Proposed pit bull ban

Issue #62	Date Added	Status
Proposed pit bull ban	Saturday 23rd August 2008 08:36:20 AM	Open

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Brookside city council members are considering a ban on pit bulls after two cats were killed there. Prior to making a decision on this issue, there are some important factors city officials need to consider. The facts do not support breed bans as being effective in reducing dog bites and increasing public safety. Here are some of those facts: • In the spring of 2008, the Netherlands repealed a 10 year ban on pit bulls and other breeds because statistics revealed the ban did not reduce dog bites. • Aurora, Colorado instituted a pit-bull ban two years ago. Since that time, bite incidents have increased 43 percent in the city. • A Scottish study, two years after a breed ban was enacted, found overall dog-bite rates were unchanged. • A study Spain, five years before and five years after the introduction of their Dangerous Animals Act, indicated there was no change in numbers of reported dog bites. • The United Kingdom banned pit bulls in 1991. A study analyzing dog bites for a ten year period has revealed that dog bites have increased by 50% over that ten year period of time. Moreover, the U.K. spent $14 million identifying pit bulls and another $10 million per year in litigation on a law that has proven to be ineffective. • The Canadian city of Calgary enacted dangerous-dog legislation (similar to the alternative legislation proposed by Whitehall Councilman Bob Bailey) in response to an escalating bite problem. The results were incredible. Calgary saw a 21 percent decline in bite incidents, and aggressive-dog incidents have dropped by 56 percent. And the city's animal-control program pays for itself. Police work with animal-control officers in dangerous situations. It is undisputed that "dog problems" in a community stem from and are created by humans. Removing a particular breed of dog from a community does not increase safety because the owners of the banned dogs simply choose another breed of dog to be irresponsible with. As such, the only way to effectively deal with "dangerous dogs" is to focus on irresponsible owners - regardless of the breed of dog they own - and hold them accountable.

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