KC DOG BLOG

Quack

  I probably shouldn't give this woman more press, but she is EXACTLY why everyone should pay attention to who they vote for in local elections.

Ann Ogan, who next month will take over as a city councilor in North Plains, OR.,  has made her first priority as city councilor to ban pit bulls from North Plains.  The "logic" involved in this is pretty amazing -- and scary.

North Plains has a population of about 1,813.  It is a suburb of Portland, and has a average HH income of $58,602 -- which is about 20% higher than the average of the state of Oregon. The community is 88% white.  

Ogan guesses there are at least six pit bulls in North Plains - and in her eyes, that's six too many. Now let's start with the unethical (and possibly unconstitutional) nature of passing a law that specifically targets six people. While we live in a democratic nation, we also live in a free country, where a community cannot go out and bully six constituents because the "majority rules" (even though there is no evidence that the majority feels that way in this case). This is one major reason why I believe that states should get involved in this issue and ban breed specific laws. Even though I by and large feel like dog laws should be a local issue, protecting small numbers of constituents from crazy politicians in these small communities should be a state priority.

And let's face it, this is not about public safety for Ogan.  Over the past year, only 2 of the county's 25 dangerous dog citations were from 'pit bulls'.  (Washington County OR has a population of about 500,000, so has a lot of dogs).  The Hillboro (population 89,285) police department LT Mike Roucehes (who also handles police duties in North Plains) said that in the past 5 or 6 years he has only seen 2 problem pit bulls. 

So, we have had 2 problem pit bulls in 5 or 6 years in Hillsboro and North Plains. In the entire county, pit bulls make up only 8% of the dangerous dog violations - and Ms. Ogan wants to pass a law banning the 6 people in her little community from owning them?  Anyone want to venture a guess that there is a personal vendetta here that Ms. Ogan is trying to take out?

These are the people who push for breed specific laws -- the people that in spite of the numbers and the data, want it anyway, for whatever reason. Good luck to the people of North Plains in dealing with this woman for the next 4 years.  Hard telling what other baseless laws she is going to try to pass while in there.

Nameless - Contest!

 Our new foster dog is currently nameless.  He probably always has been. He was one of over 100 dogs that was found living behind a barn just outside of Newkirk, OK.  They were left starved, and abandoned.

He, and all the others were found on big chains -- with a barrell for water and a barrell for shelter. It was a tough life.

When you're one of 100 dogs living on a chain in a field, you don't likely get a name. In fact, you don't get much human attention at all.

He is one of the lucky ones that was spared.

He's fearful. He has probably received more human interaction in the past week than he has in his entire lifetime up to this point. He wants to be loved -- and give love back -- but just isn't really sure how to show or receive love. Love isn't an emotion he's knows much about.

We've had to teach him everything about being a 'pet'. He'd never been inside before. Or eaten or drank out of a food bowl. He's never used stairs before. A chain, a field, and a barrell are all he's ever known.

When we first got him, he hid a lot.  He certainly thrived on not being noticed. He found a couple of "comfort zones" and stayed pretty close to those areas.  We're working with him to find new comfort zones -- including even our couch -- so that eventually he'll feel comfortable everywhere.  New things are a little scary for him still -- and everything is just so new.

The backyard is also new. He has a "route" that he runs around the back yard -- over and over. You can pick him up and put him anywhere in the yard and he will go to the nearest point of his 'route' and begin running it. It's good exercise, but I certainly hope he begins utilizing the other parts of our yard soon.

He does perk up around our dogs -- which is a great sign. I think it will be through them that he learns how to be a dog. It's time -- he deserves it.  For now, he's mostly just snuggling in a warm bed, putting a few pounds on his thin body, and working on getting healthy.  The strides he's made in the first few days here have been pretty amazing.  But it will take him a little bit of time.  I'm thrilled for the opportunity - -and for the opportunity to see the little guy's growth.

He's about 10 months old (or so). He's going to be small -- probably only about 45 lbs or so.

