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Speaking of Rottweillers being allowed to control their owners, just today I read this news article:

The 3-year-old dog, described by one neighbor as a 'goofy, gentle giant,' yanked the 16-month-old girl from the arms of her mother.

By Amanda Covarrubias and Natasha Lee, Times Staff Writers

Blanca Garcia was checking on her vacationing parents' dogs Tuesday night at their home in the Glendale hills when she walked outside with her 16-month-old daughter, Cassandra.

With the child in one arm, Garcia bent down to give a bowl of water to her parents' Rottweiler, Enano.

Instantly, authorities said, the 3-year-old dog attacked. The dog grabbed the girl out of Garcia's arms and dragged her several feet down the driveway.

A hysterical Garcia wrestled the toddler from the 150-pound dog's jaws and ran for safety into her car in the driveway. Once inside, she realized that Cassandra was badly hurt, put the child down, ran to the house and called 911. She then darted back into the car, police said.

When firefighters and police arrived five minutes later, they saw Enano sitting next to the driver's side of the car, apparently watching the girl. Cassandra was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

"The mauling and injuries sustained was horrific," said Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz, adding that the worst injuries were to her face and head. "I've been here for 21 years, and we have received calls for dog bites and attacks, but never — I can't recall one like this — where a small child is mauled so severely and dies. You hear about it everywhere else, but not here."

A day later, stunned relatives, neighbors and authorities were still trying to figure out why Enano attacked the girl.

Some residents in the neighborhood of million-dollar homes said the dog occasionally escaped from its hilltop residence but never caused any harm.

"He was a goofy, gentle giant," said Dorothy Ward, who lives a few doors down and whose 12-year-old son played with Enano. "He was a friendly dog. We could not find anything to detect he was violent."

Mail carrier Steve Valdez said he once saw one of the owners' daughters walking the dog and, because it appeared that the animal was in control, he told her, "He's walking you." The woman smiled. Valdez said he didn't think that the dog was causing a problem.

But in April 2004, a neighborhood resident who owned a small Maltese dog reported that the pet was being attacked by two Rottweilers, one of whom was Enano, said Ricky Whitman, vice president of community resources for the Pasadena Humane Society, which provides animal services for Glendale.

The Rottweilers had escaped from the yard and were wandering the neighborhood when they attacked the Maltese, she said. The Maltese died of its injuries. But because its owner did not want the incident written up, the matter was dropped, she said.

Animal experts and officials said they were baffled by the neutered dog's violent behavior Tuesday night.

"I've never seen a circumstance where something like this has happened," said Richard Polsky, president of Animal Behavior Counseling Services Inc. in West Los Angeles. "I don't know too many fatalities where a Rottweiler has gone up and snatched a child. Most attacks are geared toward children, but usually the children are walking or approaching."

A five-year study in the late 1990s by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta found that Rottweilers, along with pit bulls and German shepherds, bite humans more often than other breeds. The study looked at dog-bite-related fatalities between 1979 and 1998 and found that 66 were due to pit bull attacks and 39 to Rottweiler attacks.

"Rottweilers are responsible for a large number of fatalities in large part because of their size and the size of their bite," Polsky said. "They can bite much harder than a small dog.

"Rottweilers will attack for territorial type of reasons," he said. "They're very protective. Generally speaking, it may be someone who comes on their territory or they may attack because they're a dominant or macho-type dog."

Rottweilers were popular in the 1990s, said Jill Kessler of Rottweiler Rescue of Los Angeles, but as the guard dog of choice became the pit bull, their popularity waned in recent years.

"It's a breed that carries with it a lot more responsibility," Kessler said. "They need more socialization. They need continual obedience, and they really need to be supervised."

Blanca Garcia's parents, Alfredo and Elia Garcia, were vacationing in Mexico but were planning to return home immediately, said family friend Cesar Serrano, who was at their house on Via Saldivar on Wednesday afternoon.

The Garcias also own a Rottweiler who is Enano's mother, said Jerry Bernard, who lives across the street.

