KC DOG BLOG

Looking back

It's been a rough week and I'm heading out for a long weekend.  No phone.  No internet.  It'll be grand.  Before I go, I wanted to leave this for folks before I head out for a couple days.

Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of hurricane Katrina's devastating ripping through New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  Shortly after, four of the current KCDA members headed down to Gonzalez, LA to help with the rescued animals after the catastrophe.  The attached link takes you to the trip diary that we put together on our return.  There is a lot of emotion in this collaboration of work - and reading it again, for the first time in nearly a year, reminds me of why I continue to fight for these bullies. 

We were there for five days, with dogs that had been through everything -- abandonment, starvation, kennel environments, a SECOND hurricane (Rita, which blew through on our trip) and were still the sweetest dogs I've ever been around.  Truly amazing.

I hope you enjoy the read.  Thanks to Michelle for her writing and Melissa for bringing the page to life with the photo links.  And Abby, thanks for going with us, it was a once in a lifetime experience.

Hope you enjoy...And have a great weekend.

http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/katrina.php

Victimless "Attacks"

KMBC has reached a new low.  Here's a new story that was released this afternoon.  It's pretty amazing to me that they would even report a "attack", without any proof of anything -- like maybe an actual victim.

In Kansas City last year, there were over 300 dog bites reported to animal control.  Some I'm sure were minor, some were severe.  But the basics are that someone gets bitten almost every day by a dog in Kansas City, MO (never mind the entire metro area).  But now KMBC has dedicated a story to an "attack" in a situation where we have no confirmed victim.  So we don't know if it was an "attack", a "bite" or a dog that ran up to be petted, or an invisible man that was made up by spiteful neighbors.  But by gosh we have pictures of a pit bull -- stick it on the news! 

On another note, when did "wire" become some form of tethering device for a dog...this type of "tethering" (or any type really) is what KCMO should be focusing on.  I ask to much.

http://www.thekansascitychannel.com/news/9764080/detail.html

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Animal Control seized a female pit bull terrier Wednesday afternoon after witnesses said a man was attacked by the dog.

Authorities were called to 29th Terrace and Tracy Avenue just after 1 p.m.

Witnesses told police a man was working on the cable at the house and the dog broke loose from wire that had been restraining it and attacked the man.

When officers arrived, the man was gone. Witnesses told police he got back into his car and drove off.

Officers told KMBC that the dog was licensed, but it was not clear whether it had a current rabies vaccination.

Animal Cruelty Law takes affect

Last year the state of Kansas entered the 20th Century (and I know, we're in the 21st Century now) by finally passing an animal cruelty law that allows for animal cruelty to be a felony offense.  We have our first felon under the new law:

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/15398474.htm

It's about time that as a society we have determined that animals should be treated as living, feeling creatures, and that people who wil inflict harm on them, or put them in a plastic bag and try to break an an animal's neck, should be outcast members of society.

Score one for a law that is actually meaningful.

Second Fatal Dog Attack in S. Florida

For the 2nd time in three weeks there has been a fatality in South Florida. 

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/15389275.htm

There are many interesting things about these attacks.  First off, this is yet another example that Breed Specific legislation doesn't work as this most recent attack happened in Dade County, FL where they have a breed ban.  That makes at least the 2nd fatality this year that has occurred in an area with Breed Specific legislation that was supposed to make people "safer". 

The other interesting point is that neither of these attacks were by pit bull type dogs (in spite of the reporters claim that a Presa Canerio is similar to a pit bull -- by similar does he mean twice the size?  Bred to be a guard dog?  Or originated from a different continent as any pit bull type dog?   But I guess it has a blocky head, and it bit someone, so it must be similar. 

It'll be interesting what backlash will come from this in S. Florida -- as Boxers are on no one's radar screen right now as being dangerous, it'll just be curious what knee jerk reaction will occur because of two fatalities so close to each other (in both geography and timing) when the typical reaction of banning pit bulls doesn't really apply here (and for at least 1/2 the area has already happened).

Police: Dog fatally mauls Dade resident

BY BREANNE GILPATRICK

[email protected]

For the second time in two weeks, a dog has fatally mauled a South Florida resident.

Pablo Fleites, 56, was found dead Monday night inside a dog pen occupied by two boxers, said Det. Alvaro Zabaleta of Miami-Dade Police.

Police believe Fleites, who lived in a shed on the property, was killed after entering the pen between 6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Monday. The pen sits on a property at 20280 SW 190th St.

Fleites likely was attacked by a 5-year-old male boxer, who was found covered with Fleites' blood, police said. The other boxer in the pen was a 6-month-old female puppy.

Animal control was expected to confiscate the male boxer, Zabaleta said.