So we need some help.  A dog this cute should not remain nameless. We have a working name for him -- but we're still open for suggestions. So, if you have suggestions for a name, please post them in the comments section. We'll choose one of the names as our favorite - -and the winner will receive a copy of the book, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Loving our Dogs.   I will not guarantee that we'll use the name, but I will guarantee a winner.  So let me have your ideas.

And I'll continue to post updates and occassional videos on the little guy. 

For more about the rescue of these dogs, check out posts over at Bad Rap, MABBR Blabber and my previous post. 

Plus, MABBR has a photo gallery of the dogs in Oklahoma that is certainly worth checking out.  MABBR ened up with 11 of the dogs from the Newkirk site.

A special thanks to Bad Rap, MABBR, the Oklahoma Alliance for Animals, the Kay County Sheriff's office and the many local rescuers who raised money for food for these animals during the early stages of the finding of these dogs that made saving his life possible.

Weekly Roundup -- Final week of 2008

  It's been quite the week. Thirty or so dogs saved from Oklahoma.  The Vick Dogs story came out in Sports Illustrated, with some PR on Anderson Cooper 360.  Pretty impressive stuff.  Those were easily the week's highlights, but here are a few stories that may bave been overlooked.

Cities and Laws

The Oshkosh Kennel Club had a letter to the editor this week expressing their concerns about a breed-specific dangerous dog ordinance in Oshkosh, WI.

The mayor of Pocatello, ID wants to create a vicious dog registry that tracks animals when they owners move from one juristiction to another. The move is prompted after a dog with a long attack history attacked an animal control officer earlier this month but officials were unaware of the dog's history. The state of Virginia did this recently.  I'm not sure how the ordinance is working, but I do think it is a fair rule as long as the dog was declared vicious in the former juristiction based on a behavior.

Allen Park, MI passed a ban on pit bulls this week. Current owners of pit bulls will be allowed to keep their dogs. Owners of the affected dogs can avoid certain containment restrictions, like muzzling, if their dog's pass the Canine Good Citizen Test.  The law comes with a 5 year sunset clause -- as well as a promise to re-evaluate the effectiveness of the law in two years.

Whatcom County, WA is looking at an ordinance that would require owners of more than 4 dogs or cats to obtain licenses.  If someone owns more animals than that in the county, they would have to apply for either an animal enthusiast license (5-10 animals) or a kennel license that would range from $65-$200 depending on the number of animals they owned. 

Dog Bites

A postal worker in the UK was suffered a major attack by a Rottweiler this week.  The postal worker spent 6 days in the hospital in intensive care and for a while, and authorities felt for awhile that he may lose his arm. The postal worker's union is starting a campaign to overturn the Dangerous Dogs Act of 1991 that banned four breeds of dogs, including American Pit Bull Terriers.

"The 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act has done nothing to reduce attacks. It provides little protection for Postal and communication workers," said Dave Joyce, head of the postal worker's union.“We want to see more realistic penalties handed down by the courts when prosecutions take place with owners of aggressive dogs being held to account. My Union is not anti-dog or anti any specific bread of dog, the overwhelming majority of which cause no problem at all. However, there are a significant number of aggressive dogs and irresponsible owners which need to be dealt with.”

Speaking of the UK, Dangerous Dogs Act failure, a 13 year old UK girl is having plastic surgery following an attack in which a Bull Mastiff tore off her lower lip and chin.  The Dangerous Dogs Act was, and continues to be a failure because it focused on the breeds of dogs instead of on owners of aggressive dogs.  The breed is irrelevant.

An 11 year old boy was attacked by two American Bulldogs.  The dogs had been friendly with the boy before, but one of the dogs became aggressive and they both began attacking the boy.

There was a newstory in Oneonta, NY this week with a headling "pit bull attack injures woman." As it turns out, the woman was housesitting some friend's dogs while they were out for the holidays, and showed up at the house intoxicated -- apparently something happened and the dogs began fighting and the woman was injured trying to break up a fight between the two dogs. No one is quite sure as the woman is described as "dazed" and "confused" about the events that led to her injury. If you're going to be dog-sitting for someone, don't show up drunk...

