How do you feel about BSL (Breed specific legislation) targeting Pit Bulls?

Question

Check out this video, its very powerful

http://youtube.com/watch?v=c2Qlw3pzWv4

Here's some more
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mBus4GGsyb4

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OLtrqOdDxzk

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GtQJdhpsTCU

Patrick, which fictional land are you living in that you expect us to believe that pit bulls are the leading cause of death in your area? tsk tsk. They die because of uneducated fools such as yourself

talbot> you said it yourself in your own answer "certain dogs have been bred to kill" SO who's doing the breeding? lets take a closer look at WHERE this responsibility lies, with the BREEDER or the TRAINER who made these dogs the way they are, but the LAW does not ask that OWNERS be responsible, the law dictates that the DOG should be responsible. hmm, a little hypocritical if you ask me. The innocent die because the true criminals refuse to accecpt their responsibility, and furthermore and much sadder, are ignorant fools such as you who blame a DOG for a PERSON's transgressions. Educate yourself please!

Answer 1

I have seen all of those videos before! They make me cry almost everytime!

I am going to try to keep this as short as possible! lol! When it comes to questions like this I just have sooo much to say...

Okay.. How do I feel about BSL? Wow! Where do I start! I think that BSL is stupid and it has been proven to not work! If you want to ban "pits" your gonna have to ban ALOT of other breeds to justify it! I am just going to touch on some of the reasons that people always say "pits" should be banned and tell you why its all crap!

As for pit bulls attacking more than other breeds.... The statistical data on dog bites and attacks are inaccurate. Many dog bites are never reported. There is nothing in place to track dog bites in the US accurately. There are 25+ breeds that are commonly wrongly identified as pit bulls, Those of us who have been involved with the breed for years have trouble identifying them 100% of the time, so, we certainly can’t expect inexperienced people to be able to properly ID a dog. That said, it leads us to believe that many of the bites that claim to be from pit bulls are in fact, inflicted by other breeds.

As for pit bulls being born mean and vicious and being inherently dangerous to people... Pit Bulls like all other breeds, are not born inherently mean or bad! They can, like any other breed, become mean through lack of training, abuse, neglect and irresponsible ownership and breeding. Pit bulls are no more inherently dangerous to people than other dog breeds. People often assume that pit bulls are human aggressive because they were bred to fight animals. This is simply not true! If that were the case then Irish Wolfhounds, Anatolian Shepard's, Great Pyrenees, etc should be considered dangerous to humans as well.

As for pit bulls not being good with children or good family pets... Properly raised and socialized pit bulls are great with children! Pit bulls have enjoyed a long history as favorite childrens companions and family pets! Pit bulls are way more tolerant than most other popular family breeds and are the PERFECT breed to withstand the rough and tumble play a child can dish out! As with other big dogs, pit bulls can accidentally knock kids over during play, etc so they should always be supervised. Dogs of any breed should never be left alone with children. Do Pit Bulls make good pets? Yes, but Pit Bulls are not for everyone, just like any other breed of dog. Research should be done on any breed prior to making a decision. The best place for responsible pit bull information is Pit Bull Rescue Central www.pbrc.net. The American Pit Bull Terrier was the #1 family dog in the US in the 20's, 40's, 50's and during first part of the 20th century. They are Loyal, loving, devoted, funny, and almost human like in their emotions and expressions! Pit Bulls are one of the most stable people-friendly dogs in existence. The National Canine Temperament Testing Association tested 122 breeds, and Pit Bulls placed the 4th highest with a 95% passing rate!

As for pit bulls being know to "just turn on people".... In fact, no breed of dog does. Dog aggression is nearly always preceded by some kind of warning, and there is always a reason behind the attack. However, many inexperienced owners do not recognize the dog's behavior as aggression, or refuse to acknowledge it as a warning sign. The only exception I can think of is Springer Rage, a rare and controversial neurological condition that manifests itself as a spontaneous attack, followed by confusion, and then a return to normal behavior. Pit Bulls are NOT prone to this condition. There are individual dogs of any breed that may be more aggressive to others.

Pit bulls are know to be animal agressive.. so, if a pit bull is animal agressive wont it turn on people next? While many Pit Bulls do tend to be aggressive towards other DOGS (as are most terriers), the normal, well raised Pit Bull has NO human-aggressive tendencies! In fact, human-aggression was actually bred out of the breed. The majority of Pit Bulls are affectionate, intelligent, trainable dogs. In fact, the highest obedience trial record of all time is held by an American Pit Bull Terrier named Maddy! animal aggression and human aggression are 2 completely different things! There are many types of aggression in the canine world and they are all very different.

