Should Pet Ownership Trump Public Safety?

AUG. 19, 2010

What’s wrong with a mother who locks her 12-year old son in the basement for his own safety, but leaves the family’s two Pit Bull dogs loose in the house while she runs errands?

That’s just one extreme story of pit bull attacks amongst many. This particular incident took place in 2005, and while it was five years ago, it remains one of the most horrific stories of a dog killing. The Associated Press reported, “Maureen Faibish said she ordered Nicholas to stay in the basement while she did errands on June 3, the day he was attacked by the dogs. She said she was worried about the male dog, Rex, who was acting possessive because the female, Ella, was in heat.

“I put him down there, with a shovel on the door,” Faibish told the San Francisco Chronicle. “And I told him: ‘Stay down there until I come back.’ Typical Nicky, he wouldn’t listen to me.”

Nicholas found a way to open the basement door and was killed by the male pit bull. No charges were ever filed against Faibish, who — incredibly — said in an interview, “It’s Nicky’s time to go. When you’re born you’re destined to go and this was his time.”

The many headlines were gruesome: “Grandmother’s pit bull kills girl;” “Pit bull terrorizes a local neighborhood;” “17 year old dies after pit bull attack.” Google pit bull attacks and pages of headlines appear about the attacks.

Last month another pit bull dog killed a child — this time a two-year old Concord toddler was brutalized and killed. The dog was one of five pit bulls living in the grandfather’s home, and had killed two other pets within the month.

Many people are asking why owners are not being held accountable for the dangerous and unpredictable dogs, and what deterrents are in place?

When the majority of animal shelters across the country are filled with pit bull dogs and pit bull mixes, coupled with the increasing reports of pit bull-caused deaths, many asking for tougher enforcement and even legislation to deal with the dangerous breed. And when pit bull owners and devoted pet people (I have my own menagerie of pets) dare to defend the breed, it is out of ignorance.

The pit bull’s ancestor, the Staffordshire terrier, was concocted by humans in England as a weapon. The dogs were designed specifically to fight and kill other animals for sport, which explains the barrel chest, the large, square head, the powerful locking jaws and the fight-to-the-death perseverance, strength and stamina. Pit bull dogs can take down a 1,000 pound bull, so a puny human a fraction of that size can easily be hurt or killed.

Some report that the pit bull can be traced back to the Romans, and was used for bull baiting, which was eventually banned. The American Pit Bull Terrier was once a popular dog in America, its image used in war posters, and as an image of sturdiness for products. Buster Brown Shoes, RCA and the Little Rascals used pit bull terriers. But the dog fighting and abusive training took over, and the pit bull became a bully breed dog.

Reports of crazed Poodles or Yorkies just aren’t prevalent. We don’t hear tales about vicious Shetland Sheepdogs or Golden Retrievers. Even more aggressive working dog breeds are very rarely reported turning on owners.

Rarely does one hear about German Shepherds, Doberman Pincers or even Rottweiler’s turning on owners and family – unless the dog was abused or trained to be vicious. And then the owner should be held accountable.

But the pit bull dog appears to be a reflection of the owners, and is chosen and often trained to be a fighter. According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), they have thousands of reports of pit bull dogs with names like “Murder” and “Homicide,” clearly demonstrating the purpose of the dog.

Animal lovers and dog owners all over the country are in denial about pit bull dogs, and other “bully breeds.” As strange as it sounds, there are American and international “bully breeds” of dogs, and breeders with names such as “Ruthless Breeders,” who try to pass their dogs off as family pets. The pictures of bully breed dogs are intimidating, at the very least. Lists of dangerous dog breeds are available all over the internet. The breeds listed are touted as dangerous and even “killers,” of which pit bulls are prevalent.

Owners in denial about their dogs take on many forms. Most people are not in any danger with tiny, ill-behaved dogs that might bite if their owners didn’t pick them up every time they snarl and bark. But not all dog owners can reach down to lift their nasty dogs when they threaten or misbehave. Dogs that are large are another issue.

The well-meaning but ignorant dog lovers who rescue abandoned pit bulls in moments of weakness and usually out of kindness should leave the rescue to professional dog handlers. Rescuing a pit bull and bringing it home to your family just isn’t quite the same as getting a dog from Golden Retriever or Australian Shepherd rescue.

The majority of pit bull owners live vicariously through their dogs – people who are bullies, even dangerous, and live through their dogs’ aggressiveness. These are the owners who should be held accountable for dog fighting, aggressiveness and dangerous behavior.

I abhor most government regulations; what the government usually chooses to regulate is often a violation of individual liberty. I am not advocating additional regulations or laws. But existing laws are not being enforced. With children, family members and neighbors being attacked everyday by pit bull dogs, a threat to society exists.

With the absence of the American Kennel Club doing anything other than banning from the club certain breeds they deem unworthy, local governments must step up and start enforcing the existing laws surrounding dangerous dogs, as outlined in the California Dangerous Dog Provisions by the California Food and Agriculture code dangerous dog law.

-Katy Grimes