Police said they do not know why Fleites entered the pen. Fleites was last seen alive at 6 p.m. and was found dead by the property's owner at 9:30 p.m.

It was the second fatal dog mauling in South Florida in about two weeks. Broward County resident Shawna Willey, 30, was killed in Coral Springs on Aug. 18, while bathing her 120-pound Presa Canario, a breed similar to a pit bull.

Do people listen to themselves?

Here is the first story out about Independence: Pit Bull Ban Passes In Independence

INDEPENDENCE, MO. - Almost four months after pit bulls attacked three people in Independence, the city has now passed an ordinance banning the dogs. It was a five to one vote, Councilwoman Young was the only one voting against the ban. This ban keeps any pit bulls from coming into the city. The folks supporting the ban called it a victory, but pit bull supporters said they are not giving up. Moments after the vote, Alan Hill's family passed a cell phone around to tell him the good news. Hill, who FOX 4 spoke to a couple of weeks ago in the hospital, is still recovering from the vicious pit bull attack that nearly took his life. His wife Connie said this fight was for him. "It's very emotional," she said, "we're glad it's over." But the pit bull supporters said it's not over. "What they're doing is illegal," Patti Harris said. Those against breed specific laws say they plan to file a lawsuit against the city to fight the ban. Harris said she's gathering signatures on petitions to reverse the ban. She said she's going through chemo for breast cancer and can't afford the new pit bull requirements: the $150 fee, the extra insurance and the mandatory fencing. "I want someone to tell my 8-year-old daughter, her dog has to go," she said. When Kate Quiley rescued her dog Summit, he was abused and sick, now he's a loving and kind pet. She said passing a breed specific law is wrong. "Look at all the support out here," she said. "It's just awesome." But Hill's family said it's hard to forget what a pit bull did to Hill. "I don't appreciate it, after all my husband's been through," Connie said. "They're out there with their dogs, but you know, this is America, they have the right to be there." Connie said she'll work to get pit bulls banned in her town, Lee's Summit, and she'd even like to see a ban go statewide, which she said is legal. However, bans in some other states have been overturned by state Supreme Courts. _________________________________________________ I want to thank Connie Hill for her comic relief bits in this piece.  FIrst off, I like how sure she is that pit bull bans are legal -- given that she is not a lawyer and clearly has no legal background.  I also love that the reporter noted that some state Supreme Courts have overturned bans (including Ohio, which is the mounting precedent for Missouri's current ruling). I also love the bolded quote where she says "this is America, they have the right to be there" when she herself has a name on a petition that would ban pit bulls in Independence and thus NOT give those people the right to be there.  Apparently she DOES believe we have rights to own dogs.  Can this quote be used by the people who pose the lawsuite?

A mess of bilbical porportions

So Independence passed a ban on pit bull type dogs tonight.  After the vote passed, Councilman Swoffer tried to make everyone feel better about it saying that this type of move was not unprecedented.

He then read a passage from a book.  We were led to believe that the book was the Bible (although I confess that I cannot find the verse anywhere) -- but the gist of the passage was that there were almost no dogs in Jeruselum 2000 years ago, because Jeruselum outlawed dogs that bite.

Where to begin on this one?

For one, Independence had already passed a law on "dogs that bite" with their dangerous dog ordinance. 

But bigger still is how somehow in this country we have a group of people who will take a passage from the Bible to try to make me feel good about their racism and biggotry.  If you read the Bible closely, you'll see all kinds of references to owning slaves -- and yet, wisely our country has decided to not allow slaves any more (took us awhile, but we eventually got there).  Nice try Mr. Swoffer, but I'll have none of that.  I'm pretty sure the Bible does not favor punishing innocent people.

Lucy Young, the lone counil member who voted against the ban, deserves better than this bunch of loony tunes on the council.

Sloppy reporting...

Here's a story by ABC News about a 10 year old boy who was attacked in Aurora, CO.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=1285789

Nov. 6, 2005— A 10-year-old boy narrowly survived a vicious pit-bull attack and is recovering at the hospital this morning.

Greg Jones, of Aurora, Colo. was attacked by three dogs on Wednesday.

Jones' 16-year-old neighbor, Jerome Millard, called the police. Jones can be heard screaming in the background.

"There's three dogs attacking this little kid," Millard told the 911 operator. "There's three pit bulls, three big dogs, attacking him. Hurry, hurry, hurry."

Several neighbors tried to beat the dogs off with sticks.  So even after screaming for help, the neighbors are beating off the dogs, but the parents/guardians are nowhere to be found?

One of the pit bulls was licensed to Danielle Carson, Jones' older sister. Animal care officers believe the other two dogs also were staying at the victim's house at the time of the attack. So we have the kid's sister's dog, some other random dogs, in the house, with the kid off wondering around on his own, and the parents/sister nowhere to be found even when the neighbors screamed for help.