Four people were injured in a dog attack in Boca Raton, Fl. The incident began when a "mastiff-pit bull mix" attacked a woman walking her poodle. The owner was then attacked upon trying to restrain her own dog. Two other people were injured when they tried to restrain the dog. Of course, at least a couple of the media outlets have reported this aspurely a 'pit bull' attack., and I've found a couple of others that originally reported it as a pit bull attack, but then changed it online. No one appears seriously hurt, although the poodle owner did require surgery on her wrist. 

This one crosses into a few categories, but I'm going to just put it here. On Christmas Day, a 21 year old Molalla (OR) man was attacked by two 'pit bulls' (one, from the picture, doesn't appear to be one), The attack, of course, has prompted talk of new dog laws in the city. Adam Goldfarb from HSUS has some good quotes in this one that are worthy of note:

Goldfarb said that while many pit bull owners are responsible, a notorious reputation perpetuates bad treatment of many of the dogs -- which results in more aggressive behavior.

"Unfortunately there's this cycle that develops," Goldfarb said.

Why people complain about bad media reporting

During a traffic stop in Lothian, MD, officials found 82 grams of crack cocaine, $5,800 cash and a .357 caliber handgun - -and a dog in the back of the car's trunk. What is the headline? "Pit bull found hidden in trunk of car during traffic stop in Lothian."  The headline features the only item it was illegal for them to have in their possession.

KHOU reported a story about a 'pit bull' that attacked a Harris County (Houston, TX) Sheriff's deputy.  Apparently a couple of deputies opended a gate at the scene and two dogs came from "out of nowhere" (or from inside the fence) and charged the officers. One of the officers was bitten by one of the dogs. The Houston Chronicle later reported that the officer had orginally thought that he was bitten by the pit bull, but later, after assessing the situation, determined that it was a Rottweiler that bit him "athough a pit bull also was involved."  This may not have been the media's fault -- but KHOU never did go back and change their report.

Miscellanious

Here's another article about how the economy is affecting animal shelters. As the economy worsens, people are often forced to downsize from homes to apartments where they can't take their pets and unlikely to be able to afford vet bills when they come up.

More good news stories

The Fox affiliate in Monterey, CA has a followup on three of the Mike Vick dogs that made their way down to Monterey at the SPCA facility there and the success that they are having.

A story about a Latrobe, PA woman who adopted an abused, pit bull with a shattered broken leg, nursed her back to health, and trained her to become a therapy dog.

A story about a Rottweiler in Pittsburgh, PA that is a palliative therapy dog that visits patients once a week.

Rachael Ray, and her 'pit bull' Isaboo were on the cover of Modern Dog magazine, providing more positive exposure for the breed among dog owners.

A high school student in Washington, Kendra Goetz, decdided to spend her holiday giving pit bulls something to chew on. She set up collection bins at three local businesses to gather chew toys for pit bulls in foster homes as part of her senior project.  Well done.

 

Attack on Denver Pit Bull Ban continues

The Assault on Denver's pit bull ban conintues.  In 1989, Denver passed a ban on pit bulls....however, for many years the ban sat dormant as the city fought the state and consituents trying to keep their ban (which is in opposition to a state law that forbids breed specific ordinances). So, in 2005, the city began enforcing the ban again. Since then, thousands of 'pit bulls' have been killed by the city. Since that time, the city has killed nearly 2,000 'pit bulls' - -and hastaken several others from owners that are never allowed to see the dogs again.

However, this fall, a California-based group called Roverlution, took out some billboards near the Pepsi Center in Denver with the question, "What dog will Denver kill next?"  -- and linking them to the website denverkillsdogs.com.

Well, local news is starting to pick up on the campaign. On Friday, Fox 31 ran the story, as well as an interview with a former military officer who was taken the ground at gunpoint by police to have her dog taken away from her.  Oh yeah, police brute force on a military officer for walking her dog.  Nice.

