In 1998, Puerto Rico passed legislation that banned "pit bulls" and "Pit bull mixes" from the island. Earlier this week, they made a major step in repealing the 1998 ban when their www.elnuevodia.com%2Favanzalalegalizaciondelospitbulls-637470.html&sl=es&tl=en&hl=en">legislature passed a bill to repeal this ban. (this article was run through Google Translate, so it's a little rough to read).  The bill now just waits final signature from Governor Luis Fortuno.

The removal of the ban was strongly supported by the College of Veterninarians in Puerto Rico as well as the Pit Bull Association of Puerto Rico.

It is estimated 50,00 'pit bulls' currently live in Puerto Rico -- and because of the ban, more than 3,000 were killed in the past 2 years alone.

As people learn more and more about 'pit bulls' and the ineffectiveness of the laws that target them, more and more places are deciding to repeal their bans in favor of more effective (and rational) dangerous dog legislation that targets the dog based on its behavior, not "breed".

Here's a second article, with the same, yet somewhat contradictory numbers (including some different population numbers, which should have translated well). 

Congrats to the people and veterinarians in Puerto Rico.

Hat Tip to Jodi at Bless the Bullies on this, which is where I saw the news first.

So, I was out of town last weekend getting some much needed R&R, so I have two weeks worth of news to go through today, so I'll probably be a lot shorter on commentary today. There is a LOT of stuff going on out there in the BSL/No Kill worlds, so I should have a good week of stuff coming up. For now, onto the roundup.

Cities and Laws

A host of cities in California rushed through talks of municiple bans on cat declawing before the state law that prohibits such bans takes effect. Santa Monica and San Francisco each passed restrictions that call for potential jail time for violators who declaw their cats. Los Angeles is also considering such a law. While I don't personally support cat declawing, I do think outlawing it is short-sighted and will impede progress in the no kill movement.

Hays, KS is still talking about potential restricions on owners of particular breeds of dogs. If you are in Hays, be sure to keep in touch with your commissioners.

Independence, KY has a new ordinance that allows animal control officers to declare a dog dangerous based on its behavior -- even before it bites.  Independence had been discussing breed specific regulations, but realized that targeting laws based on behavior vs breed is more effective.

Elkhart County, IN is looking at a new animal control ordinance that could end up being breed-specific.

Shelter experts in Elgin, IL recommended to the city to NOT go with Breed Specific Regulations. Experts across the country are unanimously opposed to breed specific regulations because they are not effective, and not warranted.

Mandatory Spay/Neuter ordinance is withdrawn from the city of New Orleans -- which is great news.

Jackson, TN also voted down a push for mandatory spay/neuter in their community.

Dallas' Mandatory Spay/Neuter ordinance is taxing local groups that are trying to help low-income pet owners comply with the law.

Dog bites and attacks

In Tulsa, a 1 year old girld was critically injured when she wandered outside unattended and up to a 'pit bull' that was owned by the family while it was eating.  I actuaally am pretty pleased that Fox News in Tulsa actually covered the fact that the dog being chained as its primary form of containment was a bad idea, and that children shouldn't be left alone around dogs -- particularly when they are eating.

A Vista, CA boy is recovering after being attacked by two Rottweilers.

Another dog attack in Omaha -- this one involving a Rottweiler. Omaha continues to have an increase in dog bites in the city after focusing all of their emphasis on particular breeds of dogs instead of upon responsible dog ownership.

A Labrador Retriever  in Pindale, WY killed a small Pomeranian. While many people continue to hold onto the idea that only pit bulls are dog aggressive, the reality remains that dog aggression -- while usually minor -- can manifest itself in all breeds without appropriate socialization.

A six year old girl in Indianapolis was bitten in the face by a Husky mix at her insurance office.

A nine year old Australian girl sustain major facial injuries after being bitten by the family's Alaskan Malamute that wanted to eat her breakfast.

A 65 year old North Carolina woman has been upgraded from critical condition to serious condition after being attacked by a pack of wild dogs.

An 11 year old Provo, UT boy was attacked by a German Shepherd that jumped the fence and attacked him.

A 10 year old Texas boy was attacked by a stray "German Shepherd".  Neighbors said the dog had been roaming the neighborhood for several days.

Some dogs in Bulgaria were put down after a child was killed by a group of street dogs. The dogs are a bunch of skinny mongrel dogs.  Dogs that become aggressive come in all shapes and sizes...it is upbringing and training that matter.

