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Problems with breed specific legislation
Breed specific legislation law essay
Problems with breed specific legislation
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Breed-Specific Legislation
Breed-Specific Legislation (BSL) has been embraced by some communities, shunned by others, and strongly opposed by a number of dog owners and canine organizations. Breed-Specific Legislation is a regulation that is directed toward many specific breeds of dogs. The majority of BSL is focused on breeds traditionally known as “dangerous,” or those that have demonstrated a tendency for aggression and violent behavior. Most breed-specific laws are created as a misguided response to a dog bite incident or attack.
Breed-Specific Legislation is defined as a law that relates to the qualities of a “dangerous” dog with a certain breed, and bans or restricts certain breeds based on identity, not behavior of a specific animal.
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This kind of legislation does not make compromises for members of the breed who are valuable to the community, such as therapy dogs, assistance dogs, or advanced trained dog such as drug dogs and search and rescue dogs. BSL identifies a dog as “dangerous” based solely on the breed alone and not on any action that the individual dog may have ever committed. A breed ban usually requires that all dogs of a certain appearance be removed from the municipality where the ban has been put into effect. Along with outing bans on certain breeds of dogs there is also breed-specific restrictions, which may require an owner to muzzle the dog in public, spay or neuter the dogs, contain the dog in a kennel with specific requirements, place “vicious dog” signs, or make the dog wear a “vicious dog” tag or other identifying markers. Many people tend to think breed-specific legislation is wrong and that it helps no one.
They think it’s wrong because it doesn’t help to improve public safety or prevent dog bites, it is actually costly, and BSL also punishes responsible owners of a targeted breed. Dog problems are generally problems with owner responsibility and are not limited to breeds. When breeds are singled out as dangerous or vicious, responsibility is removed from the dog owner which is where it belongs. Irresponsible people are also less likely to follow the law. As a result, everyone has to suffer. The reports and statistics are flawed. Among other things, a dog bite victim is usually unable to identify the breed of dog that bit him or her. Therefore, victims will name the type of dog that currently is on the people's minds as being the dangerous …show more content…
dog. Over the years there have been many breeds subjected to the breed-specific legislation, such as Rottweilers, American Staffordshire Bull Terriers (“Pit Bulls”), Chows Chows, German Shepherd Dogs, and Doberman Pinchers.
The list of dogs with restrictions or bans continues to grow because media tends to point fingers away from the real reason behind why dogs do sometimes cause issues. By targeting dogs and ultimately their owners beloved family pets are lost and the human-animal bond is weakened. Since a law banning dogs that look like certain breeds went into effect, families have been forced to hide their dogs away or risk having them confiscated and destroyed. Regulating breeds puts the focus on the dog, without addressing owner behavior and the owner’s responsibility to the animal and the community. In an environment of breed discrimination, the breed identification of a dog can have serious consequences with municipal authorities, animal shelters, landlords, and insurers, all of which will compromise the bond between a family and their
dog. Many people and organizations disagree with BSL and would much rather try to find better solutions to these issues. Although there are a few people who may agree with BSL, but they tend to be a small group. This is because most would prefer that we try to solve the issues with dogs biting by teaching the owners how to properly train their animals and on how to prevent these situations from happening. Also with BSL people blame the whole breed or any dogs that look similar to the breed for the actions of a few dogs, and that’s unjust to blame all the dogs for something that could have been prevented with education to the owners.
In 2005, the Ontario Liberal government passed The Dog Owner’s Liability Act: a ban against pit bull terriers in the province. After the bill passed, Attorney General Michael Bryant said, “Mark my words, Ontario will be safer” (Ontario passes ban on pit bulls, 2005). The legislation prevented people from acquiring a number of breeds of dogs that would be classified as pit bulls. In addition, Ontario residents who already owned a pit bull terrier prior to the ban were required to neuter and muzzle their animals. Such policies against this breed of animal are not unprecedented. In fact, similar laws are already in place in Britain, France and Germany. In Canada, Winnipeg has had a ban against pit bull terriers in place for 20 years (Ontario passes ban on pit bulls, 2005). Ontario and other regions have imposed these sanctions because the evidence clearly indicates that pit bull terriers pose a much higher than average risk to people.