Why do we hear so many negative pit bull stories in the Media and are they true? There are a few things that contribute to the negative stories on the news. As often the case, negative stories always seem to get National coverage, where the positive stories only make the local news. The Media is not always very responsible with their stories! I have seen news reports of a dog attack by another breed and, yet the media had a picture of a pit bull on the TV while reporting this story. I’ve read many stories where the reporter obviously hadn’t done any research, when I asked about their statistics they choose not to reply.

Every 10 years or so a new breed of dog is victimized by irresponsible owners, breeders, bad media coverage, and now it’s the pit bull’s turn. In the 70’s it was the German Shepherd, the 80’s was the Doberman’s turn, the 90’s Rottweilers and pit bulls had all the bad press, and now it’s the pit bull’s time to suffer again. And, unfortunately, in a few years it will be another breed that will be in the spotlight.

So, how do I feel about BSL targeting pit bulls? In short... It is crap! Banning breeds doesnt work! All it will do is cause a false sense of security! Its like putting a wet bandaid on the problem! It wont fix anything! As soon as all of the pit bulls are gone and all of the dog attacks continue, what are we going to do then? Ban some more breeds.. and then some more! Why dont we just get it over with quickly and go ahead and ban them all right now! Beacuse that is the only way a breed ban will work! What we need to do is....
-Put a stop to leash law violations...Higher penalties for owners who violate the leash law will dissuade more people from slacking on their duties to contain their dog
-Strengthen and enforce penalties for dangerous owners (and their dangerous dogs)
-Crack down on dog fighting
-Strengthen animal abuse laws
-Prevent criminals from owning dogs...The following people should not be allowed to own dogs: drug dealers, human or animal abusers, and anyone convicted of a violent offense (assault, rape, robbery, etc.)
-Regulate breeders
-Fund public spay/neuter initiatives...These programs are important, especially low-cost ones. Unneutered dogs, particularly males, are far more likely to attack a human than either neutered males or spayed females.
-Educate about dog behavior (http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/dog_care/stay_dog_bite_free/)
-Encourage responsible dog ownership
-Provide low-cost obedience training classes and behavior help hotlines for dog owners
*You don't need to enact breed-specific legislation to make your city a safer place to live*

and untill people want to open their eyes and see that, nothing will get better!

Check this out! It started out with just "pit bulls" right.. well, now look at all of these breeds that these few cities are banning!
I have only included 1 or 2 cities/states where the breed is affected by BSL so that the breeds can be verified as targets.

1. American Pit Bull Terrier (Note: Laws dealing with “pit bulls” also state any mix of the 3 breeds AND the MOST important line, anything that has the characteristics or appearance of these breeds. There are 20+ breeds that are commonly mistakenly identified as “pit bull” dogs. ) (Denver, CO)
2. American Staffordshire Terrier (Note: Laws dealing with “pit bulls” also state any mix of the 3 breeds AND the MOST important line, anything that has the characteristics or appearance of these breeds. There are 20+ breeds that are commonly mistakenly identified as “pit bull” dogs. ) (Denver, CO)
3. Staffordshire Bull Terrier (Note: Laws dealing with “pit bulls” also state any mix of the 3 breeds AND the MOST important line, anything that has the characteristics or appearance of these breeds. There are 20+ breeds that are commonly mistakenly identified as “pit bull” dogs. ) (Denver, CO)
4. Rottweiler
5.Doberman Pincher (Fairfield, IA) (Sisston, SD), (Westfield, IL), (Travelers Rest, SC) Shar Pei’s (Smithfield, UT)
6.German Shepard (Fairfield, IA)
7.Belgian Malanois (Fairfield, IA)
8.Siberian Huskies (Fairfield, IA)
9.Alaskan Malamutes (Fairfield, IA)
10.Great Danes (Fairfield, IA)
11.Irish Wolf Hounds (Fairfield, IA)
12.Scottish Deerhounds (Fairfield, IA)
13.Mastiffs (Fairfield, IA)
14.Boerboels (Fairfield, IA)
15.American Bull Dog (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA), (North Little Rock, AR)
16.Akita (Ulyssas, KS)
17.Chow Chow (Travelers Rest, SC), (New Port, RI)
18.English Mastiffs, (Yale, IA)
19.Tosa Inu (Aurora, CO)
20.Presa Canario (Aurora, CO)
21.Dogo Argentino (Aurora, CO)
22.Cane Corso (Aurora, CO)
23.American Bulldog (Aurora, CO / North Little Rock, AR)
24.Bull Terrier (Grandview, MO - Akron, OH)
25.American Bull Dog, (North Little Rock, AR)
26.Presa Canario (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA), (Lanett, AL)
27.Wolf Hybrid (Huntington WV)
28.Canary Dog ( Akron, OH)
29.Perro De Presa (Akron, OH)
30.Old Country Bull Dog (Akron, OH)

NOTE: These are breeds that are typically over 100lbs. If your dog is less than 100lbs than they are safe in Fairfield.

