslawyouleaflet.pdf

i am sorry to hear about your dog i hate things like this when dogs get attacked, i would seriously get your garden secured so the dog can not ever get in again, has the owner said sorry, or offered to pay the vet bill is the dog insured can you claim off there insurance, if not i am afraid this is a irresponsible owner you know if your dog is dog aggressive and as a responsible owner should take measures to insure that your dog doesnt attack another dog, if its no to the above any legal proceedure is going to time and this dog could get in again in the meantime putting your cat at risk, its also not fair that your dog cant enjoy its own garden, i hope you dog gets better soon and doesnt have any lasting damage,i also like some other forum members have a dog that dislike other dogs but are kept under full control, i would deal with the dog owner in a proper manner legally but get your garden sercure asap

you can take legal action against the ownser of the dog for keeping a dangerous dog and having un leached.
they will have to pay for any vet bills court fees and the dog will probably be put to sleep. its a seriouse issue and you should report it to the police.

you should have your dog looked at, at the vets in the meantime and keep all invoices etc that will help get your money back.

I very much doubt the police will do anything about a animal on animal attack, have you reported it to the dog warden ?

sooooo, it got into your garden from a carpark behind your house?

well sorry mr plod, but that makes said dog 'dangerously out of control in a public place'

I'd have forced the point, or demanded to be put through to somebody who was prepared to do their job :mad:

did you ring the stupid call centre or your local community team?

my animals got killed a few weeks ago by somebodys dog, basicaly nobody can do anythign becouse its another animal and not a child

my animals got killed a few weeks ago by somebodys dog, basicaly nobody can do anythign becouse its another animal and not a child

I was also told this when the staffies attacked amber.

Not easy to get anything done if your a council tennant or she is you need to contact them ASAP and report this they will or should put there own wardens on the case then if they do take action they will put the dog on a dangerous dog list if they think thay have a case.Meanwhile get back onto police tell them to log it and give you a incident number just for the record.You need to do all this incase you decide to make a claim believe me been through and the owner of our attacker was a sargent of the south yourshire police force west bar tutututut.You can take action when the attack is taking place as well in what ever means is possible dont think you just have to sit back and do nothing like our finest tell you thats a load of bull.

The link I put up in the previous post is to a layman's term booklet. It clearly states "The law applies everywhere the general public is allowed to go and anywhere your dog goes where it is not supposed to be".

It further states "If your dog injures another person's animal, or an owner of an animal reasonably believes that they could be injured if they intervened to protect their animal from your dog, then an offence may have been committed". The use of the word may is only ambiguous, to my way of thinking at any rate, because every situation is different and there could be extenuating circumstances, which I don't believe there are in this case.

It's important that you don't overlook the pertinent parts of the wording. That document is clearly intended to be a summarised handout but the message is clear that the Control of Dogs Act 1992 does actually cover incidents of this nature and I would pursue it with the police. If you need to read the Act in it's fullest form to determine whether an offence has been committed or not, then the Police ought to have a copy that you can view without you having to purchase it, given that the person you reported it to seems to have a different interpretation. Although, if you did decide to purchase a copy, I imagine it would be a nominal amount from HMSO or whichever organisation supplies Statutory papers nowadays.

We're all probably aware that accidents can happen but most of us do our best to avoid them. I personally wouldn't have any qualms about pursuing this because a) the dog wasn't under adequate control and needs to be, for the protection of other animals and b) your sister should be recompensed for the treatment of Amber. If the owner can't, or won't, safeguard other people's animals then they should be issued with a Control Order that forces them to. The Local Authority, ie Dog Warden, should be able to give you further advice on that.

Oh and check out any insurance policies or employment benefits you may have - whether animal related or not - because sometimes they offer free legal advice of any description. Good luck! :)

very well put Fishpole - don't let anybody who can't be faffed with dogs put you off

stand your ground, don't shout but be firm, and make sure you're quoting chapter and verse so they know you're serious. you'd be surprised how much claptrap the police trot out just as heresay - and don't forget that the flaming call centre are a law unto themselves. they're not trained police, they're just call handlers (and twice I've had to complain to the supervisor over how a call was handled, and the supervisor has agreed with me having heard the call back :suspect: )

Dog Control Act 1996 any person who sees a dog attacking any person, animal or bird, or who is attacked by any dog, may either seize or destroy the dog. This may mean taking action while the attack is happening. Destruction should be considered only if seizing the dog is not an option. You must not first seize and then destroy the dog.