Bernard said one of the Garcias' daughters would sometimes knock on his door and ask if he had seen the dogs. Another neighbor said one of the dogs would escape from the gated property by digging holes under the fence. Other neighbors said they didn't realize that the Garcias had Rottweilers.

"If I was the owner, I wouldn't be able to look at the dog anymore," neighbor Kay Hunt said Wednesday. "I don't think people should have dogs like that."

Enano is being held at the Pasadena Humane Society on a 10-day rabies quarantine. After the quarantine is complete, he probably will be euthanized, Whitman said.

Another neighbor, Bobbie Gentili, who attended the Garcias' Fourth of July parties, said she could not believe what had happened.

"It's a tragedy," she said. "I feel very, very bad. It's a horrible day."

anygunanywhere wrote:They need to either obtain professional help and train that dog, or else there will be a tragedy. That Rott will do some damage if he isn't put in his place. You are right. Dogs should be treated like dogs. There should be no question regarding who is the boss of the house. Dogs come after all humans, even if the human is only six months old. If there is anyquestion the dog must go.

I learned the hard way that a hard punch straight down on top of his noggin will get a rottie's attention, and earn you some respect as Alpha. But man, did my hand hurt!

I love all of my animals. But if one of them ever took a serious nip at my toddler, we'd go for a "walk", and I'd be the only one coming back.

Kevin

tehlump wrote:I hate to derail the thread, but I guess it hasn't received any attention in a while anyway! :D

I have a shy border collie mix also! I think she's BC and weimeraner, but we're not sure. She's very smart and probably the best dog I've ever had. However, she is very exciteable and timid or submissive.

I have to be careful how I correct her...if I speak loudly enough she cowers like I beat on her.

That's pretty much my Katie dog. She was a stray who'd obviously had almost no human contact when she and her pup were brought in to the vet where my wife worked. The people who found them wanted to keep the pup, but not the mother. We wound up with her, and have tried hard to socialize her. She's a big ol' goobernut with us, and with people she's gotten to know, but she's still very shy with strangers, and submissive to everyone/thing in the house except the ferret. She loves to chase him, and he loves being chased.

As for what she is... well, the BC part is obvious. But she's got wire hair like a Jack Russell. Just imagine a black and white 45 pound terrier, and you've got the idea.

The terrier shows through at times. Once I let the dogs out, but didn't see the possum snacking in the cat food bowl on the back porch. Katie did, and hit the table, then followed the possum off the table, off the porch, and under the azaleas. She came out shaking that 12 pound possum like a rat terrier shakes a rat.

He curled up and played possum, which disappointed her greatly. I got her back inside, put on a glove, and carried Mr. Possum by the tail out to the back fence and dumped him over. He was gone the next morning, a bit sore, I'm sure!

Kevin

tehlump wrote:If I found a man in my backyard with a pistol, he'd be lucky to get out alive...especially if I saw that he had shot my dog. I would imagine the first thought I would have would be to think that he was shutting my dog up in preparation to invade my home.

Our dogs sleep inside, so I'd have to open the door first. And if I did, he'd find himself with a chihuahua/pomeranian attached to his ankle, a standard poodle sniffing him for potential treats, an Australian Shepherd/German Shepherd threatening to rip his face off (but she's 12 and more bark than bite), and a very shy border collie mix doing her best to avoid contact. But the BC, if she gets cornered (if I'm not here to hide behind), is the most likely to go psycho-effin-nuts and create a very messy crime scene. And then she'd come cower behind me.

As an aside, two critter lovers shouldn't marry. It can lead to four dogs in the house, three cats in the yard (plus one in the garage who has adopted us and fails to understand that he doesn't live here), a tank of fish, a turtle, and a ferret.

Kevin

There are nuts out there who will make threats no matter what the news is about.

As for jail time... this was trespass (he crossed a fence) and theft (of the dog). Not to mention discharging a firearm and possibly possessing an unregistered suppressor.

The dog owner certainly has civil recourse, as well. Living in the same neighborhood, how could she feel safe? The traumatic loss of a beloved pet, the shock of confronting an armed man outside her door... that's the kind of thing contingency lawyers love.

No offense, Charles. Lawyers do have their uses! :D

Kevin