Pit bull's barking alerts sleeping teen to house fire

http://www.tampabays10.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=40722
Fort Myers, Florida - A recently adopted pit bull whose barking alerted a sleeping 17-year-old may have saved her from a house fire.

Chato had just been brought to the home a couple weeks ago after he wondered onto a construction site in Lehigh. By the time firefighters arrived at the house, Jerrica Seals, who had been sleeping, was safely outside. Firefighers are calling the dog a hero.

A deputy fire chief says the blaze appears to have been caused by a bad extension cord on a window air conditioner.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Golden agers welcome a pit bull with a heart of gold

Minneapolis/St Paul

http://www.startribune.com/785/story/709099.html

Golden agers welcome a pit bull with a heart of gold
Joe Kimball, Star Tribune
September 28, 2006 11:07 PM

Ruby was a big hit at a Bayport nursing home Tuesday morning, nuzzling and licking faces, doing a few tricks and climbing onto laps. The folks all said they'd never seen a calmer, gentler or more patient dog -- which might come as a surprise to some, because Ruby is a pit bull.

Owner Pat Bettendorf of Scandia said Ruby is a certified therapy dog rescued from abuse three years ago. She has a heart of gold, said Bettendorf, who's very supportive of her breed.

"Pit bulls have been maligned because they're misused by bad people," he said. "In the early 20th century they were considered the top family dog, good with kids."

Residents at the Croixdale home in Bayport enjoy Ruby's visits, said activities director Mary Jo Ducklow. "Petting a dog has a real calming effect," she said. "The residents smile and relax with Ruby in the room."

What a WONDERFUL PROGRAM!!!

http://www.animalprotectionsociety.org/programs/spayneuter.shtml

If you live in Orange , Wake, or Durham counties and are on a fixed income, you may qualify for the $20 Fix. This program is sponsored by AnimalKind at www.animalkind.org. Once you have been approved for the program, you can schedule your pet’s surgery at the Nicks Road Veterinary Clinic.

APS is concerned about the high number of pitbulls being abused in our community and with the large numbers of these dogs entering and being euthanized in our local shelters. We work to reduce these numbers by offering $30 spay/neuter surgeries for pitbulls. Contact Nicole Carper at the APS Adoption Center (919-304-2300) for more information about this program.

APS is also concerned about the large numbers of feral cats being euthanized in our shelters and works with various humane organizations to reduce these numbers. These organizations humanely trap feral cats from colonies and bring them to the Nicks Road Veterinary Clinic for sterilization. The clinic charges $30 per cat and the humane organization then releases the cats back into their colonies and continues to care for them as they live out their lives. Please contact the Nicks Road Veterinary Clinic for more information about this program.

Programs try to curb pit bull numbers

Programs try to curb pit bull numbers
By CINDY SWIRKO
Sun staff writer September 24. 2006 6:01AM
Ray Sim calls pit bulls "the national dog of Alachua County" for good reason - lots and lots of them live here.

But as director of Alachua County Animal Services, Sim knows that yes, they are popular, but they are also difficult to find homes for. They take up kennel space at the shelter and drive up costs.

Veterinarian Debbie Cottrell of West End Animal Hospital in Jonesville realized the same thing and came up with an idea to cut the pit bull population - Operation Pitnip. She began offering free spaying and neutering to any pit bull or pit mix - a service that typically costs about $150 at her clinic. Her efforts have been rewarded with $20,000 in grants to keep the program going.
"Now we can start pushing more and try to reach these people who don't understand or are unaware that they are contributing to the problem," Cottrell said. "At least two or three times a day people come in with pit bulls and when I start to talk about spaying or neutering, they say, 'Oh no, we're going to breed her because she's special and all my friends want a puppy.' They are completely unaware that that is the problem. Nationwide, close to 40 percent of all dogs euthanized at shelters are pit bulls."

No More Homeless Pets of Alachua County - a coalition of veterinarians and animal advocates - donated $5,000 to Cottrell to pay for surgeries for 100 dogs living in low-income families. No More Homeless Pets several years ago landed a multiyear grant from the nonprofit Maddie's Fund to try to end euthanasia of healthy cats and dogs at the county shelter.

Meanwhile, another $15,000 was awarded to Cottrell from Florida Animal Friend - the organization that administers money raised through the sale of spay/neuter license plates.
University of Florida veterinary professor Julie Levy, president of the coalition and board member of Florida Animal Friend, said the grants are well-deserved and should help reduce the population of unwanted pit bulls.

"(Cottrell) was very farsighted and saw that we need to nip the problem at its source, which is reproduction, rather than trying to deal with this huge number of animals after the fact," Levy said. "They are trying to save adoptable animals at the (county) shelter and there are so many pit bulls. Even though they are technically adoptable, nobody wants to adopt them. It's a burden on the shelter, it's a burden on the community, it's a burden on the Maddie's project to try to find homes for all of these dogs that nobody wants."

Pit bulls are either reviled or adored. They are a breed so associated with dog fighting and maulings that many communities nationwide ban them. Florida now prohibits such breed-specific laws, but an ordinance that was already in place in Miami-Dade County was grandfathered in.

Yet others say that with proper training pit bulls are loyal, family-friendly pets with a clownish, loving personality.

Sim said some county shelters in Florida will not put pit bulls up for adoption, euthanizing them instead. Alachua County evaluates pit bulls to determine if they can make a good pet in the right hands and tries to find homes for them.

"They are hard to adopt and I think a lot of that is the stereotype of a pit bull. They are a powerful dog. Are they always a bad dog? Definitely not," Sim said.

Jerri Sullivan said her six pit bulls are wonderful dogs. She had all six sterilized by Operation Pitnip, giving the program a $250 donation for its efforts.

Sullivan said she found a pit bull in her yard when she moved into a rural High Springs home. Despite her prevention efforts, it bred with another dog. Eventually one of the puppies had a litter. Sullivan was able to give most of the puppies away, but got some of them back because the owners couldn't take proper care of them. Operation Pitnip was a godsend for her.

"It was great to get it done, and I donated because there might be another family that can't afford it, as well. It was a whole lot cheaper than the regular veterinarian," Sullivan said. "It would be taking me another year to get all of the dogs done if Dr. Cottrell didn't have this. It's very expensive."

Spay/Neuter services in Alachua County, Florida: Operation Pitnip at Westend Animal Hospital (pit bulls and pit bull mixes): 472-7626

Maddie's Spay/Neuter project at Micanopy Animal Hospital (any pets in Medicaid families): 466-0067

Operation Catnip (stray and feral cats): 380-0940

Alachua County Humane Society (NMHP free red vouchers for low-income non-Medicaid pets): 373-5855 x 13

Jean Donaldson of the SFSPCA Slams Cesar Milan, the Dog Whisperer...

 

http://www.sfspca.org/Viewpoint/index.shtml 

 

A Pit Bull-Related Shoplifting News Story!

 

 

http://cbs2.com/local/local_story_269001858.html

Health of puppies may scuttle pit bull auction

I am very glad this auction won't take place. These dogs need to be spayed/neutered and in companion homes if possible, not returned to where they can contribute to the sad situation regarding this breed. Babesia is contagious and transmitted through breeding, dogs with babesia should not be bred.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/4185592.html
Sept. 13, 2006, 11:31PM
Health of puppies may scuttle pit bull auction
5 of the seized animals have died and most of the remaining 27 have virus or parasite
By CINDY HORSWELL
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

An unusual auction of pit bull puppies, confiscated from what authorities
believe was a nationwide breeding operation for dogfighting, may never be
held. A majority of the pups are sick and five have died. Animal rights advocates and the Houston Humane Society had feared the pups, from a valuable fighting dog bloodline, would fall into the wrong hands and be used to perpetuate the illegal blood sport. It would have been the first dog auction involving an animal cruelty case the Humane Society can ever recall in the Houston area. Such auctions are normally held only for livestock, authorities said. Hundreds of dogs seized. But now 27 puppies, the last remnant of 285 dogs seized from a 23-acre spread in Liberty County on Aug. 2, may not be suitable for the auction block.

