KC DOG BLOG

Most UK Citizens agree that national breed ban should be repealed

Last Spring, the UK's Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) did a 40 question survey of residents in the nation of it's opinion of the nation's Dangerous Dogs Act (which bans 4 different breeds of dogs). According to their survey, 71% of respondents called for the legislation to be repealed.

For nearly 2 decades, animal welfare organizations, along with the British Veterinary Association and The Kennel Club have been calling for a repeal of the legislation and replace it with legislation that would change the emphasis to creating better care for animals and on the actions of irresponsible pet owners -- saying that this would do a better job of protecting the public.

"The problem of dangerous dogs will not be solved until the government accepts that the Dangerous Dogs Act has failed.  This view is supported by  the thousands of reponses to the consultation," said Bristish Small Animal Veterinary Association President Grant Petrie.

In addition to favoring a repeal of the legislation, 88% of the 4250 repondents said that they don't believe the current legislation is effective at protecting the public. (I personally think the idea of asking this question is ridiculous -- I really don't care if people >think< it is effective -- the statistics -- which show a 66% increase in dog attacks requiring hospitalization in the past decade speak to the ineffectiveness.  However, it does show that the majority of people REALIZE it is ineffective).

The law has been a failure....and the public support for a repeal of the law appears to be overwhelming.

Keeping you dogs and kids safe for the holidays

The holidays are coming -- and with them come a lot of unexpected stresses on you and on your family dog. New people, new food smells, visiting children and changes in routine can be stressful for dogs. Stressed dogs can be a potential hazzard for the young children in your home.

Monday night, November 29th, at 8 pm EST, Jennifer Shyrock of Dogs & Storks -- a premier organization for training dogs and parents -- will be hosting a conference call to help people learn how to best prepare their dog for the holidays.  Topics will include:

1) Calming the chaos for your dog

2) What to consider when you and your kids visit a home with dogs

3) Common situations that can be challenging for kids and dogs during family gatherings

4) Keeping dogs safe from holiday dangers

5) Simple tips for keeping your dog occupied and comfortable as you prepare for guests

And they'll also have a chance for you to ask your specific questions via the call.

The conference call -- which will last for 1 hour -- is a great opportunity for parents, grandparents and family members to learn helpful tips to keep your entire family safe for the holidays. More info, including call-in details and an email address to send your questions to can be found at the dogs and storks blog.

Weekly Roundup - Week Ending 11/28/10

I'm back. Spent the better part of the last week out of town and off the grid.  I should be back into full swing this week. Meanwhile, there are quite a few  stories from this week that I clearly didn't cover, and since I just did blogs in last week's roundup I have news stories going back 3 weeks that need to be covered. I'll pick out the highlights from the past 3 weeks and will get back on a more regular schedule now that the weather is colder and I won't be traveling as much.

Cities/States and Laws

The city of Van, TX is looking at trying to pass breed specific legislation targeting pit bulls and Rottweilers. Texas has a law prohibiting such laws, but Van seems to be convinced that tying up money in lawsuits to defend a law that clearly violates state law is a better solution than actually trying to enforce a strong, breed neutral dangerous dog law (the type of law that has been more effective that the illegal one they are trying to pass).

After a lot of discussion, the idea of breed-specific legislation in Douglassville, GA is officiallly dead. 

Aurora, CO is considering making exceptions under the city's 'pit bull' ban for 'pit bulls' that are service dogs - -and the story's link tells the story of one many who in Aurora who is helped to deal with PTSD by his 'pit bull' and is affected by the law. Keep in mind, Aurora saw a 26% increase in dog bites following the passing of their pit bull ban in 2005.  More from Change.org and more details from  Online Journalism.  And for the record, a note to the media, the ADA is not a 'loop hole'.

Texas will have a state law proposed that would require state-wide restrictions on 'pit bull' type dogs. The state is currently one of 14 states that has prohibitions on breed-specific laws.  We'll follow this one closely to see if this gains any traction.  Speaking of Texas, they will also be discussing a Puppy Mill law in the state in the next session....I'll probably write more about that one at some point after an actual proposed law is in place.

