"Royal Dog Sent to Psychologist to Avoid Death Sentence"

I thought this was interesting.
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/arti...9990005&_ccc=5

Royal Dog Sent to Psychologist to Avoid Death Sentence

LONDON (Jan. 4) - Princess Anne will send her dog to an animal psychologist to avoid having it euthanized after it attacked a royal maid and fatally mauled one of Queen Elizabeth II's beloved corgis, the Sunday Telegraph reported.



Princess Anne stands with her English bull terriers. (AP Photo/PA)

Psychologist Roger Mugford said he expected to begin work with Florence the bull terrier next week. Mugford said that he believed the attacks were related to an underlying medical factor.

''We are not talking about an inherently aggressive or dangerous dog,'' Mugford was quoted as saying in newspaper. ''I am sure it is just a dog who is feeling a bit out of sorts about something, perhaps pain or old age, and is feeling a bit cranky on the day.''

Buckingham Palace has refused to comment on whether Florence would be put down.

The royal maid, 55-year-old Ruby Brooker, was treated for a minor bite following Saturday's attack at the royal Sandringham estate in eastern England, the palace said.

The Mail on Sunday quoted Brooker's husband, David, as saying the queen had personally apologized to his wife over the incident.

Five days earlier, Florence attacked a corgi named Pharos at Sandringham, injuring him so badly that he had to be euthanized. Media reports had widely blamed another of Princess Anne's bull terriers, Dotty, for the corgi incident, but Buckingham Palace cleared her Tuesday and blamed Florence instead.

British media reported that Florence had no history of violent behavior, unlike Dotty, who bit two children in a park in 2002 and landed Princess Anne with an $880 fine.


01-04-04 21:32 EST

Would you copy-paste for those of us who do not use AOL? ^.^

Edit: Thankee!! :)

Wow, I hope he's right about the dog having a medical condition, and I hope they get it all sorted out!

Sorry about that, I didn't know you had to be an AOL user to read the page. I put it up in my first post.

I would think it would make more sense for the dog to visit an agression specialist then a psychologist. I know she claims that this isn't an aggressive dog. But it not only bit the maid, but it also attatcked another dog.

If that were any "normal" person's bull terrier, we proberbly would have had to have it destroyed after the first incident.
Ky and Rio

The royals are NOT normal...by any definition. lol. I was sad that the Queen's corgi got hurt so bad it had to be put down.... poor thing. I'm sure it wasn't the rogue bull's first altercation...he should have been muzzled in public.

lol,
Had the crocodile eaten poor Bob, would he have been afforded the same concession?

So two of her dogs have displayed agressive behavior? Sounds like bad ownership to me. Blame the owner not the dogs, regardless of who the owner is.

Am I correct that in England Bull Terriers are the same breed that they are in the U.S.? The same dog as Spuds McKenzie? Or are these Pit Bull Terriers that Princess Anne owns?

I've never heard of agressive Bull Terriers or Miniature Bull Terriers and have known quite a few.

Yep I belive that our bull terriers are the same (roman nose).
As I was saying, because she's "royalty" she's proberbly getting alot more chance with hers dog's than we would.
Pit bull terriers are illegal in England.
Ky and Rio

Jeepers!

The Princess and her dogs....
... a link to nearly the same story on the BBC news page, which also has links (on the right of the page) to the other stories about her dogs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3366239.stm

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Originally posted by Rio and Me
Pit bull terriers are illegal in England.

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OMG! That's awful! :(

I've been following this story on the news--I think a specialist of some sort is in order for these terriers, but not necessarily a psychologist--perhaps a behaviorist or trainer of some sort.

I want a bull terrier someday ... they are toooo cute.

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Edit: Thankee!!

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High speech? ;)

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Originally posted by Twisterdog
I want a bull terrier someday ... they are toooo cute.

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Me too! Hubby always passes a pair in a yard on the golf course and I keep begging him to take pics. :) He says he might get arrested. LOL

....mel brooks, it's good to be the 'princess'. ;)

I have never known bull terriers to be aggressive...and Corgis are tough little dogs...its hard to believe that it didn't at least INJURE the offending bull terrier. You'd think that in a dog to dog altercation, the attacker would have some sign...a bite or a scratch or something. They said that they blamed another dog at first for the attack... :confused: :confused: :confused:
Am I wrong here?

I just read an article about this in People magazine. (Ok, not the most credible source, I know.)

It said the corgi's leg was broken in three places by the bull terrier's bite, and that the corgi was euthanized the next day. It did not mention any other injuries.

Has anyone else heard anything along these lines?

I can't imagine euthanizing a dog because of a broken leg. If worst came to worst, amputate the leg. Or were there other injuries to the corgi that just weren't mentioned?

:confused:

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I have never known bull terriers to be aggressive

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Actually, bull terriers are a breed generally known to not get along with other dogs particularly well.

Thanks twisterdog...

Ive just never encountered an overly agressive bull terrier...then again Ive only encountered them singularly. Perhaps it was just another dog making it agressive. Youre right though, why euthanize a dog for a busted leg? Don't they have methods to repair that rather easily? Ya think the Royal family would be able to aford it...

Unfortunately I have the same source as you Twisterdog (but I love to read People magazine--it's a horrible addiction;) ), but I was wondering the same thing. Couldn't the leg have been amputated, and the dog's life spared??