The other 258 dogs were euthanized after experts determined they could not be rehabilitated as pets. However, the puppy auction has not been scheduled because the Humane Society recently discovered a majority of the pups are sick from Parvo (a deadly virus) or Babesia (a blood parasite) they had contracted prior to the seizure. At the same time, investigators have disclosed that possibly seven of the most valuable dogs from the breeder's stock, estimated to be worth about $1 million, may have been transported out of state before the seizure. We had pictures and videos that had showed all the breeder's pens and carriers were full. But when we returned with a seizure order, a couple of pens were empty and some carriers were missing," said Liberty County Sheriff Sgt. Kenny Dagle. He said it took a couple of days to arrange for an animal cruelty investigator to come to the scene and then secure the seizure order, as authorities had gone to the site initially to investigate a fatal home invasion.

The breeder, Thomas F. Weigner Jr., 27, bled to death after being shot in the leg by three masked intruders. His wife, Julie Laban, their three children and her parents witnessed the shooting while bound with tape. Dagle said the intruders are believed to have been searching for $100,000 cash that Weigner recently won at a dogfight in Brazoria County. The intruders did not harm the other family members and missed a couple of thousand dollars in cash because "they weren't expecting it to be in plain sight on a closet shelf," Dagle said. Investigators also discovered a pound of marijuana at the house. "Neither Weigner nor his wife had a job, other than the dogs. But they had paid $215,000 in cash for their home and property and were making payments on three nice new cars," he said. Worldwide business Investigators are tracking down many leads on the homicide as data taken from the house showed the breeder was doing business "all over the world," Dagle said.

Laban went to Michigan to bury her husband and has not returned. She could not be reached for comment. Her attorney, Dick Wheelan of Houston, said his client was unable to post
the $30,000 bond necessary to have an independent examination of the dogs
that were confiscated. "We don't know the condition of these puppies," he said. "We also don't agree with the sweeping generalizations made that these dogs are aggressive." Wheelan's client has denied that the pit bulls were ever being raised to fight, and has argued the animals should be returned to herz. But Liberty County Justice of the Peace Phil Fitzgerald ruled the dogs should be seized because of abuse. Mark Beausoleil, assistant Liberty County attorney, introduced evidence that showed the dogs were possibly being bred to fight. He pointed to heavy chains hanging for a treadmill and a large tank, in which a dog would be
placed to swim and could not escape, that were used for endurance training. Parvo is a highly contagious intestinal virus, and none of the puppies had been properly vaccinated against it. "This illness can be 50 to 75 percent fatal even with excellent medical care," said Dr. David Shell, a Humane Society director and veterinarian. The blood parasite, on the other hand, is a chronic illness that can be difficult to treat and require blood transfusions, Shell said. cindy.horswell@chron.com

LETTER/ Justice For Puppy Baked Alive In Oven in Georgia

9/10/06 - Justice For Puppy Baked Alive In Oven

KINSHIP CIRCLE ACTION CAMPAIGN
http://www.KinshipCircle.org
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Brothers Charged With Torturing, Killing Puppy http://www.wsbtv.com/news/9796419/detail.html
Police: Teens Bake Puppy in Oven
http://www.11alive.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=84347
DA Office Contact Information From:
http://www.atlantada.org/contactus/index.htm
PETITION: Seeking Felony Indictment for Puppy's Torturous Death http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/564805100
Animal abuse cases are TIME-SENSITIVE--depending upon the nature of a crime as well as court dates. To check the status of a case, search the Animal Abuse Crime Database for updates. Many animal cruelty cases (but not all) are on file here:
http://www.pet-abuse.com/database/
Also check National Court Watch about upcoming cases:
http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/courtwatch.php

=====================================================
SAMPLE LETTER Feel free to use portions of our letter, but please add some original thoughts. Hundreds of identical letters may lessen the impact. =====================================================
Paul Howard Jr., DA,
Fulton County District Attorney Fulton County District Attorneys Office
136 Pryor Street, SW, Third Floor
Atlanta, GA 30303
ph: 404-730-4981;
fax: 404-730-4785
email: nicole.vaughn@co.fulton.ga.us

The Honorable Sonny Perdue,
Governor State of Georgia,
State Capitol Atlanta, Georgia 30334
ph: 404-656-1776; fax: 404-657-7332 web email: http://www.gov.state.ga.us/contact_dom.shtml

Dear District Attorney Howard and Governor Perdue,

I am very troubled by the case of Justin, 17, and Joshua Moulder, 18, the Atlanta brothers charged with burglary, criminal damage to property and felony aggravated cruelty to animals.

Last month, the teens vandalized a newly renovated recreation center at an apartment complex. They brought a five-month-old puppy along. They doused the dog in paint, hog-tied his feet, duct taped his mouth, and attempted to burn him alive. When flames didn't kill the still alert puppy, they baked him to death inside an oven. The brothers even boasted about their act of violence to peers.

Brutality without remorse rarely occurs in isolated pieces. More often, teenage "pranks" that victimize animals form a pattern of aggression. I commend the Fulton County District Attorneys Office for recognizing the gravity of this case. I urge uncompromising prosecution, with the maximum five-year prison sentence and $15,000 fine allowed under present Cruelty Statues of Georgia (16-12-4. Cruelty to animals).

Please stipulate psychiatric evaluation, and mandatory counseling for these troubled youths. They should also be barred from owning or harboring animals in any context.

I fully support Mr. Howard's call for even tougher felony penalties for offenders who "knowingly and maliciously cause death or physical harm to an animal by rendering a part of such animal's body useless, or by seriously disfiguring such animal."

Inez Marshal, community association president at the Englewood Manor Apartments, claims she'll never forget the mutilated puppy she found in the oven.

Indeed, this haunting imprint ought to serve as a red flag. Randall Lockwood, Ph.D., a frequent consultant to cruelty investigators, law enforcers, court officials and mental health professionals, assesses an offender's distinct style of animal abuse. Among qualities outlined in his "Factors in the Assessment of Dangerousness in Perpetrators of Animal Cruelty," Lockwood cites violence against non-threatening creatures as a precursor to assaulting vulnerable victims such as children, the elderly or disabled. Few creatures are more helpless than a puppy. It is the intensity of this crime that demands your attention. In particular, young males with a history of parental neglect/abuse may vent feelings of powerlessness upon innocent animals.

Columbine High School shooter Eric Harris, 18, smashed the heads of mice and set them on fire.

Washington D.C. serial killer Lee Boyd Malvo killed stray cats with a slingshot.
Kip Kinkle blew up a cow and burned a live cat before he shot 25 classmates and murdered his parents in Oregon.

Andrew Golden and Mitchell Johnson, both 13, brutalized dogs before killing five people in an Arkansas school rampage.

Luke Woodham, 16, mortally stabbed his mother and shot nine students. He later confessed to pouring lighter fluid down his dog Sparkle’s throat and setting fire to her neck.

Please do not let Justin and Joshua Moulder hurt another living being.

Good Bully Article

   

http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=cruelty_pitbull

Dog Whisperer?

Is he really?  Read it for yourself.  I am supportive of people being in control of their pets but through positive reward based methods and non confrontational methods.  Dogs are individuals with unique training needs that vary with each dog.

