Some Thoughts about Omaha and Clarification about Council Bluffs

I'm late getting on this story because I was out of town most of last week.  However, I wanted to double back because I think there is a lot of mis-informtion out there from the Omaha media that I want to tighten up.

Last week, a 15 month old girl was attacked by a dog that is described as a 'pit bull' when her mom was walking down the street with her and her brother in tow in a wagon.  The dog was out being walked by its owner and got free and attacked the family...with the young girl receiving the brunt of the attack. 

Like all pit bull attacks it seems, the question then almost instantly goes to "should we ban them". This is never the response when a Lab, Golden Retriever or German Shepherd bites...only pit bulls.  And so the media is there to stir the controversy.  What is disturbing is the 1/2 truths they are using to stir the pot.

So most of the media outlets are using Council Bluffs (which is right across the river from Omaha) as their case study of whether or not a ban would be an effective way to go.  According to this source, and this one the ban in Council Bluffs is working well. The stories both point to the decrease in bites by 'pit bulls' as proof that the ordinance is working.  Which is only part of the story.  And I want people to know the ENTIRE story, because I've never feared people getting their information from multiple sources because if people get the entire, accurate picture of what is going on out there, they'll side that this type of legislation will not work. 

So let's look at Council Bluff's bite numbers to see what's going on there. These numbers were emailed to me by the animal control director there, so they'll be consistent with anything else that he would send out.

2003 (no ban in place):

Total Dog Bites: 85

Bites by Pit Bulls: 15

Bites by ALL other breeds: 70

Lab Bites: 4

Boxer Bites: 1

German Shepherd Bites: 5

2004 was a really bad year in Council Bluffs, and what ended up creating their breed Ban:

2004:

Total Dog Bites: 131 (54% increase)

Pit Bull Bites: 29 (93% increase)

All other Dog Bites: 102 (46% increase)

Labs: 14 (250% increase)

Boxers: 1 (flat)

German Shepherds: 12 (140% increase)

So in 2005, they passed BSL, marking the first year of their pit bull ban:

2005:

Total Dog Bites: 115

Pit Bull Bites: 12

All other dog bites: 103

Lab Bites: 20

Boxer Bites: 1

German Shepherd Bites: 11

So overall, they decrease pit bull bites, but all others remained at their record high levels. 

2006:

Total Dog Bites: 132

Pit Bull Bites: 6

All other Dog Bites: 126 (ouch! -- that's a 24% increase)

Lab Bites: 23

Boxers: 12

German Shepherds: 12

Then, 2007:

Total Dog Bites: 98 (finally a decrease, still not to 2003 pre-ban levels, but we're not at record highs either)P

Pit Bull Bites: 2

All other breeds: 96

Labs: 14

Boxers: 5

German Shepherds: 13

Analysis:

It is highly annoying that the entire Omaha media market is insisting on feeding the public only a portion of the information that is available on the Council Bluffs pit bull ban as Council Bluffs is Omaha's closest neighbor.  It makes you wonder (or not) what their agenda might be. Of COURSE their pit bull bites went down. They've killed hundreds, if not thousands of those types of dogs, and hundreds more owners have fled the city. The question shouldn't be "did pit bull bites go down", but "did public safety improve?"

 Council Bluffs instituted their ban after a really bad 2004 -- a year which was an outlier from previous years.  For two straight years while enforcing the ban, they saw their bite numbers stay near, or exceed, their really bad 2004.  2007 has seen a minor correction downward, but still well above their "normal" levels of 2003 and before. The city has stated that they have not had another breed take the place of the biting pit bulls...but what they have seen is an overall increase in several different breeds of dogs that have increased bite rates. 

Omaha had a very scary attack. They plan to look into policies to improve public safety.  There are many case studies out there...like Calgary for instance, that highlight effective policies to improve overall public saftey.  But they should look at it as a public safety issue, instead of a pit bull issue...because what good is getting rid of pit bull bites if you don't have a net increase in public safety?  More to come on this I'm sure.

Update:  Looks like the mayor has formed a committee including members of the police force, the local humane society, a member of the mayor's office and city council members.

