Baz+Rome

Thank you all for your kind words. Missing my boy like crazy here. My kids have mentioned on 3 different occasions that they have seen Barry walking around home, its a comforting thought that maybe he is still here.

Here is Baz at DAS in 2008. So many people were involved in his rescue. Sadly Fat Baz passed away on Wednesday 7th November 2012. Old age and health issues caught up with him and he passed at home. I wanted to thank all who were involved in his rescue and I am so greatful to have spent the past four and a half years with the most kindest, friendliest, laziest, most unique and wonderful Bully boy. He was one in a million and I really don't think we will meet another in this lifetime. I still remember picking him up from the airport and looking over on the drive home at this big lump staring at me. I told him that he really was something special and there was no way he was a foster, he was certainly a foster failure. :) Thank you again to all who remember and were involved in his rescue many years ago. :-) The tears are flowing freely here thats for sure.

And to Kylie Chivers and John Mokomoko (and all of us who sent letters every week) for continually proving that hard work and perseverance pays off. Without them continually working hard to rid QLD of BSL, and proving several points along the way this may never have happened so quickly. For sure Kylie and John deserve recognition here for their hard work, time and effort involved in this. Thank you!! I hope this means you will be able to get your own dog Tango home.

Fantastic news for the Amstaff. A huge thanks to all involved. Thank you for not giving up. Considering the Council deemed the Amstaff and the APBT the same dog, one would like to think if the Amstaff was safe then so must be the APBT??????

Bloody disgusting thats for sure. Gorgeous dog but a dickhead owner. He knew they were illegal and yet still chose to have it out and about with the risk of being caught. ;) I just don't feel an ounce of sympathy for the owners who don't attempt to keep these dogs safe from harm expecially when they know the consequences of owning one where they are illegal. BSL is a disgusting law though. Poor dog. ;) The Police Officer didn't have anything nice to say about the breed and kept commenting how aggressive and dangerous they were yet she had no problem going up to a strange dog and grabbing it and man handling it a bit to get it from the owner and into the vehicle.

It is scary to think they are okay with targeting a breed which currently has NO restrictions placed on it!! I hope everybody on the Gold Coast read the paper and keeps their Amstaffs secure in the backyard, thats for sure.

Couldn't agree more. Absolutely disgusting.

Can't post link for some reason but this article was in the Local paper today and also on their website for the Gold Coast Bulletin. Rego for staffordshire terriers on hold Melinda Marshall | April 21st, 2010 Couple's dog fight on shaky ground REGISTRATIONS of American staffordshire terriers have been frozen as the Gold Coast City Council comes to grips with a controversial court ruling. The freeze puts Gold Coast American staffy owners at risk of a $200 on-the-spot fine for breaching laws requiring registration of dogs more than three months old. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court ruled that American staffies were the same breed as outlawed American pit bulls. The court decision addressed a Gold Coast couple's appeal against the council's identification of their dog Tango as a pit bull, rather than an American staffy. A council memo, obtained by the Bulletin, reveals that the council has ordered staff not to register American staffies or crossbreeds, or process any transfers of ownership. Separately, the council has warned that American staffies found wandering at large could be destroyed as a restricted breed. American Staffordshire Terrier Club of Queensland president Melissa Greenall said the freeze was devastating for the Gold Coast's roughly 200 American staffy owners. "Council is forcing people to do the wrong thing," she said. "If they're not allowing people to register their dogs, then what are these people supposed to do? "Essentially they're being punished for having the wrong name or label on their dog. "From a breeder's perspective it means we cannot sell to anyone who is in the Gold Coast region." The council's animal management chief Cr Bob La Castra said the council had to treat American staffies as a restricted breed until the State Government decided to make changes to the law or the court decision was successfully appealed. "That means a permit is needed to keep them and our local law currently does not provide for the issuing of new permits," he said. "Council cannot consider its position on the local law until the State Government has made a decision and the appeal process has been completed." Councillor Dawn Crichlow said the council was saying one thing and doing another. "The state hasn't determined that it should be a restricted dog and yet our council, as sneaky as they are, have decided to restrict that breed." edited as added extras by accident.

