Child Injured by Police Dog

As the title really :

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-23080880

Wow poor boy I wonder what made the dog attack?

Really sad that the little boy was bitten .. hate the sensationalist statements that the media gets from people for stories like this though.

Oh that's terrible. Poor boy though. Worst thing being attacked by a dog as its happened to me as well. But I do wonder why and how it happened!

Never hearing any story of someone being attacked by a dog

Just caught the back end of this on the local news , I think if this has happened it clearly shows the handler did not have control of the dog and the dog poses a risk, to my mind there is only 1 solution. This is of course a decision based around the facts as I've seen them

the dogs are trained to "attack" onto anything that flaps around. the only failure here was the handler as the dog was just doing what it was trained to do. we dont know the full story as the mainstream press will refuse to report that as ever but i bet you anything the kid was flailing and to a gsd x belgain mal thats game on.
imo the dog should not be put down, the person that suggested it should as they only seem to think about retrebution for the failures of bad dog owners. * like this happends, no its not nice but that dog and its team have prob  been out on hundreds of excersises without problem and have saved countless lives. for some old witch to say "my kids play there all the time" is her only justification to kill the dog is criminal.... * off you old hag you dont speak for all of us.

I happen to know several police dogs as my neighbour keeps them, i can walk up to his house and yes they will "worry" me but not touch me, however if i were to act anyway different than i do (i.e. walk on confidently without looking at them and hands in pockets) im 200% sure they would attack me. Police dogs are trained to attack and bring people down. They are smart dogs but at the end of the day a dog is a dog and it will do what it is trained to do. No doubt they play a vital role in the police force, but they are very unpredictable in the way that they will attack because thats what they believe is GOOD. I think there is not any point pts the dog cause it was just working, but i think there needs to be stricter laws on the handlers, they can't let the dogs roam free when searching, how the dog supposed to know who he is looking for!

Nathan wrote:the dogs are trained to "attack" onto anything that flaps around. the only failure here was the handler as the dog was just doing what it was trained to do. we dont know the full story as the mainstream press will refuse to report that as ever but i bet you anything the kid was flailing and to a gsd x belgain mal thats game on.
imo the dog should not be put down, the person that suggested it should as they only seem to think about retrebution for the failures of bad dog owners. * like this happends, no its not nice but that dog and its team have prob  been out on hundreds of excersises without problem and have saved countless lives. for some old witch to say "my kids play there all the time" is her only justification to kill the dog is criminal.... * off you old hag you dont speak for all of us.

From the News I've seen Nathan which is where my comment was based on though its a little clearer now , the police had entered a back garden where a child was playing , in their grandparents own home, as a part of the police search for some copper thieves from 1.5 miles away . I have to profess that I don't know the full ins and outs of police dog training but I thouht they were taught to attack on command . If this is not the case then I apologise for my comment as I intimated the dog should be PTS.
If I am wrong I will hold my hands up . if  I am not then I stand by what I said, 2 things are sure though

1) The handler should be taken from the job as he obviously cannot handle , you cannot just go barging into somebodies garden (obviously unless it was the criminals home ) and not be mindful of what is on the other side of the gate so the handler should have never been in a position where the dog was on a long enough lead to get to the child. It really sounds like police wading in feet first

2) For the sake of appeasing the public and the childs family the dog should be taken out of service and retired

I am not anti police , far from it but won't sit silent either , lad down our street is a police dog handler and has a GSD and a Spaniel Drugs Dog but not been able to catch him yet or a comment on the subject , hopefully he can educate me a little further .

if it was loose though it will go wherever the scent or whim takes it. Loose dogs are trained to bring down anyone in their path

Hayley wrote:if it was loose though it will go wherever the scent or whim takes it. Loose dogs are trained to bring down anyone in their path

The dog wasn't loose Hayley according to the news reports it was leashed . If the dog had of been loose then yes I agree less onus on the dog and much more on the handler but seems this was not the case . It hasn't been reported on since yesterday , or not that I can find  but here was the last report


From yesterday afternoon ITV Central News
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Martin Cutbill, whose son Tom suffered serious bite wounds to his right leg while playing in his grandmother's garden, said he was "disgusted" at the incident.

West Midlands Police issued an unreserved apology to the Cutbill family after Tom was attacked on Sunday during a search for metal thieves in the Oldbury area.

Speaking at the family's home in Rowley Regis, Mr Cutbill, 40, said he was "completely and utterly shocked and amazed" at what had happened to his son.

Asked how Tom was recovering after his ordeal, his father told reporters: "He is only recently out of hospital - he's only starting to take his first steps on crutches.

"There were quite a few puncture wounds and tears to the skin. He's had two operations, one to clean up the wounds to stop the risk of infection and the next one to seal the wounds."

Mr Cutbill, who works as a warehouse manager, added: "We have not really had much contact with the police yet and will be speaking to them tomorrow."

The West Midlands force has informed the Independent Police Complaints Commission, and is carrying out its own investigation into how the boy came by his injuries while the dog, a German shepherd-Belgian Malinois cross, was on a leash.

The dog's handler had been sent to support fellow officers who were searching an area near Western Road, Oldbury, for four men seen running away from a quantity of copper wiring.

Chief Inspector Ian Marsh said: "This poor young boy has gone through an absolutely horrendous ordeal and my thoughts are with him and his family as he recovers from his injuries.

"We apologise unreservedly for what has happened and have launched an investigation to fully understand exactly how an innocent young lad came to be bitten by a police dog in the safety of his own back garden.

"Police dogs and their handlers receive intensive training and play crucial roles in the arrest of suspects day in, day out, but on the very rare occasions where things go wrong, it's vital we understand why and learn the lessons to ensure it doesn't happen again."

The officer and the dog involved in the incident continue to carry out regular duties after an initial independent assessment.


Yes there may be some overstatements from the family but on the face of it the police have not attempted to discredit their claims and the facts seem to be correct . Police dog on lead enters family garden and bites child playing , totally unacceptable .

If I had walked into that garden with one of my dogs and this had happened there would be no discussions, police investigations etc even if the child had poked one of my dogs in the eye