A campaigner leading the fight for tighter controls on the breeding of Staffordshire bull terriers has vowed to do whatever he can to help save a young dog facing a death sentence after it mauled a cat.
Three-year-old family pet C-Jay is now being held in Dundee’s Brown Street Kennels after a city Justice of the Peace ordered that the Staffordshire cross should be destroyed following its attack on the cat in Fintry.
At the city’s JP court, owner Tracy Jackson of Finella Terrace admitted failing to keep proper control of the Staffie, but was devastated when the destruction order was made by Justice Robin White.
The order also surprised the owner of Bobby the cat, which suffered several broken bones in the February attack when C-Jay was able to get out into the street and catch the neighbour’s pet.
He said he expected a muzzle order on the dog after hoping for compensation to pay the bill for the veterinary treatment, but did not want Miss Jackson and her teenage daughter to lose their pet.
The mum and daughter are now devastated that they are unable to visit C-Jay while an appeal against the JP sentence is pursued.
However, they have been encouraged by the public response and an approach from Ian Robb, vice-chairman of Help for Abandoned Animals in Angus, who is spearheading a nationwide effort to draw Holyrood’s attention to the scale of the problem of abandoned Staffies.
Mr Robb claims the breed’s association with crime and the reckless breeding of Staffies and crosses has led to a crisis, with animal charities unable to cope with the rocketing numbers of dogs finding their way to rescue shelters and facing an almost impossible task in re-homing them.
Mr Robb’s effort has been backed by Angus councillors and he is due to take the issue to the Scottish Parliament’s petitions committee later this year.
He believes the order against C-Jay will further hamper efforts to improve the outlook for the breed.’Severity’Mr Robb said, “The severity of the sentence is what has concerned us.
“This incident should not have happened, I totally agree, and the owner of any dog is 100% responsible for ensuring that dog is under control.
“But 80% of dogs, no matter what breed, will chase a cat if they get away and that is what has happened here.”
He added, “It was a very unfortunate incident, but the cat is still alive and even its owner said they did not want to see this young dog destroyed.
“They were looking for compensation to sort out the vet bills, but what has happened here is, in my opinion, over the top.
“The poor girl is distraught that this has happened her dog is now being held in the kennels and she cannot see him, so I was happy to offer her whatever help I could in her appeal.”
Mr Robb said, “It’s a drastic decision in which I feel this Justice of the Peace is trying to make an example of Tracy and her dog.
“But I just wish he had given a thought to the longer-term effects of making the order and the impact on charities like ourselves which are involved in the difficult task of re-homing Staffies.”
Miss Jackson said she was pleased with the offer of help from Mr Robb and is now awaiting an appeal hearing date which may take weeks.