Animal behaviour

In the letter Not All Dogs Bite (May 30), Christine Bonnici says: "I also disagree with having our dogs muzzled. Why should my dog be muzzled when she doesn't attack or hurt other humans or animals?"

While respecting her opinion and applauding her for the positive way she brings her dog up, an example which I'm sure others would do well to follow, I would like to ask her a question: Would she prefer not to muzzle her dog and run the risk of the dog attacking a child, for example? Wouldn't it be too late to muzzle a dog after it has done the deed?

I assure her that the owners of dogs that have attacked and killed children would never have imagined their dog was capable of doing such a thing. If she does some research she'll find that in many cases it's their own family dog that attacked the child.

One never knows what's going through a dog's head so they can't be trusted without a muzzle, especially among children who are strangers to that dog. It is too high a price to pay.