From KSL.com:
“…It was the 25th pit bull attack in the city in the past year and a half, and now Orem is thinking about a ban on the dogs. Other cities have already banned pit bulls.
Anthony Denovellis was walking to work, reading a book, when three dogs surrounded him and started barking. There were two pit bulls and a brown Labrador. “I looked up, and these three dogs were rushing up on me. They didn’t look like they were going to stop, so I put my foot out at them, like this, and they circled, circled around me, kept barking while they circled,” he said.
…Lt. Doug Edwards, with the Orem City Police Department, said, “Marks with an explanation point some of the problems we’re having with this breed of dog.” He says Orem is looking at adopting a pit bull ban.
We found other cities in the nation have already done it. The year before Council Bluffs, Iowa, banned pit bulls, there were 29 reported attacks. Last year there were two, and so far this year they’ve had none.
Don Bauermeister, a city attorney for Council Bluffs, said, “There’s been less attacks, the numbers have gone down. We don’t have as many pit bulls in Council Bluffs as we did in 2003, 2004.”
There are, of course, other breeds Orem will look at when considering banning. Some Chows, for instance, have a dangerous reputation, too.
The dogs involved in yesterday’s attack have different owners. In addition to possible charges, the owners will be cited for letting their pets run loose.”
Read this article in its entirety here.
Please contact the Orem Mayor and City Council and politely inform them that breed-specific legislation is unenforceable and ineffective.
6 responses to “Orem, Utah Considers Banning “Pit Bulls””
I own a pit bull and he is the sweetest dog ever. To quote many dog lovers, “there is no such thing as a bad dog, just bad owners.” My question is what is going to be done about the brown lab. We start with one breed but when will it stop; once no one can own a german shepard, boxer, or a rottweiler.
they should start condeming the owners not the pet i own a pit bull and he loves my 2 grandchildren he will not even take food from thier hands
It is just like guns laws. It isn’t guns that are the problem it is the owners. The American Pit Bull Terrier is a very loving dog that wants to please its owner. They are very active and do require a lot of attention and exercise. Before owning one you should consider if you have the time to properly train and exercise your dog.
I also own an American Pit Bull Terrier. These are not bad dogs! They are however misunderstood, and often owned by irresponsible people. Even though I am an active enthusiast for these dogs I do not believe that very many people should own them. They are a breed that needs a dedicated and educated owner who has the time for them. It is the people that need to be punished, not the animals. “So why is it then that more BSL laws are implemented daily? God forbid a person have to take responsibility for their irresponsible actions and BSL supports these people by not placing very harsh punishments on them. Now these dogs are taking heat from the general public and the BSL supporters. Again they are restricting the dogs and not the people.”
“BSL can be compared to gender profiling or racial profiling. Simply because a dog appears to be a dog on the restricted list it is treated as one. What if you were driving down the road and the police took you to jail, sentenced you, and placed you on death row just for looking like a certain ethnic group? BSL does exactly that to dogs. Dogs are not the problem and BSL does not recognize this. People are the problem and until we find a way to punish people for their neglectful actions which allow dogs to bite and terrorize the public we will never stop the problem.”
“In short BSL has nothing to offer the public but confusion and loss. BSL will not and will never be a practicable means of regulating vicious dogs and severe attacks. Until the law makers see this fact of life we will be faced with more BSL laws.”
http://www.pitbulllovers.com/breed-specific-legislation.html
I feel both saddened and disappointed by the possible ban to own Pit Bulls in Ogden, Utah. Ive heard one too many times of the aggressive gene Pit Bulls carry, often from people whod heard it through the grape vine or had a bad experience.
My disappointment draws from the sheer lack of education that continually perpetuates unfair judgments on dog breeds. If a person chooses to own a dog, it becomes their responsibility to become educated in the proper training and health and wellness for their dog. Yes, I believe owners should take responsibility for their pets and not the other way around. If I 100% believed the ban to Pit Bulls in Ogden would ensure all the Pit Bulls would find happy loving homes elsewhere, I would be more considerate of the ban. The statistics do no show how many aggressive Pit Bulls there are, it shows the lack of pet owner’s education in their pet. But I do not believe that all the neglected Pit Bulls will find happy homes with the ban in place, and I do believe there are good educated pet owners in Ogden. Maybe a better solution would be to require a new owner to pass a mandatory obedience school with their newly adopt Pit Bull to sustain the adoption.
As a part of being the higher species, humans have a responsibility to protect those that are unable to protect themselves, whether it is children, disabled adults, dogs, or other animals. If you have an aggressive dog are you a bad dog owner? Not necessarily, you may just lack the proper knowledge on what to do about it. Is it the owners responsibility to become educated? Absolutely. Although I do believe it is more complicated that just stating its the owners fault. Who will stand up and spend the time, money, and effort to educate the mass people who lack the proper education? I can only hope that everyone will make their contribution as the higher species in educating their friends and families.
I have an American Staffordshire Terrier and she’s the most amazing companion I’ve ever had.
I took a lot of time educating myself on the breed prior to bringing her home & at the same time I’ve also taken the time to take her (myself) to specific classes for behavioral training & socialization since she first came to my home. I wanted to make sure that Freya (my dog) would be able to show people that there is no need for Breed Discrimination by proving to be the most loving & behaved dog out there. I also have neice’s & nephews that are constantly in my home, Freya and I are constantly outside, & we’re at the off leash parks in my area on a regular basis so I wanted to make sure there would be no issues with Freya getting steriotyped as a dangerous animal.
Maybe the law needs to focus more on educating the owner, thus in turn, educating the pet (rather than focusing on the specific breed) by implementing manditory training/classes for owners and pets. Not just manditory training/classes for specific breeds that “look scary” but for all pets as in my personal experience it’s actually been the smaller dogs that have been more agressive. It really should be all inclusive rather than discrimatory.
I believe I speak for a lot of people when I say that my dog is my child & like a child a dog needs to be properly educated and brought up in a healthy & fullfilling living environment. Owners also need to be educated on the specific needs of specific breeds to ensure that the breed that they’re acquiring fits their lifestyle. I don’t care who or what you are, neglect & abuse have the potential of creating nasty things. If training/education was manditory for owners and their pets there would be no need for any ban.