Not easy to get anything done if your a council tennant or she is you need to contact them ASAP and report this they will or should put there own wardens on the case then if they do take action they will put the dog on a dangerous dog list if they think thay have a case.Meanwhile get back onto police tell them to log it and give you a incident number just for the record.You need to do all this incase you decide to make a claim believe me been through and the owner of our attacker was a sargent of the south yourshire police force west bar tutututut.You can take action when the attack is taking place as well in what ever means is possible dont think you just have to sit back and do nothing like our finest tell you thats a load of bull.

i was working on a council estate at edlington,doncaster a few months ago, i saw a staffi and a staffi cross start with an old fluffy dog,the fluffy dog ran to it's front door and the staffis pinned it down in the corner,i ran up with a shovel and seperated them.the fluffy dog was ok thank god.

i was working on a council estate at edlington,doncaster a few months ago, i saw a staffi and a staffi cross start with an old fluffy dog,the fluffy dog ran to it's front door and the staffis pinned it down in the corner,i ran up with a shovel and seperated them.the fluffy dog was ok thank god.

one of the staffis killed a yorkie terrier a few days later.

Sorry not replied sooner, my laptop crashed and just got it fixed. Amber is ok, two big bite marks on her bum and another right under her tail. She seems ok in herself though. She called the police twice and got the same answer, the dog has to attack a child. They said that dogs will be dogs and fight (it wasnt a fight, Amber did nothing) and as for it coming on our garden they said dogs dont know boundries! Dogs dont but owners do!! I will pass all this advice on to my sister. Thanks everyone for your replies.

Twice i have had a pitbull terrior jump over my fence, and try to attack my dogs. The first time i managed to scare the dog off, by shouting at it. The 2nd time, the pitbull got scared when it noticed 2 staffys and a bullmastiff at the other side. Gladly there was no incident :gag: I hope your dog is ok x

Sorry not replied sooner, my laptop crashed and just got it fixed. Amber is ok, two big bite marks on her bum and another right under her tail. She seems ok in herself though. She called the police twice and got the same answer, the dog has to attack a child. They said that dogs will be dogs and fight (it wasnt a fight, Amber did nothing) and as for it coming on our garden they said dogs dont know boundries! Dogs dont but owners do!! I will pass all this advice on to my sister. Thanks everyone for your replies.
COUNCIL NOTICE

If a dog attacks a person, animal or bird, you have reasonable grounds to make a complaint. Complainants' personal details are confidential.

How do I report an attack?Contact us. You will be asked for:

Time and date of the incident.
Exact location of the incident e.g. house number and street.
Description of offending dog – colour, breed, size, sex, whether the dog had a collar or tag.
Address of dog. If the address is unknown, possibly ask neighbours or follow the dog home and note the address.
Is the dog at large and where was it when you last saw it?
If you have spoken to the owner, what was their response?
The name, address and phone numbers of any witnesses to the attack.
What injuries, if any, were sustained by the animal or person that was attacked? Is a vet's or doctor's report available?
Take photographs of the injuries if they're serious. The investigating officer may do this for you.
Your phone numbers - home, work and mobile.
The investigating officer will need a written and signed statement from you and any witnesses to the attack.
Contact details



What happens when a complaint is made?
Following a complaint, the dog owner may be issued with a written warning or an infringement notice, and the dog could be classified as dangerous or menacing. Our animal control team may be able to work with owners to prevent attacks happening again. We may also prosecute the owner of the dog, but this would depend on the severity of the attack.

When do I need to muzzle my dog?When the dog has been classified by us as dangerous or menacing - this would usually happen due to the dog being involved in aggressive incidents like rushing or biting. Classification as dangerous or menacing is not always breed-specific and relates only to the actions of that particular dog and the danger it is perceived to present.
When a dog is known by the owner to be dangerous or to have attacked a person, stock, poultry or property of any kind. This means that if a dog is not formally classified as dangerous or menacing, but the owner knows that it presents a danger, then the animal may still be required by law to be muzzled.
A dog that is required to be muzzled, must wear a muzzle at all times in any public or private place, unless it is confined completely within a vehicle or cage. The muzzle must prevent the dog from biting but allow it to breathe and drink without obstruction.

i was working on a council estate at edlington,doncaster a few months ago, i saw a staffi and a staffi cross start with an old fluffy dog,the fluffy dog ran to it's front door and the staffis pinned it down in the corner,i ran up with a shovel and seperated them.the fluffy dog was ok thank god.Least you had shovel all we had was a bottle of pop but it did the trick policeman wasnt very happy though lol.