Nintendogs Blamed for Enticing Real Dog to Attack Child

[Grounogeos]

Something about canines: ALL of them are territorial to some extent. Some of them just bark at anything unfamiliar that comes into their turf.

Others become violent and attack whatever unfamiliar thing is "trespassing." That's most likely what happened in this case; the Mastiff mistook the Nintendog's bark as a real bark, and since it had been sleeping in the other room it only knew that the sound came from the girl's location.

 

[Blimey]

What if the dog had heard another dog barking on television? Would we then say that all TV is awful and leads to bad, bad things?

Its a goddamned Bull Mastiff. Any parent who leaves one of those with a 9-year old needs their heads checked. That's a huge fucking dog. Hardly video-games fault here, and the whole "lets blame video games" is starting to get really, really old.

 

[Celtic_Kerr]

It's a bull mastiff. Why was it inside with a nine year old child in the first place?

Its a goddamned Bull Mastiff. Any parent who leaves one of those with a 9-year old needs their heads checked. That's a huge fucking dog. Hardly video-games fault here, and the whole "lets blame video games" is starting to get really, really old.

Bullmastiffs are actually rather calm animals with the right training, and can get along great with kids. They don't have the most violent tempers.

That being said, they are know to not get along very well with other male dogs in the slightest.

It's one of those breeds that if you think they'll be around children, you train then vigourously due to its size.

I suppose the bark in the videogame MIGHT have set it off, but the owner of the dog is a fucking idiot. "Might have kicked the dog" If I saw a bullmastiff charging at me only to grab my leg, I know I've got relflexes and I might accidentally kick it too, but even the mother can't confirm.

In this case I have to say I think the videogame might have been the source of the attack. That being said if you have a dog that attacks when it hears the sound of another dog bark... Well he's got some temperament issues

 

[Mukil]

I just tried this with my dog. She started to ferociously lick me.

You kicked your dog?

Why?

Noo I ment I played nintendogs near my dog =(

 

[p3t3r]

well actually parking w=could upset a dog so i can see how this might be but i think kicking it would be a better explanation

 

[teh_Canape]

really? nintendogs!?

come on folks, it's like blaming PacMan for a case of obesity


to be honest, I feel more sorry for the dog than for the actual girl

 

[IckleMissMayhem]

Why is the dog called 'Saracen'? :/

Because "Mr Widdle Fluffikins" isn't a name you'd associate with a Bull Mastiff.

Dogs do react to barking sounds, whether they're from dogs outside, on TV/radio etc. But, as has already been said, you shouldn't leave a young child alone with a a big dog.

then one would think the animal would attack the thing the child is holding, dogs have great eye sight beyond their limited color spectrum (they aren't color blind completely) an great hearing, If it had been a tv it would bark at the tv or attack the tv, or grab her DS and chew on it.

No argument here. But I wouldn't be surprised if what the owner is saying is partly true - if the dog was showing interest in the DS making noises, and the child gave it a crafty boot, it wouldn't take two seconds for what happened next to happen, even with a full audience present in the room.

 

[JEBWrench]

Nine-year-old Megan Walker was playing Nintendogs on her Nintendo DS at a family friend's abode while the house Bull Mastiff named Saracen was sleeping in a nearby room. Reportedly, when the Mastiff heard Walker's in-game dogs barking it came gunning for her, dragged her off of a sofa, and bit a large portion of her lip off.

Note the bold portion. This would seem to be a detail other posters aren't bothering to notice. The parents of the child aren't even mentioned here. It is inattention to details like these what causes mistakes and misconceptions where the wrong party is put to blame.

Remember, most people on this forum have a knee-jerk reaction to blame teh parentz, regardless of facts.

Seeing as the kid was "dragged off by her foot", the whole "tried to kick the dog" thing seems extremely likely.

 

[Verlander]

Glad the dog got put down. Knowing the UK, the sort of people who owned a bull mastiff and called it "saracen" (almost certainly without knowledge of the middle eastern empires), should have been done for neglect or something.

 

[Dfskelleton]

I don't know much about Bulll Mastif dogs, if they're agressive or not, but maybe he was trying to play or something and she freaked out and tried fight back. Why would you leave yiur child alone with a dog that size anyway? Maybe a Golden Retriever that is known to behave, but a huge bull mastif? Only one thing to say about this:

 

[SilverUchiha]

It's not the game's fault that the dog knows its shit. Anyone ever thought the dog just didn't think the game was any good and wanted you to stop playing? violently if necessary?

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Old woman should have trained her dog better.

 

[Treblaine]

Little girl's grandmother says: "I blame the game for what happened to Megan. If they hadn't been playing it I don't think the dog would have gone for her."

As predictable as death and taxes, old idiot blames the one thing they don't understand and doesn't take an an ounce of responsibility.

How about in what way SHE is to blame not making sure her own son/daughter (in-law) were responsible enough to discipline a dog.

Dog was bad, got destroyed. If only all other dogs were smart enough to learn from that, at least this dangerous animal won't be able to hurt anyone any more (locking it in a cage for the rest of it's life would be inhumane).

 

[WilliamRLBaker]

Remember, most people on this forum have a knee-jerk reaction to blame teh parentz, regardless of facts.

Seeing as the kid was "dragged off by her foot", the whole "tried to kick the dog" thing seems extremely likely.

hmmmmm really? I've never noticed it, now a'days its usually blame everything else but the parents.... Too often I've seen obvious problems with the parents not monitoring their children or giving a damn what their kids are doing, and when something happens they claim! but it was this not us! and the police follow, and the media follow.

 

[WanderingFool]

Bull Mastiff?

*Google image search*

HOLY FUCK!!!!

Dont blame the game, blame the dumbass parents who got that thing, its almost as big as a fucking horse.

 

[Kiju]

Whose to say it wasn't the game's fault? It might have been, in a way; the dog's barking might have triggered the dog to react defensively as the barking might have been interpreted as a threat.

This doesn't mean that video-games cause dogs to bite small children, it just means that some dogs react in strange ways to the barking of other dogs. :\

Especially since it's a Bull Mastiff. Docile my ass, they're only docile if they're trained to be that way; any dog is!. But if you don't properly train them, they're mean little suckers. I had a friend with one, and that dog hated me; damn thing growled at me any time it saw me.

 

[BloodSquirrel]

Generally speaking, I've found that cats/dogs tend not to react to artificial noises (TV, radio, video games). They seem to have figured out that they're not real, and not worth paying attention to.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

Yeah. I hate dogs, they can all go die, and this story has just reaffirmed that hate.

It wasn't the games fault though, of course. It's just stupid barbaric dog nature. She could have been watching a tv show about dogs. The only reason it went for her is because it was on her lap where the bark came from.

im sorry, but that statement is just wrong in so many ways, its because of people like you that racism and sexism exist, (im not black, or a women but i still think its wrong), firstly if u ever had a chance to meet my dog, she is the most gentle playful loving pet u could ever own (without it becoming creepy) i think in the case of dogs, its what breed it is that counts, although almost any breed can be tamed, do not hate dogs in general, hate the owners that bring them up and allow them the oportunity to do things like attack children.

 

[zombays]

It's a bull mastiff. Why was it inside with a nine year old child in the first place?

Bull mastiffs scare the shit ut of me

 

[stabnex]

Does it make me a bad person that seeing the title made me want to play Nintendogs?