OMG! This is terrible, words fail me really.
How horrible! We do not consider sits for aggressive breeds. I recognize that there are many examples of dogs such as pit bulls with nice personalities, but you never hear about most breeds killing humans.
Oh my goodness, the poor, poor girl. This is tragic.
This is just heartbreaking. I’m honestly shocked reading this — such a dreadful, senseless tragedy. My thoughts are with her family, and with everyone in that community who’s trying to make sense of it.
More info about the sitter and the attack: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sXQ4Qvj4KU8
People continue to underestimate the potential danger of these breeds with a clear history of aggression that has caused death and injury to countless individuals.
To think “it won’t happen to me” is a poor mindset and leaves an owner, a sitter or innocent bystanders at risk.
Ideally these breeds would be restricted to and most people would not be allowed to own them.
How terrible, that poor young girl. I would never sit for one of those big, aggressive breeds. We recently did a sit, and there were some builders doing work down the road, one of them had a cane corso, which was running free, we were warned by neighbours not to go that way. Quite frightening.
Terrible.
It reminded me of another incident about a year ago in San Diego. 26 year old male owner of 3 XL pit bulls was killed by his own dogs.
My sister-in-law has pit-bulls, when I visit I absolutely love them, they’re so sweet, but I am also on high alert and very respectful of them. There’s now my infant nephew playing around in the pit-bull house, I really hope the parents keep a keen eye at all times.
This is such a tragic story, our condolences go out to everyone impacted.
I know this story wasn’t related to Trusted Housesitters, but it feels appropriate to share this link about some pets that we’re unable to allow on our platform (including, any pets with a history of attacking humans or other pets.)
I think only 5 dog breeds are banned in the UK, but other countries have different rules. Does THS abide by UK rules only @Mark_B . One dog I would never sit for is a cane corso, not on the banned list.
Hi @Chrissie,
Good question.
No. We recognise that rules vary by location and the policy states that “pet owners are aware of the specific laws local to them and do not attempt to list a sit that includes any animals that contravene the laws applicable to their location”
Link to policy here.
Separate to our policy, understanding what we’re individually comfortable with is also something everyone needs consider.
If required, anyone can share listings to our member service team for review via Frankie, our online bot. Simply go to the Trusted Housesitters website and hit the speech bubble. 
There are a few breeds of dog I wouldn’t sit. Not because I believe they’d necessarily be dangerous, but because I don’t trust the kind of people who want to have those breeds.
You make a great point. In the UK XL bullies got a status symbol tag for many less desirables and the natural chilled temperature they were bred for was turned in aggression. It’s very sad.
My apartment neighbour has a registered XL bully. She is very chilled but that’s probably down to his firm training of her. His dog likes belly rubs!
Of course I’m not sure whether she’d act differently without my neighbour with her?
With THS sitting, it’s better to be safe than sorry. We’re typically strangers dealing with pets whose behavior is unknown to us at the outset. And some pet owners lie or mislead, unfortunately.
The only pit bull I’ve spent considerable time with was one that a coworker brought to work daily for years. She was gentle and many other dogs at work were rambunctious around her, yet she was never triggered. I remember that she once got gouged on her torso, because some small dog’s claws were sharp against her smooth skin. She never reacted.
In the years since, she’s gained three young human siblings without acting out, either. And her primary human has been working from home for years since.
He got her when he was single. I’ve also only known him to be a peacemaker. A consistently standout coworker, thoughtful and kind to everyone. I never asked why he ended up with a pit bull, but I think she was a rescue.
She was so loved at work back then that various coworkers volunteered to sit her when he traveled.
I had to google Cane Corso and realised that our neighbour’s late dog was at least partly that breed. Hébus was our dog’s mortal enemy —he killed a neighbour farmer’s dog and nearly ripped out our dog’s eye. If we mentioned that dog’s name in Moka’s presence he would leap to his feet and growl. That even happened when a French visitor happened to use the words “le bus” in conversation!
This article is not helpful since it provides such little details. Was this a long-term pet sitter? Was she breaking up a dog fight? Was there food aggression? Did these dogs have a history of aggression in the past? We know nothing other than the breed. It stirs up unnecessary fear of a breed when we don’t have enough details to make a well-informed conclusion as to how this might impact an uninvolved party on a platform such as THS.
Full disclosure: Being a previous dog owner of German Shepherds and having Pitbulls owned by my close relatives, I am feeling defensive of some of the suggestion of banning breeds on THS.
People fall on different ends of the spectrum on this topic, but it feels HIGHLY discriminative to suggest or implement a ban of a certain breed. In my opinion, that is close-minded and paternalistic. It is up to the sitter to use their own discernment in situations with ANY animal or breed of dog when taking on a sit. I have only used THS as a HO with cats, but if I did have dogs, I would always have the sitter meet my dog(s) before a sit. Not because they’re aggressive, but because they require more necessary interaction and are less able to hide away or be independent like my cats can. If my cats scratched or bit people, I would put it in the listing and let people know, “please do not try to pet them. Just feed, change the litter box, and admire from a distance” (for example). It would be up to the sitter to decide if they were comfortable sitting with a less-than friendly cat. (My cats are not like this btw :))
I hope people can have an intelligent and open-minded approach to all dog breeds and remember that it is not the breed, it’s the owner. I’ve met many mean and snappy chihuahuas and that gets overlooked or excused simply because they may not be able to maul someone to death. However, my dad got bit in the hand by a chihuahua and almost died because of the bacteria infection that followed, despite getting it treated right away.
Please use your best discretion and do not allow the few bad apples ruin the entire tree… or however that saying goes… lol! Happy Safe Sitting with ALL loving Animals!
Each sitter makes their own choices. You could for instance decide to sit and accept any dogs you want to. Make yourself available for dogs that others won’t take. Put yourself out there for what you believe. Most other folks tend to be more selective and that’s perfectly legit, too.
There are two links on this thread to info about the sitter being killed. And if you want more info, maybe search for yourself.
To me, all the details you want are irrelevant, because such dogs are capable of killing. Yes, many dogs can bite, but a small dog is easier to control vs. one with the fatal biting strength of certain breeds.
Personally, there are certain breeds I won’t sit and I don’t even care if it’s “fair.” None of us has to sit any pets we don’t want to.
The only dogs that are banned on THS are the 5 breeds that are banned by law in the UK. Has anyone suggested that certain dogs should be banned? There are certain breeds that I personally wouldn’t sit, but that’s my own choice.