Attention Gsd, Rotties And Dobe Owners

[bronsonb]

I got told by a couple of young men that it was against council by-laws for me to even be walking my dog on the footpath. I have been practising using the white lines in the middle of the road to make sure we don't get hit by the traffic!!!!

I am afraid for us dog owners, where will this madness end?

[Lillium]

Come on guys.

I don't know about you lot, but with the breeds in questions in this thread, most people cross the road well in advance when they see us approach.......

But whatever, let em list whatever breeds they want as dangerous.

Victoria: The place to be VILIFIED AND DEPRESSED.

Seems like the whole of Australia is starting to be depressing. What about a few yrs ago in QLD when quite a few pitbulls were taken from their families and destroyed through no fault of their own? Things have gone too far. Seems like this country is pandering to the every whim of asylum seekers yet ozzies themselves are being vilified. I cannot imagine not owning a german shepherd and the idea that my current GSD may be my last does not sit well with me.

[KitKat]

Seems amusing that it's possible that i may no longer be able to own a GSD, but my getting a LGD will be fine At least i can still foster GSD's from work if it comes to that

[OSoSwift]

I generally am not prone to hysteria which people worried about this have been accused of. However where there is smoke there is fire and well I am very concerned as we all have had it proven time and time again you cannot trust politicians.

[KitKat]

GSD's have already been banned once in this country...having it happen again isn't such a stretch

[Fanuilos]

I just spoke to the Department of Primary Industries, the area of the government which handles issues relating to domestic animals which the Restricted Breed Legislation is under.

There are no plans to update the Act to include any other breed. If there were plans, there would be some sort of white paper etc to the Parliament and the bill would be listed for future discussions. Currently nothing like this is.

Yes, we currently live in a nanny state but the Victorian Parliament still has to follow it's own rules and processes. If an extension of the breeds were to be made or dog breeding outlawed completely in Victoria, it would be made public eventually. If/once it is made public, the law doesn't change overnight, it normally goes through a long process to become law. Some times this takes years.

My OH runs an organisation which was affected by the change to one of the weapons acts here in Victoria which made swords illegal. He and other members of the Martial Arts community had meetings with the appropriate Minister and advisors to have exemptions to the laws, hence members of martial arts schools and organisations which utilise swords as apart of their sport can still do so.

If it does turn out that the rumours are true, this is what the dog community need to do as well. The people in charge of all the appropriate breed clubs or other interest groups need to open a dialogue with the Minister and Advisors, their local members etc if this sort of amendment to the Bill comes up.

Also, those of us with bigger dogs that people are more likely to be threatened by need to make sure we have a presence in the community and make sure our dogs are seen by people as not being menacing. Unfortunately, the fact that the breeds listed are those generally used for security work means their reputation precedes them so people have a natural fear of them due to that association with authority. We can change that perception.

The Department of Primary Industries has Responsible Pet Ownership education program, the DPI were recently calling for Dogs Vic members in certain areas to apply to be apart of the program. I know that the closing date has passed (last week) but ensuring the public see the bigger breeds in the best possible light is a very good start to changing public perception. Maybe if you have an incredibly well trained dog who is excellent around kids, give the DPI a call and see if it isn't too late to apply to be a Pet Educator.

[DerRottweiler]

Come on guys.

I don't know about you lot, but with the breeds in questions in this thread, most people cross the road well in advance when they see us approach.......

But whatever, let em list whatever breeds they want as dangerous.

Victoria: The place to be VILIFIED AND DEPRESSED.

Seems like the whole of Australia is starting to be depressing. What about a few yrs ago in QLD when quite a few pitbulls were taken from their families and destroyed through no fault of their own? Things have gone too far. Seems like this country is pandering to the every whim of asylum seekers yet ozzies themselves are being vilified. I cannot imagine not owning a german shepherd and the idea that my current GSD may be my last does not sit well with me.

I get what you're saying about dog laws becoming very strict, but how on earth did you manage to associate that with aslyum seekers?

[grumpette]

I just spoke to the Department of Primary Industries, the area of the government which handles issues relating to domestic animals which the Restricted Breed Legislation is under.

There are no plans to update the Act to include any other breed. If there were plans, there would be some sort of white paper etc to the Parliament and the bill would be listed for future discussions. Currently nothing like this is.

Yes, we currently live in a nanny state but the Victorian Parliament still has to follow it's own rules and processes. If an extension of the breeds were to be made or dog breeding outlawed completely in Victoria, it would be made public eventually. If/once it is made public, the law doesn't change overnight, it normally goes through a long process to become law. Some times this takes years.

My OH runs an organisation which was affected by the change to one of the weapons acts here in Victoria which made swords illegal. He and other members of the Martial Arts community had meetings with the appropriate Minister and advisors to have exemptions to the laws, hence members of martial arts schools and organisations which utilise swords as apart of their sport can still do so.

If it does turn out that the rumours are true, this is what the dog community need to do as well. The people in charge of all the appropriate breed clubs or other interest groups need to open a dialogue with the Minister and Advisors, their local members etc if this sort of amendment to the Bill comes up.

Also, those of us with bigger dogs that people are more likely to be threatened by need to make sure we have a presence in the community and make sure our dogs are seen by people as not being menacing. Unfortunately, the fact that the breeds listed are those generally used for security work means their reputation precedes them so people have a natural fear of them due to that association with authority. We can change that perception.

The Department of Primary Industries has Responsible Pet Ownership education program, the DPI were recently calling for Dogs Vic members in certain areas to apply to be apart of the program. I know that the closing date has passed (last week) but ensuring the public see the bigger breeds in the best possible light is a very good start to changing public perception. Maybe if you have an incredibly well trained dog who is excellent around kids, give the DPI a call and see if it isn't too late to apply to be a Pet Educator.

So very true Fanuilos. Baylee and I did the Responsible Pet Ownership education program for 4 years until she retired due to old age. She loved it and so did the kids and teachers. She changed many people's perceptions about Rottweilers. Zephyr has just been accepted as a Pets as Therapy Dog through Dogs Victoria and I have no doubt that he will change people's ideas about the breed as well.

I have read many people say over the last couple of weeks that they are not willing to take their dogs out in public for their walks for fear of them being ceased by council rangers. I am of the firm belief that if responsible owners took their dogs out in public and showed people how well behaved they can be, that slowly by word of mouth people's attitudes would change. I have walked my dogs around this area for years, taken them to markets and town fairs, stopped and talked to people who wish to ask questions and slowly the community has gotten to know my dogs as well trained, well socialised, well behaved dogs who are not to be feared. They have also realised that it is not the breed of dog that is the problem, that it is the owner of the dog that determines if the dog is a problem. Some people we have not convinced, but with others we have been able to change their minds, to the point that when something happens they say that not all Rottweilers are killers because we know some of them and they are great dogs.

This has happened through quiet and consistent education, not ranting and raving and coming across as a zealous owner. As they say, from little things big things grow, and word of mouth is so powerful.