posted August 01, 2012 04:15 PM            

Petition published by TRACEY JOHNSON

BSL (BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION) causes the death of thousands of innocent dogs. This community is intended to stop the alarming spread of BSL.

THEY CAN COME INTO YOUR HOMETOWN AND TAKE YOUR INNOCENT DOG FOR NO REASON CAUSE OF WHAT THEY BELIEVE IN. THE MOST TARGETED ANIMALS ARE THE PITBULL..

More than two dozen cities have already passed bills to round up and kill family pets who simply look like the kind of dog who might attack someone.

It’s the canine equivalent of racial profiling. And it’s quite scary. It started off with pit bull-looking dogs, and in some places it now even includes Labs and golden retrievers!

And when these bills are passed, who gets targeted the most? Answer: responsible, law-abiding families who have registered their pets and have their breed on record.

Yes, there are some dangerous dogs out there. But it has nothing to do with which breed they are, and everything to do with how they’ve been bred and how they’ve been trained.

At a conference in Denver, Colorado, at the end of October, Best Friends met with people from all over the country who are fighting dog slaughter bills in their own communities.

We also heard from experts who can demonstrate how totally counter-productive these measures are, and who know how to address the fundamental problem: the culture of violence that’s impacting dogs, irresponsible people, and impressionable teenagers who are being drawn into a world of crime, drugs and further violence.

Out of the conference in Denver, Best Friends is working with people everywhere who want to bring an end to dog slaughter bills, and to replace them with laws that crack down on the people who are using these innocent animals for criminal purposes.

To that end, we are drawing up the Family Dog Protection Declaration (FDPD), to help people guide their local legislators toward regulations that address the causes, not just the symptoms.

How you can help:

1. Please join this FDPD community, and join the forum discussions as we prepare the declaration and begin the campaign

2. Bring five other people to this community and invite them to sign in, too, and join the discussion.

3. Keep us all informed about any dog slaughter bills (breed specific legislation) that may be pending in your city or state.

Together we can work to replace the culture of violence with one of kindness – toward these animals, each other, and all living creatures.

Introduction to Breed-Specific Legislation (BSL)

BSL affects dogs based on APPEARANCE ONLY. It has NOTHING to do with temperament. The alleged purpose of BSL is to increase public safety, but it can not do that because it completely overlooks temperament.

Breed-specific legislation (BSL) comes in many forms, from extra insurance policies and special licenses, to outright bans of particular breeds. It usually comes about after a critical or fatal dog attack. It generally targets a small set of dog breeds. It attempts to curb dog bites and dog attacks by implementing policies focused specifically on those breeds. And it is always a complete failure - technically and morally.

It's astonishing that BSL continues to spread even after studies have proven its fatal flaws. BSL is ruinously expensive to implement and enforce. Determining a dog's breed or mix is extremely difficult, often resulting in mistaken identities and ensuing lawsuits. BSL does not stop dog attacks or bites. It increases the financial burden on taxpayers, animal shelters, and animal control agencies. It doesn't stop irresponsible owners or dissuade criminals. It doesn't educate anyone about proper dog care. In the end, the punishment is doled out solely on responsible owners and good dogs. Good dogs are confined to their homes, unable to gain valuable social skills and training opportunities - or they are simply killed. Law-abiding owners are the only ones who end up shelling out money to pay for special licenses or souped-up fences, and they are the ones whose hearts are ripped out when their sweet dog is arbitrarily deemed "dangerous" and euthanized.

BSL exists because people are looking for an easy way out. It's easy to point fingers at a group of voiceless dogs and call them "dangerous". It makes for great sound bites on the evening news, and it gives politicians a way to distract people from real worries. It saves us from having to address the core problems - irresponsible, ignorant dog owners, bad breeders, criminals, and an uneducated public.

Some people mistakenly believe that owners of these so-called "dangerous" breeds do not care about public safety because they object so strongly to BSL. On the contrary, these owners are acutely aware of the need for strong non-breed-specific dangerous/vicious dog laws, and they fully support efforts to strengthen and enforce those laws. However, these owners also realize that the problem of dog bites and dog attacks does not lie within a single breed or group of breeds. The problem ultimately lies with the individual owner, and that is where the focus of dangerous dog laws should be.

posted August 02, 2012 02:34 AM            

I you, Alma.

posted August 03, 2012 11:45 AM            

And the feelings mutual.