Meanwhile, the Denver Daily News also ran the story this week. In their interview with Doug Kelley, the head of animal control in Denver, he said it was a tough question to answer about whether or not the ordinance was effective. "We have not had a severe mauling or fatality involving a pit bull since the ordinance went into effect.  But then again, we continue to get more pit bulls every year...it depends on how you define success."

Success shouldn't be defined by whether or not you end 'pit bull' attacks -- it should be based on overall public safety.  Did the ban, overall, help protect people from dogs?

Well, Kelley answered that question last month, on November 16, in the Colorado Springs Gazette.  According to the Gazette:

He said the ban has lessened the number of attacks by pit bulls, certainly, but he has no evidence that the ban has decreased the total number of dog bites or attacks in the city. He also said the ban gives people "a false sense of security."

"Pit bulls aren't bred to be aggressive toward humans," he said. "There are a lot of other dangerous dogs out there that aren't prohibited and are trained to be aggressive toward people, so that needs to be addressed."
 

So what is the point of the breed ban again?  So far they've admitted:

1) That not all pit bulls are aggressive - -and they now allow non-aggressive pit bulls to be removed from the city.

2) That the ordinance doesn't address aggressive dogs that are not pit bulls

3) That there is no evidence that the ordinance has improved public safety be decreasing the number of bites or attacks.

So why the ordinance?  Is it to take dogs like Forrest away from their owners?  Is it to put military veterans at gunpoint to take their dogs?

Seems like a breed neutral ordinance would be a better way to go -- protecting people from aggressive dogs regardless of breed. What are we waiting for?

Why saving the Vick Dogs was worth it

 This has been bugging me - so in spite of already covering the Sports Illustrated article, I feel like I need to address it again.

Late in the Sports Illustrated article, the question got asked, "was it worth it?" Was it worth it to invest the time and resources to save these 47 dogs when millions of animals languished in shelters?

At least one commenter here expressed the same sentiment, and I've seen in mentioned elsewhere.

At first glance, it would appear that the time and money put into rehabilitating the dogs probably wasn't the best use of resources -- if your focus is only on the 47 dogs.  But this is about way more than 47 dogs.

There tends to be a lot of publicity about these major abuse cases -  and the horrors that come from these major hoarding and fighting situations. 

187 dogs in a fighting ring in Houston.  

Over 100 dogs in Newkirk, OK.

And of course, Bad Newz Kennels.

But the reality is, in spite of all of these horrible situations, it pales in comparison to the thousands of pit bulls that are killed in city shelters quietly every year. Sometimes they are killed because they are not able to find homes for the dogs because of the stereotypes that surround the dogs.

Often times, even the shelters, like in Ripon, CA, that are supposed to be protecting the dogs have policies in place that don't allow pit bulls to be adopted out.  Just the mere entrance into the shelter is a death sentence because they're "too much work", "could fall into the wrong hands" or whatever. Many shelters don't think the 'pit bulls' can, or should, be rehabilitated or are worth the adoption space. In North Carolina, dogs pulled from fighting rings are mandated by law to be euthanized.

And then, there are the thousands of dogs that are killed in cities each year that are killed just for being 'pit bulls' because that city outlaws their very existence.

No. Saving the 47 Vick dogs was not just about the 47 dogs.  It was a statement that these dogs matter. 

It was a case study in the adaptability of dogs -- that these 47 dogs, who were in some of the worst of situations - are adaptable enough overcome horrific situations, to become normal household pets.  Dogs are a product of their enviornment -- and when you remove the awful environment and replace it with a good enviornment, they can, and do, thrive. It is  a statement that the dogs can be rehabilitated and are worth saving.  If the shelter community, HSUS, PETA, etc all think that the dogs should be killed (which has been their stance for decades), then why would a dog fighting thug think that the dog's life matters either.

It does. They all do.

