Some people are calling for the return of dog licences in the wake of recent dog attacks.
The need for dog licences was abolished in 1987, with new measures including the Dangerous Dogs Act of 1991 introduced. Despite it being mandatory to have a licence to own a dog under these guidelines, it is estimated that less than 50% of owners actually complied with the law and paid their licence fees.
Many saw the law as a 'tax on dog ownership', however there are now calls from groups, including the RSPCA, for a return to dog licensing. Those calls have grown louder following recent dog attacks in Merseyside, including the tragic case of baby Bella Rae Birch who was killed by her family's dog - an XL bully - in St Helens.
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Over the last month, Merseyside has seen several dog attacks including one from a 'banned breed', which attacked an elderly greyhound, fracturing its jaw and pulling the 63-year-old owner into the road. As well as this, NHS figures place St Helens and Knowsley in the top five areas in the country in terms of dog bites.
But would a return to the dog licence work?
In 2010, the RSPCA conducted an investigation into the viability of re-introducing a form of dog licensing, however with dogs' welfare at the heart of the scheme, rather than generating tax. According to Pets4Homes a poll of almost 1,000 people, made up of a mixture of both dog owners and non dog owners found that 76% of people were in favour of a compulsory dog registration scheme for a variety of reasons.
The pet expert site Pets4Homes added: "Much as was the case with the now abolished dog licensing law, ensuring full compliance with a new scheme could prove almost impossible. Compliance with the old law was less than 50%, which hardly inspires confidence."
Many dog lovers stand strongly against the re-introduction, however recent attacks may have changed minds, particularly in St Helens. One person said: "I agree too many incidents of this nature have happened and something has to change."
A spokesperson for the RSPCA said: "The RSPCA strongly believes that the current legislative framework around dog control is not working and there is an urgent need for reform and consolidation. We want to see the end of breed specific legislation which labels certain types of dogs as dangerous based on their appearance and new measures introduced which are preventative, evidence based, proportionate and allow for early intervention.
"We also want to see consistent and widespread interventions including education which enables people to stay safe around dogs, particularly those who are vulnerable to dog bites, for example, children.
"Although there is always much focus on, and interest around, the breed of dog involved in a dog bite incident, research shows us that breed is not a reliable predictor of aggressive behaviour. It is important to remember that any dog has the potential to use aggressive behaviour and any dog can bite. We are urging those who are responsible for dogs, as well as those who interact with them to be aware of the signs that dogs use to tell us how they are feeling and high risk behaviours which can lead to dogs feeling threatened and possibly using aggressive behaviour and biting."
