It was a good idea to ban specific fighting dog breeds, but as Canine Behaviourists and the RSPCA keep on repeating: dogs attacks can happen with any breed, for many reasons.
The most recent, devasting attack that took place was on October 11, Townsville, where a woman was fighting for her life after the lower section of her arm was bitten off by her own dog.
The dog was shot by police, they said the woman was outside bleeding heavily while the dog was inside the house, very angry, aggressive and trying to get outside.
A neighbour showed his scars from the same dog – according to ABC news.
Apparently, police had been contacted about that particular dog previously, but their team, RSPCA and local council are still looking into the specifics.
Was the dog’s BIN number even traced?
On October 10, a Melbourne woman was fighting for her life after her boyfriend’s three dogs attacked her.
When police officers arrived, they used pepper spray, which had no effect so the dogs were shot.
The woman’s boyfriend had the dogs since they were pups.
Again, there had been former complaints and concerns from neighbours about the dogs on that property.
On October 7, a man in his forties was taken to the Sunshine Coast Hospital via helicopter after receiving major injuries to his face.
The man was camping on a private property when another camper’s dog attacked him.
It is not surprising that hospitals have reported an increase in dog attacks over the last few years.
There are always ongoing investigations that conclude: the animal was either euthanised or shot.
It seems that the lack of understanding and insight by dog owners and the little or no intervention by authorities is as dangerous as the dogs.
Humans have made dogs aggressive; it is rare for even an abused dog to be aggressive towards humans unless bred and trained to be.
Dog fighting in Australia is growing with an estimated 150 dog fighting rings.
They are set up in remote areas with lights and fencing, or in empty warehouses, factories and sheds.
The oversupply of breeders is another problem; the RSPCA euthanised 288,000 dogs in 2023 and 44% were from breeders.
Breeders need inspection approval to operate, and dog owners ought to have a permit. Just supply more inspectors that also address dog welfare issues!