Hopefully this is the right place to post this.
12th grade English. We had to do a research paper on a controversial issue. I decided to choose something that I already knew a lot about and was interested in.
I Chose Breed Specific Legislation.
Here is the final product. I'm very proud of it. Kudos to you if you read it all. Let me know what you think if you do read it. Obviously no changes will be made since I already turned it in.
I figured some of you would be interested in reading it ;)
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Breed Specific Legislation
There is much controversy surrounding many popular dog breeds in this country. Some claim that certain breeds are naturally “vicious” and should not be bred or kept as pets. These breeds include Rottweilers, German Shepherds, “Pit Bulls”, Akitas, Doberman, and others. What is their solution to these aggressive dogs? Breed Specific Legislation (BSL). BSL is intended to make ownership of certain breeds illegal.
• “BSL is a quick reaction to an incident without education or knowledge.” (www.pbrc.net/breedspecific.html)
Those who are in favor of BSL feel that the public needs to be protected from certain breeds of dogs. Some believe that BSL will help to prevent or even eliminate irresponsible breeding. They believe that the large, powerful breeds do not have a place in cities around large crowds of people. In their opinion, the lack of BSL can hurt dog owners. These laws making Breed Specific Legislation illegal, will make dog owners think that they can own any dog in any setting.
The breed most often blamed as being vicious and attacking or killing innocent people is the “Pit Bull”. The “Pit Bull” is not an actual breed. It is a term used to identify several different breeds such as the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American Bulldog, Bull Terrier and most commonly, the American Pit Bull Terrier. By blaming “Pit Bulls” people are comparing a group of dogs to individual breeds. When an attack occurs, identifying the breed is left to the victim and any witnesses. Most often, the breeds named are wrong. The majority of people are unable to correctly identify breeds.
Labeling a certain breed as aggressive based on the actions of one dog of that breed isn’t very logical. The breed of the dog has nothing to do with this so called “vicious” dog problem. If someone wants an attack dog bad enough, they’ll train any available breed to do so. Lack of training or socialization is what gives certain breeds their bad reputation. People also use certain breeds for illegal or dangerous activities.
It is mostly and issue of ego. Someone sees a big, powerful dog and thinks “Hey. That dog could make me look cooler.” That person then goes out and buys a dog of that breed without knowing what he is getting into. He doesn’t do the proper research. He doesn’t train the dog right. Soon, he is left with a dog who is out of control. Because of his neglect, this dog now doesn’t know how to properly function in society. The dog missed out on the special attention and training that he needs to function correctly among people.
After a dog attacks, he is deemed dangerous. People start looking at the breed differently. When they see any dog of that breed on the street they are scared, they cross the street to avoid the dog. The media plays up the attack. It makes it seem as if the dog was simply looking for a human to kill, that the dog was bloodthirsty. This isn’t the case. Dogs don’t just walk around thinking “You know what, I’m bored. Maybe I should go find a human to kill.” The authorities and the media don’t stop to analyze the situation logically. They jump to conclusions. Behind every attack, there is a reason that attack occurred. Whether that reason is logical in the eyes of the people or not, there is still a reason. The main reason is miscommunication between human and dog. The ignorance of the media leads people to fear the breed. The fear gets to the wrong people, those in charge of changing and making laws. Someone gets the bright idea to make a breed ban. Surely, eliminating those aggressive breeds wills top all dog attacks. What they don’t know is that the same people who abuse these current powerful breeds will move onto another breed. Any breed can be turned into a killer. Instead of punishing the breed, punish the owner. A very popular saying in the anti-BSL world is “Punish the Deed, Not the Breed”. Meaning that these individuals who irresponsibly own these powerful breeds should be punished. Responsible dog owners shouldn’t be punished for the mistakes of others.
Those who are against BSL believe that bad dog behavior is the fault of the owner. They also believe that the media has made things worse. When reporting a dog attack, the media often focuses on the breed of the dog rather than paying close attention to the circumstances in which the attack occurred. They also mainly report dog attacks that were caused by powerful breeds, those breeds that people already fear. You will rarely hear about the neighbors Labrador attacking a child, but you will see dozens reports on “Man-eating Pit Bulls”. It is also very rare for the good Pit Bull stories to be reported.
