EDUCATION
Just one of the many things to learn from the model bylaw of Calgary, Canada is that education is the key to preventing dog attacks and promoting safer interactions between humans and dogs. Research shows that just 1 hour of dog safety training in grades 2 and 3 can reduce these attacks by 80%, and the city of Calgary spends a considerable amount of money, time and effort on dog safety public awareness and education campaigns.
LEASH LAWS
Enact, strengthen and enforce leash laws. Owners are responsible for containing their animals, and far too many times, existing leash laws are simply ignored. Quite frankly, if a community cannot enforce the simplest of laws such as a leash law (where there is no question as to whether a dog is or is not on a leash), how can they possibly expect to enforce a breed ban, wherein animal control officers will be forced to question what breed a dog may or many not be?
HOLD OWNERS ACCOUNTABLE
Strengthen and enforce penalties for irresponsible dog owners. Rather than create dangerous dog laws, we should instead focus on “dangerous owner” laws. Problem dogs are the result of irresponsible, negligent and careless owners, and greater focus on the cause of the problem will result in a community that experiences less issues with both “dangerous owners” and their dogs.
Generic dangerous dog laws which address the underlying cause of most dog-related deaths and injuries – irresponsible dog ownership – are a key point in preventing dog related incidents in the community. Good dangerous dog laws place the owner in the position of ensuring that their dog(s) comply with all state and local requirements. Fines for violations can vary, but the leading principle is that dog ownership should be more costly to the irresponsible individuals. Experience has taught us that most bite incidents are examples of irresponsible ownership, not the specific dog breed involved. In other words, we need stricter regulations on dog ownership, no matter what the breed.
Non-breed specific legislation is cost effective in comparison to outright breed ban and is more readily accepted for the most part. More importantly, a well-thought non-breed specific legislation addresses the root cause of most, if not all, dog related injures and deaths, which is the irresponsible dog owner.
STRENGTHEN ANIMAL ABUSE AND DOG FIGHTING LAWS
Dogs can become aggressive as the result of cruelty, abuse, neglect and/or otherwise improper care, and proper attention needs to be focused on the owners who inflict these living conditions on their dogs.
REGULATE DOG BREEDERS
Breeders play an important role in the temperament of the dogs they produce and sell. Irresponsible breeding plays a very important role as the mating of two dogs with poor and/or unacceptable temperaments will no doubt result in puppies with unstable temperaments. Moreover, if irresponsible breeders do not screen the individuals they sell their dogs to, you have the potential combination of ill-breed dogs in the hands of irresponsible owners. A disaster in the making.
PROVIDE LOW COST SPAY/NEUTER OPTIONS
Unneutered dogs, particularly males, are far more likely to attack a human than either neutered males or spayed females. In analyzing over 448 dog attack cases, Karen Delise, author of Fatal Dog Attacks, determined that overwhelmingly, most dogs involved in the attacks were unneutered male dogs that were maintained for reasons other than to be household companions (i.e., yard dogs). Providing lost cost options for the healthcare of dogs, including spay and neuter services, is an excellent way to help dog owners better care for dogs and take more interest in their dog’s healthcare and well-being.
STUDIES SHOWING BSL INEFFECTIVENESS
The available studies on breed specific legislation all lead to the same conclusion…. dog bites do not decrease in communities where breed bans and/or regulations have been passed. In fact, the statistics related to dog bites remain at relatively the same rate year after year. If the goal of breed specific legislation is to reduce and prevent injury from dog bites – yet dog bites continue to occur at comparable rates year after year, even in communities with BSL – it is quite clear that breed specific legislation does little to protect the public from dog bites. The below studies do an excellent job at illustrating the ineffectiveness of breed specific laws.
You can access the studies and reports where available by clicking the highlighted text.
Scotland (1996)
In 1996, a Scottish study entitled “Does the Dangerous Dogs Act Protect Against Animal Attacks” looked at the three month period before the implementation of BSL and the three month period after said implementation. The study found that the banned or regulated breeds contributed to only a small percentage of attacks. The study further revealed that Alsatians and mongrels (mixed breed dogs) were the most common breed involved (in 24.2% and 18.2% attacks, respectively), while the restricted breeds accounted for only 6.1% of the attacks.
Germany (2002)
In September 2002, the Administrative Court of Berlin ruled null and void the government of Lower Saxony, Germany’s breed specific law related to 14 breeds of dogs. This ruling was based, in part, by a study by Esther Schalke, PhD, DVM, which demonstrated that breed specific legislation was ineffective.
Netherlands (2008)
In June 2008, the Netherlands repealed a 15 year ban on pit bulls after research proved that it did not improve public safety and dog bite incidents did not decrease.
Italy (2009)
In March 2009, Italy repealed its long-standing breed specific law in which 17 dogs were identified as “dangerous breeds.” The breed ban was replaced with a law making owners more responsible for their pet’s training and behavior.
United Kingdom (2008)
In June 2008, a report regarding the United Kingdom’s Dangerous Dog Act of 1991 was issued. According to the report commissioned by pet insurer LV, the number of people hospitalized for dog attacks has increased by almost 50% in the past decade — this is despite having breed specific legislation in place since 1991.
Spain (2007)
In 2007, a Spanish study compared dog bites reported to the health department of Aragon, Spain for 5 years before and 5 years after the implementation of breed specific legislation in the form of a Dangerous Dog Act. The Spanish study concluded, among other things, that there was no change in the number of dog bites reported, and that the restricted breeds, were responsible for less than 4% of the reported bites both before and after the BSL took effect.
Australia (2006)
A 2006 Australian study titled Breed-specific legislation and the pit bull terrier: Are the laws justified? concluded that the data collected in the United States to support the theory that pit bulls posed a unique danger to the public is flawed by methodological shortcomings. The study also concluded that the evidence does not sustain the view that pit bulls are a uniquely dangerous breed, and breed-specific laws aimed to control it have not been demonstrated by authorities to be justified by its attack record.
In addition to the above countries that have repealed breed specific legislation, many cities in the United States have repealed BSL, as well. A detailed listing of communities that have repealed or decided against implementing BSL can be found at www.alternet.org.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Breed specific legislation: Considerations for evaluating its effectiveness and recommendations for alternatives
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16187720/