They have become the unacceptable face of dog ownership.

And we see them – tough-looking young men strutting along streets with tough-looking dogs, often resembling outlawed pit bull terriers – increasingly often.

Whether kept for illegal dog fighting or simply to make their owners look ‘hard’, aggressive dogs have become a social hazard. Over the past two decades, the Telegraph & Argus has repeatedly called for tighter controls on dogs, prompted by the savage attack on six-year-old Rukhsana Khan by a pit bull terrier in 1991. The Bradford schoolgirl ended up in intensive care after her face was ripped open and her body covered in more than 20 bites.

In 2006, the T&A launched the Curb The Danger Dogs campaign, asking the Government to toughen up the Dangerous Dogs Act brought in following the attack on Rukhsana. Our campaign also called for the compulsory microchipping of all dogs.

Earlier this year, the Labour government drew up plans for this, so that all dog owners could be held accountable for their animals’ behaviour. But the coalition Government has abandoned plans to microchip every dog, with Agriculture Minister James Paice claiming that irresponsible dog owners who use particular breeds as tough-looking status symbols or weapons for dog fighting would ignore such laws.

With large numbers of aggressive dogs being abandoned at animal shelters, many so badly reared they are difficult to re-home and are deemed a risk to public safety, the issue of how to deal with these dogs has become a social problem. This week, the BBC’s Panorama programme highlighted the growing problem of aggressive dogs, with thousands being put down at Battersea Dogs Home because they were unsuitable for re-homing. The shelter said the state many dogs arrived in was “completely unacceptable”, often lacking basic training that allowed them to get on with other dogs or people.

Dogs Trust Leeds, which takes in and re-homes stray dogs from Bradford, currently has large numbers of Staffordshire bull terriers and Staffordshire cross breeds. “If they haven’t been socialised and trained properly as young dogs they can come across as aggressive,” says supporter relations officer Sarah Powell. “Any dog can be aggressive if not looked after properly. Staffies have a bad press because of how they look. In fact they’re actually lovely, friendly dogs. In Victorian times they were called ‘nanny dogs’, because they were so loyal and protective they were left with children. We wouldn’t advise people to leave them alone with children now – but that applies to any dog. If a child teases a dog, it may retaliate.”

Dogs who arrive at the Dogs Trust badly-reared are put on a training programme before they’re re-homed. “We endeavour to find all dogs the right home,” says Sarah. “There’s no such thing as a bad dog – but there are bad owners. This is a social issue, not a dog issue.”

Sarah believes microchipping is essential. “We’re campaigning to make it compulsory,” she says. “If all breeders had dogs microchipped before homing pups, it’d go a long way toward tackling the problem.”

Mother-of-two Karen Lofthouse, of Idle, has had a Staffordshire bull terrier, Max, for four years. She claims the breed make excellent pets but get a bad name because they look similar to pit bulls, banned under the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act.

“Staffies are friendly, good-natured dogs. Max is a great family pet,” she says. “Well cared-for Staffies are affectionate and loyal. Neutering helps calm them.

“Unfortunately, people wanting dogs as status symbols are drawn to this breed because they think they look ‘hard’. They’ve become a fashion statement. These people care more about their image than their dog’s welfare.

“There’s a lot of cross-breeding going on; people are trying to create pit bulls for fighting. When there’s no use for them anymore, or their owner can’t cope with them, they’re dumped. I’ve seen them wandering streets; I’ve phoned the dog warden about them.

She adds: “The only way irresponsible owners will be made more accountable is if they’re made, by law, to have dogs microchipped. Some will slip through the net, but surely it’s better to enforce microchipping – which might put off some bad owners from keeping dogs – than simply saying ‘it’s not worth it’.”