Pavlovian policy responses to media feeding frenzies? Dangerous dogs regulation in comparative perspective

The first part of this article, based on a comparative analysis of recent policies on dangerous dogs among a set of Western European states, shows that small-scale events – like one dog-bite – can produce circumstances that confront policy-makers with a type of 'forced choice', given a particular set of political conditions. The second part, based on a more in-depth comparison of German and UK approaches, probes beyond the 'Pavlovian' level of political response to dog-bite crises to explore how institutions mediate responses to 'forced choices'. Dog-bite crises may temporarily remove normal blockages and constraints on policy development, but this article shows how institutions can still shape policy responses in at least three different ways.