31.Bull Mastiff (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
32.Neopolitian Mastiff (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
33.Tibetan Mastiff (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
34.New Foundland (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
35.Anatolian Shepherd (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
36.Greater Swiss Mountain Dog (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
37.Great Pyrenees (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
38.Komondor (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
39.Kuvaz (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
40.St. Bernard (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
41.Tosa Inu (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
42.Dogo Argentino (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
43.Cane Corso (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
44.Fila Brasileiro (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
45.Spanish Mastiff (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
46.Italian Mastiff (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
47.Dogue De Bordeauxs (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
48.Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
49.Akbash (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)
50.Leonberger (Other dogs in excess of 100 lbs - Fairfield, IA)

If we dont stop this BSL crap now, pretty soon there wont be any dogs left!

Answer 2

I am not for BSL and my breed is now being targeted too in some areas of the US. That said.. Don't you think instead of people crying about it they should get off their butts and try to get ignorant people to stop breeding them? There is a jackass on every corner breeding pits with no regard for their pedigrees and history. THIS is the problem, not the laws. Why is it that when these dogs attack the owners are always standing there stating the dog has never shown an aggressive bone in his body? The answer is clear. Back yard breeding with no regard to pedigree. There are pits in any paper in any town USA for sale every single day of the year and 99% of them are bred by ignorant people. MANY of those same people are crying about BSL. It's their own dam fault. They look at the nice dog they have and the nice dog down the street and make a litter. Totally ignorant of the fact that there are 60 dogs in a five generation pedigree and many of those dogs if not ALL were not the most well tempered. It comes out when you least expect it. So stop the crying about the great injustice the laws are imposing and start crying about the ignorant people that have caused it to happen.

Answer 3

I am against it 100%! There should be harsher laws against negligent owners since they are the ones that raise these tough breeds to be more aggressive. Any breed of dog can become aggressive through bad ownership, if you look up the statistics there are more dog bites from other breeds before pitbulls...these included lab and lab x's, terriers and terrier x's, shepherds, rotties...pitbulls were number 7 on the list! So when a "family" friendly lab that has been badly raised attacks someone it doesnt gain the news headlines and scare people like a "pit bull" does. The news media is very one sided on it and now people have been scared into hearing half the truth and making assumptions on the breed. I own a rottie, my husband has had rotties before with family, we had a pit x and a shepherd...all around kids. My sister's jrt is worse and will bite kids for no apparent reason even after being raised with them. Does this mean I should be scared of all jrt? No, it's time to start punishing the owners more harshly and putting the proper message out there that not all pit bulls, rotties ect are bad dogs, with proper raising and socialization they can be loving family pets.

Answer 4

Dogs are not humans. Dogs act by instinct. They cannot be expected to overcome their inbred characteristics. You don't expect a duck to not swim. We don't expect a left-handed child to write with his right-hand. Why do we expect a dominant guard dog breed to act like a submissive beagle? It just won't happen. No amount of love given to a dog will overcome it's instinct. Dogs don't act on empathy. They only act on instinct. Even a "good" pit has the inbred instinct to fight. We can only hope it doesn't come out or it's not strong in a certain dog. Humans did cause this problem. Humans purposely bred a race or breed of dogs for fighting. Humans are to blame.

But the pit breed must be controlled. It's is not their fault, but they must be controlled. There should be more BSL to protect the general public as a whole from a dog breed that acts by instinct and breeding to attack and fight. The law should demand that each pit or staffie must be sterilized unless someone has a specific permit to keep an intact dog. And if a dog shows any signs of aggression, it must be destroyed. Humans caused this problem. And humans are not being responsible to control the dog breed. There should be strong legislation to protect humans from their own shortcomings.
Over 70% of dog bites come from pits/rotties/staffies or a mix of them. That is statistically significant. If over 70% of a sickness was caused by a specific product it would be recalled and banned. A dangerous dog breed is no different. I personally would not destroy or ban every pit alive today, but I would suggest legislation to demand sterilization. And if any of the dog's alive show aggression, they should be destroyed. It will cut the numbers of the breed to help protect the public.

Answer 5

I totally disagree with BSl, I own a 3 year old pit bull who is absolutely sweet, great with our kids and all other dogs. I always get negative comments about his breed at the dog park even though everyone can see that he is totally harmless. I think that it's a shame that certain breeds are always involved in attacking people and other dogs but it isn't just certain breeds. The media just does a good job on reporting certain breeds more than others. I will admit that before we got our dog that I probably believed in the reputation of pit bulls and rottweilers but I now believe that it is not a dog's breed, it is their owners and the way they are raised. We can't discriminate against certain breeds, instead we need to punish the people who break the laws, Michale Vick comes to mind. Here are some facts about the pit bull...