A Springdale, AR alderman, Mike Overton, is bringing up a ban on 'pit bulls' -- for the second year in a row. There was little support last year for the proposal -- and hopefully not this year either. But if you live in the NW Arkansas Area, please show up with your opposition to the proposed ordinance.

Orange County, Ca is looking at potential breed-specific Mandatory Spay/Neuter.

A bill banning crush videos has passed both houses of Congress and are now waiting on Obama's signature.  The law was created after a Supreme Court decision struck down a more general law that banned crush videos and a whole lot of other types of videos as well.

The community of Malden, MA appears to be looking at breed-specific legislation. Nothing has been drafted yet, but if you live in this area please try to work with the council to get them to adopt responsible, breed neutral legislation that will protect citizens from aggressive dogs of all breeds, and not targeted non-aggressive dogs.

Dearborn, MI is looking at potential breed-specific regulations.

Ellis, KS voted 5-1 to create a breed-neutral dangerous dog ordinance in the community.

The shelter in Memphis is being criticized for it's policies on not making 'pit bulls' available to the public for adoption....the same type of policy that is common in shelters in Houston and elsewhere.

Dog Bites/Attacks

Major dog bites are rare, but are a natural byproduct of the reality that we live our lives with animals.  When attacks occur, they are always a reflection of circumstances, not breed.  In fact, these types of attacks involve a wide variety of breeds....and in order to end them, we need to quit talking about 'breed' and begin talking about circumstances that cause dog bites and attacks.

A 10 year old UK boy needed more than one thousand stitches after being attacked by a dog. The UK has a breed ban on 4 specific breeds of dogs....

A Columbus, OH girl was attacked by a Rottweiler that chased her after she knocked on her neighbor's door. The dog's owner called the knocking on the door "Provoking" -- but it shouldn't be. Dogs should be able to handle someone knocking on the door or ringing the doorbell without attacking them...

A family's Yorkie was killed right in front of them by the neighbor's Norwegian Elkhound. It's often thought (sometimes even by people in the pit bull community) that dog-dog aggression is somehow unique to 'pit bulls'. It's not. It's very common in most dogs if they are not well socialized.

A three year old Baltimore girl had to be airlifted to the hospital after being bitten by the family's German Shepherd/Alaskan Malamute mix.

A Des Lacs, ND woman was severely injured after being attacked by two 'pit bulls' in a home where she was babysitting.

A LaGrange, Maine woman was severly mauled by a Bull Mastiff (the dog was originally identified as an American Bulldog -- breed ID is easy right?) and was hospitalized with severe injuries based on the attack.  She was later put into a medicallly induced coma.  She sounds like she is going to recover, but did have to have an arm amputated following the attack.

A three year old Palm Springs child was attacked by the family's Golden Retriever.  The media (of course) acted all suprised by the breed of dog involved (even noting that, surprise, it wasn't a pit bull!) which only further creates poorly educated dog owners that don't realize that any breed of dog can be a problem and children should be monitored around dogs.

A South Carolina boy was attacked by a Bull Mastiff.

A 3 year old Mecca, CA toddler was hospitalized after being attacked and bitten several times by a family's Labrador Retriever mix.

A South African man was severely attacked by a Boerbul.

Miscellaneous

A 'pit bull rescue' person in New York is under investigation under suspicion of dog fighting after 9 dogs were found injured in an apartment.

Twenty two 'pit bulls' were seized from a suspected dog fighting ring in Independence, KS. The ring was found after a drug bust in the same area. The great folks over at the Game Dog Guardian are working on evaluating and rehabilitating the dogs -- and are in need of help for foster homes for the dogs that can be adopted out.

Obesity epidemic threatens Fido and Fluffy too.

40 dogs that were seized from a property of a fatal dog attack last week were all killed at the shelter because of some confusion over who might be caring for the dogs and because the city manager said the dogs may have posed a health risk because they had...ear mites.

