The government will crack down on the owners of dangerous dogsafter an American pit bull terrier-mastiff cross killed a four-year-old girl in Melbourne on Wednesday, proposing to increase penalties and possibly change the Crimes Act.
The Nationals deputy leader , Peter Walsh, said owners should be held responsible for their dogs' actions, similar to people charged with culpable driving.
"These types of dogs have lost their right to exist in Victoria," Mr Walsh told reporters on Thursday.
The amnesty for registering dangerous dogs will end, meaning councils can seize and destroy the animals.
A "dob in a dangerous dog" anonymous hotline will be set up, Mr Walsh said.
Under current law, someone whose dog kills a person could be charged with negligent action causing injury, carrying a maximum jail sentence of up to 10 years.
The maximum penalty for failing to secure a dangerous dog is $4500.
American Pit Bull Terrier Club of Australia president, Colin Muir, said the issue was not about a particular breed but the wider problem of responsible ownership of dogs.
"A breed doesn't do these things, an individual dog does, and it's irrelevant what the breed is," Mr Muir told AAP.
"The issue is not about breed, it's about dogs and dogs in the community and how we look after them.
"Owners need to wake up to themselves and the reality is they just don't."
Mr Muir said no dog of any breed was safe to be left unattended with children.
The RSPCA's Victorian president, Hugh Wirth, in 2009 said American pit bull terriers were a menace and not suitable as pets, describing them as "time bombs waiting for the righ circumstances".
But on Thursday, RSPCA Victoria animal shelters manager, Allie Jalbert, said any dog, regardless of its size or breed, may bite and may be dangerous.
"An owner of any dog and especially larger dogs which may have a higher propensity for aggression needs to be responsible for making sure that it's properly trained, properly socialised and properly contained," Ms Jalbert said.
Child accident prevention group, Kidsafe Victoria ,said on average one child a day needed hospital treatment in Victoria due to a dog attack.
Kidsafe state manager, Melanie Water, said the serious incidents were usually caused by aggressive breeds such as pit bulls, pit bull crosses and rottweilers.
"Any dog that is bred or cross bred with a hunting or attack dog is not suitable as a domestic pet," Ms Water said.
Pet Industry Association of Australia president ,Steve Austin, said NSW regulations, under which pit bulls must be temperament-assessed, should be adopted nationally.
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