Tax money would be better used for prevention. Educate people, enforce leash laws and licensing, establish a fund to allow owners cheaper options to spay or neuter a pet. Dogs that are not spayed or neutered are twice as likely to be aggressive. Dogs kept outside at all times on chains are also twice as likely to be aggressive. Provide assistance to low-income dog owners so they can take their pet to basic puppy classes or at least give them a class or two teaching them basic training skills. Pass dangerous dog laws and focus on all the dogs in the city. Hold owners accountable for their pets’ behavior.

Focusing on one breed will cause people to keep their dogs hidden or choose a different breed and resume illegal activities with a “legal” breed. Any breed of dog can be trained to fight or be a brutal guard.

Pit bulls are high on the list as far as being considered dangerous. This is the ultimate “bad” breed based on your current stereotype. There was a time when pit bulls were the leading dog breed among people who had children. Our Gang is an old show that was more popular after it added sound in 1929. In 1955 the name was changed to The Little Rascals. It is about a group of poor little kids. Petey, who was an American Pit Bull, was added in the 1920’s and stayed until the 1940’s. He hung out with these little boys with no worries or fear of aggression.

The reputation of this breed has deteriorated to the point where they are shot by police and euthanized by shelters. They are considered abandoned fighting dogs, neglected and considered out of control. Some of them have been aggressive, for which the whole breed is punished. This is true for other larger breeds like the German Shepherd, Doberman, and Rottweiler, for example. Recently, they have focused most of their attention on the pit bull.

Dogs that even look like pitbulls are sanctioned. They are taken from their loving homes and placed in shelters where they will eventually euthanize the animal. DNA testing is expensive and often not done to be sure of the animal’s breed. Stray dogs that look like pit bulls never get a chance to live in a loving home, they are not adopted but put to sleep.

Banning a certain breed will not reduce dog attacks. There are different reasons for aggression. Many people blame the owners, which may be a factor. A study at http://www.appliedanimalbehaviour.com/article/S0168-1591(13)00292-X/abstract shows that it is not the breed that makes a dog dangerous.

Breed specific legislation instills a false sense of security in society. People believe that they are safe from dog attacks because a certain breed is restricted when, in fact, any breed can become aggressive. Many dog ​​attacks go unreported. The terrifying miniature poodle goes unreported because it’s small and people don’t feel threatened. If Fifi attacks, chances are you won’t even rip your pant leg.

Atts.org tests temperaments of different breeds and documents them. The American Pit Bull Terrier got a rating of 86.8%. That’s safer than the beagle that gets to 80%.

I had a pit bull and moved to another state where they had previously been banned. Laws keep changing because many people are fighting against this law. One day I took my Georgie to the store with me. Animal control stopped me and she asked me if she knew pit bulls were against the law. I told him I didn’t think Georgie was purebred. That’s when she told me the laws were changing and you could have a Pit mix and she thought my dog ​​looked like a mixed breed. She made sure she had his license and took my name and address. I thought she was going to lose my dog ​​and might have if it had been a few months earlier. This would have been heartbreaking and unnecessary.

They were mother and son but totally different. Tessa was Georgie’s mother and the best dog I’ve ever had. She seemed to adapt to my commands naturally. She listened to everything I told her to do. She was totally uninformed about socialization and training, so she was the perfect dog for me. Georgie, on the other hand, was deaf and she had to learn her hand movements. It was more of a challenge and she never learned the number of commands her mother knew. This confirms that two dogs of the same breed can be totally different.

I would love to see pet stores and shelters come together and establish a system where the public could be aware of simple facts about dogs. This information must be readily available to the public. All dog owners need to understand why it is important to teach a dog to fit in with everyone.