PitBullTerriErs& Breed-DiscriminatoryLaws

Transkript

1 Whatisbreed-discriminatorylegisla on(bdl)? Breed-discriminatorylegisla on(bdl)isanylaw orpolicythatprohibitsor placesrestric onsonindividualdogsbecauseoftheirsupposedbreed. Some mespeopleusetheterm pitbulban todescribebreeddiscriminatorylegisla on,butbdlactualyreferstolegisla onthat prohibitsanydogbreed.over me,differentbreedshavebeentargeted, includinggermanshepherdsanddobermans.today,pitbulterriersare o enthetargetofbdl,sowhenwereadaboutbdlinthenews,it sasafe betthatthelaw isaboutthem. BDLalsoincludeslawsthatdon toutrightbanpitbulterriersbutcreatede factobans.inotherwords,thelaw mightnotsaythatpitbulterriersare prohibited,buttheeffectisthesame.forexample,thelaw mightrequire ownersofsupposedpitbulterrierstobuyexpensiveinsurancepoliciesor keepthedogmuzzledatal mes.thelaw createssuchtoughrestric ons ththatmanyownersareforcedtogiveuptheirfamilypet. DoesBDLmakecommuni essafer? No.Mul plepeer-reviewedstudieshavefoundthatbreed-discriminatory legisla ondoesnotimprovepublicsafety.also,mul pleci esintheunited StatesenactedBDLinthe1980sand1990sinamisguideda emptto addressdogbites.decadesofdatafrom theseci estelusthatbdldoes notreducedogbitesormakecommuni essafer. TheAmericanVeterinaryMedicalAssocia on(avma)didanin-depthreview ofdogbitestudiesin2014.thereview lookedatstudiesfrom thelast40 yearsandfrom 10countriesincludingtheUnitedStates,theUnited Kingdom,andAustralia).TheAVMAconcluded: Thereisnoevidencethatbreed-specificbansreducetherateorseverity ofbiteinjuries. 1 Othercountrieshaverealizedthesamething.ThePublicHealthDepartment ofaragon,spainstudieddogbitesbeforeanda erbdl.itfoundthatbdl was noteffec veinprotec ngpeoplefrom dogbitesinasignificant manner. 2AndintheUnitedKingdom,astudyfoundthatthebanon pit 3 buls didnotdecreasedoga acks. 1

2 OfcourseanimalgroupsopposeBDL,doanyotherorganiza ons opposebdl? Yes.Becauseoftheoverwhelmingevidence,awiderangeofgroups 4 includingthecentersfordiseasecontrol,americanbarassocia on(aba), thena onalanimalcontrolassocia on(naca),andtheobama Administra onopposebdl.theabapassedaresolu onin2012urging: [L]ocallegisla vebodies toadoptcomprehensivebreed-neutral dangerousdog/recklessownerlawsthatensuredueprocessprotec onfor owners,encourageresponsiblepetownershipandfocusonthebehaviorof bothdogownersanddogs,andtorepealanybreeddiscriminatoryorbreed specificprovisions. 5 Foralongerlistoforganiza onsthatopposebdl,seeanimalfarm Founda on sfactsheet, Organiza onsthatdonotendorsebreedspecific Legisla on(bsl). 6 Is pitbul abreedofdog? No. Pitbul doesnotrefertoaspecificbreedofdog. Pitbul isan umbrelaterm thatincludesanumberofdifferentdogbreedsandmixed breeddogs.thelistofspecificbreedsincludedhasexpandedover me (andwillikelycon nuetoexpand)butusualyincludesamericanpitbul TerriersandStaffordshireBulTerriers. Notonlyis pitbul notanactualdogbreed,thereisn tasingledefini on of pitbul. Ifadoghascertainphysicalcharacteris cs(likeasquarehead orbarrelchest),shemaybelabeleda pitbul regardlessofheractual breed. Arepitbulterriersmoreaggressivethanotherdogbreeds? Mul plecontroledstudiesofdogaggressionanddogbiteshavefoundthat thisjustisn ttrue.forexample: 7 A2008studypublishedinAppliedAnimalBehaviorScience,thejournalof theinterna onalsocietyforappliedethology,determinedthat itis inappropriatetomakepredic onsaboutagivendog spropensityfor aggressivebehaviorbasedsolelyonitsbreed. 8 (con nuedonpage3) 2

