Helen Howell Dog Behaviour Expert

26/10/2024

01/10/2024

Expert Evidence
Thurs 14th Nov 2024 7pm
Click here to book - https://sowl.co/xPSWT

With forensic behaviourist, researcher and leading UK expert witness in canine behaviour (and a former Police Detective) - Helen Howell BSc (Hons), ACDBC.

Helen has worked all over the world, and is one of the UK’s leading expert witnesses, assessing dogs and providing expert evidence in respect of both breed type and behaviour for dangerous dog and personal injury cases across the country, including cases involving life changing injury and fatality. Helen is also a guest lecturer at a number of universities, delivers training to police officers and has presented opinions to Parliament.

Expert Evidence

In this session Helen will discuss the role of an expert witness in criminal and civil legal cases. For anyone who is interested in becoming an expert witness this is an introduction to the role and will provide an insight into the legal and ethical obligations of an assessor of dog behaviour. Helen will share her experiences and discuss what an expert assessment should consider and some of the practicalities of carrying one out.

It is anticipated that learning outcomes will be

An understanding of the role of an expert witness
A basic knowledge of the legal requirements of an expert witness and expert reports
An awareness of the ethical issues in the assessment of dogs for legal cases
An understanding of the practical assessment process

Helen will provide suggestions on how to best gain experience in this field.

We will look forward to hearing Helen speak again next year, with a focus on assessing aggression.

16/09/2024

Yosser’s case has already helped save the lives of a number of dogs, thank you Four Legs Law - part of Cohen Cramer Solicitors and Sam March for taking this to the High Court.

In 2022, the Magistrates’ Court ordered that Yosser be destroyed after he jumped up at a passerby causing a minor injury. At the time of this incident Yosser was supposed to wear a muzzle and lead in public, however his owner, who was sadly very ill at the time, had failed to correctly secure Yosser’s muzzle when the incident occurred.

We were instructed to appeal the Destruction Order. Due to his declining health, Yosser’s owner, out of love and dedication to his dog, proposed that his brother take care of Yosser, as he was in a better position to provide the attention Yosser needed.
Helen Howell Dog Behaviour Expert, was instructed to assess Yosser. She concluded that Yosser was a nervous but gentle dog and that the owner’s brother was a fit and proper person to be in charge of him. The CPS agreed with Ms. Howell’s conclusion and stated she did not need to attend court.

Despite Ms Howell’s report being agreed, the Crown court criticised her assessment of Yosser, as she had not assessed him in a public place (this would not be possible for a seized dog). Without giving Ms. Howell the opportunity to respond to these criticisms, the court upheld the Destruction Order.

We appealed to the High Court. In April 2024, following the successful submissions by Sam March of 9 King's Bench Walk, it was held that the decision of the Crown Court was so unreasonable that no reasonable tribunal could have come to it and that the bench made an error in law.

This case has set an important precedent for the future admissibility of uncontested expert reports and more importantly after two years in police kennels, Yosser’s Destruction Order was finally quashed!

21/08/2024

Bandit is going home!!!🌟🌟
Last June this gorgeous boy was seized from his owner who was homeless at the time. I try not to criticise the police as I know they face significant challenges however, in Bandit’s case there was clear bullying and targeting of his homeless owner which I found upsetting. Bandit was considered to be of pit bull type by the police. Bandit’s owner initially attended court unrepresented, pleaded guilty and the court ordered destruction of Bandit. He sought advice and Save our Seized Dogs supported him through the appeal process. Four Legs Law were instructed and I was asked to assess Bandit’s behaviour. It was immediately obvious he is clearly a sociable, affectionate boy who loves human company, kennel staff caring for him agreed. I assessed Bandit’s owner’s new home, and today the court agreed with me that Bandit posed no danger to public safety and his home was suitable for him to be placed in. He was allowed home with the conditions of exemption for a prohibited breed in place.

After over a year in kennels beautiful Bandit will be released. I am delighted for him and his owner but incredibly frustrated once again by the length of time a dog has spent in kennels while the case was dealt with.

02/08/2024

Beautiful Eva!❤️ This gorgeous girl was abandoned in South Wales. She had been rehomed in good faith and the new keeper then gave her up. Eva was found as a stray and as a result of her breed was taken into the possession of South Wales Police who tracked down her original owner. They were heartbroken to hear of her being in police kennels and said they would take her back into their care and take her through the exemption process.
I was asked to carry out a behaviour assessment and Eva was a bit worried during the assessment but was very gentle, the kennel staff were clearly very fond of this sweet girl. Thanks to a fantastic DLO and the support of Save our Seized Dogs Eva has now gone back to her original home. She has settled right back in. Good girl Eva.