Rachael Ray is donating more than $750,000 from the sale of her dog food to various animal shelters and charities.

Scientists at MIT and Princeton have been doing studies that explain how cats elegantly lap milk from their bowls. I have no idea why anyone would have wasted their time with this 'study' but, there it is.

No Kill News

Louisville.com has a profile of a woman who has started a new group in the city call No Kill Louisville. I wish her the best of luck.

Positive Press

A 'pit bull' named Jojo in El Paso, TX was just name the National Rescue Dog of the Year.  So in recent years, 'pit bull type dogs' have held titles for national rescue dog of the year and as the national disc dog champion  - further evidence that the 'breed' is not inherantly bad.

Pit bulls used to be heroes - -from the Leavenworth (KS) Times

Blogs worth Reading

A look at the real influence of the Humane Society of the United States and how many contributing members they have -- from Humanewatch

For Your Entertainment has the story of the one year aniversary of bringing hom e his first rescued 'pit bull'.

Dancing Dog Blog takes a look at dangerous dog lists and the folly Denver has had with their breed ban.

A review of the Doggone Safe Board Game that is a game designed to teach kids about how to be safe around dogs -- sounds like a good possible holiday gift.

Christmas puppy?  Maybe it's NOT a bad idea -- The Pet Connection tackles yet another urban legend in the rescue community.

Part 2 of an Interview with the National Canine Research Council's Karen Delise -- from the Atlanta Animal Welfare Examiner.  Here's Part 1.

Some more great press for Tio Hardiman's program to end dog fighting in Chicago -- it's a great program  that works with inner city kids to train their dogs for pride, instead of fight them - -from Dancing Dog Blog.

American Dog Humanitarian Awards

I've been a bit slow getting this posted, but American Dog Magazine is hosting the voting for its first ever Humanitarian Awards.  The magazine has selected several finalists in a variety of different categories and voting will determine the winners in each category.

Categories include:

Exemplary Shelter

Rescue Organization Saving Dogs

Spokesdog for a charitable cause

Service/Therapy Dog

Animal Welfare Lobbyist

Animal Advocate for Dogs

Animal Welfare Website

Voice for Saving Pit bulls

Voice for the No Kill Movement

Animal Welfare Blogger

And many others.

I'm actually really honored to have been nominated for the Animal Welfare Blogger Award. There are a lot of great people out there doing a lot of great work - -and I feel pretty cool just being on the list with them.

So go over to their place and vote. Vote for me, or not (I won't be offended). But vote -- because there are a lot of great people out there doing a lot of great things and are worthy of recognition.

Voting ends on December 5, with winners announced on December 20.

 

 

Weekly Roundup -- Week ending 11/21/10

 This is going to be an abreviated roundup this week. I have some holiday travel planned this week so posting is going to be a little lighter than usual -- but there has been a LOT of great stuff written by other folks on other blogs for the past couple of weeks -- and I want to get that out there. I'll catch up on the news items next week.

Great blog postings from other people

This is the lone news story for the week -- but big news was made this week when word hit that a hero dog named Target - -that spent a tour of duty in Afghanistan and got a hero's welcome on the Oprah Winfrey Show -- was killed by his local animal control. The dog escaped from his yard and was "accidentally" killed by the local animal control. The story was big enough news that it was picked up by the NY Times - and sparked a lot of commentary in blogs across the country.

Love Dogs?  Help your community become No Kill - Pet tips and tails takes a look at how the killing of a Target may lead you to realize that this same thing could happen, at any point, to anyone's dog - -and the only way to keep it from really happening is to end the killing of all of them in your community.

Poochmaster comments on Target - noting that in too many cities, animal control officers are given police power without the training, skills, aptitude or organization to ensure the Constitutional rights of the dog owner.

The oddest couple in the world - Tonic has a great story about a Chihuahua that was guarding his girlfriend, a pit bull, and how a kind dog warden made sure the two had a happy outcome. 

Sentence to Ponder -- Marginal Revolution has a great sentence to ponder. Not animal-related -- but it certainly applies: "If flying is a 'privilege, not a right' it's because over the last century we have gradually accepted the proposition that anything the government tells us it can regulate, it can regulate."  If we let them.

