Take a moment and picture a dog in your head. What do you see? You may see many different things depending on your own personal encounters with the species. There are many types of dogs out there. Some small, some large, long-haired or short-haired. There are many variances in what a dog can look like. One thing that does not change, or should not change, is the importance for every dog in this world to be given love and affection, no matter its characteristics. This is what leads me to believe that the obsession with producing and owning purebreds needs to come to a halt. Continuing to create these so-called “best dogs” is dangerous to not only the purebred’s health, but also devalues mixed breeds and can cost them their lives in animal shelters where they may never escape. My interest in this topic caused me to look into seeing what other people felt about it. I came across an article the other day on the Internet titled “The Importance of Purebred Dogs” by Babette Haggerty on her blog titled “Babette Haggerty on Dogs & Training.” In this article, Haggerty shares why she will always own a purebred dog. She begins her article with putting to shame PETA’s position on the matter by using heavy amounts of sarcasm. She then tells us a story of how she once adopted a mix-bred dog and how her father did not approve of this decision, seeing as he was an AKC judge and that she was always “raised with purebred dogs (Haggerty).” She then continues on to share how “buying purebred dogs and showing dogs at Westminster is a money maker (Haggerty)” and then goes into some detail on why dog shows are good for the economy without backing up her claims with any sources of evidence or statistics. Haggerty then goes on to explain how specific bre... ... middle of paper ... ...es to all of the other dogs in the world. In a country proud of our diversity and freedoms, we should be granting dogs the same lives. They deserve that diversity in what breeds they are mixed with and the freedom of a life outside of the bars in a shelter. Do your part and give a dog the life it deserves. Works Cited Armentano, Anthony. "10 Reasons Mutts & Mixed Breeds Rock." Global Animal. Global Animal, 9 Sept. 2013. Web. 09 Feb. 2014. Haggerty, Babette. "The Importance of Purebred Dogs." Babette Haggerty on Dogs & Training. Blog Spot, 7 Apr. 2009. Web. 09 Feb. 2014. Khuly, Patty, Dr. "This Veterinarian's Take on America's Purebred Lust Problem."Vetstreet. Vet Street, 19 June 2012. Web. 09 Feb. 2014. "Why Mixed Breeds Make Great Companion Animals." The Sacramento Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Sacramento SSPCA, n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2014.
She explains that breed-specific sterilization would help the Pit Bull population all over the country and it would also help reduce the euthanasia usage in all shelters. 63% of Pit Bulls are put down in shelters because of the lager number of population. Others argue against it because it hard to determine which dogs are actually Pit Bulls and it is also unfair to certain dogs. Charlotte again quotes Sara saying that when you discriminate against a certain breed, you are also discriminating against the well behaved
National Canine Research Council. Denver's Breed-Specific Legislation: Brutal, Costly, and Ineffective. National Canine Research Council. N.p., 2012. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.
Breeds: A Case Study Of Pit Bull Owners." Society & Animals: Journal Of Human-Animal Studies 8.1 (2000): 25-52.
[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.
Retrieved March 20, 2014, from http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/breed-specific-legislation/fact_sheets/breed-specific-legislation-flaws.html.
“Pit Bull Panic.” Journal of Popular Culture 36.2 (2002): 297. Academic Search Premier -. Web. The Web.
Sweeney, Michael S. Dog Tips from Dogtown: A Relationship Manual for You and Your Dog. Washington, D.C: National Geographic, 2010. Print.
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.
Hussain, S. G. (2006). Attacking the Dog-Bite Epidemic: Why Breed-Specific Legislation Won't Solve the Dangerous-Dog Dilema. Fordham Law Review, 74(5), 2847-2888.
Many people throughout the years have really under estimated the effect of dog fighting really has and how it is considered abuse on dogs and even dog breeds in general. How does a society know the true facts of the people and what really goes on behind the closed doors of dog fighting? It can cause abuse, drugs, gangs, and even death. What people are involved and how articles can really open a person’s view on what really goes on out there and what people are doing to fight back dog fighting. What one person or thousand can do to save dogs from being put in the ring.
Between the years of 1979 and 1998, there were several fatalities related to dog bites. The top 3 dogs related to these deaths are the Pit Bull, the Rottweiler, and the German shepherd. These numbers have increased over the years at an alarming rate. Why is it that these dogs are considered the most dangerous dog breeds? Some say it is the breed itself, born with a mean trait already wired into them. Animals, like people, are all born differently. Some people are born nice and others are born mean. Difference in personality is the same when it comes to animals. Every living thing has a unique personality. A lot of times, the personality of the dog has nothing to do with the breed of dog. One cannot determine what personality their child will have, therefore it would be pointless to determine what personality a pet would have (Pet-Owner Liability). Just because one Pit Bull is mean, that does not mean all Pit Bulls are mean. It is also important to take into consideration the size of the dog. It is easy to see that the top dangerous dogs are all large when it comes to size. Cesar Millan, also known as The Dog Whisp...
... at least spread the word and tell people to help prevent animal cruelty and to adopt. Anything people do can help safe an animals life even a call can change everything. We are their voice!
Specific Purpose: To bring attention to the issue of dog breed discrimination through Breed Selective Legislation (BSL) and inform the audience how they can change it.
“The health problems affecting pedigree dogs are so extreme that a fifth of vets believe certain breeds should be banned altogether.” (Copping and Jasper). One of many such breeds is the pug. It is bred, as most dogs are, for appearance not health. Its squashed-face causes many problems for the dog. These pedigree dogs are also extremely expensive and sought after creating even more issues when new commercial breeders become involved in a potentially explosive market. Pedigree breeding is unethical due to the inherent health problems associated with qualifications required for breed integrity, rules required for show-quality dogs, and over breeding that occurs due to breed popularity. Breed integrity
People have started to make remarks of the resemblance between dogs and their owners, and from what we have found, it is usually noticed at dog shows and from strangers passing by in the streets. There are two factors that could make the owner and the dog similar. One would be people selecting dogs that are like them, and people who select dogs which features start to change and become similar to them over time. As a comparison to animals and their dogs, there is evidence that couples look physically similar after 25 years rather than people who have recently been wed. In the research we have conducted, we have found that purebred dogs have a greater resemblance than people who own non purebred dogs.