Moselle

Exactly Actually as Mr Linke is someone who is against BSL, I believe he would have just to deflect attention away from a cause that he believes in. As for the bullsmastiff x thing, many of the cross bred pig dogs up here have mastiff in them and heaps of people will get confused about their breed and say oh it must be a pitty. I was speaking to a fella on Sat who said he hated pitbulls as his dog was attacked by 2 60kg pitbulls, i explained a few things to try and change his mind as they don't come that big. As someone said people really do get the size of dogs wrong, and in an attack every dog seems to be huge. Mr Linke as far as I'm concerned is doing a great job in defending the pitbull, and by doing so he is defending many breeds from being added to the list. Lets give Mr. Linke a standing ovation for deflecting attention away from the pitbull and instead towards the staffy and/or mastiff! Very impressive indeed! I am compelled to ask myself if the honourable Mr. Linke owned a staffy or mastiff, would he have deflected the attention away from his chosen breed and onto the pitbull?

Exactly Actually as Mr Linke is someone who is against BSL, I believe he would have just to deflect attention away from a cause that he believes in. As for the bullsmastiff x thing, many of the cross bred pig dogs up here have mastiff in them and heaps of people will get confused about their breed and say oh it must be a pitty. I was speaking to a fella on Sat who said he hated pitbulls as his dog was attacked by 2 60kg pitbulls, i explained a few things to try and change his mind as they don't come that big. As someone said people really do get the size of dogs wrong, and in an attack every dog seems to be huge. Mr Linke as far as I'm concerned is doing a great job in defending the pitbull, and by doing so he is defending many breeds from being added to the list. How you possibly could have come to the conclusion that by defending the pitbull, Mr. Linke is defending other breeds? SO, getting people to shift their opinions from what they believe is an attack by a "pitbull" could possibly have been instead from a staffy or mastiff is defending other breeds? pfft...i dont think he is doing the staffy or mastiff any favours!

They do. You need to read more posts here. Other breeds do get hassled, I have had coursing dogs in the past and have heard all sorts of rubbish said about sighthounds and their killing capacity, I have been told my Whippet should be muzzled in a public place. German Shepherd, Rottweiler and Doberman owners also know only too well the small mindedness of some people with breed prejudices. There is nothing funny about BSL it is canine genocide. Yep, BSL is canine genocide!

Mr Linke does not support a ban on Pitbulls - IMO I'll stick with the local RSPCA CEO we have here in the ACT and you can keep yours. Do not put words in my mouth, thank you very much. I do not support a ban on any breed of dog including the much maligned pitbull. I don't doubt that many a staffy owner/breeder or mastiff owner/breeder would very much resent his comments! Oh, and just because he happens to be the RSPCA CEO does not make him infallible, lol. He seems to have foot in mouth disease and all for the purpose of shifting the blame simply because he happens to own a pitbull. He could easily have made a statement stipulating that certain dogs are often mistaken for a pitbull but to specifically name another breed of dog (namely the staffy or mastiff) is downright idiotic. So, why dont we shift people's belief that an attack from a dog resembling a pitbull is in fact a staffy or mastiff? what a great state of affairs that would be!

Exactly

Yes I do agree with you in that people should not automatically assume that every dog attack is carried out by a pitbull no matter how close a resemblance. Still, Mr. Linke is doing the wrong thing, that is my belief and I am sticking to it

