Monthly Archives: December 2009

Putnam County, WV: BSL passed (3 articles)

Posted on December 24, 2009 by | 1 Comment

Putnam ordinance targets pit bulls

December 22, 2009
By Veronica Nett
Staff writer, Charleston Gazette

WINFIELD, W.Va. — [...] Commissioners passed the ordinance 2-1 Tuesday, and received a standing ovation from the Bancroft residents.

The ordinance requires owners of pit bulls and other dogs deemed vicious to keep the animals on their property with a six-foot enclosed fence or keep them on a four-foot leash held by the owner.

[...] Tillis and Commissioner Steve Andes voted for the ordinance, but Commissioner Joe Haynes voted against it because of its specific mention of pit bulls.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/24/09 from http://sundaygazettemail.com/News/200912220642

Putnam officials target vicious dogs

by Evadna Bartlett
For the Daily Mail
Tuesday December 22, 2009

WINFIELD – [...] “I’m fully in favor of having a vicious dog ordinance,” Haynes said after the meeting. “I just think we are on a slippery slope naming a breed. Why not rottweilers? German shepherds?”[...]

Full article retrieved 12/24/09 from http://www.dailymail.com/News/200912220614

Putnam County Commissioners Take Aim at Pit Bulls

They passed a vicious dog ordinance that says pit bulls must be contained behind a six foot fence or on a leash no longer than four feet.

Updated Wednesday, December 23, 2009; 04:02 AM
Story by Gil McClanahan, WOWKTV

WINFIELD — [...] Bancroft residents started the effort for the ordinance. By the afternoon many were walking the streets of their town feeling a sigh of relief.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/24/09 from http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=72399

→ 1 Comment

Posted in BSL Passed, West Virginia

Tagged , , , , ,

Uhrichsville, OH: Pit bull ban to be considered, Dec. 30

Posted on December 23, 2009 by | 1 Comment

The city of Uhrichsville, OH, will hold a first reading of a possible ban on “pit bulls” on December 30 at 7 PM.

Keep in mind that the state of OH has statewide BSL in place declaring “pit bulls” to be “vicious” dogs; Uhrichsville has additional BSL on top of state minimums, but because this BSL is not being followed or enforced properly, they are now considering an all-out ban.

Updated contact information for city council members is not available. However, documents may be sent to the council clerk with a request to distribute to council members and the mayor.

City Council Clerk
PO Box 288
Uhrichsville, OH 44683
Phone: (740) 922-1242

I called to request a council agenda for December 30 and was informed that they don’t post agendas. I could only confirm that there was a meeting on the 30th, and that they were reading some ordinances. This is the news item that is circulating about the possible ban. Unfortunately, I could not find the source.

Council preparing to ban pit bulls in city

*Ordinance to get first reading December 30
*Tougher stance aimed at resolving ongoing complaints

UHRICHSVILLE – A new ordinance being prepared by Uhrichsville City Council member should alleviate the concerns that residents brought to them Thursday night about pit bulls and other vicious dogs in the city.

Council members had adopted an ordinance last year that requires owners of pit bulls and other dogs legally defined as vicious dogs within city limits to have proper pens, confinement measures, and $100,000 liability insurance in place. Because many owners are not conforming to those rules, council is preparing to put in place an ordinance that will ban all pit bulls from within city limits.[...]

Thanks to CAO and Jodi for the heads-up.

→ 1 Comment

Posted in BSL Proposed, Ohio

Tagged , , , , ,

Lucas County, OH: Adoptions halted for ‘pit bull’ pups

Posted on December 23, 2009 by | 1 Comment

One step forward, two steps back; Lucas County is determined to kill “pit bulls,” even if it means holding alleged “pit bull” puppies in county kennels until they are old enough to be killed.

Adoptions halted for ‘pit bull’ pups

Pet group blasts commissioners

By IGNAZIO MESSINA
BLADE STAFF WRITER
Article published December 22, 2009

The leader of the Toledo-area rescue group Planned Pethood Inc. was thrilled last month when Lucas County Dog Warden Tom Skeldon was prohibited from killing puppies, but Monday her happiness turned to outrage.

