Bull Terrier Essay

The media has a massive platform to get stories out to the public, more so now than ever before, with the likes of Facebook and twitter for news stories about dog attacks to be shared across the country, or even, the world within seconds. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is a perfect example of gaining a reputation mainly through the media, unfortunately for the SBT, their popularity was at its height as the media was discovering more outlets meaning stories of attacks spread further and faster. Owning a SBT began to bring a reputation itself as the owner being of an aggressive nature from a certain area in a town or city and certain employment status; often uneducated and sometimes associated with gangs. They became very popular amongst young males and seen as a status dog due to them being used in dog fighting; their history of once being ‘the nanny dog’, long forgotten by many. Due to their growing popularity amongst the young and the majority lacking the experience and calm assertiveness needed to own such a stubborn, strong breed, attacks involving the breed in the family home were widely reported on, stating how the attack was unprovoked and unpredictable, when in reality, the owner and dog’s personalities aren’t compatible; an aggressive, dominant owner with neurotic tendencies could aggravate any fear aggression or dominance aggression …show more content…
In my opinion the popularity of a breed puts them at risk of coming under the same accusations; as the popularity of the SBT rose, so did the reported incidents and attacks involving them and a broad, sweeping judgment was made in many people’s minds that all SBTs are ‘bad dogs’, when in fact, the owner may be unsuitable for the breed, which will happen when a dog is bought out of popularity or