Well if rangers, media and the general public hadn't got it wrong so many times when it comes to identifying any dogs, people wouldn't question it constantly. If your dog had been put down because it was deemed it looked like a pitbull, maybe you'd ask the questions too. People want and demand clarity when it comes to these issues because there is so much at stake, not because they have rose tinted glasses on, and think that all pitbulls are angels, i don't care what breed done what as long as you know for sure what happened. I do not believe that rangers are the closest thing to psychics. They suck, in fact, when it comes to identifying breeds and should never be put in a position of making assumed and poor guesses! I also find it completely appaling that innocent dogs resembling pitbulls have been destroyed. Even purebred pitbulls have their place in society and should not be destroyed simply because of their breeding. And yet you're prepared to accept that a person who doesn't deal with dogs every single day, who saw two dogs attacking his dogs, was likely highly stressed at the time of this incident, HAS identified them correctly? I'm in Canberra - where the attack occured. People can be amazingly inaccurate about what they see under conditions of extreme stress. I've seen only a handful of either breed here but I can tell you that a lot of dogs get lumped under the term "mastiff" by those unfamiliar with dog breeds. I'd say both dog and owner are lucky to be in as good a shape as they are - two dogs hell bent on destruction could do far more damage than appears to have been done here. One would think that someone like Mr. Linke would be somewhat able to identify certain breeds. Once again, he is in no position in steering people's suspicion from pitbull to staffy, to mastiffs, etc etc. He should have remained neutral. In making such a statement could simply serve to make people think that what they think is a pitbull could possibly be a staffy, mastiff, etc. I'm sure that if Michael Linke saw the dogs, he would be much more capable of identifying them than the victim in this attack. However, he didn't, and like everyone else here, has been provided with a description of them, from which he has stated the breeds "could" be. Not that they are. They could be. Even better, the fact that Mr. Linke has not seen the dogs is even more reason not to make such wild assumptions. So you are of the opinion that Mr. Linke is entitled to sway people's mentality into thinking that what they may perceive as a pitbull could in fact be a staffordshire terrier or a mastiff? please spare me.

Your reaction is typical of the lynch mob mentality that the mass media thrives on, the Pit Bull is much maligned and often innocent of wrong doings so much so it has a name-Brown Dog Syndrome, the general public is so adament that every dog attack by a medium sized dog is a Pit Bull rampage People are passionate about defending the Pit Bull and other Bullies against the horrible prejudices that are heaped on them by the (largely) ill informed public. Ignorance is a killer and too many people have had their beloved family pets killed due to looking like a Pit Bull. It annoys me that if a Pit Bull is slandered and abused people are not meant to defend them but anybody should be allowed to defend their breed from nasty verbal attacks and if it comes accross as over defensive, well no wonder. Lest we forget.....The 1000's of Pitbulls killed by people with the same thoughts as yours. So true, people always being asked why they would have that breed rather than another....well why would one get a maltese, a kelpie, a mastiff etc etc etc? Yet owners of any other breed don't get hassled. Why should Pitbull owners have to justify their breed of choice?! Why don't owners of other breed of dogs get hassled? perhaps you should try answering that question yourself, lol.

I'm in Canberra - where the attack occured. People can be amazingly inaccurate about what they see under conditions of extreme stress. I've seen only a handful of either breed here but I can tell you that a lot of dogs get lumped under the term "mastiff" by those unfamiliar with dog breeds. I'd say both dog and owner are lucky to be in as good a shape as they are - two dogs hell bent on destruction could do far more damage than appears to have been done here. One would think that someone like Mr. Linke would be somewhat able to identify certain breeds. Once again, he is in no position in steering people's suspicion from pitbull to staffy, to mastiffs, etc etc. He should have remained neutral. In making such a statement could simply serve to make people think that what they think is a pitbull could possibly be a staffy, mastiff, etc.

He he he he ! My remark was a one-off, lol. No need to steer the subject towards another direction. If you like the term "mongrel bitch" perhaps you should consider it as your username.

Well if rangers, media and the general public hadn't got it wrong so many times when it comes to identifying any dogs, people wouldn't question it constantly. If your dog had been put down because it was deemed it looked like a pitbull, maybe you'd ask the questions too. People want and demand clarity when it comes to these issues because there is so much at stake, not because they have rose tinted glasses on, and think that all pitbulls are angels, i don't care what breed done what as long as you know for sure what happened. I do not believe that rangers are the closest thing to psychics. They suck, in fact, when it comes to identifying breeds and should never be put in a position of making assumed and poor guesses! I also find it completely appaling that innocent dogs resembling pitbulls have been destroyed. Even purebred pitbulls have their place in society and should not be destroyed simply because of their breeding.

How wonderful of Mr. Michael Linke - to put it mildly, he is full of shit. So it is okay for him to state that the pitbull is a much maligned breed yet he has the gaul to point the finger at mastiffs, staffordshire terriers or crossbreeds. He really should take a long hard look at himself before sprouting such unadulterated rubbish. Exactly which part of the APBT being "much maligned" did you think was full of shit Moselle? Mr Linke is one of the reasons we don't have BSL here in the ACT. His point is valid - it could have been any one of a number of breeds or crossbreeds. I'm guessing the attackers were dogs though. Please, Mr. Linke is quick to imply that the dog responsible is not a pitbull yet is quick to say that it may have been a staffordshire bull terrier or mastiff! I would have thought that common sense should have been exercised and by rights Mr. Linke should not have mentioned any other purebred dog! He is a contradiction in terms.