Nope -- this was about sending a message.  These dogs matter too. If we are going to become no-kill communities, where no healthy dogs or cats are killed in our nation's shelters, we cannot continue thinking these dog's lives don't matter. We can't continue with shelter policies that mandate that all pit bulls get put to death. Or continue with city laws that make adoption impossible;  or laws that take good dogs out of good homes and condemn them to death.

All of the lives matter.

Already, the success of the Vick dogs is paying dividends. A couple of weeks ago, over 100 pit bulls were founding in a hoarding case in Oklahoma. The original thought was that all of these dogs would need to be euthanized. However, because of the success of the Vick Dogs, the Oklahoma Alliance for Animals, and the Kay County Sheriff's department, listened to rescue groups in their pleas that all of the dogs may not have to be killed. Because of this, 30 or so dogs are now alive that would otherwise have been killed. And when these dogs become success stories, more will follow.

The Vick dogs sent the message - -these dogs' lives matter. It is through this message that shelters, cities, rescues -- and yes, even inner city youth kids -- will see that the lives of these dogs matter.

If we don't care, why should they?

If that message gets heard loud and clear across the entire country - -and changes minds - -then it was worth every penny, every hour and every tear.

Merry Christmas from my Gang

They tried to sit still --  but the excitement of Christmas morning (mom and dad stay home today!) was almost too much for them.  Hope your Christmas is just as exciting.

Dogs rescued from Newkirk, OK

  A couple of weeks ago, over 100 dogs -- mostly 'pit bulls' were found living behind a barn just outside of Newkirk, OK.

They were found starved, and abandoned. Anchored down with big chains, with a barrell for shelter, and a barrell for water.

The chain was attached to a metal pole, stuck in the ground.  A circle of dead grass exactly the radius of the chain surrounded the stake. Some of the circles were several inches lower than the ground that surrounded them -- indicating quite some time of living in that environment.

Donna over at Bad Rap has some pictures posted at her place. Please go look. I do think it's important.

Last week, the great folks at Bad Rap and some folks at Kansas City-based Mid America Bully Breed Rescue were in Oklahoma.  All of the dogs were originally slated to be euthanized - -and end that was, indeed, better than their current situation. But Bad Rap and MABBR convinced the people at the Oklahoma Alliance for Animals and the Kay County Sheriff's department to allow the dogs to be temperament tested -- and possibly saved.  Although exact numbers are hard to come by, the Oklahoma Animal Alliance is saying that roughly 1/3 of the animals were saved -- making their way to Kansas City, California, Kansas and Oklahoma to shelters and foster homes.  They're safe now.

While it's hard to not have a pit in your stomach over the ones that didn't make it, I'm thrilled that Bad Rap and MABBR were able to save as many as they did.  Last month,187 dogs in Houston were not so fortunate. 

I'm thrilled for the ones that made it. It's a new opportunity, and a fresh start at life. These dogs certainly deserve a chance. A special thanks to the folks at Bad Rap and MABBR for saving the lives of these dogs. And if anyone wants to reach out to help these dogs, I would urge you to donate to one of these organizations to do so. I know that MABBR is incurring a lot of expenses with these dogs right before the holidays and donations would be appreciated.

Also, a special thanks to the local rescuers and animal lovers that helped raise money for food and supplies to keep these dogs alive in the early stages of this situation -- without you, many of the dogs would have starved before having a chance to be saved.

As for the previous owner of the dogs? Jerry Lee Southern has been charged with 70 counts of animal abuse in this case -- and being held on $250,000 bond. If convicted, Southern could face up to 350 years in prison. Given the pictures I've seen and stories I've heard -- that would be just.

Here's another update from News Cow.

And here's one from the Winfield Courier.

SI article: The Good News out of The Bad Newz Kennel

The Sports Illustrated Article on Mike Vick's Dogs is out.

All in all, not a bad article.  They've certainly published worse.

There is a lot of emphasis on the dogs - -as it should be. A lot of the stories of the dogs, and their new families.  How most are doing really well - -although several are still somewhat fearful. None show signs of aggression.

