Category Archives: BSL Defeated

Donnellson, IA: City passes breed-neutral dog ordinance

Posted on May 10, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Many thanks to Jodi for this update!

The city of Donnellson, Iowa has been debating their animal control ordinance since November 2011. There has been much back and forth between city officials as to whether the ordinance should be breed specific. Mayor Young has been unwavering in his position that he did not want to implement BSL.

The council finally passed an ordinance on Monday night, and it is not breed specific. I just spoke with the city clerk for clarification because we had been hearing that Donnellson already had restrictions on pit bulls. Ms. Krebill confirmed that the city never had any type of breed restrictions, and all the breed specific wording in the proposed ordinance has been removed from the final version. Dogs that are determined to be vicious based on their behavior will be required to be leashed and muzzled in public.

If you recall from a previous update on Donnellson back in January, Ms. Krebill stressed that the city was experiencing chronic problems with specific dogs/dog owners, and the mayor wanted an ordinance to target reckless, irresponsible dog owners rather than singling out breeds. The new ordinance is their tool to do just that.

All alerts for Donnellson: http://stopbsl.org/?s=donnellson

Donnellson council establishes non-breed specific animal measure

By Lauren Zechin/MVM News Network
Published: Wednesday, May 9, 2012 4:17 PM CDT

DONNELLSON – Donnellson’s newly updated animal ordinance is now in effect.

During the city council’s regular meeting Monday at which four of the five council members were present, the first reading of the ordinance was passed and the second and third readings waived. Council member Jan Fraise was absent.

“I feel like this has been discussed long enough that we can, in good faith, skip the second and third readings,” Mayor Bill Young said.

The ordinance will not, after all, be breed-specific when defining what constitutes a “vicious” dog. [...]

Full article retrieved 5/10/12 from http://www.dailygate.com/articles/2012/05/09/news/dgc2532481.txt

 

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Pointe Coupee Parish, LA: New animal ordinance is not BSL

Posted on April 18, 2012 by | 1 Comment

Good news in Pointe Coupee Parish. The police jury passed a new animal control ordinance in early April. The parish has considered BSL in the past, and there were concerns that this new ordinance could incorporate some of the breed-specific language that was previously under consideration.

We have received a copy of the new ordinance, and confirmed that it is breed-neutral. Many thanks to the parties in and around the parish who worked to make sure that the new ordinance was not breed discriminatory.

If you would like to read the text, we noticed that the parish has not posted it online (their website isn’t very up to date). So, here it is, for your convenience: Pointe Coupee Animal and Fowl Ordinance 3_27_12

All alerts for Pointe Coupee: http://stopbsl.com/?s=pointe+coupee

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Buffalo, MO update: City will not pursue breed ban

Posted on March 15, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Many thanks to Jodi for checking up on Buffalo, MO!

I received the following news snippet this morning (the entire article is available to subscribers only):

Mayor Mead says he’s against banning pit bulls in the city

By Paul Campbell paulc@buffaloreflex.com | Posted: Tuesday, March 13, 2012 7:28 pm

After doing some research on the subject, Buffalo Mayor Andrew Mead has decided he is against banning pit bulls in the city.

Speaking during the “mayor’s comments” portion of the regular monthly meeting of the Buffalo Board of Aldermen Monday night, he said such a policy might be unconstitutional. He added that vicious behavior is not the dog’s fault, but the fault of the owner because of mistreatment or lack of training.

I just got off the phone with the city clerk for clarification on this issue. She said the city already has a mechanism in place to handle vicious dogs, and the city is not moving forward with any type of breed specific ordinance.  She advised that a few months ago a resident had requested the city ban pit bulls after an incident.  However, the animal control officer said she never got a call about the incident and, therefore, was unable to respond to it.  The city can’t respond to resident complaints if they are not aware of the complaint.  She further advised that after researching the issue indepth, the mayor used the last Board meeting to convey that a breed ban wasn’t something the city was going to consider.

Please THANK city officials for deciding against BSL.
Contact information for city officials:
 City Hall, 102 N. Poplar, Buffalo, MO 65622
ph: 417-345-2701
fax 417-345-2700
Although there is no email contact, you may fax correspondence to aldermen. Some websites, like FaxZero, offer free online fax services.

All alerts for Buffalo, MO: http://stopbsl.com/?s=buffalo%2C+mo

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Slater, MO: City decides against BSL

Posted on February 22, 2012 by | Comments Off

Please THANK Slater officials for their smart decision to drop the breed-specific language in their proposed animal ordinance revisions.