 

http://www.linder.com/archives/category/the-dog-whisperer/

Information regarding the current lawsuit against Mr. Milan regarding abuse at his facility

 

http://www.seattledogs.com/seattledogsdiscussion.htm

Discussion from a well known Seattle dog trainer

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/31/opinion/31derr.html?ex=1157688000&en=7829de861ec87e60&ei=5070&emc=eta1

 

http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html

The Original Dog Whisperer, speaks out

 

Pit Bull survives axe attack, neighbor arrested

 August 29, 2006

Pit Bull survives axe attack, neighbor arrested

VIDEO Watch this story

By Anita Kissee
and KATU Web Staff

CLACKAMAS COUNTY - A Pit Bull puppy is recovering after being struck several times with an axe and now the dog's owner is left wondering why someone would lay such a vicious attack on an animal.

A 35-year-old man, Corey Kimble, is now in jail and has been charged with Animal Abuse in the First Degree and Probation Violation - DUII.

Police were called to a home at 8417 S.E. Cornwell Street on August 22 after a witness reported seeing Kimble use an axe on a Pit Bull.

Kimble told police the animal was being aggressive toward him. The attack took place in a shed.

The dog that was injured is 10-month-old Dozer. The dog somehow got away from his home a few blocks away.

Some of the wounds on Dozer's head were almost an inch and a half deep. His legs were also cut down to the bone and one cut was so deep that it broke his toe.

 While Kimble sits in jail, the dog's owner, Joe O'Donnell, wonders why someone would take an axe to his dog.

"It takes a pretty messed up guy in the head to do something that bad," he said. "It just ain't right."

Dr. Denny Koontz, DVM, with Northwest Veterinary Specialists said Dozer was found wandering along Southeast 82nd Avenue.

 

"They had tried to take him to another hospital and they wouldn't accept him because he was injured and would probably be put to sleep," she said. "So they came here and the good Samaritan was actually willing to pay for some of his medical bills, even though they didn't have money to pay until later in the week."

"It's awesome," said Gloria O'Donnell, Joe's mother. "We can't believe someone would do that."

No one knows how Dozer got out. O'Donnell said the gates in his yard were locked.

With Dozer's care costing up to $1,800, O'Donnell said he plans to sue Kimble.

There is also a chance that more people could be charged in the case because there is the possibility that another person may have held the dog down during the attack.

As for the good Samaritan, O'Donnell said he would like to know who that person is so he can give them a huge 'thank you.'

Man Killed In Deadly Dog Mauling In The Redland

At least it wasn't a pit bull and wasn't falsely portrayed as one!

(CBS4 News) THE REDLAND A dog has fatally mauled a South Florida resident -- the second fatal dog attack in less than two weeks.

Miami-Dade police say Pablo Fleites, 56, was found dead Monday night in a dog pen located at a home at 20280 SW 190th Street. Fleitas lived in a structure on the property.

Inside the pen were two boxers -- a five-year-old male and a six-month-old female puppy.

Police say Fleites, who witnesses say was intoxicated throughout the day, was attacked by the older boxer. The dog was found covered in his blood. The dog will be taken by animal control.

The first fatal dog attack happened on August 18th in Broward County. Shawna Willey was killed in Coral Springs while bathing her 120-pound Presa Canario.

Homicide investigation veers into secret world of pit bull fighting

http://www.southeasttexaslive.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17087403&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=512588&rfi=6


Homicide investigation veers into secret world of pit bull fighting
By: F.A. KRIFT, The Enterprise
08/20/2006
CLEVELAND - Thomas Weigner, shot above the right knee, bled to death Aug. 1 in rural Liberty County.

His tied-up family, including three children, witnessed it while the gun-wielding robbers searched for money and firearms.

Here - in a brick ranch-style home down County Road 2252, which eventually leads to the Trinity River bottom - is where at least three masked men raided Weigner's fenced-off property.

Weigner, 27, was awakened by his barking American pit bull terriers, about 300 of them on 24 acres about 60 miles west of Beaumont.

The crime could have been a common thug's smash-and-grab job gone wrong, but investigators also suspect Weigner's dogfighting ties and money might have been factors.

Weigner's death opened a small gateway into the dogfighting subculture that local authorities rarely glimpse, according to Southeast Texas investigators. The dogfighting society stretches throughout the region as well as across the nation and overseas, they said.

Lawmen believe Weigner was at or near the top tier of the dogfighting underground, and authorities from the FBI and Texas Department of Public Safety are investigating the case.

"It's all part of a larger dogfighting operation," said John Goodwin, a deputy manager of animal-fighting issues and investigator for the Humane Society of the United States. "It didn't end with Thomas Weigner being shot. ... He's in a network at the top of the (dogfighting) list."

The dogfighting network ties together men like Weigner and his Westpenn Kennels, his elite-bloodline breeding operation, and local amateurs and "hobbyists" entering the game with dogs not genetically altered to be the true pit fighting dogs that Weigner developed, Goodwin said in a telephone conversation from his Washington, D.C., office.

Southeast Texas authorities who investigate pit bull operations said the subculture is so closed and secretive that busts are rare.

In Jefferson County, authorities had 23 dogfighting cases in the last two years, Assistant District Attorney Ann Manes said, adding that one person could be charged with a count for each dog involved. Overall in the region since 2000, at least 52 people have been arrested and 25 dogs seized in connection with suspected dogfighting.

Nationally, hundreds of dogfights are busted each year and as many 20,000 people, mostly men, are involved, Goodwin said.

Goodwin said the traditionally rural activity has become more popular in urban areas such as Beaumont and Houston. However, the city operations are largely disorganized and difficult to bust, he said.

Manes, who prosecutes local cruelty cases, said dogfighters typically are charged with owning or training a dog with the intent to use it in a fighting exhibition - a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine. Rarely are they caught during dogfights, attended by screaming spectators throwing down bets.

"It's almost always circumstantial (evidence)," Manes said.

A difficult pursuit

Sgt. Mark Timmers, a Houston Humane Society and Harris County animal cruelty investigator, said a "blind man" could recognize a fight occurred with so much evidence spread over a crime scene. This includes evidence such as a pit, blood-smeared walls and scar-faced dogs.

Nevertheless, culpability is tough to prove, creating a frustrating and sometimes futile chase for investigators, Timmers said.

Beaumont police Detective Tina Lewallen, who investigates Beaumont's animal cruelty crimes, regularly sees fighting dogs with punctured necks, scarred snouts and torn-off ears when they are seized from owners suspected of animal cruelty.

But a significant dogfight hasn't been busted in Beaumont since November 2003, when police arrested eight people and animal control took 15 dogs.

When police arrived, spectators scattered like startled quail, Lewallen said. Money flew in the air while officers detained anyone they could grab.

Meanwhile, the dogs kept fighting, she said.

Beaumont Animal Control Supervisor Greg Parker, who arrived at the scene 20 minutes after police, remembered bloody, exhausted dogs on Idylwood Street.

Pit-bull handlers regularly train fighting dogs inside the city limits, Lewallen said, and then they take them to large fights in surrounding rural towns such as Cheek and China so the fighting dogs and rowdy bettors avoid attracting unwanted attention.

"They have secret codes to find out where the dogfights are," Lewallen said.

Sheriff's department officials in Hardin, Newton and Tyler counties believe dogfighting occurs within their jurisdictions, but there have been no busts in recent memory.

It takes surveillance, manpower and extensive intelligence to make a bust, Timmers said.

Often, it's just by accident or luck.

In 2000, for example, the Jasper County Sheriff's Department arrested 49 spectators who attended a dogfight. Attending a dogfight is a Class C misdemeanor carrying a maximum penalty of a $500 fine.

Jasper County Sheriff's Detective Aaron Tippett said officers just happened to be within 15 minutes of the fight's location just west of Kirbyville.

Like the Beaumont bust, money flew in the air, onlookers screamed and then dashed in every imaginable direction, Tippett said. Two men even ran through a barbed-wire fence, according to The Enterprise archives.