13/07/2024

This week I have been in Spain and managed to find some time to pop in and see the guys at Galgos del Sol. Working with the beautiful dogs at this rescue is a dream. If you haven’t heard of Galgos del Sol check out their socials to see some of the incredible work they do. The staff and volunteers are so dedicated to the dogs. Here are a few of the woofers I spent some time with, Jess, Chance and Buttercup.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064388930918

01/07/2024

Ray is such a gorgeous boy! He was lots of fun in his assessment. Great work by the legal team advocating for Ray.

This is Ray. Ray was seized by the police after a person was injured who fell face-first on top of him whilst fussing him. It was unclear whether the injury was caused by the person hitting the floor or by Ray. Expert evidence demonstrated that this was not an aggressive attack by Ray. Instead, the injury was most likely caused by an accidental impact with a canine tooth or a snap reactive bite due to being fallen on.

Helen Howell Dog Behaviour Expert assessed Ray and found him to be an excitable and friendly dog who reacted normally to the incident. The police agreed that Ray was not a danger to the public and returned him home last month with muzzle and lead conditions, pending the conclusion of the case.

During a successful Newton hearing, Oliver Norman of St Pauls Chambers Criminal Law argued that Ray should not be subject to any conditions, as he had acted just like any dog would in the circumstances. Consequently, Ray is now free from any restrictions.

23/05/2024

This is gorgeous Tiggie! Last year Tiggie, who was a young dog at the time, jumped up in an excited way at a neighbour, who had previously interacted with Tiggie in a friendly way. The neighbour stated that during this incident they received a minor injury to the hand. This injury did not appear to be typical of a dog bite. There had previously been some conflict between Tiggie’s owner and the neighbour and three months after Tiggie had jumped up, the incident was reported to the police. Despite never even meeting Tiggie the police instigated civil proceedings against Tiggie’s owner. They applied for a control under with a string of conditions including keeping her contained in a pen in the rear garden and muzzling her when on a walk and when visitors come to the home. I was instructed to assess Tiggie and I found her to be a gentle, obedient girl. She has never used aggressive behaviour in any context. In my report I explained that I did not believe that Tiggie’s was a dangerous dog and my recommendation would be that Tiggie should be kept under control in the same way as any other pet dog. I expressed my view that the measures suggested by the police were disproportionate and would be unnecessarily detrimental to Tiggie’s welfare. This week the matter went to court and the court felt that the matter appeared to be more of a neighbour dispute, they agreed that Tiggie should just be kept under control with no further conditions. These proceedings will have cost thousands of pounds, had the matter been investigated and dealt with sensibly by the police, this money would have been saved, court time would have also been saved and Tiggie’s elderly owner would have been spared the unnecessary stress and expense.

03/05/2024

This week I am in the USA speaking at my first international conference with Jim Crosby. The IAABC Foundation once again have created an incredible event and I have learnt so much and made some wonderful friends along the way. As professionals it is essential to continue to learn and develop and an international perspective helps deepen our knowledge.

24/04/2024

https://news.sky.com/story/campaigners-against-governments-xl-bully-dogs-ban-given-green-light-to-bring-high-court-challenge-13122130

Since February, it has been a criminal offence to own an XL bully dog in England and Wales without an exemption certificate - the law came into power after a string of attacks by the breed.

19/04/2024

Yossah is going home!!! This week I attended a High Court hearing that was funded by Save Our Seized Dogs after Yossah , a dog I had assessed, was ordered to be destroyed by a Crown Court last year. I did not attend the crown court hearing as in my report I suggested some measures which would ensure Yossah would not pose a danger to public safety which were agreed by the police and the CPS. However, the judge in that court disagreed with my undisputed opinion and stated that as I had not assessed Yossah in a public place the court were not satisfied that he did not pose a danger to public safety. Of course, I was unable to assess Yossah in a public place as he was a seized dog and I am only able to use a secure assessment area provided by the police. I was not given the opportunity to address this and a destruction order was made.
The High Court this week have ruled that the court acted wrongly on a number of points but perhaps most importantly because they gave no valid reason for departing from my undisputed evidence. The court passed judgement and have made a contingent destruction order as per the conditions in my report which means that Yossah can be released from police kennels after being held for two years. This application to the High Court was made to try and save Yossah’s life, a dog who did not deserve to be put to sleep. Four Legs Law Solicitors and the barrister Sam March worked so hard and were amazing in this case and as a team with Save Our Seized Dogs, secured Yossah’s freedom. Alongside that some new caselaw now exists that will help expert witnesses going forward when their uncontested evidence is disregarded by a court. I have been involved in a number of cases where this has happened so this is such a valuable piece of caselaw going forward. Welcome home Yossah!! ❤️🎉

09/04/2024

This is Taz. Last year Taz injured a delivery driver who had entered the garden of the home and a few days later nipped a police officer who went into the house, not breaking the skin but causing bruising. At the time there was some tension in the home as one of Taz’s caregivers was in hospital. The incidents were out of character and it is likely that Taz, who is a nervous dog, was experiencing some increased stress at the time given the circumstances, which may have influenced his behaviour. Taz was seized and I was instructed to assess him. He was a worried boy and took some time to warm up but by the end of the assessment he was snuggled up next to me on a blanket. I visited Taz’s owners and they were very keen to ensure nothing similar could happen again. I made some recommendations to increase the security in the home and they implemented these straight away. Today at court the judge agreed that Taz could go home with some conditions. The dog legislation officer has been supportive throughout and agreed with the contents of my report which most definitely helped Taz in court. Welcome home Taz!

