Dear Diary,

Well, what a day yesterday was. On Tuesday afternoon I was perusing News Shopper online, as I do every day, when I read about the poor little girl who was so dreadfully mauled by her father's Mastiff. The creature was so out of control, in fact, that the father actually stabbed the dog to death.

Anyway, I was so angry after reading the story that I decided to write a blog on the subject of why people living in suburbia feel the need to own huge, potentially lethal dogs, in the first place. As you know, I'm used to the odd heckler having a go at me and, to be honest, it adds a bit of spark to debates. However, the DDOM (Devil-Dog Owning Mafia) soon gathered together its strength and posted derogatory comments accusing me of all manner of unfair and completely fictitious nonsense. All this arose because they are unable to accept the the fact that I, among others, did not accept the fact that certain dogs which were originally specifically bred to kill bulls, bears and other large creatures (including human beings) should be kept in small houses and flats, especially when there are young children around.

Obviously, I will be the first to admit that even I do not know everything, so I asked dog lovers, or anyone for that matter, to please try to explain to me why they consider mastiffs, rottweilers, staffs etc, to be suitable family pets.

The uproar that quickly ensued was really quite disturbing, to say the least. DDOM from as far away as North Yorkshire got on the Bat Phone and threw all their ammunition my way, though thankfully most of it turned out to be blanks and duds. They seemed to have very little comprehension of what a debate is and decided to play the lowest denominator card by insulting me on my own blog.

Nevertheless, I weathered the storm and fought back, standing my ground and repeating my question. Time and time again, abuse was thrown at me from all four corners of Britain until, like a breath of fresh air, someone showed a bit of common sense. That person calls himself 'Atmydesk'.

Atmydesk explained that he owns an American bulldog and went on to not only describe why he owns one, but also how to handle one, its requirements, the fact that it is tagged and registered and no end of other useful, informative and educational data.

So comprehensive was Atmydesk's explanation that I immediately and sincerely thanked him, letting it be known to the masses that the answer to my questions had been forthcoming.

Even though the debate had reached, what I thought, a natural and satisfying end, the DDOM continued its hate campaign against me. This organisation seems to take everything personally and is unable to grasp that there are very often two or more sides to a discussion. I gave my blog the title,'Ban Vicious Dogs', so perhaps this is what made them angry in the first place but, as you know, one should never judge a book by its cover.

Anyone with two brain cells understands that a debate must have a starting point, albeit sometimes a controversial one. Actually, controversy is the whole point of holding a debate, isn't it? I mean, can you imagine a debate in the House of Commons where all three main parties agreed with one another?

Diary, you may laugh - and I don't blame you - but it transpired that a large sector of the DDOM believes that ANYONE should be permitted to own a powerful dog like a mastiff simply because they CAN by law. Apparently, it boils down soley to choice.

If, on the other hand, I decided that I wanted to keep a donkey in my front room, would the RSPCA come knocking on my door to ask what the hell I was playing at? Well, I sincerely hope they would.

Yet some members of our society think that it is sensible and acceptable to keep three large, powerful dogs in a small family home and let a 2-year-old toddler near one of them when the hound is in the process of having a bit of bitches & dogs (the canine equivalent of ladies & gentlemen) and as a result, lose her jaw after a monumental mauling which resulted in the father stabbing the dog to death with a kitchen knife.

Naturally, other participants of the debate agreed that it's not the dogs' fault but the owners'. As you now know, Atmydesk had already explained - in his very comprehensive comment - all about dog ownership and who is and who is not qualified to own a dog like his very own American bull terrier. As I've already told you, I agreed with Atmydesk and thanked him for his very sensible and gratefully received contribution.

Consequently, I was amazed that people continued to attack me and accuse me of trying to start some sort of hate campaign against dog owners. Insults flew left, right and centre and I began to wonder if some of these people had actually bothered to read in the first place not only the blog itself, but the subsequent debate which ensued. So concerned was I that the DDOM had perhaps got hold of the wrong end of the stick, I actually felt compelled to post a note reminding people to read through ALL of the comments because the debate had evolved. I also commented that the issues brought to light in my original blog had been discussed and, with the help of Atmydesk, resolved. As far as I was - and still am - concerned, the blog was a very good starting point for a much needed debate.

The DDOM must realise that debates have to have a starting point which compels people to leave a comment. I'm sure some DDOM members would like me to write about how lovely ALL breeds of dogs are and that ALL owners are brilliantly responsible people etc, or how everyone in the land should own a dog and pamper it for the rest of its natural life.

Unfortunately, DDOM, this is not always the case, is it? Some irresponsible people, lacking in even the most basic skills of common sense believe that, because they ARE allowed by law to own a mastiff, rottweiler or American bulldog (Atmydesk excluded), they jolly well WILL own one, for whatever ridiculous reason.

Certain members of the DDOM must realise that not every breed of dog is suited to every type of home, no matter how much love it is shown. ALL breeds of dog, by their very nature, will on occasion bite, maul or kill. It's a fact and there is no denying it.

The DDOM might also do itself a favour by realising that a proper debate is not one in which everyone agrees because, going by yesterday's display of ignorance, the mass debators of the DDOM really ARE going blind from their habit.