"The problem is most of the people that (attend) pit bull fights are thieves anyway," Tippett said. "Thieves stealing from thieves. It doesn't get reported that often."

Breeding operations such as Weigner's Westpenn Kennels are easier to find, but even in this case, it was not because of a complaint against dogfighting. It was Weigner's death that exposed the operation and led to the seizure of 285 dogs living in cruel conditions.

"Law enforcement, we're basically unaware of what is going on," Timmers said. "It's very organized. ... I'm not talking about the backyard stuff."

In fact, many Web sites associated with the guarded society require references to gain access. Only the highly trusted are invited.

A growing concern

In the fighting underground, the dogmen romanticize their "sport," claiming they return the breed to its 19th century English roots when fighting's popularity grew, Diane Jessup, a Washington-based pit bull breeder, authority and author, said in a telephone conversation. The dogfighters have made the breed a status symbol for machismo. They live through the breed and attract younger men by dramatizing the sport.

Bloodlines developed largely by venerable white men now are being promoted by a hip-hop culture, Jessup said. The bloodline history and the American pit bull terrier's gameness fascinate some common citizens.

"There are a whole bunch of people out there that are attracted by dogs with game pedigrees," she said.

The breed's keenly aggressive nature makes them the elite fighting dog, better than any other breed, Jessup said. So owning a pit bull is a statement of dominance, she said, and for some, hopefully, an invitation into the dogfighting world.

Goodwin said the pit bull breeding industry grows with it. And the fighting involves new players who are more aggressive and violent.

For lawful breeders, illegitimate practices have smeared the breed, pit bull enthusiasts say. The dogs are human-friendly, they say, but the over-breeding and the haphazard sale to anyone willing to buy has put the breed in the wrong hands.

"They're scumbags," said Jessup, who trains pit bulls for police work. "There's no mystique there in the dogfighting rings. When you're close to it, you see it's really a disturbed bunch of individuals that are living through their dogs. They talk about how much they respect them. ... No, they're idiots."

Secret world revealed

During the Aug. 7 pit bull seizure at Weigner's property, training equipment, including a treadmill and water tank, was discovered, said Liberty County Sheriff Greg Arthur, whose department is handling the homicide investigation.

However, investigators found no evidence on site of dogfighting, Arthur said.

But where the investigation could lead is what compels authorities.

"This is the first time when it's been such a high-level player," Goodwin said of Weigner's homicide and its connection to dogfighting. "This time it was somebody big."

Goodwin says Weigner was a professional dogfighter on whom Goodwin and the Humane Society have kept watch since he gained prominence in the fighting world two years ago - about the time he moved to Liberty County from Pennsylvania.

Dick Wheelan, the attorney for Weigner's wife, Julie Laban, said in a telephone interview from his Houston office that Laban denied all claims of dogfighting.

Arthur said the crime's link to suspected robberies of alleged dogmen in Michigan, Georgia and South Carolina is being investigated.

Goodwin believes the crimes are linked.

"When you have these high-end dogfights, you have violent men who come in for a violent blood sport," Goodwin said. "They gamble large sums of money on it. Of course, they all bring guns, because they don't want to be robbed and lose those hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"When you mix that sort of adrenaline and testosterone with a violent blood sport and all that money, you've got yourself a combustible situation and sometimes it erupts.

"We've heard about shootouts at fights, but now it's moving to a new level where they are following people to their homes and killing them."

For Liberty County's Arthur, the homicide is a top priority that uncovered a world he knew little about.

"I didn't realize dogfighting was as big an industry as it is," Arthur said in his office. "I've learned more about dogfighting than I wanted to know."

fakrift@beaumontenterprise.com

Breed bans won't stop dog attacks

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0608210197aug21,0,595343.story?coll=chi-newsopinioncommentary-hed

Breed bans won't stop dog attacks
Laws should regulate behavior of all dangerous dogs--and owners

By Adam Goldfarb, an expert on dangerous dogs with the Humane Society of the U.S
Published August 21, 2006

There's an adage that says, "When a dog bites a man, it's not news, but when a man bites a dog, it is news." These days, dog bites don't just lead to news, they lead to fights between neighbors, lawsuits and controversial legislation. Unfortunately, laws that ban certain breeds of dog from a community provide nothing more than the illusion of safety.

Many communities struggle with issues related to dangerous dogs. Some have responded with breed bans, yet time and again such laws have failed to solve dangerous-dog problems. Lawmakers who educate themselves and understand this issue quickly recognize that a truly effective law must address all dangerous dogs, regardless of breed.

There are many factors that contribute to a dog's temperament, but breed bans only address one of those factors. If elected officials are comfortable with regulation of such a limited scope, then the one factor to be targeted should be the most common.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 70 percent of dogs involved in biting incidents are intact (not neutered) males. No other single factor is so highly represented in dog attacks. Mandatory pet sterilization is certainly a viable option, but this can also be easily addressed without legislation, through government-subsidized spay/neuter programs and community education about proper pet care.

Being a responsible pet owner is not difficult, but there are individuals who either don't care about their pets or who intentionally create aggressive animals. Too often, these individuals are the ones who cause problems for the community. The behaviors of these individuals are easily recognized and should be the target of dangerous-dog legislation.

Dogs that live chained up are nearly three times more likely to bite, the CDC says. Dogs that routinely run loose can cause numerous problems in their neighborhoods. Dogs that are trained for fightingalready have criminal owners.

Communities rely on animal control to enforce the laws, but most animal-control offices are already understaffed and underfunded. Because of the inherent difficulties of enforcing breed bans, they would only add more strain to an already overextended department. Breed identification is tricky and unscientific.

Laws that clearly identify dangerous and potentially dangerous dogs are the best tools for animal control and law enforcement officials. This is so important because in nearly all serious dog attacks, the dog involved was either known to the neighborhood or animal control as a roaming nuisance, had previously bitten or was being kept for inappropriate reasons. Laws addressing potentially dangerous dogs consider the many factors that contribute to a dog's likelihood to bite and single out behaviors that are indicative of aggression. These laws can be reactive by punishing the owners of dogs that have menaced people or other animals, or the laws can be preventative by targeting irresponsible and dangerous owner behaviors.

If Chicago truly wants effective laws to prevent dog attacks, a breed ban is not the answer. The city will be better armed with comprehensive dangerous-dog legislation, dog-bite education and enforcement of responsible laws on keeping pets. Legislation aimed at holding dog owners responsible rather than punishing the dogs is the most effective way to reduce the number of dog bites and attacks. Non-breed-specific laws that are enforced offer an effective and fair solution to the problem of dangerous dogs in all communities.

BSL update

MyDogVotes Candelight Vigil - TONIGHT 8:00 p.m. (EST)

 

Please join thousands of dog owners worldwide on Sunday, August 20th, 2006 at 8 PM EST, to remember the victims of breed bans in the 2nd Annual My Dog Votes Candlelight Vigil Against Breed Bans.

Please also remember to light a special candle for our dear friend and faithful BSL fighter, Judy Schreiber. Judy was critically injured in a car accident on Monday, August 14, 2006, and needs all of our thoughts and prayers.

BSL Victories!!

*Humbolt, Iowa - BSL voted down - WE WIN!!!!!!

*Northlake, Illinois - Removed breed specific language from the city ordinance

*Sacramento, California - Declines to adopt mandatory spay/neuter ordinance

*American Dog Owners Association (ADOA) Wins Judgment Against City of Englewood, New Jersey To Overturn Breed Specific Law.

Looking up...

Middletown, Ohio
Looking at removing breed specific language from ordinance

We still have the chance to make a difference!

Brandon, Mississippi
Police and other officials are delaying the enforcement of a newsly enacted pit bull ban while city officials review the ordinance. They are looking at other cities' handling of these matters. We might have a chance.