3 Arepitbulterriersmoreaggressivethanotherdogbreeds?(cont.) AstudyofGoldenRetrieversversustargeteddogbreedsfoundthat GoldenRetrieversshowedaggressionatthesamerate. 9 AndtheAVMALiteratureReview stated, Giventhatbreedisapoorsole predictorofaggressivenessandpitbul-typedogsarenotimplicatedin controledstudiesitisdifficulttosupportthetarge ngofthisbreedasa 10 basisfordogbitepreven on. SowhydoIhearmoreaboutpitbulterriersinthenews? Themediahassensa onalizedpitbulterriers.thena onalcanine ResearchCounciltrackedfourdogbiteinjuriescoveredinthelocalnews overthecourseoffourdays.thecaseinvolvingasupposed pitbul received230newspaperar cles.thedogbitethatkiledapersononly 11 receivedtwoar cles. Andagain, pitbul isnotabreedofdognoristheterm usedscien ficaly bymediareportsandevensomeearlystudiesondogbites.journalistsand bystandersmistakenlyiden fyawidevarietyofdogsas pitbuls using visualbreediden fica on.however,itisnearlyimpossibletoiden fya 12 dog sbreedwithoutdnates ngorknowledgeofthedog sbreeding.asa 13 result, anyshort-hairedstockydogislikelytobecaledapitbul. Studieshavefoundthatvisualbreediden fica onissoinaccuratethatthe Na onalcanineresearchcouncildecided, Anystudiesthatrelyonvisual breediden fica on,includingthosethatlinkdbrfs[dogbite-related fatali es]andbreed,cannolongerberesponsiblycitedinthedeveloping literature. 14 Isn tthereareportshowingpitbulterriersareresponsiblefor moredogbite-relatedfatali es? ThereisastudybytheCentersforDiseaseControlthatrevieweddogbiterelatedfatali esreportedbythemediainthe1980s.butthereportrelied 15 onlyonthesemediastoriesinsteadofverifyingtheactualdogbreed.and ifanewsstorydidn tnameadogbreed,thereportdidn tincludeit.the resultswereflawedandoveremphasizedpitbulterriersbecausethat s whatthemediachosetoreporton.inanycase,centersfordiseasecontrol explicitlydoesnotsupportbdlbecauseitisineffec ve. 3

4 IfBDLdoesn twork,whatdoes? Safercommuni esstartwithbreed-neutraldoglaws.breed-neutrallaws addressownerbehaviorandresponsiblepetownership.theresearch surroundingdogbitesanda ackshasfound, preventablehumandecisions regardingcare,husbandry,andcontroloftheircaninecharges arethemost 16 importantfactors. Andmul plestudieshavefoundthatthewayadogistreatedinhishome isisveryimportant.a2013studybythena onalcanineresearchcouncil 17 usestheterms familydogs and residentdogs. Aresidentdogwas definedas adog,whetherconfinedwithinthedwelingorotherwise, whoseownersisolatedthem from regular,posi vehumaninterac ons. A familydog wasdefinedasa dogwhoseownerskeptthem inornearthe homeandalsointegratedthem intothefamilyunit. Over76% ofdog bite-relatedfatali esinvolveda residentdog. Inotherwords,it snotthe breedofthedogthatma ers,it stheowner. Thus,themosteffec velawsarebreed-neutralonesthatfocusonindividual ownersandanimals.twoeffec vebreed-neutraldangerousdoglaws,in SkokiePark,Ilinois,andHighlandsPark,Ilinois,areavailableontheBest 18 FriendsAnimalSocietywebsite. From awiderstandpoint,an -tetheringandan -dogfigh nglawsalso improvepublicsafety.tethereddogsaremorelikelytobeaggressive. Anotherstudydeterminedthat17% ofreporteddogbites(includingdog bite-relatedfatali es)involvedadogwhowastetheredontheirowner s 19 property. Whydocommuni espassbdldespitealtheevidencethatit doesn twork? Some mes,legisla onispassedinresponsetoadogbiteinthecommunity. It saknee-jerkresponsefueledbyadesiretoimprovepublicsafety.butthe law doesn tactualyfixtheproblem.onestudyonbdlnotedthatthe 20 popularityoftheselaws isbasedlargelyonfear (con nuedonpage5) 4

