Rachael Ray's dog...

JackieG

Truley

For one, I would like to see some solid evidence that this even happened. As of yet the only source is..........radaronline?

Hello? a rag online magazine is being touted at the in the know? has all the info? not for the life of me can I imagine some of the major networks ignoring this considering the breed. The fact that they are ignoring it, tells me more.

I would like to see a credible source for the information before I get all riled up. I did find a sourch about her being bitten.....ummm....3 years ago...when she and others tried to defend their dogs from a loose dog that attacked her dog and other's. The article just say's she was bitten, but not by which dog.

No offense to anyone here, but really, the garbage people buy into from some of these crazy reporting sources baffles me.

  I said the same thing many pages back.  It's beyond me how anyone can believe they "know" anything about Rachel Ray's dog situation well enough to make these judgements. 

I agreed with you, Jackie! I think it's a few pages back, but it's there! And I agree with Truley, too.

Kaichi

There really isn't any direct quotes from Racheal, so this could all be very sensational news as they love to do with pit bull stories. For all we know, there may be more to the story.

Eh, who knows. Hopefully, Racheal will explain more to this sitaution.

(emphasis added by me) I really think this^ needs to be paid more attention.

Cita

AgileGSD

 This discussion is starting to sound like Sue Sternburg's temperament test - only dogs with docile, laid back, totally non-aggressive temperaments should be allowed to live.

 Again I am not defending what happened with Rachel Ray's dog, if the story is indeed true. I think she has made some really dumb choices considering she has known for years that the dog has serious aggression problems.

 

Agreed.

It is an owner's responsibility to manage his/her dog effectively, end of story. Chuffy, in your example, it is absolutely not "the child's fault" - it is the parent's fault for allowing the child into that situation, and the dog owner's fault for allowing the dog into that situation.

As the owner of a temperamentally-questionable dog, I take great offense to the idea that only "idiot-proof" dogs should be allowed to live in "this world." Should the same hold for humans? Should we start euthanizing every hothead who can't control his temper and gets into bar fights? Or what about cats - it is expected that cats will scratch and bite if put into an unpleasant situation. If cats are allowed to act like cats and defend themselves when in a bad situation, why is doing the same a death sentence for a dog? What about parrots? If you stick your finger into an unknown macaw's cage and get bitten, does anyone think the macaw should be euthanized?

Obviously, the important issue is proper management. If you own a dog with aggressive tendencies, you don't allow the dog to be in situations where it might behave aggressively. You also focus on training, desensitization, and redirection. The management aspect is what was missing in this particular situation.

 

^^^This!!!

Also, I agree with Truley and others on this one--next week they'll probably be printing that Rachael Ray's dog is having an affair with Brad Pit or something---they're called rags for a reason......

It's interesting how much this discussion is deflected from the issue of what is required to manage a dog-aggressive dog adequately. No! No! It must not have actually happened! Or, no, it must be the victim's fault for letting the attacked dog bother the attacker! I'll grant you that I don't depend on celebrity tabloids as a source of completely accurate information. I also recognize that people who are responsibly walking their aggressive dog on an unbreakable, will- never-be-dropped leash are put in a really difficult position when they have to deal with other people's uncontrolled dogs. But really, there is no evidence that this incident involved unleashed dogs. The article says the dogs were walking past each other, not that an unleashed dog ran up to a properly controlled dog. And the reliability of celebrity tabloids notwithstanding, does anyone really find it so implausible that a dog aggressive dog might seriously injure another dog that happened to have the misfortune to pass too close to an aggressive dog when it was having a bad day. It would be more productive to discuss what is actually required to adequately manage large strong aggressive dogs than to keep making up reasons why this incident couldn't have happened just the way it was described.

buster the show dog

It would be more productive to discuss what is actually required to adequately manage large strong aggressive dogs

Then start a new thread.

The original post was an article Radaronline ran about Rachel Ray's dog attacking other dogs. And I cannot comment on something a tabloid rag ran without knowing the facts....the accurate facts. There's no point, IMO, posting opinions on what I would've done or what should've been done about something that could just be a glorified tabloid story, anything to make a buck.

It seems odd that it's ok to have about three pages of discussion of something that had nothing to do with the original post, ie, an extended discussion of loose dogs running up to leashed dogs, but then I would be instructed to start a new thread when I suggest that it would be productive to discuss what was actually reported in the post that initiated this thread. Does anyone here who owns a dog aggressive dog, especially a largish one, think that it is implausible for a dog-aggressive dog to seriously injure another dog if they happen to pass each other in close quarters? If this is a realistic possibility, what do you do to protect against that happening. It seems that more is involved here than just making sure the aggressive dog is never off leash. Some people here have suggested that aggressive dogs should be muzzled whenever they are in public. Do all of you with aggressive dogs do that or are there downsides to doing that?

buster the show dog

It seems odd that it's ok to have about three pages of discussion of something that had nothing to do with the original post, ie, an extended discussion of loose dogs running up to leashed dogs, but then I would be instructed to start a new thread when I suggest that it would be productive to discuss what was actually reported in the post that initiated this thread.

