Yet another crazy week; it seems like it's never a dull moment. The Scotish Parliament passed a new law to deal with dangerous dogs in their country after the UK's Dangerous Dog's Act failed (unfortunately, Scotland cannot repeal the breed ban, only the UK's governing body can). The US Supreme Court ruled on the Stephens case (more to come on that this week). And Brittany and Rambo finally were allowed to return home. A lot more news this week -- so let's dive right in.
Cities/States and laws
The Toledo Humane Society began adopting out 'pit bulls' this week after nearly 2 decades of prohibiting adoptions of these types of dogs in the community. The move will save hundreds of pet lives in Toledo this year.
Exeter, CA have proposed a new version of their dangerous dog law -- this time making it non breed-specific.
The Missouri House of Representatives has approved a bill that would define state-wide criminal charges if someone has an uncontrolled dog that bites or causes injury in some way.
Garfield, NJ is looking at a potential new law that would require owners of 'pit bulls' to muzlle their dogs when they are on walks.
Mt Holly, NC has proposed a ban on 'pit bulls'. The conversation was started by a man in the community who's dog was attacked by one a couple of months ago. The city Animal Control officer says he sees no evidence that one type of dog is more dangerous than another.
Dog Bites and Attacks
Major dog bites are very rare but when they happen, can come from a variety of different types of dogs. Focusing on Breed, and not circumstances is negligent and careless.
An Odessa, TX toddler remains hospitalized 2 weeks after a vicious attack by the family's Blue Healer. Medical costs are believed to already be over $1 million. Apparently the dog was normally a good family dog but later died in the shelter due to having multiple seizurs and a stroke -- so likely had some adverse medical problems in his brain that may have led to the attack. So far, the little boy has had brain surgery and more than 900 stitches put in his face. A sad tragedy for this family that emphasized the need to supervise young children with dogs at all times. Also of note here is that this seems to be the first mention of this story by the media -- nearly 2 weeks after the attack.
A Portland, OR police officer ended up in the hospital after he had an infection following being bitten by a 'pit bull while on duty. I've been catching quite a few of thes stories about serious infections of late - so if you have been bitten by a dog, do seek treatment.
A bite by a 'mixed-shepherd breed' has caused San Antonio to work to crack down on roaming dogs in one of their neighborhoods.
A Ridgefield, CT man and his dog were attacked by two dogs described as German Shepherds this week that were both roaming at-large.
A 5 year old Hurricane, UT girl was bitten by a neighbor's dog. The dog, described as a 'pit bull, was left alone chained in the back yard and the girl wandered into the back yard where the dog was unattended. The dog's owner also says the girl may have been throwing rocks at the dog prior to it attacking. An unsupervised chained dog and an unsupervised young child that may have been tormenting the dog is definitely a bad recipe.
A 9year old San Leon, TX girl is recovering after being bitten by a neighbor's Rhodesian Ridgeback. Initial calls to the scene were that the dog was a 'pit bull', but officials later confirmed that the dog was a Ridgeback.
Abuse Cases
A Middletown, NY man killed his neighbor's 'pit bull' after cutting off the dog's tail causing the dog to bleed to death.
A pit bull in San Antonio was seriously injured and was dumped under a bridge and left for dead. The dog, named Blue by the rescuer, had an injured right leg and a large open sore with a blood soaked cast covered in maggots when they found her. If you watch the video, the dog seems incredibly affectionate.
Two hundred dogs, mostly Toy Poodles, were rescued from abusive conditions from a breeding operation near Sparta, TN.
In Sioux City, IA, a 'pit bull' was shot in the head -- police are unsure if the dog was shot during an attempted break in or whether the dog was specifically targeted out of hatred. We saw 'pit bulls' targeted in due to hatred in New Orleans after several media reports only a couple of weeks ago, and city officials, and the media have to realize that creating a hysteria around 'pit bulls' can have a very dangerous impact on responsible owners of these dogs.
A police sergeant in Memphis was allowed to keep her own pets even after being charged with the starvation death of two dogs.
A Lowell, NC man faces animal cruelty charges after he physically beat his two 'pit bulls' -- causing one to die.