Nationwide, approximately 50 percent of all children will be bitten by a dog before they reach the age of twelve (DeIorio, “Have a Dog-Bite-Free Summer”). In Marion County, Florida, aggressive and dangerous breads of dogs are a “serious issue” for the community according to Marion County Commissioner Jim Payton (Thompson, “County drops '1 free kill'”). Responsible dog owners seem to be unaware of the problem but area residents who have been victims of these attacks have turned to the Marion County Board of Commissioners for help. The local County Commissioners have been wrestling with this issue since October of 2009 when a widow from Ocklawaha, Patricia McBee, had three of her dogs euthanized after they allegedly killed her neighbor’s cat (Thompson, “County drops ‘1 free kill’”). The need for change moved even faster after a 3-year-old little girl was attacked and killed by a dog that was chained to a tree outside her house in Citra (Lee, “Girl, 3, mauled”).
They have twisted the dogs mind into thinking that they have to fight to protect something all the time. Pit bulls are classified as vicious and harmful animals. This is discrimination and is because of media skewing stories, ignorant people that refuse to listen to hard facts, and public attitudes and opinions. These laws against breeds are unconstitutional; there is no legislative basis for these laws. Pit bulls, like any other dog, grow in their temperament.
What words come to mind when one hears the words “pit bull?” How about aggressive, violent, or dangerous? In many cases, this isn’t actually true. Because of the negative media attention for attacks on humans and other dogs that pit bull breeds receive, many Americans place a stigma on pit bulls, tagging them as dangerous and vicious. This stigma typically applies to all pit bulls, not just the ones that are actually dangerous. To remedy the issue of dangerous dogs attacking other beings, the legislative act known as breed-specific legislation is being debated throughout the United States. Gary J. Patronek, a veterinary doctor, defines breed-specific legislation as a law than “bans, restricts, or imposes conditions on ownership of specific breeds or dogs presumed to pose greater risk of biting people” (788). Breed-specific legislation is commonly debated in communities that have recently experienced a dog-bite related injury or fatality (Patronek, Slater, and Marder 788). However, this law would ban all dogs of the pit bull breed or any related dog based solely on their breed, rather than disposition. Therefore, breed-specific legislation should not be enacted throughout the United States because is biased against pit bulls and is ineffective in reducing dog-bite attacks by ignoring other aggressive dog breeds.
[Reveal topic & relate to audience] Now, you may think that situation is a bit farfetched, especially in this day & age, but it's happening to dogs around the world. What I'm talking about is breed specific legislation (or BSL) which targets certain dog breeds considered dangerous and makes ownership of these dogs illegal. As more and more people share their lives with dogs, we need to be knowledgeable about the effects dogs can have on our communities.
The dogs listed are not identified as a type rather than a breed. The dogs listed in the Act under section 1 are the pit-bull terrier, the Japanese tosa, the Dogo Argentrino and the Fila Braziliero. Other dogs can be added to the banned breed list. Owners of controlled dogs cannot breed them, sell them or trade them for another dog or give them away. The owner of the dog has to keep it on a lead and muzzled at all times and the person who is in control of the dog should be older than 16 years old. The muzzle has to be of a standard so the dog cannot bite a person. When a person owns a controlled dog they cannot let them wander the streets or vacate them, if they do so this is an offence and criminal sanctions would be put in place. This can be a fine, prison sentence and a ban on keeping animals.
One of the biggest issues with BSL is breed identification. A law that bans a “vicious” being is too broad and can encompass many individuals as it is a personality trait rather than a breed. These laws would then be dependent on what the legislators would define “vicious” to mean. Likewise, there is confusion on what breeds are dangerous. Dogsbite.org claims that breeds such as wolf-dog hybrids, dogo argentinos, presa breeds, cane corsos, and especially pit bulls are indeed dangerous animals and should be banned. However, there are discrepancies involved in even that statement. Of the listed breeds perhaps the most commonly targeted is the pit bull. But what exactly does anyone mean by pit bull? Merriam Webster defines “pit bull” as follows, “a dog (as an American Staffordshire Terrier) of any of several breeds or a real or apparent hybrid with one or more of these breeds that was developed for and is now often trained for fighting and is noted for strength and stamina”. On the contrary, the United Kennel Club has recognized the American Pit Bull Terrier, also called APBT, as a standalone breed since 1898 when UKC founder C.Z. Bennett registered her APBT Bennet’s Ring (Uk...