Comments

[TEH]

What would be also worth knowing, how many of the bites are listed as "unknown" and were they included in the total. Be certain they are counting and including all the same information each year. Plus what is the distribution of severity of the bites. Another point where the media keeps insisting that ONLY pitbulls cause severe bites.

[Brent]

The unknowns are included in the total numbers. They never had more than 5 that were attributed to unknown, and most years were around 2. So I didn't make a big deal of that.

They don't list severity of their bite numbers...but I included several other fairly large breeds to show that the bites aren't moving from pit bulls to chihuahuas...and when you're considering that most victims are usually kids, it's not like the difference between attacks by large dogs is that great. Yeah, the idea that only pit bulls are capable of serious bites is a huge diservice to the public by not making them aware that all dogs can bite and be dangerous. Most aren't. But all can be.

[KC KS Kills Dogs]

The media of course is conducting a poll - should we have a ban vs no ban. Right now the yes vote is 73% and the no vote is 27%. Click on the top link of Brent's blog and VOTE!!

It's really frustrating the media is already making the decision for the public!!

[Rob marek]

THANK YOU. You said it better then I could have ever put the words on paper and make sense. I am a proud owner of a 18 month Old Pit-Mastiff mix, and have been since day one defending my dogs honor. Not once has my dog ever been aggressive towards anything more then a rope toy, and further not one person could ever identify her as a Pit Bull. There should be stricter laws in place on those owners who harbor dangerous animals not laws banning animals because of their breed.

Keep up the good Post's

Rob

[Yarko]

Sorry.... I disagree with you all the way! Last Night I and my dog were attacked by a pitbull. My dog did nothing to provoke the attack. The pitbull was not on a leash, my dog was. I was bitten in a effort to seperate the pitbull from my dog. The pitbull would not quit!!! My dog listend to my orders, but the pitbull owner could not control his dog. Just like a lab loves water, pitbulls breeds like to attack. Sorry but with such a violent type of dog Pitbull owners are sitting on a timebomb. I don't know how many times I've heard the pitbull owner say after an attack "he's never done that before". Home many children and pets have to be hurt or killed before people realize how vicious and dangerous these breeds are. I love dogs. My dog is very gentle and a month earlier played with a pitbull pup. People PLEASE, Pitbulls do not belong in homes or in a residential neighborhood. They are unpredictable. It is the same reason we don't keep badgers for pets. They are dangerous. I hope no one including pitbull owners ever get attacked by this dangerous breed. I have to take my dog to vet here in a couple of hours, and I myself am going to the doctor for an infected bite. People including the owners were crying and screaming from watching the violent attack. Does the chance of injury or possible death make it worth owning a pitbull. As a person who has been attacked, you'll never convince me that its the owners fault or that these dogs are usually gentle. When these dogs go bad, they are made for damaging & killing.

[Brent]

Yarko,

Sorry that this happened to you...but there is very little to "disagree" with in this post. The numbers that I posted were factual data based on what is happening in Council Bluffs. You can't disagree with factual information. It is also very hard to disagree with the reality that their bite numbers in Council Bluffs have not gone down vs before the ban, meaning a net result in no increased public safety.

While dog attacks overall are rare, they can be very scary if you are involved in one. But please don't buy into the hype surrounding these types of dogs without doing some real research on them. The vast majority of these types of dogs are never a problem. In fact, about 99.9% of them will never be involved in any type of attack. However, you never hear about the non-attacking ones in the newspaper. The vast majority function perfectly in homes and residential neighborhoods. As for your comment that the dogs were made for damaging and killing, over the past 25 years, there has been an average of 4 fatal dog attacks by pit bulls each year. Last year was a crazy year for fatalities in general, with 13 confirmed to have been by pit bulls. With a pit bull population in this country of around 5-6 million, that would mean that .0002% of pit bulls were responsible for a fatality. Certainly if they were the killing machines you describe that number would be much higher.