“Breed specific ordinances are quick fixes and not a sufficient long term solution for the following reasons:
Dog Problems are generally problems with owner responsibility and are not limited to breeds. When breeds are singled out as dangerous or vicious, responsibility is removed for the dog owner, which is where it belongs. Irresponsible people are less likely to follow the law- and as a result, everyone has to suffer.
By limiting the ability of citizens to own certain breeds, responsible law abiding citizens will shy away from those breeds. These are the types of owners that communities need to encourage, not drive away.
Communities that have instituted such bans often to find that the irresponsible owners and the criminals who use dogs for illegal purposes simply switch to another breed.
Breeds and mixes are hard to identify and often dogs are mis-labeled and destroyed based on paranoia and prejudice and also punishes those that are good canine citizens. Many breeds function as assistance dogs for handicapped owners, search and rescue dogs, drug-sniffing dogs, police dogs, etc. and drive them out of the community.
The dog most restricted is the “pit bull”. A pit bull is a type of dog, not a recognized breed.
Passage of laws that are only enforced through complaints cause two problems
1.) They create disrespect for the law if authorities require compliance only upon complaint and
2.) They provide ammunition for neighborhood feuds.” (www.understand-a-bull.com/BSL/aboutBSL.htm
There are plenty of alternatives to breed bans. There are existing dangerous dog laws. People could encourage animal shelters to hold responsible dog ownership seminars. Education is the key. Most people don’t know what they are getting into when they buy certain breeds. They don’t take the time to educate themselves. Those who can, should educate other dog owners.
Many statistics will prove the point that those who are opposed to BSL are trying to make. “25% of all fatal attacks were inflicted by chained dogs. 25% resulted from dogs loose in their yard. 17% resulted from attacks by dogs roaming off their property.” (www.fataldogattacks.com/statistics.html) Looking at these statistics you can see a pattern; irresponsible dog ownership. A good amount of chained dogs aren’t properly taken care of, this involves training and socialization. Not containing your dog is obviously irresponsible. Letting him/her run around in uncontrolled situations will lead to trouble. Dogs should be supervised around new people and in new situations at all times. If the dog is running loose, clearly he is not being supervised.
The American Temperament Society tested several different breeds. The higher the score, the better the temperament. The breeds that fall under the name “Pit Bull” were some of the highest scoring. Between 80%-90% of those dogs tested passed. They all scored higher or equal to Border Collies and Golden Retrievers. Statistics prove that the opinion people have on these “vicious” breeds is false.
The information regarding dog attacks is sometimes misleading. Some cases will show that a German Shepherd or Rottweiler were responsible for a fatal attack. This may be true, but what they fail to report is the situation in which the attack occurred. Most of the time an emaciated animal was involved. Other times a young child was left unsupervised with the dog.
The main reason for anyone supporting Breed bans is ignorance. The majority of people who support BSL are uneducated when it comes to dogs. Most likely, more than half of them could not successfully identify breeds. They have to be uneducated to want to ban a whole breed for the behavior of a few dogs in that breed. No educated person would instantly jump to that, in my opinion. If they took the time to listen to those who are educated, they might be able to come up with a better solution.
Twelve out of the fifty states have made the decision to pass laws that prohibit the banning of certain breeds. California, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, New York, Virginia, Illinois, Maine and Oklahoma are the states that have agreed to not participate in BSL. Ohio, Iowa, Washington, Miami, Denver, Prince Georges County, Boston, Providence, Muskegon, and Bracken County are the ten worst places to own a Pit Bull or any other breed considered dangerous. Georgia, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and West Virginia are other places to avoid if you own those breeds.
In conclusion, many facts and statements seem to lead to one thing, BSL isn’t a practical solution. Once the banned breeds are gone, other breeds will take their place. America’s favorite family pets, the Labrador Retriever and Golden Retriever could be next. Pretty soon, we’ll run out of breeds to ban. Any breed is capable of doing harm. It is true that some can cause more damage than others, but no breed is more likely to be aggressive. Even those breeds that were bred for fighting are not any more likely to become aggressive towards humans than any other breed. Aggression towards other dogs or animals, such as is seen in dog fights, is much different than aggression towards humans. Instead of trying to eliminate these breeds, we should be working to help them, to improve them. Dogs behaviors are easily shaped if you know what you are doing. People shouldn’t rely on “band aid” solutions. We should focus on finding solutions that will continue to help us in the long run.
