Breed Specific Legislation
Narrated from: General Info
Are you aware of the government’s intention to make certain breeds illegal in the free country of America? BSL refers to laws being enacted that prohibit certain breeds of dog, not for their actions but for their looks. Hundreds of United States cities and counties have already enacted this breed specific legislation. Even the Marine and Army bases have allowed this legislation to govern their pets. Breed specific legislation bans entire breeds of dogs, nut just dogs that have done something wrong. Many people say the government has over stepped its bounds by banning entire breeds of dogs. Other people feel their own rights are being trampled on while still others say it is unconstitutional. By rushing to judgment our government has managed to place labels on specific breeds of dog instead of the particular dogs that are offenders. This is no different from banning an entire race because a few people do bad things. Everyone needs to take action against this legislation and demand their rights back.
This is not just for the Pit Bull breeds that have such a bad reputation because of people but also includes other large breeds such as German Shepherds, Rottweilers, Doberman Pinschers, mastiffs, Dalmatians and even Chows! You also need to understand that 90% of the populations cannot properly identify a Pit Bull. The breeds most commonly confused for Pit Bulls are the Boxer, Shepherd/Labrador mixes, Rottweiler mixes, Chow mixes, Chesapeake Bay retrievers, mastiffs, Dogue de Bordeaux, and even some large French bulldogs. People that are not dog people and even some who are get the Pit Bull confused with many other breeds. The problem is that there is not one specific breed called a Pit Bull. Pit Bulls were many types of dog breeds who were used to agitate bulls for sporting events, hence the term “Pit Bull.”
How can they ban something they cannot properly identify? Lawmakers promise that dog breed legislation makes communities safer but not one single study has been able to confirm this. Any breed of dog will be very aggressive when they are not properly socialized as puppies. This is a people issue and not a dog issue so the legislation has not altered the dog bite statistics over the course of the eighteen years that the bans have been in place. The legislation fails to address the root of the problem. These laws are also impossible to enforce. With identification being such a major issue, it would be impossible to attain any accurate information from victims or witnesses. The only accurate way of identifying breed make up is to use DNA testing, but it is not used because of its cost. Additionally breed specific legislation is a very costly venture for the tax payers of the affected areas of the United States. The costs rise for enforcement of these laws, the housing and euthanasia of the dogs that are supposed to be identified as banned breeds and law suits by citizens who claim that their dog is not one of the selected breeds and there have been lawsuits filed against Denver, Colorado because they killed a service dog that happened to be on the breed ban list. We, as pet lovers, need to stand up and fight this expensive, ineffective legislation before the police come in to our homes and take all our pets away!
to top of the page Previous Next