Contact info for Slater officials:
Slater City Hall, 232 N. Main St., Slater, MO 65349
Ph: 660.529.2271
Fax: 660.529.2593
info@cityofslater.com

All alerts for Slater: http://stopbsl.com/?s=%22slater%2C+mo%22

Slater Council workshops pending animal laws

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

By MAGGIE MENDERSKI/Staff Writer

The Slater City Council workshopped the pending animal ordinance on Feb. 21, immediately following the regularly scheduled city council meeting.[...]

The council heeded several citizen recommendations during the latest workshop.

Breed-specific laws have been a source of deep controversy in each of the animal hearings. While the council has decided to write a strict vicious animal clause, it has decided against placing restrictions on specific breeds.

“The vet and the lawyers and everyone seems to say it shouldn’t be breed specific,” Allegri said. [...]

Full article retrieved 2/22/12 from http://www.marshallnews.com/story/1818623.html

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Fond du Lac, WI update: Breed ban proposal dropped

Posted on January 26, 2012 by | 2 Comments

The public stood up and said “no” to BSL tonight in Fond du Lac. City councilman Rob Vande Zande dropped his proposed breed ban after overwhelming public opposition to the idea.

Most city council members were also opposed to BSL. Please take a moment to thank the city council for standing up against discrimination.
Contact info for city officials (cut and paste):
rgudex@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; jruedinger@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; mburroughs@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; gmiller@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; rlunde@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; jsabel@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; rvandezande@ci.fond-du-lac.wi.us; lagnew@fdl.wi.gov

If you were one of the many who attending the meeting, wrote the councilmembers, collected petition signatures, and spread the word–then, here’s to you! Congratulations, and thank you, for a job well done.

Great coverage and photos of the meeting from FDL Reporter: http://www.fdlreporter.com/article/20120126/FON0101/201260446/Fond-du-Lac-residents-attack-pit-bull-proposal

Additional coverage from FOX: http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/fox_cities/pit-bull-ban-proposal-in-fond-du-lac

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Posted in BSL Defeated, BSL Proposed, Wisconsin

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Lake Saint Louis, MO update: Proposed animal ordinance no longer enables breed discrimination

Posted on January 17, 2012 by | Comments Off

The Lake Saint Louis city clerk sent me a copy of the new Bill 3213, which will replace the city’s current animal ordinance.

We had concerns about the wording of the proposal due to a news report several months ago. The proposed wording would have allowed officials to consider a dog’s breed when determining whether to declare it dangerous.

The proposal has since been revised, and no longer contains this wording. Read the new proposal for Lake Saint Louis: Bill 3213

Thanks to all of the people who contacted Lake Saint Louis officials and asked them to change the wording so that personal feelings and assumptions about a dog’s breed would not be part of the process when declaring a dog “dangerous.”

All alerts for Lake Saint Louis, MO: http://stopbsl.com/?s=lake+saint+louis

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New Mexico update: Governor will not “call” BSL proposal

Posted on January 16, 2012 by | Comments Off

Several sources, including a news report, have now confirmed that New Mexico Senator Sue Beffort’s proposal to restrict ownership of “pit bulls” will not be going anywhere this year.

Because 2012 is a short legislative session, Governor Martinez has to “call” any bill that is not related to budget. The governor’s office says that Gov. Martinez does not intend to call Beffort’s proposal, citing concerns about portions of the bill.

Beffort acknowledges how divisive her proposal was, but it’s unclear whether she’s actually changed her mind about how “dangerous” and “unpredictable” she thinks pit bull mixes are. Bill filing for the 2013 legislative session begins in December, and we will watch at that time to see if Beffort tries to file a simlar proposal during the longer session.

Beffort’s efforts to pass statewide BSL are not unique. In 2009, NM Representative John Heaton introduced a bill that defined “pit bulls” and Rottweilers as “dangerous dogs.” That bill did not pass, and Heaton lost re-election in 2010. When an elected official continuously proposes or supports BSL and is unwilling to change their stance, sometimes your vote is the best way to get that official out of a position of power.

Several New Mexico advocacy groups are now looking into the possibility of “banning BSL in New Mexico.” We believe that entails passage of a bill that amends state dog law to prohibit municipalities from passing breed-specific ordinances. Several other states already have such a prohibition. We support this effort and will try to share more information about it as the groups organize and get their bearings. Here’s one gathering place: http://www.facebook.com/BanBSLinNewMexico

All alerts for New Mexico: http://stopbsl.com/?s=new+mexico

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