Abuse Cases

Memphis Mayor AC Wharton fired Animal Services Director Ernst Alexander this week. Investigations into the horrific abuse cases associated with the shelter are ongoing, but Alexander is now justifiably out.

An off duty state trooper in Elkhart, IA shot a Labrador Retriever he said was being aggressive. The owners think the action was unneccessary.

A Cambridge, MD man is facing 8 charges on counts of animal cruelty for the way he was keeping a litter of pit bull puppies in the dark with no room to exercise.

A breeder in Denver has been accused of selling sick and dying puppies to unsuspecting families. This is why if you want to get a new pet, you should either adopt, or get one from a well-respected breeder.

The Humane Society in Hamilton, OH is seeking help for a 'pit bull' pup that was rescued and was nearly starved to death.

Positive Press

Some positive press out in Denver surrounding a fundraising event for Colorado Pit Bull Rescue.

From the Toledo area, "Dog Advocate says 'pit bulls' are unfairly demonized". It's a great article -- nice job Ledy. Here's another story on her presentation.

The National Dog Show (televised on Thanksgiving Day) will feature some alumni of the show with a particular spotlight on Therapy Dogs. One of the therapy dogs will be Rufus, a Bull Terrier that won best in show in 2005.  Rufus would be included in breed bans across the US as one of the "pit bull' breeds. "Rufus dispells so many myths", says commentator David Frei. "Some communities target the breed, calling them dangerous merely based on appearance. Of course, it's ridiculous, and Rufus is out there proving how ridiculous it is. He adores children."

KCMO has welcomed some new canines to their police force.

A pit bull brings joy to residents of an assisted living facility in Florida.

Animal Advocates trying to clear misconceptions about pit bulls - this from Salt Lake City.

Miscellanious

A four year old boy was hit by a train while chasing his dog that got away. The boy will be ok (thankfully), but even more reinforcement behind the idea that people should take special efforts to train their dog to "come" for their own safety, as well as the safety of the dog.

A Fresno family has been forbidden from ever owning pit bulls again after they have had three aggressive dogs seized from them. Seems like they should keep them from owning ANY dog again, no just 'pit bulls'. By cracking down on problem owners like this we can make a real difference in public safety.

Critics in San Francisco are accusing the SPCA of valuing money over animal welfare.

A really good audio piece by Ryan O'Meara in the UK about how the Country-wide breed ban is costing the taxpayers in the UK millions of pounds, and has done nothing to improve pubic safety.

What a dog can do that Mike Vick can't -- a good feature on how one of Mike Vick's therapy dogs, Leo, is changing how kids perceive pit bulls -- in a way that Mike Vick could never do.

What Happens in Vegas Doesn't Stay in Vegas -- Winograd takes an empassioned view from the Best Friends Conference in Las Vegas on moving the No Kill Movement forward.

Sixteen month old Destiny Marie Knox is dead after being attacked by a dog.  The information coming in about the story is spotty, at best, at this point, but here is what we think we know.

Destiny was supposedly staying at a babysitter's mobile home off County Road 87  just outside of New Ablany, MS.  The dog was one of at least 5 'pit bulls' on the property  that were always left chained up outside.  However, the dog somehow slipped out of its collar as the family was bringing groceries into the house, got through the open door, and attacked the young toddler.

While the story itself is tragic, what may be more tragic is the reaction of the officials that were interviewed that are already taling about "legislation" and "dog laws".  But none of that will fix the problem we have here.

New Albany, like much of Missisissippi, has a very high percentage of its population living below poverty level (Mississippi as a whole is nearly 20%, New Albany is just below that). And this isn't the first incident of a significant tragedy along this stretch of County road 87 outside of New Ablany.  Eighteen months ago, a child was killed due to child abuse along the same county road. Also on the property, which happened to also be a puppy mill, were over 180 dogs -- many of which were also victims of cruelty.

While it is "easy" for officials to blame a particular breed of dog in this incident, it's much more difficult for them to acknowledge a larger social issue at play here -- one that is at play in many parts of the country. In pockets across the US, we have have groups of people who are low-income and poorly educated....and many of these areas suffer a lot from violence. It appears that this stretch of County Road 87 is no different. And while we can talk things like dog breeds, it is really a distraction from the much larger issue -- which is that as a part of the overall lack of education that comes in these poor areas, so follows the lack of education on how we should properly keep our pets.  Chaining continues to show itself as a horrible way to keep a dog as its primary form of containment -- and often leads to other issues -- including, often, aggression -- especially among those it has not been socialized with (in this case, a toddler who was not a member of the home).