Typical of news sources that aren't close to dogs, they give PETA too much credit. PETA is a big name among the general population, but any organization that kills 97% of the animals they intake in a year can't be considred on the forfront of animal advocacy.

Donna Reynolds and Tim Racer from Bad Rap -- who were instramental in saving these dogs -- are widely quoted in the article. That's a good thing. 

One paragraph sticks out -- with Donna talking about what they found when they first met the dogs:

"We were surprised at how little aggression there was," says Reynolds.  Many of the dogs had all but shut down. They cowered in the corners of their kennels or stood hunched with their heads lowered and their tails between their legs and their feet shifted nervously....As far as they knew, bad things happened when people came. Bad things happened when they were led out of their cages.

This is a pretty common response to the abuse that these dogs suffered...lack of positive socialization with humans is certainly hard on dogs.

The article focuse on the reality, that of the 51 dogs found on the property, 51 were saved. (Two died in the shelter, one was euthanized for being too aggressive, and another euthanized for medical reasons).  Twenty two of the dogs ended up at Best Friends -- 17 of which may eventually be adopted. The other 25 went to rescue groups across the country -- 14 of which have been placed in permanent homes. Several are being used in therapy dog situations.

In spite of the dogs' success, PETA is sticking to their guns and saying that all of the dogs should have been killed.  That's sort of their answer for everything.

All in all, I think this story was fair. The dogs are doing great. Sometimes fearful, but great. This is all a complement to the folks at Bad Rap and the other rescue groups that saved, and rehabbed, the dogs.

Go check out the aricle -- and don't miss the photo gallery.

Update:  And here's Donna's reaction over at Bad Rap. And she's right - -the magazine certainly owed us one.

Mike Vick Dogs on Anderson Cooper 360 last night

 Anderson Cooper had a video feature on the Mike Vick dogs last night. The short segment was a promo for the Sports Illustrated "Year in Sports" issue that debuts tomorrow - the Mike Vick dogs are on the cover.

The piece focuses on the 47 dogs from Bad Newz Kennels and how well they're recovering. The writer from Sports Illustrated met many of the dogs and reports that while a few are understandably still a little fearful, none were at all aggressive.  According to the report, 12 of the dogs are currently in homes, with another 17 that are ready.  At least 5 are serving as some type of therapy dogs.

One spokesperson from PETA was shown saying how all of the dogs should be put down -- because all of the money spent on rehabilitating the dogs could be used to help so many more animals that didn't need rehabilitation. However, PETA's track record of saving dogs that don't need rehabilitation meets the same fate -- with PETA killing 85% of the animals that entered their program over the past 10 years -- including killing 97% last year.  Inexcusable numbers for anyone -- but particularly for an organization that brings in $30 million a year to HELP animals. Seems that killing is their answer for both animals that need to be rehabbed, and those that don't.

Overall, I thought the segment was good -- and am looking forward to seeing the Sports Illustrated issue tomorrow.

You can watch the entire program here -- the segment on the dogs is about 2/3 of the way through the program.

Miscellaneous links

Since I promised I'd share -- I had some thoughts on my other blog about the future of the dead-tree media and how newspapers might be using, or wise to use, citizen journalists to widen their local coverage.

Roo Yori shows off his mad singing skills in the singing of  "Wallace the Red Nosed Pit Bull." If this doesn't get you in the holiday spirit, I'm not sure what will.

You can now pre-order the DVD to the move "All Roads Lead Home" -- a movie filmed here in Kansas City with a solid No-kill message behind it.  The DVD comes out January 13.

I've mentioned this charity before -- but here's an update on the Home 4 the Holidays. The Home 4 the Holidays campaign's goal is to adopt out 1 million pets by January 5, 2009. As of last week, the program was at 760,599 adoptions.  It'd be great for them to find homes for all of these animals and reach their goal. 

Just to think, if 5 other programs like this duplicated this success, virtually all of the adoptable dogs and cats in the nation would be adopted.  Now THAT puts me in the holiday spirit.