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Status Dogs 145 effectively banning and requiring state sanctioned destruction of certain breeds Control agencies (largely the media) have greatly influenced this approach, heightening public concern and anxiety (Cohen and Richardson 2002) Under the banner of ‘protecting society’ the routine killing of healthy dogs has become accepted and normalised, predicted and expected, guilt free and victimless animal abuse While many stray and abandoned dogs are euthanised in the UK, there has been a significant increase in the number of status-type dogs who have met this fate at the hands of the state or NGOs This response is consistent with other ‘exaggerated’ responses by control agencies identified by Cohen (1985) and Schur (1963) in reaction to homosexuality, abortion and drugs use, which they argue have generated more problems than were solved These dogs are not inherently bad or dangerous, rather, their natural, positive, physical and personality traits are construed to be deviant: powerful becomes uncontrollable; confident becomes dominant; energetic becomes dangerous; resilient becomes unstoppable The stark reality is that many status dogs are killed under the guise of being dangerous, when it is their conformity to a breed standard (such as the pit bull terrier) that seals their fate The fact that existing dog behavioural literature and dog bite statistics evidence that dangerous dog behaviour is neither exclusive to, nor most prevalent in these breeds, is ignored or rebuked, even when organisations like the British Veterinary Association not support BSL for these reasons There is no scientific criterion yet identified to determine a dog is dangerous simply by virtue of its genetic or other physical parameters As Humphreys et al (2014, p 5) confirm with regard to dog bites, ‘Breed is not a good predictor of risk; other factors including the history of the dog, socialisation and context of the event are important’ In terms of secondary deviance, evidently dogs not themselves construct a deviant identity and turn to criminality; their owners this via aggressive breeding and training They shape a dog willing to protect and to fight other dogs and other perceived threats, often exposing them to negative welfare conditions, training and cruelty To avoid rejection, these dogs learn to fulfil the deviant and dangerous label their owner assigns them Social Reactions to Status Dogs As discussed, the reaction and responses to the status dog phenomenon has had serious consequences for dogs residing in the UK Cultural developments, including society’s disregard for ‘dangerous’ dogs can be seen within media reporting and imagery, while the path of legislation has been, and
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