Mayor Carlo Martella
City of Brandon
P.O. Box 1539
Brandon, MS 39043
Phone: (601) 824-4578

 

James L. Morris
Alderman at Large
3155 Louis Wilson Road
Brandon, MS 39042
Phone: (601) 825-4486

 

Barbara Mangum
Alderwoman, Ward 1
808 S. College Street
Brandon, MS 39042
Phone: (601) 825-0381

 

David "Grumpy" Farmer
Alderman, Ward 2
585 Shiloh Road
Brandon, MS 39042
Phone: (601) 591-0658

 

Tim Coulter
Alderman, Ward 3
37 Sunline Ct.
Brandon, MS 39042
Phone: (601) 668-9998

 

Lu Coker
Alderman, Ward 4
650 Burnham Road
Brandon, MS 39042
(601)825-4038

 

Yvonne Bianchi
Alderman, Ward 5
10 Hunters Point
Brandon, MS 39042
(601) 825-5303

 

Gene Sirmon
Alderman, Ward 6
132 Richmond Drive
Brandon, MS 39042
Phone: (601) 825-6073

 

Mark Baker
City Attorney
306 Maxey Drive
Brandon, MS 39151
Phone: (601) 824-7455

North Liberty, Iowa
Looking at alternatives to BSL (but BSL still on the table)

Mayor:
DAVE FRANKER
625 Pebble Court
North Liberty, IA 52317
665-6171
david.franker@northlibertyiowa.org

Council Members:
MATTHEW J. BAHL
15 Hickory St.
North Liberty, IA 52317
626-6071
Email: mbahl@southslope.net  

GERRY KUHL
1180 Saint Andrews Drive
North Liberty, IA 52317
626-6576
gerry.kuhl@northlibertyiowa.org

JAMES MOODY
115 Vixen Lane
North Liberty, IA 52317
400-2824
Email: james.moody@northlibertyiowa.org

TOM SALM
35 N Dubuque Street
North Liberty, IA 52317
626-2754
Email: tasalm@terracon.com  

JAMES WOZNIAK
1572 Deerfield Drive
North Liberty, IA 52317
626-3704
james.wozniak@northlibertyiowa.org  

Fall River, MA
Looking at alternatives to BSL (but BSL is still on the table)

City Hall
One Government Center
Fall River, MA 02722
Phone: (508) 324-2000
Fax: (508) 324-2211

Fall River City Council City Council President
William Whitty 508-324-2232

Fall River Mayor
Edward Lambert 508-324-2600

Fall River City/Town Manager
James Smith 508-324-2600

Fall River City/Town Clerk
Carol Valcourt 508-324-2220

Olathe, Kansas
Considering alternatives to BSL (but BSL still on the table)

John Bacon
At Large
Term: 4/03 - 4/07
913-269-6305
jbacon@olatheks.org

Bob Montgomery
At Large
Term: 4/01 - 4/09
913-980-8278
bmontgomery@olatheks.org

Marge Vogt
Ward 4
Term: 4/03 - 4/09
913-269-0625
mvogt@olatheks.org

Kathleen Huttmann
Ward 3
Term: 4/03 - 4/09
913-269-6360
khuttmann@olatheks.org

Jim Randall
Ward 2 and Mayor Pro Tem
Term: 4/03 - 4/07
913-522-2729
jrandall@olatheks.org

Beverly Wittenborn
Ward 1
Term: 4/03 - 4/07
913-269-6302
bwittenborn@olatheks.org

Mayor Michael Copeland
Term: 4/03 - 4/07
913-971-8500
mcopeland@olatheks.org

BSL PENDING

Memphis, Missouri
BSL being considering - next meeting is September 7, 2006

Memphis City Hall
135 South Main Street, Memphis, MO 63555
(660) 465-7285
(660) 465-7342(fax)

Merriam, Kansas
BSL being considered

Mayor Carl Wilkes
9416 W. 49th Terrace
Merriam, KS 66203
(913) 722-1312
mayorw@merriam.org  

Bryan Burks, Ward 1
Council Vice President
9821 West 50th Terrace
Merriam, KS 66203
(913) 262-6546
bryanb@merriam.org  

Chad Rowe, Ward 1
4749 Knox
Merriam, KS 66203
(913) 831-0144
chadr@merriam.org  

Dan Leap, Ward 2
5848 Merriam Dr.
Merriam, KS 66203
(913) 631-5326
dan@guitarlamp.com

John Crabtree, Ward 2
10113 W. 59th Terrace
Merriam, KS 66204
(913) 789-9028
jcrabtree@eventconceptsinc.com  

Nancy Hupp, Ward 3
Council President
10172 Edelweiss Circle
Merriam, KS 66203
(913) 831-4471
nancyh@merriam.org

Christine Evans Hands, Ward 3
10206 Edelweiss Circle
Merriam, KS 66204
(913) 384-5340
chrish@merriam.org

Gayle Stephens, Ward 4
8117 W. 61st St.
Merriam, KS 66204
(913) 789-7958
gstephens1@kc.rr.com

Shawn McConnell, Ward 4
8323 W. 61st Street
Merriam, KS 66204
(913) 384-0764
shawnm@merriam.org

City Hall
The City of Merriam
9000 W. 62nd Terrace
Merriam, KS 66202-2815
(913) 322-5500
(913) 322-5505 fax

Gonzales, LA
Considering BSL

City of Gonzales
120 South Irma Boulevard
Gonzales, Louisiana 70737-3698
(225)647-2841

Horicon, WI
BSL may be on the agenda for the August 22nd meeting, so lets get some correspondence out to all these people.

Doug Plier
City Attorney
dougplierlaw@powerweb.net

Mayor
mayor@horiconwis.com
Phone: (920) 485-2495

City Clerk
David Pasewald
(920) 485-3500

Chamber of Commerce
writeus@horiconchamber.com

Mayor James Grigg 485-9945

Council President Steve Neitzel 485-2821

Legislative Home/Office Phone Numbers
Alderperson, 3rd District Donald Butler 485-4504
Alderperson 1st District Richard Marschke 485-2484
Alderperson, 1st District Jerry Billington 485-2356
Alderperson 2nd District Steven Neitzel 485-2821
Alderperson, 3rd District John Forster 485-4387
Alderperson 2nd District Carl Fausett 485-0566
http://www.horiconchamber.com/home.cfm  

James R. Wegner,
Municipal Judge
hmcourt@gdinet.com

Beaver Dam, WI
Considering BSL

Mayors Office
Mayor
Jack Hankes
Phone: 920-887-4600 ext 398
Email: mayorjack@charter.net  

City Clerk
Gary H. Dummer
Phone: 920-887-4600 ext. 338
Fax: 887-4605
Email: gdummer@charter.net  

City Attorney
Mary Ann Schacht, Esquire
222 South Spring Street
Business (920) 887-4638

Montgomery, Alabama
Meeting on the 21st

Physical Address
City Hall
103 North Perry Street
Montgomery, Alabama 36104

Mailing Address
Post Office Box 1111
Montgomery, Alabama 36101-1111
Phone: (334) 241-2000
Fax: (334) 241-2600
E-mail: mayor@ci.montgomery.al.us  

Receptionist/Proclamations Clerk
Belinda Forte'
(334) 241-2000
bforte@ci.montgomery.al.us  

Executive Secretary to the Mayor
Katie Cord
(334) 241-2004
kcord@ci.montgomery.al.us

Executive Assistant to the Mayor
Jeff Downes
(334) 241-2002
jdownes@ci.montgomery.al.us

Executive Assistant to the Mayor
Michael Briddell
(334) 241-2005
mbriddell@ci.montgomery.al.us
Wanda Fox, Executive Secretary

Assistant to the Mayor
Felecia Holley-Martin
(334) 241-2427
fholley@ci.montgomery.al.us  