Miscellaneous
The Pet Connection, a no-kill facility in Mission, KS that offers adoption services, training, and low-cost spay/neuter services passed a "surprise inspection" this week that our local "Live, Late-Breaking, Investigative" News station just happened to be there for. The Pet Connection has been targeted by anonymous complaints against them including poor bookkeeping, medical storage, and an unlicensed worker neutering feral cats (while a vet was present). The anonymous complaints also appear to be mostly a personal vendetta as they have also gone after the owners of the Pet Connection's family accusing them of child neglect. I hope they are able to get things worked out as the Pet Connection provided many great services to this community.
A story about a person who once was bitten by a 'pit bull' has now become a fan of them.
The Kansas City T-Bones - a local minor league baseball franchise - has scheduled their Animal Awareness Night again this year. All nights are fun at T-Bones games, but pet lovers will most definitely love Animal Awareness night.
The Marquette County Humane Society (MI) is looking to change its name because of the confusion their name causes because they are not funded by the Humane Society of the United States.
A great educational piece from the Atlanta Journal Constitution: Fearsome or fearful dogs benefit from socialization.
Photos from last weekend's Pet Expo in Kansas City.
Ryan O'Meara, from K9 Magazine, opines as to why lessons are not being learned when it comes to fatal dog attacks in the UK.
Blog posts you should read
Unnatural Disaster: Shelter Killing in America - by Yesbiscuit!
The $500,000 pit bull - by Change.org - about an Austrailian family that has now spent half a million dollars trying to prevent their dog from being killed there.
What are mandatory desexing advocates lobyying for really? #2 -- From Saving Pets.
Three Slates to run in the Toronto Humane Society Elections - An update on the changing of the guard in Toronto from One Bark at a Time
Help Fido has a rundown of the hearing for Ohio House Bill 79 that would eliminate state-wide breed discrimination in Ohio.
Baby Time! Sadie helps her people raise a Tiger - Bad Rap has a great post -- with video - of a family that is properly working with their child and their 'pit bull' to be sure the two can live safely and happily in the home together. It's easily done, but just takes a little effort and the video is just great.
Taking responsibility - from the Houston Animal Shelters Examiner -on the need for shelters to begin taking responsibility for the killing in their shelters.
Pet Docs on Call has some good commentary on neutering -- with their vet specialist recommending that dogs not be altered until a couple of years old because of problems early neuter can have in development.
How one writer inadvertently became a pit bull advocate - noting that she overcame her previous prejudice with knowledge - -I wish everyone would do the same.
A NY area rescue survey - by the No Kill Advocacy Center. 72% of NY rescues said they were denied the ability to rescue at some point in the past year and 52% said they feared retaliation if they spoke out about a shelter that was causing problems. I'll likely comment more on this in the future, but worth the read now.
Could Breeders and Shelters Work Together - from The Other End of the Leash.
Why are so many veterinarians still giving anual vaccinations? - The Pet Connection. Maybe even more frustrating are cities that legislate annual vaccinations -- even though the science doesn't support the need for it any longer.
Two articles, two quotes - by YesBiscuit! -- that show why some shelters are succesful and others are not when it comes to no kill.
A couple of other new items.I was wondering if you had noticed them yet?
NCRC has a few new Advisors including Bill Bruce of Calgary.He`s retiring from Calgary A/C next year & is also writing a book.
http://nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/home/ncrc-advisors/
And a presentation by NCRC based on Pit Bull Placebo.
http://nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/home/ncrc-appearances/
Link is at bottom of that page.
Well worth the hr plus I`d say.
You have to register,hang on a bit then it loads.
Posted by: J.M. | April 25, 2010 at 04:06 PM
I've always opposed BSL and never thought it would hit so close to home. I have relatives who live in Garfield, NJ and havent heard about this. Thanks brent for bringing this to my attention.
Posted by: ELizabeth | April 30, 2010 at 02:55 AM
you can join the group opposig bsl in NJ
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Save-Ontario-Dogs/112824818728902?ref=mf#!/group.php?gid=121999911145946&ref=mf
Posted by: ELizabeth | April 30, 2010 at 04:17 AM