If you really wanted to ellaborate and have a deeper discussion into "what is actually required to adequately manage large strong aggressive dogs", you should start a new thread is all I meant.

buster the show dog

Does anyone here who owns a dog aggressive dog, especially a largish one, think that it is implausible for a dog-aggressive dog to seriously injure another dog if they happen to pass each other in close quarters?

And, even though I do not own any dog aggressive dogs, I do believe it is pausible for any DA dog (small or large) to seriously injure another dog if they happen to pass in close quarters and are not properly restrained. And sometimes even if they are properly restrained accidents do happen.  

 i've owned DA big dogs and little dogs and i didnt walk them in public.... we just played a lot of fetch in a fenced area. and i have heard that muzzles only work sometimes. I like to keep a muzzle for emergency situations. if an animal is injured you dont want to risk getting bitten while moving it... but Kaydee(who was female aggressive and over protective with strangers around) broke hers just by pawing it off her face and snapped the plastic clip into three pieces. Why did she do that? she saw something she wanted and knew she couldnt get it with that stupid thing on her face.

the main lesson i learned that day was not to allow just anyone to hold the leash while you're busy. no matter how much that person assures you they can do it...... thankfully Kaydee didnt get into trouble - but only because i yelled at my cousin for staring at clouds instead of paying attention to the dog.

The other problem with Kaydee was she didnt start fights but she never turned one down either. and for some reason dogs like that attract every dumb animal with a death wish... muzzle or not, Kaydee had enough bulk she could just bear slap another dog if they got too big for their britches.

and thats it really. if i have a DA dog then i dont want anyone else handling it. hopefully the dog knows me and i know the dog and i can be a better source of calm energy than anyone else who doesnt spend as much time with that dog. but bottom line is avoidance. i never took my DA dogs to parks or other public places. we walked around our neighbourhood and thankfully had a big fenced in yard.  

In the article I read, in the first incident it was her dog that was attacked.  I have to wonder what training was or wasn't done right after that attack to try to counteract the imprint it left on her dog.  That may have been all it took for her dog to now be fear aggressive to other dogs.  I just find it very sad that euthenasia is even being mentioned.  I once had a dog aggressive Shar Pei.  Actually she was aggressive to any animal or person who wasn't part of her family.  She came to us from an abusive home and no amount of training or socialization ever made her attitude better.  But we learned to deal with it and not put her in a situation to fail.  But never did we consider putting her down.  I hope that Rachel Ray is able to find a way to give her dog what she needs to live a long and happy life without jeopardizing any other living creatures.

 thats it right there.... not putting the dog in a position to fail.... and its shocking how many people make that mistake. i.e. taking their dog to parks where others might be off leash. so what if yours is leashed.... its a shame that the dog has to pay the price so the human can learn....

Chuffy

And you are living with the knowledge of who would be blamed if there WAS an incident...even though you have done your b

 

 

This is the point.  Not a philosophical  argument  about what should be.  If you go to court because your dog has shown DA, and has a history of DA, you and your dog will lose. If you are lucky, your dog will only come up with management rules for being in public.  But chances are, especially with a bully type dog, PTS.  It doesn't matter if the other owner let his dog run free, you will lose.

DougB

It doesn't matter if the other owner let his dog run free, you will lose.

Is this opinion or fact?  And, where did you get this info if it is fact.  I've never heard of it being OK to break a leash law where I'm from. 

I am not going to check all 50 states statutes, but in MN, it is fact.  A DA dog will be called potentially dangerous and will be required to be muzzled, on a 3 ft leash any time it is not contained in a house or approved kennel. There are signage, insurance, and special licenses required.  If the dog is found to be dangerous, more restrictions and training are required.  If the owner does not comply, a destruct order is issued.  If a dog labeled dangerous or potentially dangerous bites a dog running free, you have two separate violations.  Your dog can defend its self or its owners property without being labeled.  Once it is labeled, the owners standard of care is increased, by statute.  You know a bully breed starts out with one strike against him.  The label is strike 2. You violate the management plan, the court takes your dog on a destruct order. The free running dog will probably get fined, if anybody thinks about it.

Link to Minneapolis statute:http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/animal-control/AggressiveDogs.asp