The message that follows was sent to the owner/webmaster/administrator at a site called Stop Pit Bull Attacks I just thought I would take it upon myself to inform him or her of the possible implications the breed specific bans they so fervently support could have on their community, the lovely area of Independence, Missouri. Ignorance is inexcusable.

“To Whom it May Concern, I really hope you read this email, and I hope even more that you have the mental capacity understand what I am going to try to tell you.

The only thing promoting breed specific bans is going to do is cause Pit Bull breeding and ownership to go underground. This will actually make Pit Bull ownership more appealing to people who want to own these dogs for all the wrong reasons, while responsible owners are forced to give up their companions and be prevented from owning Pit Bulls in the future. The only thing your petition is going to do is hurt caring owners that love their well-behaved and wonderful animals. BSL is just going to lead to more violence and abuse of an already mistreated breed. You think Pit Bulls are a ‘fad’ breed now, wait and see what happens when every drug dealer and dog fighter NEEDS to have one due to the fact that they are no longer allowed in public. Your petition is singlehandedly making it more likely for hundreds of thousands of Pit Bulls to endure mistreatment at the hands of these unsavory types of people. I do not think that is something a self proclaimed “dog lover” would stand behind.

Breedism is no different than racism, and after reading your site ad nauseum, I have to assume that you are the kind of person who thinks its ok to have black people and white people still drinking out of separate water fountains. Since when do we punish an entire race of anything for the actions of a few? Did you ever stop for a minute and think that maybe all of this negative Pit Bull press exists because you want it to, because you want to be afraid of Pit Bulls. Yes, you may have been convinced by the media that they look scary, and I have personally met very few Pit Bulls that enjoy the company of cats or other small animals, but human aggression is NOT a normal trait of a Pit Bill. I am sure if you took a closer look at the extenuating circumstances in place during all Pit Bull attacks you would see that these incidents were not unprovoked, but instead came as a result of people being irresponsible and ignorant. I am truly compassionate for people that have been involved in dog attacks, no one should have to endure something as traumatizing as that. But at the end of the day it is the owner that should be punished for not properly training and taking care of a dog that they probably already knew was aggressive - most dogs involved in these attacks have actually been trained to attack humans. On the off chance that the whole story is given when a Pit Bull attack makes the news I can guarantee you will see what I am talking about.

Case in point:
London Free Press - Girl Bit in Face By Pit Bull
In this Pit Bull attack the child was LEFT ALONE with the dog while the dog had a bone. The child was obviously not yet old enough or never told to not try to take the dog’s bone away, and do to the mother’s irresponsible choice to leave her baby alone with the dog, the child was hurt. This dog did not just snap and bite the child for no reason, it did what most dogs will do when not properly trained to allow their toys to be taken, it tried to get the toy back. Just one of the many cases of a careless owner that eventually led to the euthanization of an innocent Pit Bull and more negative media attention.

No dogs should ever be left alone with children, even a Jack Russel can kill a child. If you are doubting me, read the story yourself - WKYT, Kentucky

All dog owners need to be committed to properly taking care of their animals and making sure incidents like this do not happen. Instead of wasting all of your energy trying to ban, and inevitably abuse more, Pit Bulls, why don’t you shift your focus to responsible ownership? I am all for a petition calling for dog owners everywhere to take proper precautions to make sure they are raising a well-balanced and non-aggressive canine.

As for the Siegfried and Roy incident that you mention on your site - where do you get off comparing a dog to a TIGER?! You are really grasping at straws here buddy.

If you wish to contact me back regarding this matter I would love to hear your response, I also have a website of my own that I encourage you to visit in your leisure. Unlike your website, I welcome comments from anyone who wishes to leave them, even if their opinions are different than my own. I will be featuring this correspondence as well as a link to your site as today’s post.

Best regards,
Amanda S.
Founder, Save A Bull

FACTS (in case you missed them):

1. Since 1998, the breed most involved in fatal attacks has been Rottweilers (sorry to rat you out guys).
2. Over the 32-year period from 1965-2001, Pit Bulls have been blamed for/accused of an average of 2.48 human fatalities per year.
3. About 40 people (children) per year die by drowning in 5-gallon water pails - maybe we should ban those too??
4. Approximately 50 children in the US are killed every year by their cribs.
5. Approximately 150 people are killed every year by falling coconuts. You are more than 60 times more likely to be killed by a palm tree than a Pit Bull.
6. Each year, 350 people drown in their bathtubs.
7. Every year, more than 2,000 children in the U.S. are killed by their parents or guardians either through abuse or neglect. A child is more than 800 times more likely to be killed by a caretaker than a Pit Bull.
8. The average Number of people killed by a Pit Bull each year is 3.
9. It can be estimated that for every Pit Bull who kills, there are 10.5 MILLION that DON’T!

This country wants to ban/destroy 10.5 million innocent dogs for the actions of 0.94% of its category?

Ban Bathtubs, Not Pit Bulls.”

 

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