The Lucas County board of commissioners unanimously extended from Dec. 31 to March 1 a moratorium preventing the dog warden from killing dogs up to 3 months old, but “pit bull” puppies will not get the same protection.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/23/09 from http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091222/NEWS16/912220379/0/BUSINESS01

→ 1 Comment

Posted in BSL Passed, Ohio

Tagged , , , , ,

Flora, Illinois: Man wants breed ban

Posted on December 17, 2009 by | Comments Off

Man whose mom was killed by pit bull wants to ban breed

Kevin Held
Date last updated: 12/16/2009 8:12:43 PM

KSDK — Bob Koehler’s front yard sign is a conversation starter. It reads: “Ban Pit Bulls.”

“I’m going to be very vocal about it, I don’t care who likes it or who don’t,” Koehler said.

[...] Even if the city of Flora wanted to ban pit bulls, it could not. An Illinois law prohibits municipalities from targeting a specific breed.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/17/09 from http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=191983&catid=3

Comments Off

Posted in Illinois, Whispers of BSL

Tagged , , , , , ,

Wichita, KS: Wichita City Council OKs changes in pit bull law

Posted on December 16, 2009 by | 1 Comment

Previous alerts for Wichita: http://stopbsl.com/?s=%22wichita%2C+ks%22

Wichita City Council OKs changes in pit bull law

BY dion lefler
The Wichita Eagle

Regulations meant to control pit bulls, set to take effect Jan. 1, underwent some tweaking by the Wichita City Council on Tuesday.

The major provisions of the new ordinance:

* Require pit bull owners to sterilize their dogs.

* Require a breeder’s license if an owner wants to keep more than two pit bulls.

* Require pit bulls to be implanted with an identifying electronic microchip.

The council carved out an exemption to the sterilization requirement for current pit bull owners who show their dogs in legitimate dog shows.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/16/09 from http://www.kansas.com/news/story/1100259.html

→ 1 Comment

Posted in BSL Passed, Kansas

Tagged , , , , ,

Denver, CO: Johnson: If experts cannot ID dog breeds, how can cities?

Posted on December 16, 2009 by | Comments Off

Breed-specific legislation requires breed identification. Breed ID is only rarely done with DNA testing, usually when an owner appeals a breed determination.

Johnson: If experts cannot ID dog breeds, how can cities?

By Bill Johnson
Denver Post Columnist
Updated: 12/16/2009 02:22:00 AM MST

[...] “Think you can tell just by looking?” was the teaser for the breed identification study we participated in. It was run by Victoria L. Voith, a professor of animal behavior in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Western University in Pomona, Calif.

What I and the others ultimately learned is you cannot simply look at a dog and know what it is.

Shelter workers, she explained, are generally 75 percent wrong when they list or tell you the breed of a dog. The only sure-fire way of knowing, she said, is DNA testing.

[...] “Visual identification simply is not in high agreement with DNA analysis,” she said when I protested that a dog I had falsely, dead-to-rights identified as a pit bull turned out through DNA testing to be mostly Dalmatian. “Dogs in Denver may be dying needlessly,” she said.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/16/09 from http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14005785

Comments Off

Posted in Breed Identification, Colorado, Results of BSL

Tagged , , , ,

Miami-Dade County, FL: Woman flees Cutler Bay home to keep banned dog

Posted on December 13, 2009 by | 1 Comment

Visit the article link for a video about efforts to fight BSL in Miami-Dade.

Note: this article contains several inaccuracies, such as the suggestion that communities in Texas have “pit bull” bans in place.

Woman flees Cutler Bay home to keep banned dog

A woman left her Cutler Bay home rather than give up her dog, an outlawed pit bull in Miami-Dade County.

BY ELYSE COLEMAN
South Florida News Service

[...] Miami-Dade residents are banned from owning pit bulls. Any dog fitting the physical characteristics of a pit bull by more than 51 percent may also be banned.

[...] “This ordinance, basically, is the version of racial profiling,” said Dahlia Canes, a founder and director of the coalition. “It is discriminatory. It is unjust. Thousands of innocent animals are targeted on a daily basis in Dade County.”

Kathy Labrada, investigation supervisor for Miami-Dade Animal Services, said the criteria used to determine if a dog is a pit bull is based entirely on appearance.[...]

Full article retrieved 12/13/09 from http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/pinecrest/story/1378374.html

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Florida, Results of BSL

Tagged , , , , , ,