Banning dog breeds is not the answer, punishing the owners is

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We should judge dogs based on their behaviour rather than their genetics (Getty)

With the renewed debate over dangerous dogs providing more emotional stories from both sides of the argument, it got me thinking about how there could be a better way forward than simply trying to ban a certain “breed” of dog.

I can see a clear correlation between dog behaviour and human behaviour here, yet we as a society don’t seem to be able to make this association. In normal human life, it is not acceptable to bully or harass let alone attack someone. The severity of the offence is not determined by the perpetrator but by the victim or witnesses.

So why not apply the same rules to man’s best friend? A well-trained dog cared for by responsible owners is a delightful thing, on the other hand, an untrained dog even unwittingly can be a real menace. A dog jumping up at a child should be treated as an assault (both mental and physical) and the dog and potentially its owner should be punished accordingly in the same way as a human would be punished for doing the same thing.