What I propose is not choosing 'pit bulls' over public safety. What I propose is to increase public safety. In order to do this, you have to focus on irresponsible dog owners and aggressive dogs -- REGARDLESS OF BREED. Inherantly, 'pit bull' bans use up a ton of animal control resources dealing with breed identification issues, and dealing with dogs that are not a problem. This tying up of animal control resources takes the resources AWAY from dealing with dangerous dogs of other breeds. So in every single case I've ever seen, dog bites have gone up after breed bans have been passed.

[Yarko]

Brent, I appreciate your sympathy, and yes I am a little emotionally charged after the attack. My point is because of the way a pitbull is made, when they go bad they are very dangerous and very destructive. I don't really think there is a dog out there that can take on a pitbull, let alone a child or an adult. This seems to be one of the main attractions of Pitbull owners (their power). There are many other dog breeds out there that don't pose as much of a potential threat. By the way I am located in Omaha, NE. No, my attack did not get reported. It was a neighbors dog. I didn't want them to get cited and fined. Your right, because of the media hype these people would have been subject to heavy fines and the destruction of their dog. And yes I do believe that they are responsible dog owners. Everybody makes mistakes..... yes including me. And yes, the owner said their dog has never done this before. My dog has puncture wounds in the inside of his mouth. He is on antibiotics and should be fine. As for my bite, I am also on medication and will be fine. This dog that attacked had all the opportunity to bite and maul me. I kept grabbing it by its mouth so it would clamp down on me and leave my dog alone, it never did. The dog was focused on killing my dog. The bite I did get was a bite in the stomach, he just bit and released. Believe me, I do understand your love for your dogs. I have also been around many docile pitbulls. BUT when one goes bad.... they can do so much damage so quick. I'll never be convinced no matter how numbers are shown. Pitbulls potential danger is enough for me to never ever own one. I love my dogs, and it would kill me if my dog ever attacked and hurt another dog or human. It would also kill me to have to put it down after the attack. Why ever even take the chance? I posted here just so pitbull owners would understand how an actual pitbull attack victim feels, instead of someone who reads a newspaper or watches TV and all of a sudden now is on the bandwagon to ban a breed of dog. I am not sure as of yet how I feel on that subject. Brent, just the fact that you didn't delete my post shows you have character. Maybe other pitbull owners will read this and understand the responsibility they have of being good dog owners. Its not people like me who are trying to get pitbulls baned. Its irresponsible pitbull owners. Take Care Brent & thanks for letting me get my oppinion out.

[Brent]

Yarko,

I'm glad that you and your dog will be ok.

It is very seldom that I delete comments. I want to encourage open dialogue on topics. As a general rule, I think group-think is very dangerous. I also don't fear truthful information (on both sides of the equation). I think an open dialogue is important...unfortunately, most people don't want to have one.

You said some interesting things in there, and I won't address all of it. But one thing that I will comment on is the damage of the attack. As you noticed, most able bodied people are able to fend off an attack from a 'pit bull' or any other dog attack. And 'pit bulls, though strong dogs, are only usually around 50 lbs dogs. There are many much larger dogs out there that have equal strength. However, it is usually children, small children, that are most at risk...which even amplifies the number and type of dogs that could be a potential problem.

I'd much rather focus limited animal control resources on dealing with problem dogs, regardless of breed, that could potentially cause a problem like the one you faced this week...and the cases studies support me in that being the route that most dramatically supports public safety.

Thanks for coming by and expressing your story. Civil conversation is welcome any time.

[Merri]

My dog was shot and killed for protecting its own house. The officer was NOT invited in and things are way different then the news puts off. Me and The 3 kids who were inches from the cop who illegally opened my door seen and lived it all! http://omaha.craigslist.org/rnr/800102068.html

[Jamie]

An update on the Omaha Ban... They ended up going with dangerous dog legislation instead of a breed ban. However, pit bulls and other breeds resembling pit bulls must be muzzled and securely leashed if outside the home or not enclosed in a fenced in yard (as do individual dogs of any breed who are deemed dangerous for some reason like biting the neighbor kid). The good news is that if your pit bull passes a temperment test and classes given by the humane society, they can test for canine good citizen certification. If they pass, then they are labeled a "breed ambassador" and get to wear a yellow vest in public and can forgo the muzzle. They still have to be securely leashed though.