Alternatives to Breed Bans

Breed bans have been introduced all across the United States and the rest of the world. They've also been proven not to work. Scotland, the United Kingdom, and Toledo, have all rewrote their breed ban and dangerous dog acts after deciding that they haven't caused any significant changes in public safety or dog attacks.

But, what are the alternatives?

1. Strengthen current dog laws in regards to leash laws and dog confinement laws.
2. Make laws stricter for dog abuse and dog fighting.
3. Make stricter regulations for dogs left unattended for over 24 hours.
4. Create dog breeding regulations.
5. Create low cost spay/neuter programs, as well as low-cost or free dog training and care programs.

There are many things that local, state, or national governments can do to create long-term changes toward public safety improvements in regards to dogs and animal attacks. It's just the matter of creating the fix versus the easy way out.

Breed Bans Do Not Work

It is unfortunate that there are breed bans in various cities, states, and countries. I mean dogs are animals, they are going to be unruly at times, and they're going to need training. The only person at fault here, is the human who doesn't train or properly socialize their dog.

Dogs are commonly treated and thought of as mini-humans and children, but they're not. They are animals that have been domesticated through thousands of years of training and socializing with humans. They are still animals that can bite and attack children, teenagers, adults, and the elderly.

By banning certain breeds, the bans do nothing more than cause another dog breed to be higher on the lists of annual bites and attacks. If we ban dog by classifying them  by their breed, it's just like classifying people by race, gender, religion, age, etc.

Not every dog in a breed is going to be prone to attack, and not every black guy is a lazy thief.

The statistics and reports on countries and areas who have implement breed specific legislations have reported no drastic changes in bites. Some have even found that the bulk of the bites were from non-restricted breeds, and some areas have reported a rise in dog attacks.

There are better alternatives to breed bans, such as education and other restrictions, such as leash laws, spay/neuter programs, containment laws, etc.

What is Breed Specific Legislation? Will it Stop all Pit Bull Dog Attacks?





For instance, one of my dogs is an American Pit Bull Terrier, and she is great. She's went through bone cancer at the age of 18 months, and is not 3.5 years old. She is has had her confrontations with other dogs, but is such a people loving dog it is unreal. Why should I be punished because I own a "bad dog breed"?

All About the American Pit Bull Terrier

Here is a combination hub, that includes all of my hubs that are pertaining to the breed characteristics and history of the American Pit Bull Terrier. The article is pretty simple and straight forward. You should find tons of great information about the breed, hopefully enough to convince your leary friends that they can be great dogs.

Give it a look and see.

All About the American Pit Bull Terrier

APBT Dog

The American Pit Bull Terrier is a great and loyal breed. They would die defending their pet parents, and that's not exaggeration.

Like other breeds the American Pit Bull and its cousin bully breed dogs deserve rehabilitation and the chance for a new life in a new home. Just because they may have a history in the pit, doesn't mean that they should be discriminated against as a viscious, man-eating breed. That was a past, and unfortunate present, but not all individuals in a breed should suffer as a part.



This sad past, present, and hopefully, unlikely future should not be affected by breed specific legislations. As once these laws begin to take affect in more than a handful of cities, it will overtake our nation. This is not the world I want to see, and it is not the world I want my APBT puppy growing up to know.



I'm tired of seeing this poor breed and its bully counterparts being shoved into the euthanasia room at the city pound becuase they were born with a bad reputation. It's just not fair. This sort of discrimination was fought against when humans were involved (Nazi Germany and Slavery amongst a few other times), who will fight for our dogs?!

The American Pit Bull Terrier is the true American breed, not the Labrador Retriever or the Golden Retriever, but the AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIER! This breed is a famous breed that shares a strong portion of the American history. They are a part of search and rescue groups, pet therapy organizations, drug dogs, military companions, and other wonderful groups across the United States that help aid our country.

And, lately, I've seen APBT puppies in Old Navy commercials. I'm sure that I'm one of the hopeful APBT lovers that hope that this will be the start of a new age and a new beginning for the breed that has so stolen our hearts.

Dealing with reckless owners and very dangerous dogs

Published on Friday, December 14, 2007

When it comes to laws that regulate “dangerous dogs,” there is at least one fact that is hard to dispute: Dogs permitted by their owners to run loose and dogs who attack people or other animals are real and often serious problems in communities across the country. The more vexing and contentious issue arises in figuring out how to best address this. While many states, including New York, Texas and Illinois, favor laws that identify, track and regulate dangerous dogs regardless of breed and prohibit “breed-specific” laws that either regulate or ban a certain breed of dog, some local governments have enacted breed-specific laws. However, the problem of “dangerous dogs” will not be remedied by the “quick fix” of breed-specific laws.

There is no evidence that breed-specific laws—which are costly and difficult to enforce—make communities safer for human families or for the companion animals who are a part of so many households. And it turns out, such laws also have negative and wholly unintended consequences.

For example, a task force formed in 2003 to study the effectiveness of the Prince George’s County, Maryland, pit bull ban estimated that the county spends more than $250,000 each year to enforce the ban. Further, in a report to the County Council, the task force noted that “public safety is not improved as a result of [the ban],” and that “there is no transgression committed by owner or animal that is not covered by another, non-breed specific portion of the Animal Control Code (i.e., vicious animal, nuisance animal, leash laws).” The task force recommended that Prince George’s County repeal the ban.

Breed-specific laws also cause unintended hardship to responsible owners of entirely friendly, properly supervised and well-socialized dogs who happen to fall within the regulated breed category. Regulated breeds, it is worth noting, have expanded in some localities to include not just American pit bull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, Staffordshire bull terriers, bull terriers and Rottweilers, but also a variety of other dogs, including American bulldogs, mastiffs, Dalmatians, chow chows, German shepherds, Doberman pinschers and any mix of these breeds. Although these dog owners have done nothing to endanger the public, they may be required to comply with onerous regulations. Sadly, these responsible caretakers may be forced to choose between costly compliance and giving up their beloved companion.

