'Dogs' behavior is reflection of owners'
James Crosby, a dog aggression expert, poses with his dog Henry, a pure bred Curly Coated Retriever, on the front porch of his home in Jacksonville, Florida, in this undated photo. / Courtesy of James Crosby
Canine expert warns of one-size-fits-all dog legislation
By Kang Hyun-kyung
An American dog expert voices concern about the idea of introducing sweeping dog legislation, rather than focusing on the behavior of an individual dog, and says a policy disregarding individual characteristics of dogs is doomed to fail to prevent deadly dog aggression.
James Crosby, a veteran dog aggression expert who lives in Jacksonville, Florida, noted most dog aggression comes from owners’ flawed upbringing of their dogs.
“As far as breeds having more or less aggression, much of that is based on upbringing and how they are taught,” he told The Korea Times. “If the dog was never trained or given clear guidance around strangers, any dog can be a problem.”
Overall, Crosby said the actions of the dog, regardless of breed, are largely determined by the environment and the training and treatment they receive. Even a small dog like a French Bulldog can be a problem if the owners tolerate irresponsible behavior towards humans, he said.
Crosby said indigenous Korean breeds Jindo-gae and Poong-san-gae can have a sharp temperament if they are not raised well. “They are like large Akita and are both hunting and fighting dogs that were used by the North Korean military and I think still may be. Jindo, of course, were also a fighting breed in the past and still retain some of the edge, if you will, from their past.”
Aggressive dogs have emerged as a policy headache after popular boy band Super Junior member Choi Si-won’s French Bulldog Bugsy came to be involved in the death of the owner of a high-end Korean restaurant in southern Seoul last month. She died of blood poisoning on Oct. 6, days after she was assaulted by the dog.
The deadly dog bite case has since prompted a heated debate about dog legislation between the government and dog owners.
Earlier, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced a set of measures to punish dog owners if they violate rules. Under the scheme, dogs must be muzzled and leashed in public.
On Nov. 5, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government unveiled a specific plan to prevent canine aggression. Under the guidelines, dogs of 15-kilogram weight or more must be muzzled or leashed with 2-meter harnessing leash. Owners would be fined 100,000 won if their dogs bite people. Owners will be fined 200,000 won and 500,000, respectively if their dogs were responsible for second and third attacks.
The measures met opposition from some dog owners. A dog owner, whose identity has not been made public to protect his or her rights, posted an online petition to the Cheong Wa Dae website, claiming the local government’s guidelines to prevent canine aggression based on the weight of dogs are misleading.
The person claimed there is no direct relationship between canine aggression and the size of dogs. “Those measures unveiled by the Gyeonggi government are absurd because according to them, my dog needs to be muzzled if he gains weight and weighs 15 kilograms. If the same dog loses weight and becomes less than 15 kilograms, for example, he doesn’t need to be muzzled. This doesn’t make sense,” the person wrote. The person initiated an online petition calling for the scrapping of the dog rules. Nearly 20,000 people signed the online campaign as of Tuesday afternoon.
Governor Nam Kyung-pil responded that the local government puts human safety first and he sees the dog rules still necessary despite the controversy.
He wrote on his Facebook account the dog rules are based on the standards that are used in some U.S. states.
Crosby encouraged the Korean government to be cautious when policymakers craft dog legislation and warned it could have unintended consequences.
“Dangerous dog laws should be clear, quantifiable and be based on the particular behavior of an individual dog rather than on sweeping rules,” he said. “The aim of the legislation should be to control loose dogs and to hold the human owners responsible for the actions of their dogs. These include keeping the dogs under control and teaching them manners and training when needed to ensure the dogs are good citizens and not a threat to humans or other dogs.”