Northern Ireland girl (9) mauled in horror dog attack

A nine-year-old girl has been attacked outside her home by two powerful pitbull-type dogs.

Danielle McAllister suffered injuries to her arm in the attack in the driveway of her home in Gelvin Gardens, Londonderry, yesterday afternoon.

The attack sparked calls for a speedy crackdown on dangerous dogs.

SDLP Councillor Gerard Diver said: "You have to question the wisdom of keeping these dogs in cities where there are children or vulnerable people around.

"If people are going to put dogs like this out it does a great disservice to people who keep dogs responsibly."

Neighbours used brushes to fight off the animals which were locked on to the child.

She was taken to Altnagelvin Hospital for treatment.

Mr Diver added: "Children must be protected not only at school but on their way home.

"Such attacks are the fault of dog owners who are obviously not taking their responsibilities seriously.

"Indeed, we must reinforce the message among all dog owners that they need to keep their animals under control at all times."

The Assembly is considering dangerous dogs legislation.

The Dogs (Amendment) Bill will introduce compulsory microchipping, and will allow district council wardens to impose controls on dogs where there has been breach of control laws. The Bill will also make it an offence to allow a dog to attack and injure another person's dog.

Earlier this year Agriculture Minister Michelle Gildernew said: "I am maintaining the prohibition on certain breeds of dangerous dogs and will bring forward subordinate legislation to introduce further strict exemption conditions aimed specifically at protecting children.

"In addition, new powers for dog wardens to impose control conditions recognise the importance of 'deed' as well as 'breed'."

It is currently being considered by Stormont's Agriculture Committee.


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never understood pit bull type dog... either it is or it isn't... poor girl hope shes not to badly injured... owner needs to be put down for letting it happen

sorry to hear this and hope the girl recovers fast, this is an up setting situation that is made worse by the fact it could have been prevented if the dogs were under proper control

i hate people like this!! if they where responsible the dogs would have never been out! these sort of poeple are why the rest of us who want to own a gorgeous dog such as a pit cant, they give the breed and owners a bad name.
on this topic though i think if they where legal it would stop some of the people that want a ''hard'' dog from getting them as i dont think it would draw the same amount of attention, i know what im trying to say hopefully you will aswell.
these people should not have any breed of dog the irresponsdible t**ts
and what they mean by a pitbull type is anything big and muscly, we have been asked was Snoop a pit,
i do feel sorry for the child and hope she recovers

as far as i know the dogs or owners have not being found, its horrific again more strict laws for dogs, how in the name of god can children involved in these horrific attacks by dogs regardless of breed get justice if the blame is based on breed and not the irresponsibility's of some, it drives me crazy to think again nothing will be done or learned only add more fuel to these attacks by blaming dogs etc. and laws brought in if a dog gets into a fight with another is just ludicrous, people have falling outs let alone dogs, i know we all love our dogs but for good sake children can't be replaced they need to take their heads out of their ass and blame and do something about bad owners and protect the owners that strive to be responsible.[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

the laws are not working, pits are a banned breed up there and still it doesn't do anything, these laws where put in place to keep the public safe, they have failed adding more is to fail even more, when are they going to realize that even if every pit bull was put to sleep tomorrow attacks will still happen, ill say it again, until there are laws put in place for owners rather than dogs there will be no change, only the responsible dog owner will suffer as the irresponsible don't give a hoot about the law.

Pitbull type = anything short haired. with a kinda blocky head

Harry wrote:Pitbull type = anything short haired. with a kinda blocky head

when i looked back on post i didnt explain properly.... i know what it means... just cant understand how they can call them pitbull types coz its giving them an even worse name then they already have... get the facts right and find out what breed it is before it goes to papers... gas thing is they probably wouldnt kno the difference between a pit and a poodle.... lets call every dog a pitbull type coz it so much easier and sells more papers... ok rant over... lol

i do agree with charging the owners for a situation like this.... only way there gonna learn.... also they should be banned from owning dogs in the future... as lil said laws are not working as is there needs to be a change.

dog bites = owner being charged... sent a loud clear message and i bet there will be less dopey uneducated owners

This is all we need now, another attack on a child. It nearly always seems to be a child that has to suffer for some irresponsible person that owns any dog. Not just a Pitbull (any type of mix bull breed) or an American Pitbull Terrier. The government have their heads where the sun dont shine and refuse to listen, why these attacks are happening Lilly mentioned a very important point "i know we all love our dogs but for good sake children can't be replaced they need to take their heads out of their ass and blame and do something about bad owners and protect the owners that strive to be responsible."

pitties rule wrote:

Harry wrote:Pitbull type = anything short haired. with a kinda blocky head

when i looked back on post i didnt explain properly.... i know what it means... just cant understand how they can call them pitbull types coz its giving them an even worse name then they already have... get the facts right and find out what breed it is before it goes to papers... gas thing is they probably wouldnt kno the difference between a pit and a poodle.... lets call every dog a pitbull type coz it so much easier and sells more papers... ok rant over... lol

That's what I meant the papers call any dog with short hair and a square-ish head a Pitbull Type dog.

