In the last three years there have been a reported 497 dog attacks in Wales but in the majority of cases no action was taken against owners because of the difficulty police have in tracing them. Welsh Assembly Member Julie Morgan is now requesting that it be made compulsory for dogs to be microchipped so the owners can be found. Although some of the attacks have been relatively minor others have resulted in serious injury with "chunks" of flesh bitten off. The attacks have been caused not just by banned American Pit Bulls but by Staffordshire bull terriers, rottweillers, alsatians and also Jack Russells and border collies. It is believed the actual number of attacks could be even higher as the police were limited in the information they could give Mrs Morgan. Mrs Morgan believes that many of the attacks are caused by "status dogs" which are brought for vanity and image. She feels that compulsory microchipping will force owners to take more responsibility as they will know that any dog involved in an incident will be traced straight back to them. The Kennel Club are also backing a similar campaign to get dogs microchipped and to reform the current Dangerous Dogs Act which they feel is too "breed specific". They are look to phase out the banning of particular breeds as are of the view that there were "dangerous owners not dangerous dogs." A spokeswoman told the BBC "Staffordshire bull terriers are naturally loving dogs but because they look similar to pitbulls, the wrong type of people have got hold of them. They have not socialised the dogs, that is the problem, They don't know how to care for them. Labradors and border collies also bite people but the media is not as obsessed with those breeds as much as banned breeds."
Dog attack “every other day” in Wales as AM calls for compulsory microchipping