It was a pretty slow news week -- so I expect the roundup to be pretty short this week (we'll see). However, I'm a bit behind on a few of the big stories from the week which I hope to get to early this week....so stay tuned for those. Anyway, on to the top stories from the week.
Cities and laws
Troy, MO is considering a ban on 'pit bulls' because several citizens have apparently reported pit bulls running at large. I just can't comprehend why a breed ban is a substitute idea for enforcing the city's leash law, especially given that even with the apparently pit bull sightings, there is no mention of anyone being bitten.
A judge has ruled that the Kansas Felony Animal Cruelty Law is written with wording that too closely to the state Misdemeanor law it replaced --- which means judges cannot impose a higher penalty than the highest misdemeanor penalty in a case where a man brutally attacked his ex-girlfriend's dog. Kansas was one of the last states to make animal cruelty a felony...enacting the law only 3 years ago.
This article is really interesting for a whole host of reasons. Albertville, AL has passed a new "dangerous animal" ordinance. As part of the ordinance, any animal "which is of a species due to size, vicious nautre or other characteristics would constitute a danger to human life". There are probably several hundred dog, pit bulls and other breeds, that fall under the new ordinance -- including, it seems, Labrador mixes which the city's animal control officer said has a "vicious streak". The other interesting part of this is when he talks about getting the word out to the Hispanic community. "They have the greatest number of pit bulls, which they are raising to fight." Whoa. Racial profiling anyone? Meanwhile, if all of them are raising them to fight, why not enforce the state dog-fighting law?
Dog bites and attacks
A black Labrador in Springboro (OH) is responsible for killing a smaller Yorkshire Terrier. Large dogs that are not well-socialized with small dogs (or cats) can sometimes bite, and due to the size differential, it doesn't take much to polish off a 5 lbs dog. I'm tired of the news media covering these stories every time a 'pit bull' is involved, and not realize that it is an unsocialized dog issue.
A "pit bull attacked" a one year old in Haverhill, MA. The dog apparently bit the child after "a young man sat on the dog" and the dog bit the child in the face while the "young man' sat on the dog. They even got a good "If the dog had locked on to her face and didn't let go she would have no side of her face" quote -- as if the dog really could "lock on" and as if the dog is soley to blame for what appears to be some incredible dog mismanagment.
A Firestone, CO man is being charged because his 100 lbs dog attacked and severely injured a woman. Apparently, the man's dog has been a problem on several othre occassions, but authorities have continued to return the dog to the man. While I hope the victim is ok (not much info is given on the victim), it is a somewhat humorous account of breed identification (it's easy, right?), as the dog was initially described as a "boxer mix", then a "bull mastiff", and finally, a "boxer/mastiff mix". I suppose all of them could, in theory, be true (or none of them could be true), but it's an interesting commontary on breed identification -- and that none of it matters because the guy was clearly a neglegent owner whose dog had a history of aggression and nothing was done about it.
Two people in Newark, NJ were bitten when two dogs, described as "bullmastiffs" escaped from the garage wher they were kept and entered the neighbor's back yard.
A nine year old rural North Carolina girl was attacked by three dogs while riding her bike in her drive way. The dogs were initially described as "a pair of pit bulls and a rottweiler" -- however, the types of dogs involved in the attack were later changed to be "a pit bull, a boxer and a lab-mutt mix". Three different types of dogs, one owner. What was the common denomenator? The owner. Always is. Apparently the dogs had been problems before but authorities had left the dogs with the owner. The girl is doing better and it sounds like she'll be ok.
The UK Dangerous Dogs Act -- yip, still failing
In Watford, UK, the mayor was hospitalized after being bitten while she was handing out leaflets for an upcoming election.
An Oxford man was bitten this week by a Rottweiler.
Warning, Warning, Red Alert!!!! Apparentlya chihuaha suffered some fairly minor bites when two French Mastiff's "attacked" the dog. French Mastiffs are 100+ lbs dogs, if they had "attacked" the 10 lbs Chihuahua, it would not be faring very well. I just think the media reporting on this super-sensationalistic - -even calling the dogs "pit fighting hunters NOT on the dangers dogs register." This could easily have gone in the next category....
Bad Media Reporting
Police on the southside of Chicago shot a German Shepherd that "attacked" the police officers. No injuries were reported. So why would the media not question why a dog was shot for "attacking", and yet there be no injuries. It doesn't make sense.
"Pit Bull attacks officer" is the headline of a story from Nampa, ID where police were called to a neighborhood for noise violations. When they arrived, they went up to the wrong house and went into the back yard. When they went into the back yard, the family's dogs ran up to the officers and the officer shot and killed one of the dogs. The family that owned the dog is facing a variety of charges even though the officer entered their property without cause.
Abuse Cases
A Baltimore police officer saved a 'pit bull' that was apparently doused with gasoline and lit on fire. The dog is miraculously expected to survive. YesBiscuit! has an interesting take on this story.
Five 'pit bull' adult dogs, and 8 puppies, were found abandoned in Bowling Green, KY. All were malnourished and left without food or water for several days.
Miscellanious
A nine-year old American Bulldog that just a week ago saved its owners life by waking him while his home was on fire was euthanized this week because the cancer the dog was fighting became too much. The owner had considered putting the dog down sooner, but couldn't bare the thought of it...and had he done it earlier, he likely would be dead now.
An article from Australia quotes a Spanish study that calls the Cocker Spaniel the dog most likely to act aggressively toward their owners and strangers. I'll say what I always say, all dogs are a product of their owners.
A columnist who had initially supported a breed ban in his city has a change of heart after talking to the animal control officers in the town.
A great story about a teenager and her dog. The dog, a Rottweiler, without any type of training, can tell when the girl is about to have a seizure and can alert others. I've read a lot of similar type stories - and somehow dogs just seem to have an ingrained sense of when something is wrong with their human master. It's just a nice reminder that dogs really are man's best friend, even though our species fails them in so many ways.
On top of the really egregious racism in that article about the Alabama ordinance, the law itself is completely absurd.
They're banning any animal "which is of a species, due to size, vicious nature or other characteristics would constitute a danger to human life, physical well-being or property"?
Do they know what a species is? And they're banning any species capable of doing property damage?
See, that almost makes me want to move there and demand that they enforce that somehow.
Posted by: Lisa | May 31, 2009 at 11:34 AM
That does seem to be clearly unconsitutionally broad.
Posted by: John | May 31, 2009 at 01:06 PM
Phoenix, the burned Pitbull in Baltimore, had to be euthanized today due to her injuries.
Posted by: YesBiscuit! | May 31, 2009 at 06:06 PM
Annoyed that the columnist who had the change of heart states that "pit bulls" have a "dominant" nature.
Glad he got some things straight, though, most importantly about the role of socialization.
Posted by: Julie | May 31, 2009 at 08:43 PM