>They are great therapy dogs.
>Helen Keller's companion and helper was a pit bull.
>The first American war dog was a pit bull named Stubby, he was honored at the white house.
>The dog in the show "Little Pascals" was a pit bull.
>Pit bulls are heroes. They have been commended for saving animals, people and children.
>Many celebrities own pit bulls: Rosie Perez, Judd Nelson, Linda Blair, Usher, Vin Diesel, SInbad, Alicia Silverstone.

Answer 6

100% against the BSL. They mostly target Rottweilers and pit bulls out of fear. If everyone actually reported all the dog bites you would find that small dogs are more prone to bite then larger dogs. Rotties were bread for cattle protection in Germany. Bulldogs were bread for fighting bulls but the breed has changed and become shorter over the years. The American Bulldog still looks like the bulldog of old. Take this for instance. Awhile ago somewhere in the USA (this was in the news) Someone brought their Chihuahua to work. This dog attacked and bite several people. But since he didn't do any damage they just laughed it off. BULLS!@&. If my rotty had bite someone but didnt do any damage the damn animal control would be here and Id be fined. So If they try to bane dogs like rotties, pits, bulldogs, cane corsos and such then we need to list small dogs like Poms, terriers, poodles and such also. If we cant have our dogs then they shouldnt be able to ahve thiers!!!

Answer 7

BSL is stupid to exactly the same degree as RSL (race specific legislation). It places blame for crimes on the circumstances of birth, rather than on the individual. We fought for equality of race, it's a shame we didn't learn our lesson, now our innocent pets are suffering the consequences.

Please educate yourself before you vote out of fear or hatred, about BSL or anything else.

And to the answerers below - tell the little girl in the coffin and the mother in the hospital to blame the HUMANS responsible for raising such animals. A pit bull bred into a caring family with proper guidance will not grow up any meaner than any other dog. German Shepherds were bred to kill as well, but they are less attractive to miscreants because of their expense as a breed, and common congenital defects that cause physical weakness. And I know several Labradors who are unsocialized and untrained and who are just as dangerous as any 'deadly pit bull'.

Blame the trash who raises the killer, not the poor dog who really and truly doesn't know any better. Just because our prisons hold more criminals of one race or another doesn't mean we go willy nilly banning races from our homes anymore. Why? Because it's WRONG to judge by race, and it's WRONG to judge by breed.

Answer 8

BSL sucks. It's rash, judgmental, and ineffective. Not to mention unjust to "pit bulls" who are truely great ambassadors for the breed.

And for those in favor of BSL, you'll probably continue to be until they add your favorite breed to the list. BSL doesn't work!!!

Punish the deed, not the breed!

www.stopbsl.com
Check out the link on the left (Read About It). The author outlines a hypothetical scenerio in which BSL is implemented in her neighboorhood. See what happens...it's very enlightening!

Answer 9

It's unconstitutional. It's not the government's place to legislate personal choice/morality/behavior. Period. Until a dog attacks someone, it should not be considered a danger based solely on breed. This is my opinion - and I'm afraid of most dogs due to childhood trauma. I'll probably never own one (a dog, that is - ANY dog) - but I don't think it's the government's place to tell anyone how to live, AS LONG AS it doesn't interfere with the well-being of others.

Answer 10

Specific dog breeds are not the problem. The problem is irresponsible dog owners. Any dog can be dangerous under the right circumstances. If this continues with the banning of Pit bulls, eventually all dogs will be banned.

I believe more people are killed every year by cars than by Pits. Maybe we should ban cars........

Answer 11

Frankly, BSL is disgusting.

People today like to think that we've come a long way from the "unenlightened" age of the late 19th and early 20th centuries... but, really, we haven't come all that far at all. People back in the early 1900s and late 1800s went on safaris, hoping to kill a "vicious wild beast". They were praised and honored for slaying "monsters of the jungles". They were revered for hunting animals which, today, are endangered and we would never even think of hurting. Think of tigers, pandas, whales, Tasmanian wolves, elephants, foxes... even native African and Indian human BEINGS! All hunted nearly to extinction simply because they were perceived as being a "threat" to our greedy, self-indulgent way of life.

We think we have come a long way from all of that. But what's the difference between murdering a tiger in the 20s and killing Pit Bulls today?

The truth? There is no difference.
We're just as pathetic as we were back then.

But that's just my opinion. :]