Until we start realizing tragedies like this for what they are, a small part of a larger social issue, we will never make any progress in solving the problem. Breed of dog does not matter...but how the dogs are cared for does.

My heart goes out to all of the families involved in this tragedy.

I'll post more updates as they become available. At this point, only the Tupelo Newspaper and two of the local Tupelo TV stations are covering the incident, so information is coming in pretty slowly.

For the life of me, I have no idea why media people can't seem to even get the simplest things right when it comes to discssions on 'pit bulls'. Even those who are not being malicious in their content still don't seem to make even the faintest effort to understand pit bulls, or what is going on with them.

And while at least the recent Newsweek online article isn't malicious, it still has completely missed the point.

One glaring inaccuracy in the article stems around the total number of dogs that exist in the U.S. While the article quotes the number as being 61 million (no source is given), the 2006 AVMA Census gives a number of 72 million -- and growing -- so it is likely even greater than that now.

The article then goes on to say that the biggest "problem with pit bulls" is that people adopt these dogs for all the wrong reasons. Ok, I'm with her so far. But her reasons aren't the biggest problem for pit bulls by any stretch. She says that many people get the dogs for guard dogs -- but notes that they make for lousy guard dogs because they are too people-friendly. In some ways I do agree with this -- as dogs used for guarding tend to be trained to be aggressive toward all new humans without any ability to determine a friend vs a stranger*.  I also agree that 'pit bulls' often make bad guard dogs because of their friendliness - and in fact, are such bad guard dogs that they often struggle to keep THEMSELVES from getting stolen.

*I think we often give dogs WAY too much credit in their ability to tell a friend from a stranger. Given that many people can't determine if a new person is of ill-intent or not until it's too late, it is unrealistic to think a dog could make this determination. The result often ends up with a dog that is aggressive toward all new people.

The other "problem" the writer notes is that she thinks people get one just because Rachael Ray has one -- and that the trendiest of owners want a blue pit bull because they are rare.

People who want a dog as a fashion statement ala Racheal Ray are not the pit bull's biggest problem - -not by a long shot. These people are the problem for many breeds like Cavelier King Spaniels, Pugs and English Bulldogs who want dogs with a certain "look" that are encouraging the breeding of dogs for looks at the expense of the overall health of the dogs. They are also the problem for the high-priced "designer mutts" like Puggles and Labadoodles.  But if someone wants a 'pit bull' as a fashion statement ala Rachael Ray, this is a far smaller problem than if someone wants one as a fashion statement ala Michael Vick.

But even THAT may not be the biggest problem facing 'pit bulls' right now. It's when writers like this one declare "pit bulls are public enemy #1".  They aren't -- or at least certainly shouldn't be. And it is this perception, brought on repeatedly by writers like this one that spur issues like Breed Specific Legislation -- which the writer alludes to in one sentence at the very end of the story. It seems to me that the laws and restrictions that are created specifically against 'pit bulls' is their biggest problem. It is these laws that prevent them from being able to be adopted in many good homes. It is these laws that often prevent shelters from adopting them out at all. It is these laws that force otherwise good dogs in otherwise good homes to meet almost certain death in the shelters.

Go ahead and read the article. It really isn't all bad and is actually a little empathetic toward the plight of pit bulls in this country. But it's just painful when the news media can't do enough research to get basic stats right -- or to understand the topics they're writing about.

When Rachael Ray fans are the biggest problem facing 'pit bulls' in this country, then I will not have much to do here as a blogger...

UPDATE:  Newsweek has a SECOND editorial on the topic -- This story is actually by the same author as the first one -- but this one actually makes sense.  Here's a quote:

My reporting revealed that my issue isn’t with the dog – it’s with people. We are the ones that are ultimately responsible for the dogs – including the dog’s reputation. Pit bull owners have to be realistic about the potential for their dogs to do damage. It’s a dog. If you can concede that all dogs can potentially cause problems,  that means yours can too. And the haters, don’t go into a feeding frenzy of misinformation. It’s ugly.