Latest news with #Staffordshireterriers
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Yahoo
'So quick': dog licences recommended after fatal attack
Jyedon Pollard was a happy and carefree toddler, who set out to explore a motel where his family was staying one spring morning. In a matter of minutes - the time it took for his mother to get a drink for another child - the two-year-old was set upon by two dogs. "It happened so quick," his mother told NSW Police of the attack in Cowra, central western NSW, on November 8, 2022. "How did he even get in there? Why wasn't there a latch on the gate?" Jyedon likely died from injuries inflicted by a rottweiler that lived at the Country Gardens Motor Inn after he opened the dog's enclosure, NSW deputy state coroner Carmel Forbes said on Wednesday. The sudden and swift force of the animal, which was sharing the fenced-off area with a red heeler-cross, was consistent with evidence from previous inquests into dog attacks, Ms Forbes said. "Jyedon's death highlights how quickly a fatal attack can unfold, especially when the attack is on a young infant or a young child," Ms Forbes told the coroner's court in Lidcombe. "Such an attack may be wholly unexpected and, as such, come as a complete shock to the parents of the child and ... also the owner of the dog." Handing down her findings into Jyedon's death, Ms Forbes made several recommendations to change dog ownership laws and introduce licensing in NSW. The state government, in consultation with councils, should consider licences for dog owners, which could include safety education requirements, she said. Licensing could alternatively be introduced for dogs that are disproportionately involved in attacks, such as Staffordshire terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, bull mastiffs and rottweilers. She also recommended statewide dog safety education campaigns and animal enclosure requirements for hotel and motel owners, similar to pool fencing laws. Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig encouraged pet owners to contribute to a review of companion animal laws, including enforcements after dog attacks. "We need strong laws that hold pet owners to account and make sure owners take responsibility for their pets at home and in public spaces," Mr Hoenig said in a statement on Wednesday. The inquest heard neither the rottweiler Brutus nor the red heeler had a formal history of aggression, though a neighbour told police the larger dog bit her pet on the neck. A veterinarian gave evidence that once a dog attacked a person or an animal it was more likely to attack again and certain breeds had a propensity for initiating aggression. Both dogs were euthanised after the attack. Ms Forbes described the attack on Jyedon, a Wiradjuri boy, as a "terrible death" that continues to affect his family. "His death has placed a sadness and hurt in their lives and has disturbed them deeply," she said. "Jyedon's smiling face is the heartaching, missing piece of their family celebrations." 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14
BBC News
12-02-2025
- Science
- BBC News
Does your dog follow instructions? Scientists might know why.
Is your dog good at following instructions? Scientists believe they have discovered been researching the best tactics to get dogs to pay attention and follow instructions you give them and it's simpler than you might point and stare! Researchers at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna in Austria used eye-tracking helmets on 20 dogs to determine how they responded to different cues from humans. The dogs in the study were different breeds including Staffordshire terriers, Australian shepherds, poodles and some mongrels. Using two bowls, only one of which contained a treat, the dogs were tested in different scenarios - scientists pointing at a bowl, looking at the bowl, or doing both at the same time. They also used the classic dog owner prank of pretended to throw a ball in the direction of the bowl, while really keeping it in their hand. After the signal was given, cameras on the dogs helmets tracked where the dogs looked. The scientists then studied the results. They found that dogs seemed to understand instructions best when the scientist both pointed and stared at the bowl that contained the maybe unsurprisingly dogs understood least when the scientists pretended to throw the ball. Researchers believe that these findings begin to show that dogs follow human cues beyond simple instructions . However, there is still more research to be done before scientists can draw complete conclusions. More understanding is needed on exactly how much dogs can understand and how this compares to the way humans learn.
