Almost every day in the Polish newspapers there are plenty of articles with the following headlines: “Monster killed the baby”, “Fatal wounds”, Dogs or beasts from hell” etc. and all of the above news concerned the cases where dogs of the breeds usually considered dangerous attacked or even killed a person.
It is difficult to trace the origins of the popularity of the dangerous dog breeds in Poland. In my opinion, it has started with general fascination of the young people with hip-hop, gangster culture and an image of a tough guy with a killer dog by his side. If you ever watched a hip hop video, you certainly know that usually the main character in them is represented by a muscle man with a vicious dog on a leash, i.e. pit bull, bullterrier or rottweiler.
If you decide to visit some dark parts of Praga, the district of Warsaw which is considered to be the most dangerous part of our capital, on the corner of each street you will notice small groups of old or young men accompanied with the four-legged companions. It is a typical landmark of this neighborhood. The animals often create a more peaceful and friendly impression than their owners. However, on the other hand with these breeds you never know. In particular, due to the fact that in this case their owners are usually small or larger scale criminals, juvenile delinquents and the depressed and addicted to alcohol unemployed. One of the most negative phenomena concerning the above mentioned owners is that these people cross-breed the dogs of different dangerous dog breeds and the result is a strange, dangerous and explosive mixture of genes. This action was prohibited by law. However, as in similar situations which are impossible to control, it did not work out.
The other negative occurrence related to dangerous breeds in Warsaw is the fact that those dogs very often run without leash or muzzle and pose a threat to the safety of small children and all people around them. Once again the law implemented by the City of Warsaw prohibits the dogs above 13 kg to be unleashed is broken and nobody can do anything about it. Moreover, it is very unwise to discuss these issues with some dog owners unless we want to be attacked either by them or by their lovely pets. The more peculiar situation is visible in the means of the public transport when you are usually squeezed with other passengers afraid to step on the dog paw and being deprived of your own foot. Fortunately, these incidents are more controlled and irresponsible dog owners are threaten by the risk financial fines which in this case are executed quite successfully.
Due to all these unpleasant accidents concerning the attacks of dangerous dogs on people, they were proposals to put a ban on possession and breeding of dangerous breeds in big cities. However, judging on the numbers of these kinds of breeds on the streets of Warsaw, the issue was not publicized strongly enough.
The breeders of these dogs claim that the main blame should be placed on the irresponsible owners who without any knowledge of the dangerous dogs buy them. Anyone who decides to buy such a puppy must be aware of its character, temper, and habits and most importantly of the fact that it requires a huge living space and extremely specific discipline as well as strict training. Moreover, there is not a single chance that with all the above conditions guaranteed it will change into a polite lapdog. Finally, I have to admit that I agree that the owners are responsible for the misfortunes caused by their dogs. Their role is not to be overrated. Thus, if you have a sensitive personality and you are not a natural born a trainer of military discipline, you should not make a decision to have such a dog. They look like nice animals in the movies but a in real life it is so hard for them to be happy in a closed space of a small apartment that they may turn into beasts.
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