Assistant to the Mayor
Willie Peak

DISTRICT 9: CHARLES W. JINRIGHT
President
B: Jinright-Turner Insurance & Bonds, Inc.
4216 Carmichael Rd. (36106)
P. O. Box 230308 (36123)
272-1200

DISTRICT 4: JAMES A. NUCKLES
President Pro Tem
H: 3143 Patrick Road (36108)
834-4015

DISTRICT 1: JIM SPEAR
H: 648 Pimblico Road 36109
272-2558 Fax: 272-1846
spearj@bellsouth.net

DISTRICT 2: TIMOTHY WAYNE HEAD
3809 Wares Ferry Road 36109
B: 271-4228

DISTRICT 3: JANET THOMAS MAY
1412 South Perry Street 36104
W: 269-0093

DISTRICT 5: CORNELIUS CALHOUN
1055 Largo Lane 36116
H: 280-7899

DISTRICT 6: WILLIE COOK
P. O. Box 201441 (36120)
H: 281-7775

DISTRICT 7: MARTHA D. ROBY
2243 Country Club Drive 36106
H: 262-0604
martharoby@knology.net  

DISTRICT 8: GLEN O. PRUITT, JR.
H: 8642 Sturbridge Drive 36116
B: Locke & Associates
4144 Carmichael Road, Suite 20 (36106)
272-7400 FAX: 272-6106

Independence, Missouri
BSL is expected to pass on 21st

Office of the City Council
Sheila Saxton Council Aide
Phone: (816)325-7022
Fax: (816)325-7012
E-mail: ssaxton@indepmo.org

Mayor Don Reimal
Phone:(816)325-7022
Home Phone:(816) 461-6044
Fax:(816)325-7012

Councilmember Will Swoffer
Phone:(816)325-7022
Home Phone:(816) 257-1888
Fax:(816)325-7012

Councilmember Renee Paluka
Phone:(816)325-7022
Home Phone:(816) 478-8641
Fax:(816)325-7012
reneepaluka@comcast.net  

Councilmember Jim Page
Phone:(816)325-7022
Home Phone:(816) 252-1198
Fax:(816)325-7012

Councilmember Jim Schultz
Council Phone:(816)325-7022
Fax:(816)325-7012
E-mail: onelaw3@swbell.net  

Lees Summit, Missouri
Mayor-Karen.Messerli@lees-summit.mo.us  

Council
jhallam@mid-west.net  
hofmann.kathy@gmail.com
rrhoads@mid-west.net  (opposes)
rwilliam@mid-west.net  (doesn't want ban, but might be o.k. with BSL)
jspallo@sbcglobal.net
cockrelled@yahoo.com  (he has proposed the legislation)
jffreeman@att.net
Swearngin@gmail.com

Administrator
Steve.Lewis@lees-summit.mo.us  

Abby York
Kansas City Dog Advocates

Oak Grove, Missouri
Requesting additional information

Meetings are held the first and third Mondays of each month at 7:00 pm at the Civic Center

City Hall is located at:
1300 S. Broadway Street
Oak Grove, Missouri 64075
Phone: (816) 690-3773
Fax: (816) 690-8478

Mayor
Mark Fulks

Alderman - Ward 1
Mary Holzbaur
Hank Melhorn

Alderman - Ward 2
Brad Alexander (Mayor Pro-tem)
Larry Moore

Alderman - Ward 3
Don Myers
Jody Gorham

Administration
1300 S. Broadway St.
Oak Grove, MO 64075
Phone: 816-690-3773
Fax: 816-690-8478

Long, Bryan City Administrator
blong@cityofoakgrove.com  816-690-3773 ext 1000

Scott, Judy Deputy City Clerk
jscott@cityofoakgrove.com  816-690-3773 ext 1005

Smith, Cathy City Clerk
csmith@cityofoakgrove.com  816-690-3773 ext 1004

BSL PASSED

Barboursville, West Virginia - Passed BSL

Clinton, Mississippi - Passed BSL but the law is being challenged

Heartbreak of the week

Kansas City, Kansas
Pit bull amnesty ends - 180 innocent pit bulls euthanized

City officials are so proud of themselves for "successfully pursuading" owners to turn their dogs in to be killed. Another senseless tragedy...

Support the Cause

The American Canine Foundation (ACF) is doing all it can to fight for our rights and has recently filed several lawsuits challenging BSL. PLEASE donate to and support the ACF. Please do all you can to help those fighting for our rights. It takes an incredible amount of money to file and defend a lawsuit, and positive outcomes can result in good things for everyone around the country.

American Canine Foundation 23969 NE State Rte 3 Suite G101 Belfair Wa 98528 or paypal at (legislation2003@hotmail.com )

Letters to Officials

You can find 3 different form letters, from simple to detailed, that can be modified and sent to the above officials at www.defendingdog.com.  Please voice your polite and respectful opposition to breed specific legislation!

 

Mistaken Idenity

Reports online initially described the dog in the article below as a PIT BULL, however the dog was not a pit bull.  Just another case of media hype making another mistake and not correcting it.  There have been no retractions.

 

===========================

Woman fatally mauled while bathing dog
Associated Press

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. — A Florida woman is dead after being attacked by her own dog.

Police say 30-year-old Shawna Willey was killed Friday when the 120-pound Presa Canario mauled her while she was trying to give it a bath in the backyard of her house in Coral Springs. Willey's daughter witnessed the attack and alerted a neighbor who called police.

Police spokesman Rich Nicorvo says when officers arrived, the dog was standing over the woman's body near the swimming poll and made aggressive movements toward them, so they shot and killed it. They don't know what prompted him to attack his owner.

Florida court records show Willey was cited several years ago for having dangerous dogs.

Posted by a shelter worker

posted by an anonymous shelter worker to an email listserve

I am posting this (and it is long) because I think our society needs a huge "Wake-up" call. As a shelter manager, I am going to share a little insight with you all...a view from the inside if you will. First off, this is a forum to for adoption and/or rehoming as clearly stated in the rules. All of you breeders/sellers on craigslist should not only be flagged (and I hope the good people on craigslist will continue to do so with blind fury), but you should be made to work in the "back" of an animal shelter for just one day. Maybe if you saw the life drain from a few sad, lost, confused eyes, you would change your mind about breeding and selling to people you don't even know...that puppy you just sold will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. So how would you feel if you knew that there's about a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it is going to be dumped at? Purebred or not! About 50% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into my shelter are purebred dogs. The most common excuses I hear are; "We are moving and we can't take our dog (or cat)." Really? Where are you moving too that doesn't allow pets? Or they say "The dog got bigger than we thought it would". How big did you think a German Shepherd would get? "We don't have time for her...". Really? I work a 10-12 hour day and still have time for my 6 dogs! "She's tearing up our yard...". How about making her a part of your family? They always tell me "We just don't want to have to stress about finding a place for her...we know she'll get adopted, she's a good dog". Odds are your pet won't get adopted & how stressful do you think being in a shelter is?

Well, let me tell you...your pet has 72 hours to find a new family from the moment you drop it off...sometimes a little longer if the shelter isn't full and your dog manages to stay completely healthy...if it sniffles, it dies. Your pet will be confined to a small run/kennel in a room with about 25 other barking or crying animals. It will have to relieve itself where it eats and sleeps. It will be depressed and it will cry constantly for the family that abandoned it. If your pet is lucky, I will have enough volunteers in that day to take him/her for a walk. If I don't, your pet won't get any attention besides having a bowl of food slid under the kennel door and the waste sprayed out of its pen with a high-powered hose. If your dog is big, black or any of the "Bully" breeds (pit bull, rottie, mastiff, etc...) it was pretty much dead when you walked it through the front door. Those dogs just don't get adopted. If your dog doesn't get adopted within its 72 hours and the shelter is full, it will be destroyed. If the shelter isn't full and your dog is good enough, and of a desirable enough breed...it may get a stay of execution...not for long though. Most get very kennel protective after about a week and are destroyed for showing aggression...even the sweetest* *dogs will turn in this environment. If your pet makes it over all of those hurdles...chances are it will get kennel cough or an upper respiratory infection and will be destroyed because shelters just don't have the funds to pay for even a $100 treatment.

