KC DOG BLOG

Puerto Rico becomes the next to repeal ban on Pit Bulls

In 1998, Puerto Rico passed legislation that banned "pit bulls" and "Pit bull mixes" from the island. Earlier this week, they made a major step in repealing the 1998 ban when their legislature passed a bill to repeal this ban. (this article was run through Google Translate, so it's a little rough to read).  The bill now just waits final signature from Governor Luis Fortuno.

The removal of the ban was strongly supported by the College of Veterninarians in Puerto Rico as well as the Pit Bull Association of Puerto Rico.

It is estimated 50,00 'pit bulls' currently live in Puerto Rico -- and because of the ban, more than 3,000 were killed in the past 2 years alone.

As people learn more and more about 'pit bulls' and the ineffectiveness of the laws that target them, more and more places are deciding to repeal their bans in favor of more effective (and rational) dangerous dog legislation that targets the dog based on its behavior, not "breed".

Here's a second article, with the same, yet somewhat contradictory numbers (including some different population numbers, which should have translated well). 

Congrats to the people and veterinarians in Puerto Rico.

Hat Tip to Jodi at Bless the Bullies on this, which is where I saw the news first.

Oak Harbor, WA Repeals Breed Specific Oridinance

In a 6-0 unanimous vote, the city of Oak Harbor, WA voted to repeal their breed-specific ordinance. The city's ordinance, originally passed in 2006, required all 'pit bulls' to be held in a secure pen, be muzzled while on leash, and other restrictions. The vote held last week repeals all breed specific language and is now focused on targeting dogs based on their behavior, not breed.  Commissioners hope that the change will decrease the number of these types of dogs that are killed at the shelter.

In August, when the issue first came up for a repeal, the difficulty of enforcement became a major topic of the conversation:

"From an animal control officer's point of view, this is a really difficult issue" said Police Chief Rick Wallace.

The Burden would be on the city to prove any delinquent dog's breed, and that may mean Oak Harbor would have to foot the bill for a doggie DNA test.

From an enforcement point of view, it's almost impossible, Wallace said.

"I don't want this to turn into an emotional thing " City Administrator Paul Schmidt said "We're looking at it strictly as a fact-based issue."

And the fact is, breed determination can be tricky and costly business.

"Our own insurance doesn't recommend BSL," said Schmidt. "We support the behavior based approach."

When you take emotion out of the equation, and base your decision solely based on facts, breed neutral legislation -- that targets aggressive dogs based on behavior, not the way they look - becomes the only logical conclusion. More and more cities like Oak Harbor are realizing this, and bypassing BSL for more effective and enforcable laws, and repealing the ordinances that are already in place.  Meanwhile, some who hold onto archaic ideals are being forced out of their positions.

Nice work by the fact-focused administrators in Oak Harbor.

Hat Tip: Stop BSL.

BSL - An International Failure

Earlier this week, the German state of Schleswig-Holstein (one of 16 German States) repealed its ban on "Pit Bulls". According to the article (which is in German - this is the translation of the first two lines of the third paragraph that was sent to me from someone who lives there):

'CDU and FDP want to protect citizens against irresponsible dog holders. The race list (i.e breed ban) has turned out as not suitable for this and, hence, is abolished in the dangerous dogs law.'

It's been interesting trying to read about the "rasseliste" in Germany, and about how many of the same problems that exist with it in the US are the same in Germany - -including the cost of the impounding and keeping the animals, and problems with accurate breed identification to determine which dogs are included in the breed ban, and which ones are not.

(Sorry for the rough translations -- I used Google Translate for the artiles and they come by very rough -- the original links are here and here if you are fluent in German or know of a better translator).

While our friends in Western Europe followed us into the world of breed bans, it appears they are being quicker than us to jump off the bandwagon in search of more effective solutions to their dog bite problems. Schleswig-Holstein now joins other areas of Western Europe like Italy and The Netherlands to have repealed their breed bans just in the past 2 years.

BSL is not just a failure in the US -- it is truly an internationally failed policy.  Time to learn from our mistakes, and move on.