One of the dogs that attacked Jones was shot by police and later euthanized, and the other two have been quarantined.

Not Uncommon????

In all, 12 people were killed by dogs last year. Sixty percent of the 4.7 million people attacked by dogs are children. !!!  12 people died from dogs last year?  I'd say that's pretty damn uncommon given that 47 were struck by lightning and killed.  As far as I can tell, getting struck by lightning is pretty uncommon, and this is 1/4 as likely...

For instance, six people in Chicago are recovering from pit bull attacks, and a 2-year-old girl was killed by two dogs why no breed mentioned? in May. A 12-year-old boy was killed a month later in San Francisco by what?.

Denver and five other Colorado cities had already banned the dogs before Jones was attacked, and Aurora quickly followed suit. Oooh ooh.  We ALMOST noticed the story here.  So Aurora has a pit bull ban (they do) and a kid still got killed by three of them?  Maybe we should note here that breed bans don't work?

But author and dog trainer Brian Kilcommons said that the problem is not that pit bulls, or any other dog, are naturally violent.

"It is not the breed, it is the deed," he said. "We are looking at the wrong end of the leash."

Kilcommons said most animal control departments are under funded, leash laws are often not enforced and many people do not spay, neuter or identify their dog with either tags or micro chips. These factors often play a role when a dog attacks, he said.

"[Pit bulls] were bred for dog fighting," said Kilcommons, director of training for New York City's Animal Care and Control. "They were also bred not to be aggressive with human beings."

Dogs attack when they are not socialized and remain chained up, with little to human beings, he said.

Kilcommons called for national standard for behavior that would hold all dog owners accountable. Most of the millions of dogs in America are happy, loving pets. If not, the fault usually lies with the owner, he said.

He added that insurance companies should give out better rates to owners who train their dogs, considering the companies pay so much in dog-bite settlements.

Kilcommons said if someone sees a dog running loose or out of control, they should contact animal control officials and go on record making a complaint.

"At the end of the day," Kilcommons said, "It's not the dogs."  At least we ended on a good note.  Nice quotes form Kilcommons.

Priorities

This cartoon ran in this morning's Kansas City Star.  Subtle.  But the point is great.

For three months now, the Kansas City Star and nearly every city council in the area has been obsessed with the pit bull "crisis".  The reality is, that there isn't, nor has there ever been, a crisis.

I don't mean to diminish the negative impact on the families that have been involved in the two major attacks in the KC area this year.  It is terrible.   But the reality is that in the grand scope of things, dog attacks are far from the biggest issues facing our cities.

According to the National Safety Council, there are a lot of bigger concerns than dogs (let alone pit bulls) when it comes to public safety.  In 2003 (the latest year available on their website), 32  people in the nation died of dog attacks.  To put this in perspective, 26 people died of being in contact with hot tap water and 47 due to being struck by lightning -- so the odds aren't too good that we die of a pit bull attak.

Also of note,  332 people died in their own bathtubs -- and yet we continute to bath our children and 515 in public swimming pools -- and yet parents continue to drop their kids off unsupervised each day.

Ninety six people died due to exposure to power lines, 1588 from falling down stairs, 838 from falling off furniture such as beds or sofas and yet we continue to build two story homes, sit on furniture and pay for electricity.  48,071 people died for automobile accidents and yet city councils continue to focus on pit bulls, vs working on improving traffic safety or improving mass transit options which that are much safer than automobiles.

In Kansas City alone last year, 137 people were murdered...and yet no extra money was given to our police force or social programs.

Our priorities our out of whack here. Instead of focusing on things that are of real importance, our government and our media are focusing on things that are microscoping in importance.  Janise Bradley made a great comment at a conference I was at last week saying that even if we WANTED to create a dog fatality we'd likely be unable to because the situations that lead to one are so unique and a huge composite of horrible situations.

As a society we should insist that our leaders focus on the important stuff.   Statistically our "pit bull crisis" is significantly insignificant.

Responsible Pet ownership

Here is a great letter by the head of animal control of Kansas City Kansas on what makes a successful Animal Control.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascitystar/news/opinion/15364102.htm

Wisely, he focuses on spay/neuter programs, anti abuse and following leash laws (he could have really been on fire if he'd included anti-tethering). 

What is interesting is that KCK has a pit bull ban.  If all of the other laws were enforced, and they cracked down on problem dog owners, there would be no need or reason for a breed ban. 

It's just amazing to me that while some people are close to "getting it" many are still so far away.

What's the Point?

Not sure what the point of this one is.  This article ran 9 days after the actual vote took place in Lee's Summit -- and no one quite knows when an actual proposal will be brought forward.  My commentary is highlighted below...

