DOGS TRUST RESPONSE TO LORD HARRIS’ COMMENTS
17 May 2010
Dogs Trust, the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, is appalled by the suggestion made by Lord Harris, former Metropolitan Police Authority Chairman, that dogs seized under Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 should be shot to save the Metropolitan Police the cost of kennelling them.
Dogs Trust, who will never put a healthy dog to sleep, strongly believes that euthanasia should always be the last resort with any dog. Dogs Trust believes that the use of a firearm on a dog is only justified in the most unusual circumstances where absolutely no other means of euthanasia is possible and where the operator is competent to ensure that no suffering is caused. There are pharmaceuticals that can be easily injected under the skin or into the muscle of a dog that will sedate them effectively to allow a competent person to give a lethal dose of barbiturate intravenously.
Dogs Trust has long campaigned against the Dangerous Dogs Act. This breed-specific legislation stipulates that the ‘type of dog known as a pit bull terrier’ and three other breed types: Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino and Fila Braziliero are banned in the UK. Identification of these banned breed types is based on appearance which is an imprecise and discriminatory way of identifying a supposed ‘dangerous dog’. As a result, hundreds of family pets with no history of aggression have been needlessly seized since the introduction of the Act and held at the taxpayer’s expense.
Dogs Trust believes that the Dangerous Dogs Act needs to be completely overhauled. The use of Dog Control Orders is a better way of preventing attacks, promoting responsible dog ownership, and will both save money and reduce the unnecessary suffering and destruction of dogs. Early identification of problem dogs and problem owners is the way to better protect the public.