Some People Shouldn't Be Allowed To Own Animals...

The bill came to £800, which we paid. We didn’t have to, but I couldn’t not.

Well, maybe the law says you didn't have to (though a small claims court wouldn't see it that way if the other owner had taken you to one) but personal responsibility says yes, you absolutely should...

As Clover’s hatred of any four-legged creature smaller than her grew, taking her for walks became an increasingly stressful experience. She would snarl and growl, and I would have to quickly clip her back on to her lead. ... 

And yet, you had no qualms whatsoever about leaving this ticking timebomb in the street for any other dog/cat/small child with fluffy toy in hand to wander past...

For some reason we left the house that morning without her muzzle. I was in a hurry to get my daughter, Dolly, off to school and, at the crucial moment, I couldn’t find it.

I tied Clover’s lead around a bench on the pavement and secured it with a plastic lock so she was restricted to around two feet of movement. And that’s when I popped into the cafe to grab a coffee.

I guess your need for a coffee was greater than your desire to keep others safe, eh?

I felt so wretched for the owner, and was surprised when she called me afterwards — with unbelievable graciousness, she told me not to berate myself. ‘These things happen,’ she said.

You'd not have heard from me. You'd have heard from a solicitor. Because 'these things' don't just happen without total culpability on the part of, well, people like you. 

Today, we now have two Labradoodles — Rupert, who is almost completely blind, and Otto, who looks just like his name, wiry-haired and a bit bonkers. Both are so gentle and loving — with humans and other dogs — that I simply cannot imagine a scenario where either of them would harm a fly.

You've learned nothing...