I saw something in America where there was a Boxer and an 8week old Pitbull puppy, the Boxer attacked the child and all over the papers was "Pitbull Attack" it's so wrong that they can do that

it is wrong and its not fair on the dogs.... its a subject that could go on and on and get very heated

i think the bottom line is what can we do about it? i think as an association for responsible dog owners something has to be said and done, the only problem is that we need to make them listen because trying to talk to these people is like constantly hitting a brick wall. as most of us here are not only dog owners we are parents too, no1 likes to hear about these horrible attacks and little children being hurt and in some cases being killed, the question is how do they think we all own these breeds and kids without having any problems???? if you Google dog attacks on any breed you will find them, its just a down rite disgrace that their laws are preventing the safety measures that's needed. (OWNERS HELD 100% RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR DOGS AND EDUCATION)

news update, the dogs are to be put down, there is also a pic of one of the dogs

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the way 'pitbull type' works is, say for example someone has reported you for owning one of these mixed breeds, it will be taken off you, you will be responsible for getting blood tests done, if they let yuou, to prove what breed it is, it will have to go through and see a dog specialist, to check behaviour and then a KC member will usually help with guessing the breed. this entire process can take 5years, look at Bruce the pitbull, i was lucky enough to know him, he was the biggest softie you could ever meet, not a bad bone in his body yet he had to go through yeras in poorly maintained kennels, he was bitten by other dogs and not recieving correct vet treatment, and was eventually sent to a rescue in galway.

because i work with a dog rescue i do know that the woman in charge of the dog wardens has said on numerous ocasions that any pitbull type should be shot on site! this is unacceptable behaviour, for a woman in so much power to be saying this, adding fuel to the medias fire.

laws need to be in place for the owners, banning more breeds will make things worse. something has to change!

I would love that woman to meet the dog Lilly rescued, and fostered in a loving home at the moment. He is a pure A.P.B.T. and to look at him you wouldnt bat an eye lid at him. He looks like a large thin mongrel possibly a bit of Great Dane. He is so calm and gentle and at 9 months hes a big dog. So ow can a specialist determin whether, its a cross bred Labrador or a Pitbull type. Blood tests cant prove anything unless you have the Sire and Dam. As for that Angel of death to say anything about the Bull Breed. Why does she have so much control over dogs and single out a certain breed. As for Bruce, he should have been sent back to his rightful owner, not that orphanage Sadly these attacks wont stop here, theres alot of questions in my mind, how did the dogs escape, where they being tormented. Where they exercised?? Some how i doubt it, because its illegal to own such a breed in the UK and Northern Ireland.

i also have some questions too, the interview said that these 2 dogs savagely attacked this little girl but yet it states clear that the little girl sustained 1 bite to her arm? the little girl also said that the dogs scratched her on the face etc, for some reason i don't think these dogs where as viscous as they are being made out to be, i think maybe it could have being a case of these dogs getting over excited when they seen the little girl, has any1 any info on the injury the little girl sustained? did the little girl need stitches etc?

also id like to add that a dog specially a pit bull can not be rightly identified by any ID body, the breed is not a recognized breed and has so many different looks,shapes etc, there is no possible way of ID these dogs and any1 that does shouldn't be, their only making assumptions, they have a certain measurements they take of the snout, head and body, they use a certain standard, but if you look at most breeds bully or not most fit the same measurements.

i have has a couple of altrecations with this woman, she is not nice, she does not care about dogs, infact she is scared of certain breeds! now surely to be a dog warden you cant be scared of dogs.people have tried to educate her but its like talking to a brick wall. she is hell bent on destroying anything pitbuill like and well lets face it she wouldnt know one if it was standing infront of her! this is the same woman that now wants to ban Akitas, possibly rotties after she heard of the attack in scotland.
you'll quite often find pitbulls in certain areas of belfast, i will say there are some people that do walk them at night but for the majority of the so called gangsters they just feed them, its more being able to say you own one than actually being responsible and givng it what it needs
and the head of the dog wardens who is she to play god? i like to believe in karma sorta deal, what goes around comes around, and hopefully she gets whats coming to her sooner rather than later

totally agree hope she gets what she deserves who gave her the right to play god with our pets???

im a firm believer in karma... ppl will get wot they deserve

i can understand every1s anger, i used to feel like this and get very upset when a pound near me would not let me or any1 take out the breeds such as pit bulls or mixes spite having good homes lined up, they just put them to sleep no matter how friendly they were and the horrible thing was that i had seen these dogs and new they were going to be killed and i could do nothing about it, i believe that out of most breeds in shelters its being noted by the GOOD people working there that the bully breeds are the 1s more adoptable as their temperament requirements fit the bill better than others, i don't think we should let these people make us feel this way although it is so very hard, i do believe what goes around comes around, i also think that these kind of people and i have met quite a few should not be working with animals, i believe that people working in this line of work should have compassion, and as im sure you all know that if any breed is in need of our compassion it is the bully breeds as they are the breeds that fill up these pounds and shelters and true no fault of their own, its very sad that a dog is judged by the way he or she looks, they should be judged by their temperament. i did read once and i can't remember who said it but it i think it was Martin Luther King and it went like this,
a man shouldn't be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. ...

just to let you guys know the dogs trust is backing a new bill to replace the DDA, they want a deed not breed bill, which would mean the owner of said dog would face the consquences of their actions and not the dog, they are also looking into a control of dogs act as they said the BSL is not working

its about time, now so far the only place i can see that they have mentioned in this is England and Wales, but surely N.I and Scotland will have to be included or at least follow suit

i agree with you, i also think that all dogs should be of equal consequences if an attack should take place, weather its a pit bull, rotty, collie or jack Russel all dogs regardless of breed from the smallest to the largest their owners should face the same consequences for out of control dogs, i must get onto dogs trust here and see what they have to say after all they are all connected to each other and we all want the same thing here, as owners i think we are more than happy to take full responsibility for our dogs actions but not for the actions of others.

also here would surely have to follow suit too as the law that where put in place first dont work... id take full responsiblity for my dogs... i think lilly is right every owner should have to face the consequences for there out of control dogs no matter what the breed.

lilly if ya find out anything will ya let us know.... thanks

sure will hun, we all need to stick together to fight for this, numbers..[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Thats a shame for the little girl ,deffo the owners fault.