Earlier this week, Basehor, KS repealed its 10 year old law targeting certain types of dogs.
In 2003, Basehor passed a law that targeted 'pit bulls', rottweilers and wolf-hybrids with a host of regulations that were almost impossible to meet.
However, Monday at their city council meeting, the city council voted UNANIMOUSLY to amend the ordinance so that it didn't target specific breeds of dogs, and instead, focuses solely on the behavior of the animal. Breeds are no longer mentioned in the ordinance.
Police Chief Lloyd Martley noted that the change made the law more enforceable and that "any dog, no matter the breed, can become vicious if put in the right circumstances".
Exactly.
Meanwhile, in Bloomer, WI, the community has decided to replace its breed ban with restrictions.
Apparently, in 2012, the community decided on a partial lift of the ban by allowing dogs adopted from the local humane society to live in the city if "approved" by a veterinarian.
The rules have now changed so that owners of restricted breeds can own the dogs, regardless of where they got the dogs from, as long as they have a sign off of approval from a veterinarian that the dog is of food temperament.
It's a start.
The changes came when citizens continued to push for lightning up the laws after neighboring communities such as the Village of Waunakee and Watertown changed their ordinances that targeted certain breeds. In Waunakee, specificaly, they noted that the challenges with determining breed identification were very challenging.
Laws targeting specific breeds of dogs are continuing to fall out of favor and are being replaced by breed-neutral laws that target dogs and owners and based on behavior. It's great to see that logic and rational thinking are winning out over hysteria in creating dangerous dog laws.
Very good news indeed to know that laws involving dogs are based on rational thinking and not hysteria.
Posted by: Jan | November 22, 2013 at 11:24 AM
good news lets see how long it takes before all bsl is destroyed
Posted by: Dog hero | November 22, 2013 at 05:51 PM