It's been quite a week. Puerto Rico and Oak Harbor, WA each voted to repeal their respective breed bans, while Ontario announced that there will be a new bill pushing for the repeal of theirs. Meanwhile, BSL proponent and dog killer Tom Skeldon remains under harsh fire in Lucas County, OH. It's hard to not look at all of this and realize that the side of common sense, decency and respect for animals is winning....in spite of the occassional bump in the road.
Onto the week's other stories:
Cities and Laws
Ignoring the recommendations of all of the experts in the community, Hays, KS passed an ordinance that will requires all 'pit bulls' to be licensed, muzzled and microchipped.
A man in Peach Tree City, GA is asking for the city council to require special requirements for pit bull owners. If you live in or near PTC, be sure to contact your city commissioners and help them understand why this isn't the correct action to take and provide them with viable alternatives.
The city of Elkhart, IN decided against breed specific regulations in the city.
Auburn, CA has also decided against BSL. In fact, they deny even considering it. I still wonder if the concerns about BSL were real, or if they were completely fabricated by the media.
Lincoln, NE is considering some changes to their dangerous dog laws. At this point, they still seem to be focusing on behavior-based ordinances, however, if you are in the area, it is worth keeping an eye on.
Las Vegas appears to be eyeing laws that mandate spay/neuter for all owned pets -- -but are considering this because of a concerns over a growing feral cat population. How a law that requires owned pets be sterilized will affect non-owned pets is beyond me....
Dog bites/attacks
An Eaton Township Veterinarian was bitten by two Cane Corsos that she was trying to rescue that were wandering along the side of the road.
A Chihuahua in Washington County, MD was attacked and killed by a German Shepherd.
Football Hall of Famer Joe Namath's dog, a Yellow Labrador Retriever, has been declared dangerous by Palm Beach County Animal Control after it bit its third person in three years.
A 68 year old Jacksonville, FL woman was attacked by a 100 pound Rottweiler that was roaming at large.
A Detroit area woman was attacked by two at-large pit bulls. Residents in the neighborhood had called several times aobut the ogs the animal control officials had yet to show up to pick them up.
A 77 year old Boston woman was attacked by an English Bulldog. The dog reportedly bit the same woman two weeks prior.
A three year old child in Walton, GA was attacked by a 'pit bull' that was chained outside to a doghouse. No one knows what caused the dog to attack -- which then begs the question of why the three year old was roaming around with no supervision. At least the head of the Police Department notes that the attack was not a breed issue.
A tiny Maltese was killed when it was attacked by a Siberian Husky.
A greyhound is responsible for killing a small pomeranian at a dog park in Barrington, RI.
In Tonganoxie, KS, a two year old boy was bitten by mixed breed dog whom the boy attempted to "kiss". Earlier this summer, the small community of Tonganoxie decided it wanted to keep its breed ban in spite of both town veterinarians and their local Humane Society being opposed to it. Educating people on what really leads to dog attacks, vs focusing on breeds, continues to be a better way to protect the public from dog attacks.
The UK Dangerous Dogs Act
A man's German Shepherd in Edinburgh, Scotland is repsonsible for attacking a woman. In spite the Dangerous Dogs Act in the UK that banned four breeds of dogs, bites continue to go up because the real cause of such attacks are irresponsible pet owners, not dog breeds -- and the act focused on the wrong end of the leash.
Another story from out of the UK about an Alaskan Malamute that attacked a young boy. In most of the areas surrounding where this article is from, dog bites have nearly doubled in the past 3-5 years.
Again in the UK, a Black Labrador was destroyed after it was found guilty of attacking two children.
City Hall summit in London about the rise in "weapon dogs" on London streets.
Abuse Cases
A Barnesville, GA man was arrested after he abandoned his home an left a 'pit bull' chained on the front porch where the dog starved to death and died.
Positive Press
There are misunderstood dog breeds - -from Dover, NH.
Main Line Animal Rescue is taking its pro-pit bull, anti Michael Vick Message on the road.
Dozens of the 'pit bulls' rescued from the large dog fighting bust in five midwestern states last year were declared fit to go to rescue groups last week and began getting shipped to various rescues across the country. Great video on this one. The resiliency of these dogs to leave horrible situations and to still love and trust people is absolutely amazing - -and is another excellent example of the power of nurture to override nature in canine behavior.
A six year old 'pit bull' service dog in Scandia, MN that has been helping people and changing people's perceptions of the breed is suffering from cancer.
The Dane County, WI Humane Society is encouranging people to adopt pit bulls. "We just treat them like every other dog" they say.
Animal Experts: Pit Bulls the Perfect Pet
Miscellanious
An article about the success of off-leash dog parks in Rhode Island.
Ban bad owners, fix the pit bull problem? A solid editorial from out of Flint, MI.
The Memphis Animal Shelter -- two weeks later
Brighton, CO officers undergo animal training after 2008 dog shooting -- trying to end the senseless killing of pets that often comes when officers don't understand canine behavior.
Blogs/Articles/videos worth reading/watching
A great video on the Denver Pit Bull Ban -- from the folks at Animal Ark.
Lessons from an Andy Warhol Tote Bag - -from Winograd.
While Rome Burns, Emperor Pacelle Strums his Lyre - also from Winograd
The Truth About Tom "Dog Killer" Skeldon - -a great look at the history of Skeldon's rein of terror in Lucas County, OH from For the Pit Bulls
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