Why breed specific dog laws are supid

[TuMicks]

Not to mention STUPID... (sorry about the typo)

Dog Refuses To Leave Injured Owner CBS Baltimore

I believe these ordinances are the result of legislators going on a search for a problem to solve. Our last dog obedience class had a massive pit bull in it. The dog acted as if he was on Valium. So laid back.

This class has a wolf-shepherd cross that is only 18 mos. old and non-neutered. Huge animal. Also seems sweet enough.

But then, these dogs are owned by people who want obedient tractable pets. So, in as much as some breeds and mixes are problems, go after the stupid people who own them.

[ZEKESMAN]

+1 I am a die hard lab fan but people don't know what loyal is unless they have owned a pit.

[JenC]

I've only known wonderful pits. I think most people are idiots, that why you have "bad" dogs and breed specific legislation...

[Sir Winston]

I agree. There are also bad bloodlines for virtually every "pure breed" of dog out there. It's the people breeding on aggressive characteristics and mistreating their animals who need to be singled out.

[POPTOP]

Unfortunately the ACs around here are stuffed with pit bulls, mostly badly bred. Every time the local AC has an event, so many of their past "residents" are there and I got to say, with owners who know the breed and proper training, as sweet a dog as you'd ever want to meet.

These type laws should be written with the focus on the owner, not the breed.

[Meeps83]

So funny! DH and I had a conversation about this last night and almost verbatim we echoed everyone's thoughts and feelings so far!

[Maxx&Emma]

I love many breeds, including Am Staffs and bully breeds in general. I find it very sad when a dog are blamed for behavior instilled by an idiot.

[K10]

One of our two dogs is a pitbull mix, and we've fostered several pitbulls. Obviously we think pitbulls are completely wonderful. If I compare the number of aggressive lab mixes I've met vs the number of aggressive pitbull mixes I've met... guess which one is greater? Not pitbulls.

I'll trust a pitbull over the media any day.

[Abulafia]

I admit that I have had only bad experiences w/ pit bulls. I do blame this on owners, but the experiences were so bad that I avoid these dogs at all costs. Even recently, we have friends who took on a "farm dog lab mix" (they told us) that—obvious upon meeting the pup and later confirmed by them—was a mix of a lot of things, and may have had some lab, but was clearly a lot pit and not well bred.

This dog, about Hoku's age, was sort of adorable while very young—but she also very aggressively hounded Hoku. They played... sort of. But it was this much smaller dog just harassing Hoku, for the most part, grabbing her neck and ears and, frankly, "playing" in an unsuitably aggressive way. I can't fault the owners for this, because the dog was in obedience. They were trying. (Though I also don't think they took it seriously enough, as the dog was so small—perhaps 15 lbs—at the time.)

We hadn't seen the dog (or family) in a while, but tried again ... a month or so ago. Hoku was by then *much* larger than the pitx, but the dog *again* just relentlessly attacked Hoku. Immediate neck and ear biting, way too much boxing to be safe, and it wasn't just a brief "puppy crazy" thing that would calm down. Hoku was done with the interaction, wanted to go into calmer play, and this dog wouldn't give up. The owners were holder her, trying to calm her, and the dog—yes, yes, all tail wags—was squirming and whining to be let go... and go after Hoku.

We had to interrupt that encounter swiftly, which led to a hasty and premature retreat from a planned dinner. But I couldn't risk Hoku learning to bully from a bully of a dog. I also didn't want her either to be hurt or to lash out and hurt.

I apologized to the family for our retreat (which I don't regret at all), and never heard back. They clearly felt that we were overreacting. Whatever. I'm not going to risk my own pup's safety and training to please others.

This weekend, we had Hoku in a local park, and a woman w/ a pit bull came along the path. She stopped and looked worried: "Uh, my dog.... she's not good with any other dogs. Please move them to the side." I yelled back "reactive dog!" and we got Hoku and her pal off the trail. But...

Anyway. This *is* about the owners, of course... but probably also about bad breeding. I don't know. I'm not for breed-specific legislation, but I don't think that these dogs—whose extreme loyalty can be what makes them reactive and dangerous—should be had by many owners who have them.

And I personally want nothing to do with them. Don't want them to be illegal, but sure as heck don't want one in my neighborhood. (And yes: there are actual, frightening events behind my phobia, though they involve criminal activity, dog abuse, [by others] and my pregnancy, and I don't want to relive that here!)

I think this is really about breeding and training. I'll grant that. But ... pit fighting is alive and well, and not all dogs are bred for the temperaments that makes them good city or neighborhood dogs.

[Abulafia]

Also: Yes, I think that "lab mixes" can also be horrible, and I've only actually been bitten by a springer spaniel, and a golden retriever. I understand it's a phobia. But it is a fact that a lot of people do breed pits as weapons, and that will inevitably affect those of us who have to deal w/ such (in larger cities, for instance).