Thursday, March 03, 2005

Pit Bull Ban in DC?

Today's Post includes an article on Council member Jim Graham's push to ban pit bulls in the District (present pets would be exempted from the ban, but would have to be sterilized). It seems that Graham's past efforts in this area were repeatedly squashed by former Council member Sandy Allen. It isn't clear that the measure will pass, but several members have offered at least reserved support. Council member Marion Barry wants to add rottweilers to the ban. Certainly these are not the only breeds of dogs that can and do seriously injure people. Based on a rather unfortunate interaction with a german shepard, I can tell you they can be pretty aggressive, and I think we all know that a presa canaria can inflict some serious damage. Other council members objected that a breed specific ban would be ineffective. My view is that if you choose to live in the District, you choose to surrender the right to possess/use certain items deemed hazardous. This category includes items like fireworks and handguns (where was it the other day that I heard/saw statistics about what a large portion of guns recovered during drugs busts were shot guns?), but I'm not sure if it should include dogs that have not previously been violent (although when they are violent the cost can be inexcusably high). The question is really about whether we want treat dogs with certain physical characteristics as high risk weapons (we may ban assault rifles, but regard shotguns as acceptable). Certainly the prosecution has treated them that way in some high profile cases (like this and this). Here is a column that The Slate ran a while back on the issue of violent dogs. From The Slate article:
Contrary to stereotype, retrievers, poodles, and other popular breeds are much more likely to bite people than pit bulls or rottweilers. They also, as a rule, do less damage.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I live in a 4 unit building. The other 3 renters are dog owners. The problem starts when one particular neighbor lets her huge pitbull and chow loose in the yard to run free "UNATTENDED". They poop in the yard and they bark and advance at you like they are going to attack. I have a 12 year old daughter and a 66 year old dad here. My daughter is constantly late for school due to the dogs being in the yard unattended at 8am. Talks with the neighbor had no positive results. I am scared and I don't know what to do. Please help! Anyone!!

Anonymous said...

Get in touch with your ward's council member

Stop Making Excuses said...

While bsl is an issue that Pit Bull owners do not want to face, IT IS what the Pit Bulls need!

PitBull Rescuer said...

Pit Bulls are not vicious and are not a hazard to children or the community and if one thinks they are then please do the research. Pit Bulls are no more vicious than Golden Retrievers, Beagles or other popular dogs! In a recent study of 122 dog breeds by the American Temperament Testing Society (ATTS), Pit Bulls achieved a passing rate of 83.9%. That's as good or better than Beagles... 78.2%, and Golden Retrievers ... 83.2%. How did your favorite breed do? See for yourself - go to: www.ATTS.org

Remember its not the dogs fault its the owners fault. The dog only knows what it has been trained to do. I own a Pit Bull she plays with my niece who is almost 6 months old and my nephew who is 3 years old and he pulls on her ears pinches her and she isn't phased one bit. The animals should not be punished it should be the owners who need to be punished.