Here's a little euthanasia 101 for those of you that have never witnessed a perfectly healthy, scared animal being "put-down". First, your pet will be taken from its kennel on a leash...they always look like they think they are going for a walk...happy, wagging their tails. Until they get to "The Room", every one of them freaks out and puts on the breaks when we get to the door...it must smell like death or they can feel the sad souls that are left in there, it's strange, but it happens with every one of them. Your dog or cat will be restrained, held down by 1 or 2 vet techs depending on the size and how freaked out they are. Then a euthanasia tech or a vet will start the process...they will find a vein in the front leg and inject a lethal dose of the "pink stuff". Hopefully your pet doesn't panic from being restrained and jerk... I've seen the needles tear out of a leg and been covered with the resulting blood and deafened by the yelps and screams. They all don't just "go to sleep", sometimes spasm for a while, gasp for air and defecate on themselves. When it all ends, your pets corpse will be stacked like firewood in a large freezer in the back with all of the other animals that were killed...waiting to be picked up like garbage.

What happens next? Cremated? Taken to the dump? Rendered into pet food? You'll never know and it probably won't even cross your mind...it was just an animal and you can always buy another one right?

*I hope that those of you that have read this are bawling your eyes out and can't get the pictures out of your head...I do everyday on the way home from work. I hate my job, I hate that it exists & I hate that it will always be there unless you people make some changes and realize that the lives you are affecting go much farther than the pets you dump at a shelter. Between 9 and 11 MILLION animals die every year in shelters and only you can stop it. I do my best to save every life I can but rescues are always full, and there are more animals coming in everyday than there are homes.

*My point to all of this...DON'T BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER
PETS DIE! Hate me or flag me if you want to...the truth hurts and reality
is what it is...I just hope I maybe changed one persons mind about breeding their dog, taking their loving pet to a shelter, or buying a dog. I hope that someone will walk into my shelter and say "I saw this thing on craigslist and it made me want adopt"...that would make it all worth it."*

Dog ban is 'unconstitutional

http://www.heraldnews.com/site/news.cfm?
newsid=17058813&BRD=1710&PAG=461&dept_id=99784&rfi=6

FALL RIVER - A proposed breed-specific dog ordinance was sent back to committee Tuesday night after the City Council heard impassioned pleas from several residents opposed to the legislation and received a letter from the city's attorney stating the City Council's proposed breed-specific dog ordinance was "unconstitutionally vague."

About 150 concerned residents, some wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the phrase "Blame the deed not the breed," attended Tuesday night's meeting to voice their displeasure with the council's proposed ordinance.

The ordinance would have required all owners of pit bulls and Rottweilers to keep the dogs confined behind 6-foot high fences. The dogs would not be allowed off their properties except to go to the veterinarian. Also, those two breeds would not be allowed to be sold within the city limits.

In his letter to the council, Corporation Counsel Thomas McGuire said, as currently drafted, the dog ordinance is unconstitutional.

He said the state's Supreme Judicial Court in 1989 ruled that a similar breed-specific ordinance penned by the Lynn City Council was unconstitutionally vague.

"As I stated to the Committee on Ordinances at its meeting on July 11, the ordinance, as presently drafted, appears to be unconstitutional," McGuire wrote. "I am therefore unable to approve the legal character of the ordinance in its present form."

McGuire's legal argument against the ordinance was bolstered by a more emotional argument from countless members of the public who addressed the council Tuesday night.

Several dog owners said it was unfair to judge all dogs the same way, and asserted the council lacked an education on dogs in general.

"There's no such thing as a bad dog. There are bad owners who don't know how to train their dogs," said city resident Joe Silvia. "We really need to educate owners. Dogs need exercise. If you pen them in, they become more violent."

Worcester-based attorney Rebecca Carner, who said she has already been retained by angry Fall River dog owners, said she is prepared to challenge the ordinance in court if need be, but said she and her clients would much rather work with the council on a more sensible dog ordinance.

She also questioned the relevancy of a breed-specific dog ordinance, asserting that criminals the ordinance is intended to root out would adjust to the change in law, leaving law-abiding dog owners with the heartache.

"Drug dealers are already ignoring your laws," Carner asserted. "They will just switch breeds."

The most emotional plea came from city resident Anthony Babine, who told a story about his sister's Rottweiler, Coco, that silenced the 150 or so audience members.

Babine said one day Coco began relentlessly pounding his head up against his sister's bedroom door to get the family's attention. When Babine finally came to the door, he found it was locked. But Coco would not stop slamming into it.

Babine said he eventually broke the door down and found his sister choking to death on her bed.

"Coco saved my sister's life," Babine said.

Although opponents of the proposed ordinance won a victory Tuesday night, the matter is still open. Instead, it was referred back to committee where it can be reworked and resubmitted to the full council for another vote.

City Council President William F. Whitty said the Committee on Ordinances will now reassess the issue. "This ordinance was not just pulled out of the air," Whitty told the audience members. "We tried to be fair with it."

A date when the Committee on Ordinances next meets has yet to be scheduled.

E-mail Gregg M. Miliote at gmiliote@heraldnews.com.

ADOA Wins! New Jersey to overturn breed specific law!!

American Dog Owner's Association Wins Judgment Against City of Englewood, New Jersey To Overturn Breed Specific Law
Sun Aug 13, 8:00 AM ET

Englewood, NJ (PRWEB) August 13, 2006 -- The American Dog Owners Association (ADOA) and two of its members, Natalie Wells and Mia Rodriguez, who reside in Englewood, New Jersey, were granted an interlocutory judgment against the City Of Englewood in New Jersey Superior Court this week in the challenge to overturn the city's illegal breed specific ordinance, Docket No. BER-L-5285-06. Judge Jonathan Harris found that the city's aggressive dog ordinance, which defined specific breeds of dogs as dangerous, was a clear and direct violation of state law, which explicitly prohibits breed discrimination.

The American Dog Owners Association, the country's largest independent dog owner's organization, had asserted that the City of Englewood, New Jersey failed to provide its residents equal protection under the law by denying the residents' applications to license their dogs and has subjected them to harassment

"Breed discrimination is illegal in New Jersey, and now all good dog owners with good dogs in Englewood can breath a sigh of relief", said Maureen Hill-Hauch, ADOA's Executive Director. She noted that New Jersey's Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act is one of the strongest dangerous dog laws in the country. "The City of Englewood has a duty to protect the public health and safety of all of its citizens, as well as protect the rights of responsible dog owners, regardless of breed. We're so pleased that the court will require the City of Englewood to comply with state law".

Breed bans and other breed-specific measures are strongly opposed by all major animal welfare and veterinary medical organizations, as well as the Center For Disease Control, as being ineffective against the prevention of dog bites or attacks. The list of New Jersey-based organizations opposed to breed specific laws and measures includes the New Jersey Federation of Dog Clubs and the New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association.

The New Jersey Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act, N.J. S.A. S.S.4:19-36, explicitly prohibits breed discrimination, stating, "any law, ordinance, or regulation concerning vicious or potentially dangerous dogs, any specific breed of dog or any other type of dog inconsistent with this act enacted by any municipality, county or county board of health".

The City of Englewood argued that it's Ordinance N.99-66 did not violate N.J.S.A.S.S 4:19-26 by defining the following breeds as aggressive: Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Rottweilers, or "any dogs of mixed breed which has the appearance or characteristics of being predominately of the breeds", and
bans them from being kept within the City of Englewood.