5 Whydocommuni espassbdldespitealtheevidencethatit doesn twork?(cont.) ThecaseofPrinceGeorge scounty,marylandisanexample.fiveyears a erenac ngbdl,thecountycreatedataskforcetostudywhetherthe law waseffec ve.thetaskforcedeterminedthatbdlwasnoteffec veand veryexpensive.thetaskforceadvisedthecountytorepealthebreeddiscriminatorylanguage.butthelegislaturerefusedtolistenandtenyears 21 later,thelaw iss lthere.however,mostci esaremovingawayfrom BDL. Ci esandcoun esarerepealingbdlatahigherratethantheselawsare 22 beingpassed.a2014usatodaystoryreported, Overthepasttwoyears, morethan100municipali esacrosstheusahaveoverturnedbansand otherrestric onsthattargetdogsinthepitbulfamily 23 Today,thetrendistowardbreed-neutrallaws.Infact,somestateshave passedlawsprohibi ngbdlbecauseit ssoineffec ve. IsBDLexpensive? Yes.BDLisexpensiveand me-consumingtoenforce.dogownersand taxpayerssuffer. Manyci esandcoun esalreadyhavesmalanimalcontrolbudgets,and BDLisanotherdrain.ThefolowingarepossibleBDLcosts: Animalcontrol(seizingandimpoundinganimals) Shelteringseizedanimals(PrinceGeorge scounty,mdspentroughly $570,000intwoyearsinkennelingcostsa erins tu ngaban) Euthanasia(anddisposalofbody) Courtfees oli ga ontoverifyactualdogbreed -Ownerscancontestwhethertheirpetisactualyapitbulterrier. DNAtes ngisusualyrequiredinthiscases,andtheburdenofproof (andpayment)isonthecitya emp ngtoenforcetheban. oamericanswithdisabili esact -Breedbansconflictwithdisabledpeople srighttohaveaservicedog regardlessofbreed. ocons tu onalviola ons -Somelegalexpertshavearguedthatbreed-discriminatorylegisla on violatesthe14thamendment.achalengecouldresultinalengthy courtba le.(con nuedonpage6) 5

6 IsBDLexpensive?(cont.) Animalprotec ongroup,bestfriendsanimalsociety,createdaformula toes matetheannualanimalcontrolcostsinci esorstateswithpitbul 26 terrierbans.usingthees matednumberofdogsandnumberofpitbul terriers,theformulacalculatescostsforenforcement,kennelingand veterinarycare,euthanizinganddisposal,li ga oncosts,anddnates ng. Forexample,thecityofAlbany,NYwouldhavetospend$185,667onBDL everyyear. Ifpitbulterriersmakesuchgreatpets,whyaretheresomany inanimalshelters? PitbulterriersareoneofthemostpopularbreedsintheUnitedStates. Asaresult,apersonismorelikelytoownapitbulterrierthanaGiant SchnauzeroraPortugueseWaterDog.Furthermore,somepeopletryto cashinonthepitbulterrier spopularitybyoverbreedingthem tomakea li lebitofmoney.bdlitselfalsocontributestothehigherrateofpitbul terriersinshelters.familiesareforcedtosurrendertheirhealthy,happy pitbulterrierstoshelterswheremostarekiled. TheFinePrint(Sources) 1.AmericanVeterinaryMedicalAssocia on:animalwelfaredivision. (2015).DogBiteRiskandPreven on:theroleofbreed.retrievedfrom: h ps:// on.aspx 2.B.Rosadoetal.,Spanish:DangerousAnimalsAct:Effectofthe EpidemiologyofDogBites,2(5)JOURNALOFVETERINARYBEHAVIOR (2007). 3.B.Klaassen,J.R.Buckley& A.Esmail,DoestheDangerousDogAct ProtectAgainstAnimalA acks:aprospec vestudyofmammalianbitesin theaccidentandemergencydepartment,27(2)injury89-91(1996) 4.Madhani,A.(2014,November18).U.S.Communi esincreasingly DitchingPitBulBans.USAToday.Retrievedfrom: h p:// on/2014/11/17/pit-buls-breed-specific-legisla on-bans/ / 5.AmericanBarAssocia on,resolu on100(2012),availableat: h p:// ve/mental_physical_disability/resolu on_100.authcheckdam.pdf 6.h p:// on.org/files/5l-orgs-that-do-not-endorse-bdl-2014.pdf 7.DogBiteRiskandPreven on:theroleofbreed(2015) (Con nuedonpage7) 6