Sharjah 24
12-02-2025
- Science
- Sharjah 24
Scientists reveal how to make dogs pay attention
Both pointing and staring at an object is the best way for dog owners to get their pets to follow directions, according to a new study on Wednesday. The owner's gaze and gesture are useful separately, "but combined they are stronger," lead study author Christoph Voelter of the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna told AFP. The team of Austrian researchers put headgear on 20 dogs to detect exactly where the pooches looked when they were confronted with a range of scenarios. The test subjects included eight mongrels as well as Staffordshire terriers, Australian shepherds and poodles. For the experiment conducted in the university's Clever Dog Lab, each canine faced a scientist on their knees. A bowl was placed on each side of the scientist, only one of which contained a hidden treat. The dogs were then presented with five different scenarios, six times each. The scientists would point at the bowl while staring at the dog, or point and look at the bowl at the same time, or look only at the bowl. They even used the classic prank that many dog owners play on their pets -- they pretended to throw a ball in the direction of the bowl, while really keeping it in their hand. Recordings from the headgear showed that the dogs fared best when the scientist both pointed and stared at the bowl that contained the treat. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they did the worst when the scientists pretended to throw the ball. But do they understand? For the researchers, this finding pointed towards the hypothesis that dogs follow human referential communication cues, rather than simply directional ones. In other words, the dogs could understand the meaning of the information they were being given -- in this case, a treat is that way -- rather than just running in the direction they are being pointed. But the researchers were careful not to hastily draw conclusions. Exactly how much the dogs understood what is happening remains an open question, Voelter emphasised. "Is it for them more like an imperative directive to go somewhere? Or do they understand it more in a communicative way?" he said. More research in this field of natural pedagogy would be needed, according to the study in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. The field normally studies how communication clues -- such as pointing and looking at an object while naming it -- help young children learn the names of everything around them. The researchers are also looking into how this works for dogs, Voelter said. The next step is figuring out whether dogs are also better at learning and memorising things "when we address them," he added.
Arab News
12-02-2025
- Science
- Arab News
Scientists reveal how to make dogs pay attention
PARIS: Struggling to get your dog to fetch your slippers? Scientists who strapped eye-tracking helmets to a bunch of dogs have found the perfect tactic to get them to pay attention. Both pointing and staring at an object is the best way for dog owners to get their pets to follow directions, according to a new study on Wednesday. The owner's gaze and gesture are useful separately, 'but combined they are stronger,' lead study author Christoph Voelter of the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna told AFP. The team of Austrian researchers put headgear on 20 dogs to detect exactly where the pooches looked when they were confronted with a range of scenarios. The test subjects included eight mongrels as well as Staffordshire terriers, Australian shepherds and poodles. For the experiment conducted in the university's Clever Dog Lab, each canine faced a scientist on their knees. A bowl was placed on each side of the scientist, only one of which contained a hidden treat. The dogs were then presented with five different scenarios, six times each. The scientists would point at the bowl while staring at the dog, or point and look at the bowl at the same time, or look only at the bowl. They even used the classic prank that many dog owners play on their pets — they pretended to throw a ball in the direction of the bowl, while really keeping it in their hand. Recordings from the headgear showed that the dogs fared best when the scientist both pointed and stared at the bowl that contained the treat. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they did the worst when the scientists pretended to throw the ball. For the researchers, this finding pointed toward the hypothesis that dogs follow human referential communication cues, rather than simply directional ones. In other words, the dogs could understand the meaning of the information they were being given — in this case, a treat is that way — rather than just running in the direction they are being pointed. But the researchers were careful not to hastily draw conclusions. Exactly how much the dogs understood what is happening remains an open question, Voelter emphasized. 'Is it for them more like an imperative directive to go somewhere? Or do they understand it more in a communicative way?' he said. More research in this field of natural pedagogy would be needed, according to the study in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. The field normally studies how communication clues — such as pointing and looking at an object while naming it — help young children learn the names of everything around them. The researchers are also looking into how this works for dogs, Voelter said. The next step is figuring out whether dogs are also better at learning and memorising things 'when we address them,' he added.