Flora Edwards, counsel for the Plaintiffs, previously told the court that under the city's illegal breed-specific ordinance, even Rufus, this year's winner of Best In Show at the prestigious

Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden, would be unwelcome in the City of Englewood, and his owners would run the risk of having the world's top dog seized and impounded. Rufus, a Colored Bull Terrier, resides with his owners in Holmdel, New Jersey.
An interlocutory judgment was granted the Plaintiffs, the American Dog Owner's Association, Natalie Wells and Mia Rodriguez, on Monday, August 7, by the Honorable Jonathan Harris in Bergen Country Superior Court against the City of Englewood. The order prevents the city from enforcing or implementing any section of the city's dangerous dog ordinance. In his ruling, Judge Harris called Englewood's Ordinance 66-99, "outright contradictory".

Judge Harris cited numerous issues with the Englewood dog ordinance, stating that Ordinance N.66-99 shifts the burden of proof to the pet owner, changes the process by which a dog can be declared dangerous, and provides a different array of sanctions in conflict with state law. Furthermore, he stated that t not granting the judgment would subject the dogs to immediate
seizure and cause the Plaintiff's irreparable harm.

The Plaintiffs, Ms. Wells, a stock analyst, and the owner of Sentry, a twelve-year old American Pit Bull Terrier, and Ms. Rodriguez, a respected artist and owner of Cyrus, also a rescued American Pit Bull Terrier, say they both lived in fear that their dogs will be seized by the City of
Englewood, and have been subjected to a pattern of harassment by the city's Department of Health since trying to obtain licenses for their dogs. Both dogs are well cared for and well socialized, and pose no threat to the public.

"Now I can walk Cyrus in public and not worry the police will stop me", said Ms. Rodriguez. Ms Rodriguez rescued her dog, Cyrus, as a puppy and helped nurse him back to health from a near-fatal bout with parvovirus with the help of donated services from a local veterinarian.

Ms. Wells, who suffers from lupus, is looking forward to visiting Englewood's City Hall to obtain a license for Sentry. Ms. Wells bought a home in Englewood late last year and was unaware of the town's breed specific ordinance. "Now I don't have to worry the city will take my dog away".

Barbara Haywood, ADOA's volunteer communications coordinator, said that the American Dog Owner's Association lawsuit has received tremendous support from dog organizations throughout the country as well as letters of official endorsement from dog clubs, notably the Bull Terrier Club of America, the parent club for the world's top dog, Rufus, the colored Bull Terrier. The ADOA filed suit on behalf of its members, and actively sought other resident dog owners in Englewood with the breeds or mixes of breeds of dogs banned by the city to join the lawsuit free of charge.

The American Dog Owners Association, ADOA, founded in 1970, is the country's largest independent dog owner organization representing individual dog owners, breeders, handlers, and dog clubs of all breeds, mixes and backgrounds. The American Dog Owners Association recognizes the special relationship between dogs and humans, and advocates for the protection and preservation of responsible dog ownership and education of the public about responsible dog ownership and strong dangerous dog legislation.

On the web at www.adoa.org
Media Contacts:
Maureen Hill-Hauch 800-266-6233
Barbara Haywood 201-396-0974

TERRIBLE Reasons given for giving an animal up at shelters

http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/469368.html
Why owners dump their petsExcuses appall animal rescuers
Denise Flaim, Newsday
What is the most pathetic excuse for giving up an animal? Living as we do amid an epidemic of tepid commitment and laser-sharp detachment, people routinely discard their companion animals. Some reasons -- like a child's allergies or sudden homelessness -- are understandable. But many are not -- at least not to those who consider their animals family members, a status that is not usually negotiable.
Folks in the animal-adoption community -- you know them by the plastic airline crates in their hatchbacks, and the Milk-Bones in their glove compartments -- are in the nonprofit business of cleaning up the messes people make with the sentient beings they've brought into their lives. With big hearts and tiny budgets, they grit their teeth as clueless, oftentimes obnoxious owners hand over the leash -- or cage, or tank.
People need to have realistic expectations when bringing home an animal, said Mondy Lamb, marketing director for the SPCA of Wake County. When they don't, lame stories can result.
"I think a lot of these excuses come from people being embarrassed at their own failure," she said.
Frustrated owners last week returned a cocker spaniel mix named Bailey to the SPCA. Having adopted the dog when he was about 3 months old, the owners brought back Bailey five months later because, among other things, he chewed on stuff, wasn't housebroken and -- get this -- bothered the owners when they watched TV.
"This was the last straw for those people," said Molly Stone, the animal behavior specialist at the SPCA. While telling this story, she noted a couple of (what should be) obvious facts: puppies chew on things and need to be taught to take their bathroom business outside.
Another dog was brought last week to the Durham County animal shelter after the owners disapproved of the way the pooch cooled himself during the heat wave.
"He kept lying down in the koi pond," said Susan Teer, president of the Animal Protection Society, the group that manages the shelter. The dog wasn't attacking the fish, but the owners didn't want to build a fence around the pond.
Excuses -- the animal adoption folks have heard them all before.
Moving is a perennial reason for dumping animals. "It's everyone's favorite," says Barbara Williamson of Best Friends Society, who polled staffers. "Nobody here can even begin to understand how you move into a place that doesn't accept pets when you have pets."
(Another head-scratcher: The person who returned a cat to the Utah sanctuary because its neurological condition "wasn't bad enough." In other words, the cat wasn't special-needs enough.)
Another catalyst is the arrival of a sweetheart. Lovers or spouses who hate dog hair or slobber issue ultimatums, and their not-so-better halves comply.
The dissolution of a marriage is a prime reason for relinquishing animals, as is the arrival of diminutive two-leggers.
"When the excuse is that the owner is having a baby, I send her to the president of Alaskan Malamute Rescue of New England," says Malamute fancier Susan Conant, who writes dog-centric mystery novels. "She is the mother of triplets."
Yep, family ties can be nooses for some animals. Marjorie Lipson of Long Island, N.Y.-based Second Chance Labrador Rescue offered up the interesting approach of blaming the kids: "My youngest child is now in college -- it was her dog that we purchased 14 years ago," one owner told her as he turned over his gray-faced dog. "We never wanted a dog -- the kids did."
Norwegian elkhound fancier Lexiann Grant of southeastern Ohio had this doozy: "An Akita was surrendered because the family decided to do away with their current 'Japanese landscaping' and go with a southwestern theme."
If you find it hard to believe that people can be that superficial, consider this chestnut from Barbara Sawyer-Brown, a Ridgeback breeder and longtime rescuer from Chicago: "We redecorated, and the dog no longer matches the decor."
File this under "craven compassion": Pam Dennison, author of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Positive Dog Training," had a friend who took in an 18-month-old schnauzer. "She had a kidney problem, and the owners 'loved her so much they couldn't bear to watch her die.' "
(Postscript: The friend kept the dog, switched her to a raw-food diet, and five years later, the dog is still going strong.)
People dump their bunny rabbits with such infuriating regularity that Mary Cotter of the House Rabbit Society keeps a list of common excuses. Some have simply performed a cold-hearted calculation: "He's sick -- we're not going to pay $50 for a vet visit for a pet that cost $15."
Debra J. White of Tempe, Ariz., started volunteering at animal shelters in 1989. "I have seen and heard the most dumb, pathetic and lame excuses," she says. "The cat meows. The dog barks."
But nothing prepared her for this beaut, delivered by a pregnant woman who was jettisoning her child substitute to make room for the real thing.
"My fetus," she proclaimed, "is allergic to the dog."
Staff writer Matt Ehlers contributed to this report.
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Staff writer Matt Ehlers contributed to this report