7 TheFinePrint(Sources)(cont.) 8.DuffyD,YuyingH,SerpelJ.Breeddifferencesincanineaggression.Appl Anim BehavSci2008:1143: O,S.A.,Schalke,E.,vonGaertnerA.,Hackbarth,H.,& Mi mann,a. (2008).Isthereadifference?Comparisonofgoldenretrieversanddogs affectedbybreed-specificlegisla onregardingaggressivebehavior.journal ofveterinarybehavior,3(3): DogBiteRiskandPreven on:theroleofbreed(2015) 11.Na onalcanineresearchcouncil(2007).thepitbulpaparazzi. Retrievedfrom: h p://na onalcanineresearchcouncil.com/uploaded_files/ nymce/2007%20media%20bias.pdf 12.Na onalcanineresearchcouncil,dogbite-relatedfatali es:a LiteratureReview.Retrievedfrom: h p:// onalcanineresearchcouncil.com/research-library/dog-bite-related-fatali es-literature-review 13.Sacks,J.J.,Sa n,r.w.,& Bonzo,S.E.(1989).DogBite-RelatedFatali es From 1979Through1988.JAMA:JournalOfTheAmericanMedical Associa on,262(11), Na onalcanineresearchcouncil,dogbite-relatedfatali es:a LiteratureReview.Retrievedfrom: h p:// onalcanineresearchcouncil.com/research-library/dog-bite-related-fatali es-literature-review 15.Sacks,J.,Sinclair,L.,Gilchrist,J.,Golab,G.,Lockwood,R.,2000.Breeds ofdogsinvolvedinfatalhumana acksintheunitedstatesbetween1979 and1998.journaloftheamericanveterinarymedicalassocia on217, Na onalcanineresearchcouncil,dogbite-relatedfatali es:a LiteratureReview 17.Patronek,G.J.,Sacks,J.J.,Delise,K.M.,Cleary,D.V.,& Marder,A.R. (2013).Co-occurrenceofpoten alypreventablefactorsin256dog bite-relatedfatali esintheunitedstates( ).journalofthe AmericanVeterinaryMedicalAssocia on,243(12), h p://bes riends.org/resources/pit-bul-terriers/dog-breed-ban-alterna ves. 19.JefferyJ.Sacks,etal., BreedsofDogsInvolvedinFatalHumanA acks intheusbetween1979and1998, JournaloftheAmericanVeterinary MedicalAssocia on15sept Patronek,G.,Slater,M.,Marder,A., Useofanumber-need-to-ban calcula ontoilustratelimita onsofbreedspecificlegisla onindecreasing theriskofdogbite-relatedinjury, JAVMA,vol237,Number7,October1, 2010 (Con nuedonpage8) 7

8 TheFinePrint(Sources)(cont.) 21.ViciousAnimalLegisla ontaskforce,reportoftheviciousanimal LEGISLATIONTASKFORCE2(2003)(PresentedtoPrinceGeorge scounty Council,July2003),availableat: h p:// on.org/files/report_of_the_vicious_animal_legisla on_-_prince_georges_county_-_2003.pdf 22.JanisBradley(2014), DogBites:ProblemsandSolu ons, Animalsand SocietyIns tute,availableat: h p:// onalcanineresearchcouncil.com/sites/default/files/dog-bites-problems-and-solu ons-2nd-edi on_0.pdf 23.Madhani,A.(2014,November18).U.S.Communi esincreasingly DitchingPitBulBans.USAToday.Retrievedfrom: h p:// on/2014/11/17/pit-buls-breed-specific-legisla on-bans/ / 24.ViciousAnimalLegisla ontaskforce(2003) 25.U.S.DepartmentofJus ce,civilrightsdivision FrequentlyAsked Ques onsaboutserviceanimalsandtheada. Retreivedfrom: h ps:// 26.BestFriendsAnimalSociety.(2012).BestFriendsbreed-discriminatory legisla on(bdl/bsl)fiscalimpact.retrievedfrom: h p://bes riends.guerrilaeconomics.net/ Breed-DiscriminatoryLegisla onhurtstaxpayers anddogsalike.supportbreed-neutrallegisla on tomakeyourcommunitysafer! 8