07/08/2026
Finally an organisation who’s taking the issue of understanding dog attacks seriously.
👌👌👌
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1P5rHqnq6x/?mibextid=wwXIfr
WE CANNOT PREVENT WHAT WE REFUSE TO STUDY.
Another life lost. Another serious attack. Another dog euthanised.
And then what?
Too often, when a dog is involved in a serious or fatal attack, the focus understandably turns to immediate community safety and the eventual outcome for the dog.
But there is another question we believe must be asked:
Why did this happen?
Right now, we are losing valuable opportunities to answer that question.
Professional Dog Trainers Australia and Pink for Leasy believe that when a dog is involved in a serious attack on a person or non-vermin animal, there should be an independent professional behavioural and temperament assessment before the dog is euthanised.
This does not mean the dog will be saved from euthanasia.
It does not minimise the seriousness of the attack.
And it does not place the life of the dog above the safety of the community.
The dog may ultimately still be euthanised.
But before that happens, we need to learn everything we reasonably can.
What was the dog's temperament? Were there identifiable behavioural warning signs? What role did genetics, health, environment, training, containment, management or previous experiences play? Were there factors that could have been identified earlier?
Once the dog has been euthanised without assessment, a critical piece of that evidence is gone.
Imagine what we could learn if serious attacks across NSW were assessed consistently and that information contributed to a meaningful body of data.
Patterns could emerge.
Warning signs could be identified.
Education could become more targeted.
Policy could be informed by evidence.
Owners, trainers, councils and governments could have better information to help intervene before another attack occurs.
This is not about finding excuses for dogs that cause catastrophic harm.
It is about finding answers.
Every conversation comes back to prevention.
No preventable loss of human life is acceptable.
And when these tragedies occur, we believe we have a responsibility to learn everything possible from them so another family does not have to experience the same devastation.
Education. Regulation. Responsibility. Evidence. Prevention.
We cannot change what has already happened.
But we can make sure we learn from it.
It is time to stop simply counting dog attacks and start properly investigating why they happen.
Because if we genuinely want fewer attacks, fewer injuries and fewer lives lost, then understanding why these incidents occur must become part of the solution. 🩷🐾
