Not Johannesburg, actually a small city called Port Elizabeth but we have had a HuGE spike in violent crime, we have previously been a seaside city but in the last 5 years home invasions have increased significantly. And then we have major issues with local gangs taking part in dog fighting. I was a victim of a home invasion 10 years ago, when we lived in a less secure neighbourhood. So I am also hypervigilant and have specific phobia regarding personal safety because I have PTSD since the trauma.
@Harley Quinn I feel dog owners don't need to go looking for trouble, so why oh why, do people still leave dogs out in the garden when they are out or tie them outside shops unsupervised?
This happened very recently: https://www.heraldlive.co.za/news/2018-04-19-outrage-as-police-fail-to-act-on-dog-fight/ From 2012: http://myportelizabeth.co.za/bay-dog-fighting-horror/3039 And then all of our worst nightmares come true: https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/...ssive-reward-offered-for-safe-return-20180312
When I was working at a hospital full time, last year, we had Harley in the back yard until I was home except for the days that she had someone at home full time - that was 2 x a week. But with all the security mentioned before. And I can log into our CCTV system from my phone to check on her. Luckily now I can been home for her every day, and if she is in the yard I can see her from my private practice room.
I know it is different outside of the UK. Sorry if you took this as criticism....it wasn't intended. Just when you hear of dogs been stolen from gardens in the UK, or wherever you live, it just feels like such a risk.
Rarely a visit to our local Morrisons goes by without we see a dog tied up outside , alone . Silly so and so`s that we are, usually one of us will stay with the dog until the dog visibly recognises its owner emerging from the store . I recall with sorrow ,some years ago a Land Rover being stolen from the car park in nearby Looe , when the owner had popped into Boots for a couple of minutes . The radio appeal was heart rending when they said " We don't care about the vehicle, keep it , but please return our Labrador " .
Oh no not at all, I didn't take it like that at all. I also realise that we are privileged to be able to have Harley outside, because it is something nice for her, but also keep her as safe as possible. And that isn't as easy for some. But it frustrates me just as much that we have dogs that roam around our area. And I know some dogs are escape artists but if your dog is in the street every day I tend to feel that you have given up trying to dog proof your property. Besides the safety aspect it is also really frustrating because these dogs (and I am specifically talking about a little JRT that belongs to our neighbours one house down) go from property to property and other dogs go crazy at the gates. And rubbish bags (we dont use outside bins) are ripped into - our rubbish bags are in a raised container now but we had to buy that and install it because of dogs like this, this is not a stray dog issue. Like with everything, if the situation isn't optimum, like being able to have someone home with your dog all day, you need to adjust and try to ensure that your animal is cared for and you have done what you need to do. Even though I work from home now, there are days where I am busy until 20h00 and I don't have the time with Harley I want, so we are revisiting the day care idea for her twice a week.
This is the street facing outside perimeter of our house (no identifying info shown) the three other sides are next to other properties. Harley is not able to have access to this wall, she is in the back section, which is the large back yard only. It is not quite the Fort Knox it sounds like. But no one can just reach over the wall and pick her up, and she can't run into the street at all.
I feel so lucky to live where I do. Dogs are often left tied up outside shops with no worry. I look out of the window at work and some people have such trustworthy, well trained dogs, they're not even tied up - they just wait for their owner to return. You can safely leave your dog in the house with access through an open back door to your secure (dog-secure) back garden - though I don't, he'd have to go through the kitchen, where I do NOT trust him. I used to leave Belle & Scooby with access in good weather. The worst we get is naughty children might occasionally open a gate to let a dog escape, but the community rallies to find the escapee.
I know that's your normal @Harley Quinn but it must get so tiring having to live like that. I understand why there are so many Saffa expats in NZ - you must just get to a point where you say "enough, I can't do this anymore". I had a friend in high school who moved from Port Elizabeth during our first year, it sounded/sounds like a beautiful city.
It’s funny what becomes normal to someone. My wife is from SA and I have also visited there myself. I wasn’t allowed to go outside to smoke a cigarette after dark. Had to blow my smoke out a steel grated gate whilst someone watched me from the other room. They slept in shifts through the night and yet still insisted it was safe and perfectly normal. My mother in law visited Rural Canada to the lazy and peaceful artisan village where we live and refused to open her bedroom window a crack for fresh air during the night because she was afraid. She nearly shat when I went to the store and left the keys in the car. Lol. Having said that I’m still scared someone from out of town will steal my dog.
I've not heard of any dog-napping incidents here in Sydney but I'm sure it happens, especially given the high cost of well-bred Labradors. We are security conscious anyway and have a padlock on the gate into the backyard and very secure fencing everywhere. We are lucky that hubby is at home every day with Maxx and he is only ever left alone in the backyard for short periods if he has to duck off to the shops or something. I too would not be able to cope if he went missing or was taken. It was bad enough when our first Lab passed away but at least we knew we gave him a lovely long life with us. Not knowing where he was or if he was ok would be unbearable
We never lock our front door when we are in the house. Sometimes put the chain on at night of I remember but it's not locked. If the cars not locked it's fine. You can leave car windows open biggest risk is them letting rain in. We feel pretty safe where we live, but still wouldn't want to leave Lilly in the garden for 30mins whilst nipping to the shop. Oddly, my OH won' even leave the bathroom window open when we go to work etc....says if we are broken into and ANYTHING open the insurance wouldn' cover it. Odd given our back door would give in to anybody with a hard yank......
Coming back to the study, interesting that despite being the single most popular breed to own in the UK (excluding crossbreds) Labradors don't appear in the top 5 breeds most likely to be stolen.... I suppose the smaller dogs are easier to steal.... or Labrador owners are very wise and sensible and don't take unnecessary risks
$$ probably has something to do with it? A poorly bred Pug or Frenchie costs A LOT more to buy than a well-bred Labrador here. Not much point nicking a "cheap" dog. Then again, Staffies and JRs must be thick on the ground in the UK so maybe my theory's off.
Well I did think this, but only have limited experience (just occasional internet mooching) ... an adult lab being sold on a 'pre-loved' site might fetch £150 to £300, (and I really don't think there's many of them compared to other breeds) I do think pugs or frenchies go for more. The Staffies make no sense, I agree, every shelter here seems to be overrun with them, so if you wanted an adult one you would have absolutely no issue finding one. I can only imagine they may be stolen for breeding, the blue ones seem highly sought after, and I guess no one cares what happens after puppyhood.
This crossed my mind but I naively hoped this wasn't too prevalent, you never seem to read a news item about it... does it just go in in people's homes, maybe.. (My) only silver lining is I can't imagine a Labrador ever being stolen for this horrible purpose.
Yeah I was going to say generally in the UK they’re stolen as bait dogs rather than to resell which is why Staffies and terriers are the dog of choice. Dogs like chihuahuas are used to teach hunting etc I believe. My old doggy day care lady had a Doberman which she was really paranoid about someone stealing her as a bait dog. She said that Labradors generally aren’t stolen for that purpose as they don’t fight back
Pretty much the same here Jac , we are very remiss , even left a bedroom ( bungalow ) window open when we went away for three days . I guess we get complacent , and that's the danger x