For so long I have been reading threads where people state over and over that the APBT and the Amstaff are the same breed. Did people honestly not think that the Amstaff was next on the chopping block!! Best anybody who owns a breed bigger than a slipper get their act together and help with the BSL fight before we are all doomed to owning a SWF!!

The APBT, AST and SBT are one and the same. Historically, legally and visually. The world recognises this except for countries where the lobbyists have successfully convinced governments otherwise, like Australia and NZ. The argument that they are all the same breed has been done to death on this forum. If the owners of the APBT believe this then why the hell aren't they purchasing papered Amstaffs which you are allowed to own and isn't at risk of an ACO seeking to destroy your APBT!!

Is there any info on the breeds of other dogs involved not the ones posted in the OP?

Off topic but I would be pretty pissed if I took a dog to vets to be pts and vet signed paperwork to say it had been done but didn't and kept the dog.

Baz is the same. He's a bugger out on a walk because if any greenery touches him it's all over and your stuck there while he trances for 5 mins.

RIP Gorgeous boy. He is an amazing ambassador for the breed and his loss will sadden many. Such a grand, wise old man he was.

Really who cares as long as the Poor boy has a chance at being rehomed. Amstaff/Pitbull, they're the same dog aren't they?? Well at least that's what the arguments been for years isn't it.

Thankyou Anniek,that sounds exactly like it. Can you see the funny side of this ritual? Trancing is something most Bull Terriers do. Am yet to meet one that doesn't. I'm pretty sure Teebs has a vid on YouTube of Atlas trancing.

Any breed in the wrong hands can be dangerous. Luckily Bullies with the issues that the neighbouring dog had, Poochmad, are not as common as people believe. They aren't a dog for everyone but in capable hands they are a fantastic pet and so much fun to have around.

Awww Juice I love the pic of Mase. Bulldust I was drooling over the gorgeous doggies on your website yesterday. Lo Pan I'm from the South Island in NZ and haven't lived there for 12 years but when I did Bullies were everywhere. It seemed that everyone you knew owned either a Bully or an APBT, majority were pure dogs too.

That's a shame...the more they are seen out & about the less of a novelty they would be....and the more people see lovely well behaved ones, the better the reputation. I agree with that. Fear of having them stolen is an issue too. I get alot of positive comments when out but do hear regulary that people find them intimidating looking at them and generally feel more at ease once they have had some interaction with them. I don't have a problem with people not liking the breed, each to their own I say, but as the owner of one of these dogs I make sure people always walk away with a positive meeting and hopefully a better opinion of the breed than the one the media and bad owners give off.

I should also add that during walks with Baz I am often approached by people who want to come over and see him as they rarely see a Bully out. He is also frequently mistaken for an American Pitbull too.

I think Bullies are a breed that aren't seen out and about too much but there are plenty of them around. I'm in QLD and I know that when looking for a Bully about 5 years ago, there were none to be found. Over the years I have noticed the numbers have increased esp for byb Bullies. The people here that I know with them tend to keep them away from the public eye.

I am so sorry for your loss. Such a gorgeous wee girl. She sounds like a very special girl. Six days shy of 20 yrs how amazing.

So sorry for your loss. Wee Bebe sounded like such a special friend.

That's good to know. Hopefully that will be the end if it and Tango can finally be free!

Hi Bully, I cannot say for sure in this case but as I have mentioned on other posts, when they set BSL, some areas included "Pit Type Breeds". Their thought was that Am Staffs were included in this "Pit Type Breed" (QLD was one of those places) How often do you see debates on whether Am Staff is actually a pitbull? Thousands of Am Staffs have been PTS as they have been regarded as pits. Thank heavens this guy has been in a position to fight for the rights of the Am Staff. I know all about BSL and the Amstaff/Pitbull same breed argument. I was questioning why if there is proof that Tangos parents are in fact Amstaffs, which are not a banned breed here, why is this still an ongoing court case. I think John has done an amazing job of making the average joe blow aware of BSL and the repercussions of owning a "bull breed" in this day and age!!