RECORD numbers of Staffordshire bull terriers are being abandoned by their owners.

If it was not for the work of devoted enthusiasts such as pensioner Barbara Green the situation would be far worse.

She has spent the past 30 years operating the Staffordshire bull terrier rescue centre. Last year, she rehomed 118 dogs, which makes it a total of 4,189 so far for this Florence Nightingale of the dog world.

Barbara rescues cruelly treated dogs, those whose owners simply don’t want them anymore and dogs that, through no fault of their own, end up on the street, abandoned and unwanted.

The numbers are growing and unless something is done to prevent unscrupulous dog owners from breeding the bull terriers, the situation can only get worse.

Bolton RSPCA has recognised the huge problem, asking people to stop breeding the dogs, often referred to, affectionately, as Staffies.

RSPCA branch administrator Kathy Kay said: “We have never seen such an over-population of a breed as has been building up over the last five or six years.

“It would appear that every other dog call we take at our advice centre is a request to rehome an adult Staffie. It has now reached crisis point.”

Barbara, aged 69, carries out regular home checks in the hope of rehousing Staffies. On average, only one in six checks lead to a dog being rehomed.

Sadly, Staffordshire bull terriers have been given a bad press and are often confused with the banned pit bull terrier, which does not make a suitable family pet.

In their ignorance, families have abandoned their Staffies, fearing they could be dangerous.

In complete contrast to the pit bull, pure bred Staffies have a very comfortable and friendly relationship with humans, as a visit to Barbara’s smart Farnworth home easily proves.

Her own rescued Staffie, Toby, and her son’s dog, another Staffie called Shauna, assume any visitors have come to see them, not Barbara.

Consequently, guests are almost pushed to the floor in the dogs’ excitement to see them and they are constantly approached for attention while sitting in Barbara’s living room — awash with dog toys.

It’s all part of being a Staffordshire bull terrier owner. The dogs are like children and they like children. They love attention and seek stimulation much of the time.

“That’s one of the problems,” said Barbara.

“People get them and they don’t realise just how much attention they need.”

Barbara says the Staffie has an excellent reputation with children, often being described as the “nanny dog”, but are pretty useless as guard dogs.

“They are too friendly,” she explained.

Where problems can occur, however, is with other dogs.

“They should never be off a lead when another dog is about, unless it’s a dog they are used to,” said Barbara, who takes four-year-old Toby for a walk every morning at half past six.

For Barbara, running the rescue is a full-time, unpaid job. She does it for love of the breed.

She used to show dogs, but now rescues them. She has rescued dogs that had been deliberately set alight or severely beaten and dogs with severe medical problems brought on by their owner’s neglect.

But, more often than not, it is owners who simply do not want their dog any more who ring Barbara for help.

She said: “They come up with really pathetic excuses and you know they are excuses. It’s so sad.”

Barbara fields around 14 calls a day from people wanting to give their dogs up. Some pretend they have found them in the street, rather than admit they simply don’t want them anymore.

She organises for the unwanted dogs to be collected and taken to a private kennel, where they are looked after until they can be rehomed.

All dogs rehomed are neutered first, to prevent breeding.

“We still get people ringing up wanting dogs that have not been neutered because they want to breed them,” said Barbara.

“What do they think I am doing the rescue work for? It’s to prevent more unwanted dogs.”

Barbara and her family — she has three sons — have always had Staffordshire bull terriers.

She said: “They really are a very friendly, lovely dog. It is so sad to see the way they are treated.”

Unfortunately, Staffies have become a “macho” fashion accessory for young men who wrongly believe the dogs will want to fight. This peace-loving animal is actually far happier sitting next to its owner on the sofa, being stroked.Unfortunately, many owners do not feel the same, so Barbara has to keep raising money to keep the rescue running, a task that is becoming increasingly more difficult.

Barbara works for six Staffordshire bull terrier clubs: North-west, Merseyside, Alyn and Deeside, Morecambe Bay and Cumbria, Northern Counties and Notts Derby.

Currently Bolton RSPCA has a pilot scheme in operation in an attempt to get a grip of the problem.

The branch has set aside money to spay Staffordshire Bull Terrier bitches belonging to people on means tested benefits. Owners of other breeds will still be given financial assistance but only owners of Staffies will be given the free benefit.

"We apologise if it appears that on this occasion we are being breed specific, but there is a desperate reason for this," said Kathy.

Bolton Destitute Animal Shelter is also well aware of the problem of abandoned Staffordshire Bull Terriers and other bull breeds.

Shelter manager Karen Rickards said: "There is a problem of over-breeding. They are cute when they are puppies but people don't want them when they grow up.

"We have dogs here that have been micro-chipped and we know who their owners are but they simply don't want them.

"It is a national crisis and in my opinion the Government needs to get involved."

The shelter has launched an animal fostering programme in the hope that will enable older or long-term residents to get a home.

There are Staffordshire Bull Terriers on the scheme and anyone keen to take in a dog on a fostering scheme would get veterinary treatment for their animal paid for by the shelter.

• To contact Barbara ring 01204 573942 • To contact Bolton RSPCA ring 01204 521160 • For Bolton Animal Shelter ring 01204 526486