LEE’S SUMMIT | Council divided

DOG REMEDY PROVES HARD TO COLLAR

Messerli’s vote pushes the issue to the next stage, but it’s anyone’s guess what the city’s policy on dangerous animals will look like when it’s in place.

By RUSS PULLEY

The Kansas City Star

So far, Lee’s Summit’s bark is worse than its bite, at least concerning pit bulls.

Wow, this is a leading opening line.

After months of debate and emotion-packed-but-orderly hearings, last week the City Council made a stutter-step toward new rules.

Mayor Karen Messerli broke a 4-4 tie on a motion, declaring the city’s intent to work on breed-specific legislation.

The vote leaves a gate so wide open that it’s nearly meaningless.

Lee’s Summit could specifically ban pit bulls, or boxers, Rottweilers, akitas, or even Labrador retrievers. It could ban one breed, or three, or 20. It could skip a ban, but require special fencing for some breeds and order them to be muzzled in public. Or it could require pit bulls to spayed or neutered, like Kansas City.

The council is thinking about stiffer fines and penalties for owners of dogs that attack.

Messerli said this week she plans to appoint a council subcommittee of those in favor and against a ban to bring back a recommendation. “There are a lot of good ideas that need to be explored,” she said.

At the meeting Messerli said the risk of dog attacks is too great and could support a ban. These are the types of comments that drive me crazy.  Based on what Mayor Messerli?  That Labs are the top biting dog in Lee's Summit?  That I'm still 3x as likely as die of being struck by lightening as I am to be attacked by a dog and die. 

“I don’t want to live next door to a pit bull, or have my grandchildren exposed to a pit bull,” Messerli said.

Councilman Ed Cockrell, who made the motion, said he only hoped to set a direction because he realized the council wouldn’t reach any consensus that night.

Many kennel clubs and veterinary associations oppose so-called breed-specific legislation, instead favoring laws written to control dangerous dogs without reference to lineage.

The city’s Public Safety Advisory Board is unanimously recommending a stronger dangerous-dog ordinance, but not breed-specific legislation.

Councilman Jim Hallam suggested having the city require the spaying or neutering of dogs weighing more than 30 pounds.

That would cover dogs most able to seriously injure.

He noted that castrated dogs are less aggressive, while intact males are responsible for the majority of serious attacks.

Under such a plan, a cheap or free dog license could be issued for an altered dog, but a $100 breeder’s license could be required for animals able to produce offspring.

Such a rule that would affect so many dog owners it might be impractical because of politics or difficulty of enforcement, Hallam said.

Councilwoman Kathy Hofmann argued against banning a specific breed and then voted to go with breed-specific rules.

She said there is a need to prevent dog attacks and wants to the council to find “common ground.”

Hofmann said she sees merit in adding rules based on weight limits, but she doesn’t want to take pit bulls away from responsible owners. She said a ban might not prevent problems, just drive dogs into hiding. Yeah Hoffman for getting it.  Legislation that takes dogs away from good owners but runs others into hiding (and thus ensures that they won't be vaccinated) is a horrible idea.

In remarks before the vote, opponents and proponents voiced oft-repeated arguments.

Bud Hertzog, a longtime community leader and Lee’s Summit veterinarian who’s practiced 50 years, said he opposes the breed-specific approach.

He said it is impossible to genetically determine whether a dog is a so-called pit bull, while there are about 13 breeds that can fall into that general category. He said the pit bulls aren’t a problem in Lee’s Summit because most residents are responsible owners.

“We have many, many of them come into our clinic that are wonderful pets,” Hertzog said.

The wife of Alan Hill, a Lee’s Summit resident who was near death after being critically injured by three pit bulls in Independence this year, said at the meeting that her husband is undergoing a difficult recovery. He is relearning simple skills such as combing his hair and brushing his teeth.

She said cities in the area are banning the dogs and asked Lee’s Summit to do the same. So far, only OP and Louisburg have banned them -- and OP had some of the most stringent Pit Bull Ownership laws already -- so really one new city, Louisburg, has enacted BSL...

“We don’t want to be the dumping ground for all the pit bulls, do we?” Connie Hill said.

Councilman Nick Swearngin said breed-specific plans were failing across the nation and in other countries, citing Kansas City, Kan., where a woman was killed by a pit bull, despite its ban.

Swearngin said that in a recent Lee’s Summit incident the owner had two dogs, a pit bull and a boxer. It was the boxer that attacked and injured a man. A pit bull ban would give a false sense of security, he said.

Councilman Joe Spallo said common sense supports a ban of pit bulls.

“The trend in the area is not of bites, but attacks,” Spallo said. “They attack until they are done.” Are two attacks a trend?

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