09/03/2024

Puzzle games are a great way of providing enrichment for our dogs, my new addition to the family, Tinkerbell , really enjoyed this toy from www.wobblydog.com, I hid some treats in the carrots and she spent ages finding them! Wobbly Dog only supports kind, ethical science based training methods. They have a great range of toys and treats online.

12/11/2023

Had a great day learning today at the Animal Behaviour Kent Conference. The focus of the conference was empathy in animal professional practice, I listened to some amazing speakers and was honoured to sit as a panellist for a discussion around legislation and animal welfare alongside the fantastic Dr Amber Batson and Hannah Molloy. Thank you so much Daniel Shaw for asking me to be part of this brilliant event.

09/11/2023

This adorable little guy is Star. He was seized by the police after an incident when a delivery driver entered the home of Star’s owner despite being told to wait outside. When he went into the home the driver was bitten on the foot by Star resulting in a minor injury. Police carried out an assessment of Star and were of the opinion he was of pit bull type. I was asked to assess Star. He was presented to me for assessment having been placed in a van on a pole which he clearly found traumatic and struggled against injuring himself. There was blood inside the vehicle from his mouth. I didn’t remove Star from the vehicle as it was apparent he was very anxious and it wasn’t appropriate to do so. I asked to assess him in his kennel and this was refused. Star’s welfare was being compromised, he was not being exercised and had minimal social interaction for a year while in kennels. Despite being offered a better kennel facility for Star where his needs would be met the police refused to move him. After some legal argument by the excellent legal team and the revelation that the victim had been trying to effectively blackmail Star’s owner the charges were both withdrawn. Star has been allowed home which is fantastic news but the state of Star’s teeth has brought me to tears. As a result of the stress and frustration he has experienced in kennels he has ground down all his teeth. He must be in so much pain. His owner is currently seeking veterinary help for Star. This could have been avoided. The welfare of dogs in kennels should be a priority for police, unfortunately for some police forces this does not appear to be the case. I will be raising this case with the RSPCA.

07/11/2023

Yesterday I gave evidence in court in a matter relating to the tragic death of a dog walker at the beginning of this year. Natasha Johnston was fatality injured as a result of dog bites during an incident that occurred when she was walking dogs in a park. Two of the dogs in her care at the time were Cookie and Shadow. There was no evidence to suggest Cookie and Shadow were involved in any aggressive incident or caused injury to Natasha, in fact they were seen to be running away. Despite the police expert maintaining that the incident had been a “pack attack” involving Cookie and Shadow I could see no evidence of that. The police had not carried out a behaviour assessment of the dogs concerned in the incident yet their expert recommended that control orders be issued for them, including Cookie or Shadow. The dog believed to have been responsible for the fatal injury has been euthanised. The legal team representing Cookie and Shadow’s owner presented the facts to the court and after listening to this and the evidence of the police expert and myself the judge agreed there was no evidence that Cookie and Shadow had behaved dangerously and that they were not dangerous dogs. The police application for control orders was refused. Poor Cookie and Shadow have been kept in police kennels for 10 months since the incident and Shadow was only 5 months old when seized. This will have undoubtedly had a negative impact on their welfare. They can now go home to their owner who has been terribly worried for them and fought hard on their behalf. This case highlighted serious failings in the investigation of this tragic incident in my opinion. I will be raising these with the police force concerned as I believe that all fatal and serious dog bite incidents should be investigated thoroughly and professionally. The victims and families of such devastating incidents deserve more.

04/11/2023

Great opportunity for someone looking to work with dogs.

https://www.facebook.com/100058185382794/posts/883243946958443/

Abbey boarding kennels have an exciting new opportunity to join our close knit team!
We are looking for someone to work weekends and a flexible week day. The job is initially for 4 hours a day, but has potential to increase for the right applicant. The duties are general kennel work, cleaning, feeding and walking the dogs or providing other enrichment.
Applicants need to be over 21, have high standards, be proactive, able to work alone or as part of a team and preferably have some experience working with dogs. You will need to be self employed or willing to self register.
The benefits are, seeing dogs flourish, sometimes to a new home, waggy tails, flexible working hours, wet noses, watching zoomies and generally having fun doing something you love.
There is potential for the right person to live on site in a provided touring caravan with a pet, but this would be assessed person by person.
Applications in writing to Ellie Barnes @gmail.com.
Closing date is Fri 17/11/23

30/10/2023