Who Let the Dogs Out! Is it Time to Get Them Trained?
When it comes to pets, a large majority of people instantly think of cats and dogs as the main group invited into our homes. But when people pop out to get that cute little puppy do they really consider the full implications of what owning a dog involves?
With more households now becoming the 'proud' owners of untrained and unruly dogs, is it time to bring in compulsory training for owners so that they can train these dogs?
As I am writing this article I am listening to this morning's LBC with James O'Brien discussing the case of a little girl who was horrifically bitten on the face by Jasper, a Springer Spaniel, owned by her teacher Ms Wendy McDonald. 
While I write, and listen to LBC, I am very aware of the numerous dogs that surround my building, who are left to bark outside, unchecked, on this gloriously sunny day. This then draws me back to the story of last week when Steven Woodhouse drowned his neighbours terrier because it wouldn't stop barking.
It would seem that Wendy McDonald, Jasper's owner, had embarked on professional training for the dog, and researched the breed before getting Jasper. Unfortunately all the training in the world will not pre-empt a dog bite, especially if a child has their face in the dog's face too.
If a dog bites a person, I am sorry to say that, in my opinion it has probably crossed a line that it cannot cross back and in the interest of public safety it is more than likely that the dog will need to be muzzled permanently or destroyed. On the other hand, I do not allow children to put their arms around my dogs necks or go 'face to face' with them, as this is often misinterpreted by many dogs, especially those not used to children.
Having said that, I shudder when I see pictures of children draped around their family pets across social media. My children were taught to respect the dogs and vice versa when they were growing up, and I never left the children in the same room as the dogs without adult supervision.
My dogs are fairly well trained. People comment on their ability to follow instruction and behave as asked. They do not bark uncontrolled in the garden. They do not have free-rein in the house, to argue over sofa space or food bowls and they are walked regularly, as well as given mind work to do to stop them getting bored. This is my responsibility as their owner.
My dogs are pets. Pet animals I chose to keep. They are not my children; I have two already grown. They are not my family, they are my family pets. But they are loved and respected, which appears to be mutual on their side too.
The most effective way to stop my dogs from joining the 'garden charge' each day was to train them from a very early age to sit before a door was open. Every time they got up as the door opened, it was closed again. While they waited patiently for the door to open they were rewarded for their effort with small tit bits of dog treats. My dogs will now sit, if asked, while the door is opened and walk outside when given leave to do so.
One of them did then still charge out and ram the fence to bark but this was swiftly averted and corrected by never opening the door without him on a lead. Until he was able to walk outside quietly, and praised for doing so, he was not allowed free access to the garden without an adult and a lead. If barking began then he was brought straight back in and lost his right to garden time.
If only we could train the neighbours so easily.
So is it time that laws were introduced to actually restrict dog ownership to those willing to invest the time needed to train their pets, or should anyone be free to have a dog, trained or untrained?
As owners we have a responsibility to not allow our pets to be petted by people, especially children, that they do not know. No dog is 100% safe, no matter what their past history dictates. Any dog can bite, and if provoked, any dog will bite.
And should we also teaching our children more about the language of the dog, so we can hope to avoid any more terrible situations where children are getting bitten, or worse.