Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Stop Breed Specific Legislation

In light of what happened to Lennox last week in Belfast, Northern Ireland, I'm following along with many of my fellow bloggers, including Sleeps With Dogs and my buddy Z on LiveJournal. I posted about Lennox before, and if you want to read somebody more versed and more experienced, this is Jim Crosby's very articulate post on how he feels the case was "handled", and his breakdown of a video of Lennox's behavioral evaluation.



Lennox was not killed because he was a dangerous or vicious dog. Lennox was killed because he looked like a "pit bull", which is a dog banned in Northern Ireland as a result of the Dangerous Dogs Act. Shit like this happens in our country as well, people. In Denver, Colorado, for instance.   Maryland is making gestures towards it. At least one county in Florida has it. Ohio had it and, thankfully, dropped it.

Breed Specific Legislation does not reduce dog bite incidents. Breed Specific Legislation kills dogs.


The only way, I feel, to reduce dog bite incidents and dog attacks is to educate people about dogs. That's everybody. Educate dog owners on how to properly raise, train, and socialize their dogs. Educate the general public on the basics of dog behavior and how one should or should not behave around a dog. Start with little kids, as they're learning about the world. Include it in school, with canine guest speakers and visitors. You can't force people to learn, unfortunately, but you can try to educate. You can try to be informative, and friendly, and prove them wrong by example, with responsible dog ownership.

What happened to Lennox could happen to any dog. It could happen to a Doberman. It could happen to a German Shepherd. It could happen to a Rottweiler. It could happen to a Boxer. I am, without equivocation, against Breed Specific Legislation, and feel it needs to be stopped.


24 comments:

  1. Doesn't it just break your heart? I completely agree with you about education, just because you don't own a dog doesn't mean you don't encounter dozens a day. There is no excuse for this ignorance.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's really surprising to me how many people are "illiterate" about dogs and their behavior. Even the simple things like "don't stare" and "don't run" can be gleaned from casual television watching!

      Delete
  2. We talked about Lennox and the Breed Specific Legislation. It is frustrating and I agree that it's full of crap.

    I also agree that people should be educated and informed about dog behavior rather than ban dogs that are innocent.

    Huggies and Cheese,

    Haopee

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's funny to me how behaviorally devoid education is; we really don't talk about people behavior, either, until somebody does something wrong. School really needs to get overhauled.

      Delete
  3. Well said. Have a lovely Wednesday.
    Best wishes Molly

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great post. I completely agree! It's not the breed, it's the people!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. People create the breeds, people create the laws, and then when there are problems...it's those dang [pit bulls], [German Shepherds], [Dobermans]....

      I may not have done well when I took Logic in college, but I still detect a fallacy here.

      Delete
  5. I feel bad about what happened to Lennox. Unfortunately people are always more then willing to trade their liberty for some perceived freedom. Most regulation concerning dogs does little to solve the perceived problems.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And trade their liberty for the amorphous notion of "safety".

      It would make far more sense to have a "Dangerous Dogs Act" that had more to do with, y'know, danger. Rather than anticipation of threat. Pit Bulls aren't the Red Menace!

      Delete
  6. What a moving post! Fix the people first. :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh you're so right. It's just crazy, and the result of another fad in people's prejudices. Today pit bulls, next decade something else. Thank you for spreading the word and raising awareness of what needs to happen--I hope change comes in Maryland and everywhere!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I can sincerely hope that change will occur, and legislators will get sane about dogs!

      Delete
  8. What a great post! And you really touch on what needs to be done - people don't believe this about dogs out of experience - most have never even met a pit bull - they believe it out of ignorance, fear and lies. The only way to combat *that* is education.

    That Jim Crosby post was excellent, too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rumor is a nasty thing, and for some reason is able to take firmer hold than facts. I'll never understand it; I guess it's one reason why we like gossip and urban legends so much.

      I'm thrilled to have found Jim Crosby's blog...I think Dogster linked to him, a month or so ago? His experience is invaluable, and I was so glad to have his eye on this story.

      Delete
  9. BSL could include Poodles too if some of the animal rights groups had their way to get rid of all pet dogs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah yes, the animal "rights" groups agenda. Another garment rending, hair pulling topic that is entirely inexplicable.

      One of these days, I'll stop being surprised that people are crazy.

      Delete
  10. Truth is that Dobermans, Chows, German Shepherds, Siberian Huskies, and many more breeds are on dangerous dog lists kept by insurance companies all over the country. While having a dog on an insurance company's list won't result in its death, it could result in a family not getting coverage for an unrelated claim if they have a dog on the No Coverage list.

    Although I don't have a dog on the list, I keep my insurance through State Farm because they don't discriminate by breed.

    It's important to look at our homeowner's insurance company to be sure we're not supporting a prejudice we don't want to support.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for bringing up this point! State Farm is one of the very few insurance groups that does not discriminate by breed.

      Our homeowner's company does insure us, but at a slightly higher fee because of the dog ownership. I don't THINK it's breed based, though my insurance agent might have been afraid to tell me. I do know that Sterling Insurance, as an example, will NOT insure if you have a Doberman. They were our homeowner's company prior to getting Elka.

      Delete
  11. Education on how to live with Dogs is sadly lacking - and I'm talking about all Dogs, not just specific breeds - I like your suggestion about it being taught in schools - it's a great way to start - it's the humans who need to change and they're the only ones who can change the situation…..

    Wags to all

    Your pal Snoopy :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. People just need to get more Dog Wise, or at least less Dog Frantic.

      I hear tell that some people visit schools with canine ambassadors, to give lessons on that very thing.

      Delete
  12. You are soooo right about the education part. It's not just the general public who lacks education about this stuff. So many dog lovers don't realize that things they do can make the BSL situation worse.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Especially with non dog people, it's so very easy to allow or reinforce image damaging opinions. Some breeds need all the help they can get, but dogs in general would benefit from more humans getting dog-educated!

      Delete