Why dogs attack: From TikTok trends to lockdown habits, what could be behind the high rates of fatal dog bites | UK News

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As January draws to a close, there have already been two fatal dog attacks in 2023.

Dog walker Natasha Johnston was hacked to death in Caterham and a four-year-old girl was shot dead in a back garden in Milton Keynes.

Before 2022, this would have been more than half the average number of dog-related deaths, which had been at 3.3 from 2001 to 2021.

Then in 2022, the number goes up: 10 people have been killed by dogs.

It’s too early to say whether the death rate is an anomaly or the start of a shocking trend — but experts say something has changed in the way humans and dogs interact.

What do the numbers say

In the past 20 years, the number of adults requiring hospital treatment after a dog bite has tripled.

The number of dogs has increased, but not enough to explain that huge jump — which means dogs are biting into humans more than they used to. Adults in particular is where the change is seen.

Dr John Tulloch, a veterinarian and epidemiologist at the University of Liverpool who researches dog-related injuries and deaths, said dog bite rates also vary widely by location.

Merseyside had the highest rate of dog bites, along with Wakefield, Middlesbrough and the North East in general, while Greater London had the lowest rate.

“Overall, the common denominator is that they are areas with high levels of social deprivation,” Dr Tulloch told Sky News.

Hospital data also shows that most attacks occur in the home: 80% when it comes to adults and 90% for children.

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0:32 Dog attack victim named Alice Stones

What the numbers don’t say

When people get bitten in the home, it’s likely because of their pet or another dog known to them. This can make people reluctant to report it, Dr. Tulloch said, for fear of the dog being arrested or criminally charged for having a dangerously out-of-control dog.

Clinical animal behaviorist Rosie Biscopi told Sky News it can be difficult to pinpoint the cause of fatal attacks when dogs are killed quickly afterwards.

“What that means is that we don’t have anything to assess, so we can’t assess the dog to determine what is causing it.

“And we can never, really, learn from these fatal attacks because the biggest clue in the whole scenario is dead.”

Image: Police at Gravelly Hill in Caterham where Natasha Johnston was killed while walking dogs

READ MORE: Woman mauled to death was attacked by multiple dogs and yelled, ‘Back back’

Dangerous TikTok trends

Advice from unqualified dog trainers on TikTok may fuel aggression, Biscoby said, “because they offer a kind of DIY approach to very serious problems.”

Take videos recommending choke chains, for example. People may use them to control a dog’s defensive behavior when the animal is anxious or stressed, without addressing the root cause.

Instead, the tactic creates a “time bomb” where the animal can only suppress her reaction for so long before we “get the blast,” she said.

Dr. Tulloch said social media has changed our relationship with dogs. It’s hard to say exactly how that relates to an increase in dog bites, but he frequently sees videos of dogs on TikTok where they look tense.

“There has been a recent trend, for example, of people staring into their dogs’ eyes for as long as possible.

“And in all of those videos, the dogs were looking really uncomfortable, really. And I wouldn’t be surprised if any of those videos ended up with somebody getting bitten.”

Pictures of babies being placed in dog beds may look cute, Dr. Tulloch cautioned, but parents risk angering the dog and putting their children in harm’s way if the dog becomes stressed by invading his space.

Image: A woman and a child leave flowers at the home where a four-year-old girl was killed in a dog attack

epidemic puppies

It’s hard to quantify the impact of the pandemic, Dr. Tulloch said, but the lockdown could have changed the relationship between dogs and their owners.

With more people in the home – even after lockdown is over – your dog may have lost the safe space he retreats to when stressed, which can lead to more frustration and anxiety. Opportunities for socializing dogs are also lost.

Biscoby said the demand for quarantined puppies has led to her poor breeding.

Puppies who have not been “behaviorally solid dogs” may exhibit behavioral problems, while unhealthy dogs are “more likely to suffer and feel stressed and frustrated.”

Warning signs of an attack

When a dog gets bitten, it’s a “last resort,” said Dr. Tulloch. It is possible that the dog is showing warning signs that he is anxious or uncomfortable.

“It could be slapping his lips or showing the whites of his eyes, or kind of down the line showing his teeth.”

He stressed the importance of not leaving children alone with dogs because a child would not be able to read the warning signs that a dog is uncomfortable as well as an adult.

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5:29 The postman’s dog attack on the rise

Don’t generate the verb

Ms. Biscoby said there was a compulsion to focus on the breed of dogs when attacks occurred, but it was better to focus on the “non-breed”.

“The Dangerous Dogs Act and the breeds prohibited by it have not reduced dog attacks,” she said.

Dr. Tulloch agreed: “The only thing I would say is that any breed is capable of biting.”

It is difficult to draw conclusions about how and whether breeds are related to attack rates because dog population statistics are generally “very bad” and the vast majority of attacks are not noted in medical records or death records.

While larger, powerful dogs may have the potential to do more damage, Dr. Tulloch noted that people have had “very significant injuries from very small dogs.”

How to reverse the trend

Dr. Tulloch wants the attacks on dogs to be seen as a public health crisis, but he said it is clear that it is not within anyone’s purview, nor has anyone in government taken action.

“It can’t just be education or legislation has to be a combination of things and ensure … consistent messaging and everyone is on the same page with it.”

He said there were some simple fixes, such as preventing letter boxes from rising to the ground to prevent some of the 32 attacks on postal workers that happen each week.

Ms Biscoby said the breeding and importing of dogs needed attention, as well as how the dog training industry was regulated because right now anyone could call themselves behaviorist and potentially give harmful advice.

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