My Friendly Pets

The banner above is from the Humane Society of the United States website. This is a great organization that embraces the mission of keeping animals safe from harm and cruelty. As with any organization, they take positions on certain issues. I agree with some of their positions and disagree with others.

However, one of the positions that I strongly agree with involves dangerous dogs and breed specific legislation. The HSUS is against any type of legislation that supports erradicating or regulating dogs simply by breed. Studies have found that communities that have taken the Breed Specific Legislation seriously and enacted laws that prohibit ownership of certain breeds of dogs have not solved the problems of dealing with dangerous dogs.

It wasn’t until several years ago that Pitt Bulls and Rotweillers were classified as dangerous dogs and fear of these breeds led to legislation prohibiting their ownership by individuals in certain towns and municipalities. Surprisingly, before those breeds it was the Doberman Pinscher that won the designation of dangerous breed. And prior to that the German Shepard was the dog to be feared.

The laws and restrictions, when put into place in certain communities are very difficult to enforce and truly do not address the problems of abuse, trained agression and irresponible pet ownership. These are the things that produce dangerous dogs, not the breed of dog. Any dog can be trained to be mean and vicious. The laws should be addressing those who encourage and encite that type of behavior in their dogs.

There are several reasons why dogs become agressive or “biters” according to the Humane Society. They include things like a lack of early socialization, poor obedience training, inadequate care and supervision and whether the dog has been spayed or neutered. There are others, but it is clear to see that the owner clearly can make the difference in the overall behavior of their dog. The amount of regard for the animal as a family member, time spent training and bonding and also attention to the dog’s health concerns will clearly produce a dog that is much more of a lover than a fighter.

I’m glad the HSUS has taken this position. Perhaps it will remove the blame from the dog or its’ breed and put it where it truly belongs, with those who take a dog into their home.

For some great holiday weekend movie reviews, you can read some great info from a fellow blogger.