Title: Pit Bull Bans: Narrowing the Noose Around American Boxers
Author: Tracy Hargraves
Pit Bull Bans: Narrowing the Noose Around American Boxers
There has been much ado about pit bulls in the press over
the past couple of years. One of the commonly reported
stories involves municipalities and other local communities
that have elected to ban or tightly regulate pit bulls.
The debate has grown rather intense as to whether to not
people should be prevented from owning pit bulls.
There is a growing chorus of people who are calling for a
complete ban on pit bull ownership. These people contend
that pit bulls inherently are a dangerous breed. On the
other hand, there are pit bull owners and supporters who
maintain that not all pit bulls are dangerous to be around.
The Nature of Pit Bulls
There are some biological factors associated with pit bulls
that must be kept in mind when trying to analyze the debate
regarding whether or not pit bulls should be banned. First
of all, pit bulls have jaws that are qualitatively
different from the jaws of other breeds of dogs. Some
experts actually have described the jaws of a pit bull to
be more akin to the jaws of a crocodile as opposed to a dog.
The jaws of a pit bull are exceptionally strong. And, the
manner in which the pit bull jaw is constructed permits it
to literally lock onto its target and remain in that
position. It nearly is impossible to pry a pit bull's jaw
open once it has clamped down on a target.
Beyond the manner in which the jaw is "constructed" many
experts also argue that pit bulls by nature are violent
dogs. Much in the same way that a lion or tiger
biologically is dangerous so is the pit bull.
Actual Case Studies Involving Pit Bulls
There is an ever growing list of instances in which pit
bulls have attacked human beings -- seriously injuring them
or even killing them. Typical of these occurrences is what
happened to a middle aged woman in Elizabeth, Colorado, in
November of 2003. She was outside her barn tending to her
horses when a pack of three pit bulls -- owned by a
neighbor -- came upon her. These pit bulls ended up
attacking her relentlessly for 45 minutes until she was
dead.
More shocking still was the fact that these dogs had
attacked before. And, of course, this was not an isolated
incident.
The Position of Pit Bull Owners
As with any controversy, there are two sides to the pit
bill debate. Pit bull owners and supporters maintain that
they are lovable and loving dogs. If trained and reared
correctly, these dogs are not aggressive. In fact, pit
bull owners have put up a strong fight on many fronts --
publicly, in the courts -- to be able to maintain their
pets. These owners and supporters really do seem to be
pulling out all of the stops to defend what they consider
their right to continue to own the breed of dog of their
choice, a breed of dog that they maintain is not more
dangerous than any other. (Of course, many other people
maintain that there is mounting evidence to the contrary.)
The Final Analysis
When all is said and done, public safety necessarily needs
to come first. Therefore, the debate in regard to whether
or not people should be permitted to own pit bulls has to
revolve around how the public can best be kept safe in the
most prudent and appropriate manner.
Whether it is nurture or nature, the sad reality is that
many innocent people continue to be attacked and even
killed by pit bulls on a regular basis.
About the Author:
Do not miss your chance to include your pet into beautiful
portrait painting. Tracy Hargraves from
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transforming ordinary pet photos into lasting pet portrait
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2 comments:
This article is nonsense. The author quotes "experts" but does not name these "experts" nor provide the scientific studies that would back these extravagant claims.
No less than Dr. I. Lehr Brisbin, Ph.D., Emeritus Faculty at the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory has studied dogs for decades and found that the jaw and musculature of a "pit bull" is no different from that of any dog of comparable size and build, and there is no evidence of a mechanism for a "locking jaw".
There are key elements overlooked or ignored in all the hysteria and misinformation about dogs. They are (a) properly written non-breed specific animal control laws with appropriate penalties, and (b) enforcement. Animal control departments cannot do the required job if personnel are not properly trained and the department is not adequately funded.
It is the owner’s deed that should be the issue and the subject of any law. Not the shape of the dog.
The author of this article is a sensationalist.
If one wants to know the truth about any breed's temperament go to www.atts.org. You will find APBTs, American Bull Dogs, American Staffordshire Terriers and Bull Terriers have a higher pass rate than most other popular breeds.
Dr. I lehr Brisbin says "To the best of our knowledge, there is no published scientific data that would allow meaningful comparison to be made of the biting power of various dog breeds. There are, moreover, compelling technical reasons why such data describing biting power in terms of 'pounds per square inch' can never be collected in a meaningful way. All figures describing biting power in such terms can be traced to either unfounded rumor or, in some cases, to newspaper articles with no foundation in factual data." He also states "The few studies which have been conducted of the skulls, mandibles and teeth of pit bulls show that, in proportion to their size, their jaw structure and thus inferred functional morphology, is no different than that of any other breed of dog. There is absolutely no evidence for the existense of any kind of 'locking mechanism' unique to the structure of the jaw and/or teeth of the APBT.
An APBT named Stubby was the first war dog and won numerous medals during WWI. In 1993 an APBT named Weela won the KenL Ration dog of the year award for saving 30 people, 29 dogs, 13 horses and a cat during a South CA flood. Dixie and APBT in GA was inducted into the Animal Hall of Fame for saving children from a Cottonmouth snake. Petey of the Lil Rascals never bit anyone. Helen Keller used a Pit Bull as her guide dog / companion.
I wonder why the author didn't cite her credible experts.
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