Judge David Pugsley recently allowed a prisoner who was on remand go home to feed his dog, so concerned was he about the welfare of the animal. The judge has been heavily criticised for his actions, but his kindness towards the dog owner showed a real human side to him.

31 year old Daniel Reaney, who was due to be sentenced last week for burglary, but he appealed to the judge from his prison cell, where he was awaiting sentencing, stating that he needed to look after his Staffordshire Bull Terier named Vinnie. His dog is called Vinnie, after Vinnie Jones – the former Wimbledon footballer turned movie star.

Daniel Reaney pleaded with the judge, saying:

He’s lovely, he’s like a child to me. I’ve had to get someone to go in to feed him but I need to sort something out for him. I know I’ll probably be sent to prison on Friday. I’ve turned my life around. I’ve been doing voluntary work and doing better than I’ve ever done.

Paul Spratt, the prosecutor, opposed the bail but he was (more…)

Some dog breeds have, it seems, been harshly branded as ‘hard dogs’ by the media and are finding that image difficult to shake off, even when the reality is far from the truth. The real problem seems to be when irresponsible dog owners are looking for what they consider ‘tough breeds’ to act as guard dogs and to replace some element of their manhood that is missing from their lives.

Staffordshire bull terriers are one such dog breed that has been singled out by dog owners looking for fierce dogs, yet all too often finding that the dogs themselves are meek, mild and playful – far from their portrayed media image. This results in the poor dogs being abandoned by their owners for no being ‘hard enough’.

The problem is particularly rife in Scotland as SPCA workers in Edinburgh have taken in record numbers of Staffordshire bull terriers that have been abandoned by their foolish owners.

The Balerno centre reports that out of the current dogs it has looking for new homes, 80% of them are Staffordshire bull terriers or cross breeds with Staffs. Equally, Seafield’s Dog and Cat Home in Edinburgh states that out of the dogs it has on its books, (more…)