News article on the Greenwood, MO Repeal

I noted this a few weeks ago, but recently, Greenwood, MO repealed their long-standing ban on 'pit bull' type dogs.  I'm bringing it up again because the Green Summit Dispatch, the monthly community newspaper that covers Greenwood, just released their story about the repeal. I'm going to post most of it here - -if only because it's such a refreshing read.  All of the emphasis is mine:

"In a long anticipated move, the Greenwood Board of Aldermen struck down a mistake commonly made in many municipalities when they unanimously voted to drop the Breed Specific Legislation language in Greenwood’s dangerous dog ordinance. Politicians in Greenwood have long been on the record that they do not believe specific breeds are necessarily dangerous dogs. In fact, it was the source of a citizen submitted question in the 2008 Candidate Forum where candidates unanimously responded that they were against any laws which targeted specific breeds. The revised ordinance is now Dog Specific rather than Breed Specific.

The resolution of this issue was a pleasure to observe. The system worked from start to finish. It may have taken nearly a year, but the Board of Aldermen responded appropriately to what has been a common misconception about the American Pit-bull Terrier perpetuated by our mainstream media. Greenwood is now one of the leading small communities in the area with regard to dog legislation."

You can read the rest here.  With earlier stories on the topic here and here (and yes I was involved in the "Lengthy and boring" presentation noted in the latter article --gee, thanks guys.)

Greenwood, MO Repeals BSL

Last week, the Greenwood, MOcity council voted unanimously to repeal their ban on ‘pit bulls’.

Greenwood, is a small community that was once a small town, but now has become more or less an outer ring suburb of the Kansas City metro.

Greenwood passed a ban on ‘pit bulls’ 20 years ago when many cities passed breed bans due to the scare created by the Time and Sports Illustrated articles on the ‘pit bulls’,  The ban was so old gin fact, that several of the city council members didn’t even know they had a ban until we brought it to their attention.

The repeal represents an excellent case study in how to get a ban repealed.  Several local residents got involved in following the political candidates in the most recent elections – asking questions about the ban at forums. They rallied others to vote and got dog-friendly candidates in office. Soon after, several members of KCDA were invited to give a presentation to the council where we talked about why they should repeal the breed ban.

A few months later, they had crafted a breed neutral ordinance which passed with a unanimous vote.

 

We are thrilled about the repeal. Greenwood has now joined Edwardsville, KS as Kansas City

area communities that have repealed their long-standing breed bans. Rational thinking based on fairness, what actually works, and based on sound thinking is winning. Meanwhile, it also demonstrates that no matter where you are, it is important that you get involved in your local politics. Not only is it an option for you, it is your responsibility  -- it's what makes our system work.

More on that later this week.

Italy repeals ban on specific breeds

A new law in Italy is about to replace the country's long-standing ban on particular breeds of dogs. Several years ago, Italy narrowed its law from what used to be 92 banned breeds to only 17. Now, beginning in April, no breeds will banned in the country.

"This is a historic day because we have established for the first time the responsibility of the owner or person who is momentarily in charge of the animal," said Health Undersecretary Francesca Martini. "The measures adopted in the previous laws had no scientific foundation. Dangerous breeds do not exist.  With this law we have overcome the black list, which was just a fig leaf over the larger problem." (Emphasis mine)

Italy nowjoins the Netherlands as European countries that have repealed their breed bans in favor of laws that target irresponsible owner behavior.

The new law isn't perfect -- and Katie has some good points on some of the wording of the ordinance that may cause some issues. But this is certainly a step in the right direction.

Hat Tip: Save a Pit Bull, Save the World.

Westland, MI Repeals BSL

Last week,members of the Westland, MI city council approved a new ordinance that eliminated breed specific language that mandated that all "pit bulls" were considered vicious or dangerous.

The law will now only apply to dogs that have bitten or attacked another person.

"While some communities are becoming more restrictive regarding pit bulls and some other dog breeds, we're going the opposite way," said Police Chief James Ridener.

What is great here is that Ridener noted that most dog owners, and owners of pit bulls, were responsible owners.

"Our problems come from irresponsible owners. When we have a number of attacks and bites reported, that indicates there is a problem with some owners and that these dogs can create problems."

Yes, the problem is with the irresponsible owners. Even with a breed ban, they existed in Westland. The cities that have successfully dealt with the dog bite issue are cities that have recognized that most dog owners of all breeds really are responsible. But that animal control/police resources are best spent dealing with the small minority of people who aren't.