Moreover, in their study of human fatalities resulting from dog bites, the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) did not support the breed-specific approach. They cited, among other problems, the inaccuracy of dog bite data and the difficulty in identifying dog breeds (especially true of mixed breeds). They also noted the likelihood that as certain breeds are regulated, those who exploit dogs by making them aggressive will merely turn to other, unregulated breeds.

Significantly, the CDC also noted how many other factors beyond breed may affect a dog’s tendency toward aggression—things such as heredity, sex, early experience, reproductive status and socialization and training.
These last two concerns seem well-founded given that more than 70 percent of all dog bite cases involve unneutered male dogs, and that an unneutered male dog is 2.6 times more likely to bite than is a neutered dog. In addition, a chained or tethered dog is 2.8 times more likely to bite than a dog who is not chained or tethered. Further, 97 percent of dogs involved in fatal dog attacks in 2006 were not spayed/neutered; 78 percent were maintained not as pets but rather for guarding, image enhancement, fighting or breeding; and 84 percent were maintained by reckless owners—abused or neglected, not humanely controlled or contained, or allowed to interact with children unsupervised.

Perhaps the most unintended yet harmful consequence of breed-specific laws is their tendency to compromise rather than enhance public safety. When limited animal control resources are used to regulate or ban a certain breed of dog, without regard to behavior, the focus is shifted away from routine, effective enforcement of laws that have the best chance of making our communities safer: dog license laws, leash laws, animal fighting laws, anti-tethering laws, laws facilitating spaying and neutering and laws that require all dog owners to control their dogs, regardless of breed.

Unfortunately, these laws are often only enforced when a tragedy occurs, rather than as a routine function of law enforcement and animal control.

Solutions

Recognizing that the problem of dangerous dogs requires serious attention, the ASPCA seeks effective enforcement of breed-neutral laws that hold dog owners accountable for the actions of their animals. The ASPCA believes that this is the most reliable way to control aggressive dogs and reckless owners.

(Source: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)

Jodi Preis
Bless the Bullys - Defending Dog - Bull Breed Alliance of Tennessee

San Antonio City Council Approves Controversial Ordinance (Texas)

New Pet Ordinance Approved San Antonio City Council Approves Controversial Ordinance

SAN ANTONIO -- Local pet owners take notice – the city of San Antonio has a new ordinance with many new rules.

City Council members spent most of Thursday discussing the ordinance before unanimously passing it.

The ordinance includes new definitions defining dangerous animals, fines for animal cruelty, licensing for breeders and other fees.

Thirty residents – both for and against the ordinance – spoke before the council voted.

Effective immediately, animals deemed dangerous will have to wear a special collar, be kept in an enclosure, be muzzled when outside the enclosure and will have a microchip implanted by the city.

Owners will also have to post warning signs alerting of the dangerous animal.

Jef Hale, the director of Animal Care Services, said his staff will do their best to balance public safety as well as the rights of pet owners.

Jodi Preis
Bless the Bullys - Defending Dog - Bull Breed Alliance of Tennessee

American Pit Bull Terriers Suffering BSL

If we don't stand up for our dogs, our so called vicious beasts, no one will. The government will punish our well bred American pit bull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, Bull Terriers, and Staffordshire bull terriers.



Then they'll move towards taking the German shepherds, chow chows, akitas, huskies, malamutes, rottweilers, and dobermans, too.

After that, they'll resort to labs, retrievers, terriers, poodles, dalmatians, chihuahuas, shih tzus, great danes, schnauzers, and virtually every other breed left.

If we don't fight for our breed. Our AMERICAN pit bull terriers, and other bully breed dogs, we'll loose our American RIGHT to care and raise any dog, not approved by someone else.

Is that right? Is it fair?

I don't think so, which is why I'll be there fighting for my dogs.

Will you be there fighting for yours?

Is Your Dog Safe From BSL?

I was a little surprised by my last post of famous American Pit Bull Terriers. I guess I didn't realize how many people on here have a problem with the breed. Did you know that even when fighting was more prevalent than today, the dogs were bred to be dog aggressive and NOT human aggressive? That any sign of human aggression in a dog was so frowned upon that the dog was banned from the fighting pit, not was that dog allowed to breed; human aggressive pit dogs were put down. These dogs were family pets with jobs and missions behind them. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours kind of feel. Human aggression comes from poor breeding and socialization, not the breed.

BSL and APBTs

Banning American Pit Bull Terriers and other bully breed dogs may not affect you, but what happens when all those dogs become extinct? The fighting ring will come after YOUR dogs. What will you do then? ... Will you fight the Breed Specific Legislations like current bully breed owners are? Probably. I'm sure you'll want to keep your lab or retriever in your home just like I'll fight to keep my APBTs.

One last tidbit.. Statistically, APBT's are the least likely dog breed to attack a human... How about that? Did you know that most of the dog attacks that you hear aren't even "pit bull" attacks? The media catches whim of a dog attack and throws "pit bull" out there. They never retract their statements.

Pit Bulls are BSL

I strongly disagree with breed specific legislations. Many just plain and simple ban the specific breed(s), but some do add grandfather clauses to the legislation, saying that if a pet parent has owned the breed in question for a certain time frame before the law has been passed, they CAN keep the dog... Usually these clauses include many restrictions towards keeping the dog(s) such as muzzles in public and outdoor kennels.

BSL and Pit Bull Terriers