Maricopa Co stands by its kill numbers -- YesBiscuit! has the numbers from Maricopa County, AZ (Phoenix).  According to their records they are killing 100 dogs a day -- and yet, not a single one of the dogs that is killed is "healthy".  Seems, uh, unlikely.  Shelters can start ending the killing by being honest about why the killing is happening...

Resistance - Saving Pets notes many of the reasons why people who favor the status quo offer resistance to no kill policies that would change the killing.

Finally a bit of honesty from a Victorian council - Saving Pets notes that Victoria (Australia) seems to be realizing that their mandatory spay/neuter laws in the provence have led to a 25% increase in shelter cat killing since it was enacted -- primarily because most unsterilized cats are unowned cats...and making a law that targets unowned cats is a good recipe for killng them.  BTW, Saving Pets also has a great post on what science says the role community cats plays on the environment (and it's not the negative description you've heart far too often).

LA Times Sports Columnist Bill Plaschke had a great editorial about Mike Vick, and his dogs, and how while Monday Night Vick was being glorified for his on-field performance, the evidence of his animal cruelty remains and why many animal lovers cannot forgive. It's a great column (thanks Bill for writing it) and sparked several other good comments from others.

Michael Vick and the Value Proposition - Francis Battista at Best Friends takes a look at Mike Vick and whether or not he's paid his debt to society, and what his "welcome" back to the NFL means in our quest for No More Homeless Pets.

Christie Keith over at The Pet Connection also has a great take on Plaschke's story.

Not Dumping - Another great one from Saving Pets -- "The best way to keep your bank from getting robbed is to not open a bank" --and if you open a shelter to cater to the public's unowned pets -- people are going to bring unowned pets to you -- so quit blaming them for it, that's what you're there for.

San Francisco's Commission on Animal Control and Welfare voted to table discussion about No Kill indefinitely - Winograd takes a look at why they did it and what that means.

Life Saving Attitude: From "Who Can I blame?" to "How Can I help?" -- Ryan Clinton in "O" is for Onward

A Political Cartoon on Missouri's Prop B - from PenroseOnPolitics - I'm not really sure how the puppy mill issue in Missouri turned into a partisan issue but somehow it certainly has and neither side seems to be overly willing to play well in the sandbox together.  When partisan politics gets in the way of doing what's right, it can be certain the dogs (you know, the ones we're trying to help) will be the victims.  And yes, both parties are to blame regardless of whether or not they want to take "credit" for that blame.

The Problem with Oops at Kill Shelters -- YesBiscuit! has a great commentary on 'accidental killings" and how if your shelter makes it their business to routinely kill pets (as is the case in most public animal shelters), "oops" results in the death of a beloved family pet.

Why I support the No Kill Movement -- By the Pet Studio -- we all have our stories and our reasons for wanting to end the killing

Kiss or Dismiss -- another great video breakdown from Dogs & Storks.  People really do need to understand dog warning signals better -- and doing so would be a great way to avoid attacks on small children that are often catestrophic.  Now, imagine this video without any adult supervision and how something could go majorly wrong.

Tether vs "Tether" -- Dogs & Storks looks at tethering -- and how something that is usually seen as a horrible act, when used appropriately, can be a very handy tool.

Toronto pit bull owners want to put provencial dog law to sleep -- Brindle Stick has the story

We become what we believe -- Wisconsin Watchdog notes that when we begin to believe that No Kill can happen, we start becoming no kill. Knowing that it is possible is the first step.

Houston TX -- Still in the dark ages -- I posted a link to this last week, but it deserves repeating, Bad Rap has a look at several Houston, TX shelter policies that cause all 'pit bulls' that enter the shelter to be killed because they do not offer them up for adoption.

In Honor of Animal Shelter Reform Week - For your entertainment takes a look at the need for shelter reform in New York City.