Pit bulls are targeted in this ineffective solution to dog attacks. Perhaps the reason why pit bulls are feared by society because we are afraid of what they are associated with. Pit bulls are often thought of as a gangster’s pet; a role in violent and illegal activities. People stereotype this breed because of the unfortunate acts of few. In contrast, society needs to understand that they are being racist towards a breed of dog. Denver’s systematic killing of pit bulls could be compared to the actions of the Nazis during the holocaust. Although BLS is not even close to being on the same scale as the Holocaust, it is targeting and killing a specific group of living beings. Breed Specific Legislation is genocide of this breed. Denver alone has killed at least 3,500 pit bulls. It’s heart wrenching to think about how many families lost their steadfast companions because of the ignorance of others. A common phrase among pit bull supporters is, “Judge the deed: not the breed”. This rings true; if we are to bring justice to the breed, then we need to abolish BSL. True pit bulls are a far from the monsters they are made to
Most of the dogs on this list are common household pets, like the Labrador retriever, and are normally non-aggressive and very friendly. Many times these dogs show no sign of aggression and pose no threat to society. Perspective One Breed-specific laws were put in place with the expectation to help prevent dog bites and attacks. The State and Federal government both came to the conclusion that this is a positive way to promote safety from dog attacks. “Both state and federal courts consistently uphold the constitutionality of breed-specific pit bull laws.... ...
An increasing number of pit bull attacks have occurred over past decade. People who are attacked by pit bulls always suffer serious injuries because of the pit bulls’ sharp teeth and strong muscles. In October 19, 2009, Dr Hugh Wirth who is the RSPCA’s Victorian president renewed calls for American pit bull terriers to be bred out of Australia. The current laws require owners of pit bulls to register their pit bull. While some people are satisfied with the laws because they think that they are safe, others disagree. From my own perspective, the laws should be improved. The government should ban these fierce dogs and wipe them out instead of just registering them. In my opinion, there are three reasons why I am in favour of Dr Wirth’s proposal.
Currently, pit bulls have been reported by the media with very horrific and disturbing news of having attacked a child or being shot by a police due to aggression while some are reported to have been abused or neglected by its owners (Forderer and Unkelbach 534). And because the reports keep coming with heated discussions, more and more people have forged a frightening image of pit bulls even to the extreme of refusing to take care of such breed. Pit bull advocates claim that the dogs get a bad reputation considering that people should learn the dogs are not inherently aggressive. What the pit bull advocates would like to point is that the owners of the pit bulls should be considered guilty for mishandling of their own dogs. There are owners of pit bulls that even encourage the dog to be aggressive in order to fight and protect them in a wrong manner and wrong degree of training (Forderer and Unkelbach 536). Pit bull advocates claimed that a well socialized and well trained pit bull would be very intelligent and could be one of the gentle dogs imaginable.
b. “Many people have a difficult time properly identifying a true Pit Bull, so added to the statistics are those dogs that have been misidentified. Considering these factors, the actual number of attacks attributable to American Pit Bull Terriers is considerably lower than represented,” according to the real pit bull. i. Do you think a 4 pound Pomeranian dog would hurt anybody? ii. Stated in the Dog Bite Law, “The most horrifying example of the lack of breed predictability is the October 2000 death of a 6-week-old baby, which was killed by her family 's Pomeranian dog.” a. The American Temperament Test is a test that measures a dog strong avoidance, unprovoked aggression, and panic without recovery. “American Pit Bull Terriers passed the test at a rate of 85.3%,” according to Pitbulls.org. They have the highest test scores, and they out beat the golden retriever “family dog” by 7.7%. iii. I identify the justice of my rival’s claim, but I disagree with my rival’s 100 percent about pit bulls having the highest attacks. c. Now you can see how my rival made a mistake because they didn’t evaluate and understood the facts as clearly as they
I feel the dog restrictions in Shullsburg are limiting the lifestyles for both specific dog breeds as well as their owners. When I say I have a pit bull does that frighten you? For most people it does, even though it shouldn’t. Did you know that pit bull isn’t just one breed of a dog? There are seven different dog breeds that are classified as pits. My puppy, a terrier, lab, retriever, and pit bull mix, is both loving and affectionate, but because she is part pit bull people already have a bad image plastered in their head without even meeting her. When uneducated people say bad things about pit bulls, it devastates me. My personal opinion toward this topic may be different than yours; however, I’m just asking you to have an open-mind and take
Many people will argue that the pit bull breed should be banned due to their vicious and unpredictable nature. There is a belief that they are inherently evil creatures and that they have a genetic predisposition to be destructive killing machines. In many states and cities this has brought about breed specific legislation. Breed specific legislation bans or regulates the ownership of specific breeds of dogs, which almost always includes pit bulls.
As we step out into the real world, finding a place we can call home can be confusing and difficult. One aspect many people don’t think of, often until it’s late in the home hunting process is pet restrictions; more specifically breed restrictions. If you are a dog lover, you will want to make sure that your dog is going to be allowed to be a welcome part of your home. However, if you have issues with dogs either for yourself or your family, you may want to make sure that you feel safe in your home and community.