Following Tuesday’s deadly attack of a Rottweiler on its owner, animal rights activist and president of Animals Alive Katheryn Cleghorn is urging citizens not to malign large breed dogs like the one in question.
“It’s hard to say what (went) wrong in this case but it’s important to underscore that these dogs and other big breed dogs should not all be maligned and dumped, imprisoned in kennels,” she said.
She described the incident as tragic and saddening but noted that “historically these breeds are highly intelligent, and trainable, and are working dogs who genetically have high metabolisms.”
“They are very good protectors...one incident cannot lead to a generalisation,” she said.
“At Animals Alive, over the last ten years, we have worked hard to socialise many aggressive dogs including Pitbulls and Rottweiler... we have been very successful using a combination of spaying/neutering, lots of exercise, good nutrition, regular vaccinations and de-worming. And most of all love! We have put these dogs back up for adoption, all successfully.”
Cleghorn shared a video with Guardian Media of a Rottweiler who was chopped on his head and nose by “a heartless owner.”
She said when he arrived at their shelter he had aggression issues. But in the video, he could be seen barking and playing with shelter workers.
Cleghorn advised owners to give their dogs similar care to help prevent an incident like Tuesday’s from reccurring.