This is your local animal shelter - The Houston No Kill Examiner tackles the same story with a look at the shelters in Houston

And YesBiscuit! tackles the topic more globally (and she always has the best examples).

For the Pit Bulls has some great recommendations for Las Cruces, NM -- which started doing neighborhood sweeps last month.  There are good ways and bad ways to do sweeps -- and most cities do it the wrong way. For the Pit Bulls offers some solid suggestions.

10 Foolish thing people do with dogs - from Poochmaster

Have a great holiday week everyone.

Iowa woman found dead from apparent dog attack

This has been a particularly bad week for dog attack fatalities after what had been a really quite late summer/early fall. 

Authorities in Ida Grove, IA found 79 year old Shirley Lou Bird dead on Monday -- with wounds consistent from a dog attack. 

It seems that Bird had a German Shepherd that she used as a watchdog (that was described as aggressive) -- but according to sources, had struggled to control the dog and had been bitten by it before. Authorities believe that she was bitten several times in the legs and arms (with one deep bite wound on the arm specifically mentioned) and went into her bathroom to stop the bleeding.  She got into the bathtub to clean herself up --which is where she was found dead.  Authorities noted that Bird was on blood thinners that would have made it difficult for her blood to clot to stop the bleeding and also made her bleed more quickly.

It's a tragic case but one that should serve as a reminder that if you have a dog that is showing signs of aggression, or that you are having trouble handling, then it is your responsibility for your safety and for the safety of others to seek out professional help to deal with the aggression issues.

My heart goes out to the Bird family.

Thus far, this story has been picked up by 20 news sources.

South Carolina man found dead from apparent dog attack

Dillon, SC police are still investigating an apparent fatal dog attack in the community. Authorities found 25 year old Justin Lane dead on his couch with injuries consistent of a dog attack.

According to friends, Lane got the dog as a puppy, described as a 'pit bull', when it was 6 weeks old. While the dog was usually kept chained up outside, they suspect that he brought the dog indoors due to bad weather the night before. Most reports so far note that the dog had never had aggression issues.

There isn't much info available about the attack at this point, but it certainly doesn't fit the typical profile. I'll provide more info if it ever becomes available. There are a few warning signs here - especially if the man got the dog at 6 weeks and instantly put it on the chain in the back yard.  There is a lot of important socialization and bite inhibition that needs to be learned between 4 and 18 weeks of age. This puppy was taken from its litter too early, and likely not socialized well after that, causing it to likely lack really good bite inhibition.

Even so, it seems like an odd attack with the victim being such a young, apparently healthy, man and also being the dog's owner.

Dillon, SC is a small community of about 6,500 people -- with 26% of them living below the poverty level and 14% living 50% below the poverty level - both nearly double the state average.

The story has been picked up by 7 news  sources so far.

Public voices can save animal lives - Mimi returns home

Mimi is returning home.

Earlier this week, the media in Ft. Worth, TX launched a story about a military veteran, Steven Woods, and the potentially deadly fate of his loved dog Mimi.

In 2006, Woods was severely wounded in a road-side bomb incident while serving in Iraq. Woos was medically discharged from the army with nerve damage, back problems and post traumatic stress disorder.

In order to deal with the depression from the PTSD, Woods' doctor suggested he get a dog (note that according some reports, 18 veterans commit suicide every day due to PTSD).

In July, one of Woods' neighbors claimed that Mimi bit him in the finger. The neighbor met Mimi and originally said that Mimi wasn't the dog that bit him. But then, 3 months later, authorities came and took Mimi and had threated to put her down.

After the story launched, there became a huge amount of support for Woods and Mimi. In a statement released yesterday, the city of Ft. Worth announced:

"Due to an outpouring of concern for Steven woods and his dog, Mimi, the Code Compliance Department has provided the following update on the situation:"

The update included how the city was looking to work with Woods to get his dog back. Today, Mimi officially returned home. 

It is great that the public in Ft. Worth rallied behind this veteran and his dog. It certainly sounds like if the dog is guilty of anything it was a nip, not an attack.  And it shows that the public can make an impact on city policy.