How wonderful of Mr. Michael Linke - to put it mildly, he is full of shit. So it is okay for him to state that the pitbull is a much maligned breed yet he has the gaul to point the finger at mastiffs, staffordshire terriers or crossbreeds. He really should take a long hard look at himself before sprouting such unadulterated rubbish.

It seems inevitable that whenever there are dog attacks by dogs perceived as "pitbulls" ...people start jumping up and down. It is well about time that lovers of this breed start acknowledging the fact that pitbulls are indeed DA. It really annoys me to no end when all kinds of excuses are entered into. The typical and most popular excuse ? Ah....it cannot possibly be a purebred pitbull, it just has to be a crossbreed. WTF. It is all too easy to say that all dogs involved in killing or maiming people or animals are not purebred pitbulls but a cross. Well, you tell me...if it is a cross then which part of that cross should be deemed DA or HA? Lest we forget....let us not name the pitbull part of the equation or else!

I can understand why people would get upset about their dogs being called a mongrel. But I know plenty of people who refer to their dogs as mongrels lovingly - both crossbreds and pures But are you telling me that we are no longer allowed to call our female dogs bitches? All in the name of political correctness, because "someone" might get offended As I said, the word "bitch" is commonly used by breeders; I know more than my fair share of people and I cannot recall one single person referring to their female dog as a "bitch" lol. Not a common term. It isn't a case of being politically correct. Having said that, I feel more uncomfortable with the word "mongrel" esp. in a forum such as this one when it is commonly strewn around as an intended putdown. Anyway, as Cordellia has said, it is time to move on from here

If you had watched the show you would have understood why this story was deemed important. It was an important warning for pet owners to be cautious when feeding pet food from overseas given the addition of melamine which has caused thousands of deaths. http://au.todaytonight.yahoo.com/video#

You have a thing about the word.. not me. It's a crossbreed.. therefore, it is a mongrel. No different to calling a female canine a bitch.. Well, given that I have a thing about that word, I assume that there may be other individuals that may share my sentiments and I would think that it wouldn't be too much to ask of you to exercise some diplomacy ?? I don't see too many pet owners calling their female dog a "bitch"....unless of course we are talking about breeders or for that matter owners of crossbred dogs referring to their beloved pet as a "mongrel." :D

Oh gee is it necessary to be so harsh? how about a little bit of compassion? What the? I don't see harsh, I see the exact same thing I was thinking. I just have a thing about the word "mongrel" - sounds like a putdown.

Nope and sadly I see legs like that just about every day of the week and they look pretty good compared to some of them. :p

Oh gee is it necessary to be so harsh? how about a little bit of compassion?

SO TRUE Would not consider anything else.

The fact of matter remains that we have not had any pet food recalls responsible for the death of thousands of dogs here in Australia. I would not touch any commercial food from overseas no matter how super premium it is considered! You would think that after the last recall the american pet food manufacturers would have learnt their lesson but no such hope! It seems like China has to step in and ruin everything for pet owners, simply because they charge peanuts for anything and everything they do due to overpopulating! it isnt enough that they take pleasure out of inflicting pain for millions of dogs every year!

Such a man deserves to be eradicated from the face of the earth; there should not be any tolerance for bestiality!

EXACTLY! How annoying for someone to consider themselves a "trainer" when in fact they believe that a maltese is a terrier, a maltese is a spaniel not a frickin terrier!

Moselle, you are of course entitled to your own opinion but you're MORE than welcome to come and give me a backhander. But don't expect to not get one back!!! There are MANY reasons why a person doesn't want to purchase a puppy in their own country and you are making some pretty widesweeping statements here. Hi ellz, LOL. I must say that I have never ever given anybody a backhander but even in saying that I think I would give a pretty memorable backhander What reasons could people possibly have in wanting to purchase a puppy from overseas? Nope, sorry but I beg to differ. Any breeder that is truly an animal lover would never ever go down that path.