No one (ok, at least almost no one) is in favor of killing animals needlessly. Unfortunately, many cities dismiss killing as if there is nothing else they can do. There is. And public outcry can force the cities to explore other options.

It wasn't long ago that a TV station in Los Angeles decided on a policy against allowing pit bulls and Rottweilers on their shelter pet of the week segment. Days later, due to public outcry, the station changed its policy. In Lucas County, OH, public pressure led the county to begin allowing 'pit bull' type dogs to get out of their shelter and be transferred to the local humane society vs instantly killing all 'pit bulls' in the shelter.

Public outcry can change public policy. And we need more of it to encourage cities to make better animal welfare policies. The politicians often need it as a boost to make the 'right' decision. And the animals need them to be changed. And it is this type of public pressure than can lead to positive changes in shelters and city policies. Such public pressure could encourage shelters, like those in Houston, to change their policies.  Dog owners, and their dogs, in places like Ontario, need public pressure to get their breed-discriminatory policies changed as wll.

The animals need us to create this outcry. Just like in Ft. Worth, we can -- and must -- make our voices heard. Their lives may depend on it.

 

St. Louis Shelter's No Kill Policy saves lives

In 2009, the city of St. Louis killed 1,033 dogs. 

Midway through this year, the city turned over the shelter contract to Stray Rescue - -a not-for-profit group in the city that has a bigger shelter and strong network of foster homes and volunteers.  And while the shelter, while under the city's control was killing 50% of all of the dogs that it was taking in, Stray Rescue has euthanized only 3 in the past few months since taking over the contract -- two because they were terribly ill and one because it was too aggressive to rehabilitate.

While the city shelter only adopted out about 300 dogs in all of 2009, Stray Rescue is adopting out 120 per month (which would be 1,440 over the course of a year -- or 5x that of the city run shelter).

And they're doing it all at a time when the city intake is going to be 1,300 dogs higher than it was a year ago.

It's a pretty amazing success rate -- all at zero cost to the city.

I talk a lot about how shelter reform and getting the right management in place can make a huge difference between shelters that are high kill, and shelters that are no or low kill. This is a perfect example of a shelter that made over-night success by just changing shelter policies and management -- and reinforces that the primary reason we are killing 4 million healthy pets in this country every year has a lot to do with the mentality in too many of our publically funded shelters.  Changing the mentality can lead to saved lives - not in 10 years, but tomorrow. 

h/t: No Kill Nation via Facebook

Update: Another tragic fatality reported today

Update:  Let the media frenzy begin. After the entire media world ignored this story for nearly 2 weeks, the media has now glommed onto it. The Associated Press has now picked up the story and it's beginning to get picked up by a lot of media outlets. The AP story has the headline "Calif woman killed by pit bulls in backyard" -- and all of the media outlets have been picking up the headline also. Only readers that make it all the way down to the 2nd to last paragraph will note that the dogs were mixed breeds. Thanks AP.

********

Authorities in Moreno Valley, CA have confirmed that 53 year old Christina Casey was attacked and killed last week after being fatally attacked by her neighbor's two dogs.  The woman was tragically found dead on November 2, but reports of her death have just recently emerged.  Casey was found by neighbors dead in the back yard of the home she was renting.

According to a previous report, Casey had often complained about the neigbhor's dogs and was actually two days away from moving from her apartment in Moreno Valley -- in part, because of the problems with the two dogs.  The dogs apparently dug under the fence in her yard at some point overnight.

Unfortunately, the dogs were continually allowed to roam outdoors and Casey was attacked, and killed, by the two dogs. The dogs are being described as "large, pit bull/Weimaraner mix" dogs. 

Only two media outlets have picked up this story at this point and because no one was around when Casey was attacked, not much is known about the incident.  But if more details emerge, I will certainly update this post.

It sounds as if several calls had been made to authorities about the dogs being a problem, but the problem was never stopped and the owner continued to allow the dogs to roam at-large. There were ample opportunities to solve the problem but nothing was done. It's a tragic, and senseless death.