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Stop BSL

Biting the Bullet: Best Friends Takes On Dog Slaughter at Denver Summit

November 3, 2006 : 12:00 AM

Francis Battista reports on what we learned...

Last weekend, Best Friends Animal Society hosted a summit in the metro Denver area on one of the most important and contentious issues facing our movement. It was called the Dangerous Dog Summit and the mere name of the gathering roused passions on all sides of the issue.

We intentionally located the event where we did because of the notorious Denver ban on Pit Bulls and on anything that looked like a Pit Bull to the uneducated eye which resulted in the pointless execution of over 2,000 family pets in Denver simply because they looked like a dog that had fatally attacked a child.

So why was the name of the Summit controversial? Because in a world where local councils are increasingly adopting breed ban laws as a dumbed down answer to a complex issue, some regard any suggestion that such things as “dangerous dogs” even exist is taking the conversation in the wrong direction.

For the record, Best Friends went into the Summit with only one sure point of reference: more killing is never the answer to anything and it certainly isn’t the answer here.

Beyond that we know from our decades of experience with tens of thousands of dogs that trying to correlate a dog’s likelihood to bite a person with their breed is pointless. So, while we know that breed bans are really a lazy and uninformed approach to a growing problem we didn’t have enough information to formulate alternative remedies.

And if we, the humane movement, don’t get in front of this issue now, we will find ourselves responding after the fact to regulations and legislation in community after community that adversely affects people’s pets.

Beyond Denver’s Pit Bull ban, there are 26 breeds and many more mixes that are currently banned somewhere in this country. It’s a real problem that could threaten virtually every family dog over 30 pounds in the name of public safety.

The Summit brought together stake holders from all sides of the spectrum...law enforcement, animal control, canine behavior, breed rescue, gang intervention, legal experts, and just plain folks who are worried the next breed ban will have someone knocking on their door to drag their Shepherd, Dobbie, Golden or boxer mix off to death row.

The presentations put a spotlight on the emotional nature of the problem with slides of tragic dog bite and mauling victims on one hand to goofy family pets that were dragged off to their death for no good reason.

Perhaps the most interesting discussion was one exploring the question of “Who Is Making Our Dogs Mean?” The panel included long time animal rights and anti-puppy mill activist Chris DeRose, gang intervention expert Tio Hardiman and Best Friends dog behavior expert Sherry Woodard.

After touching on various issues their attention focused on a pervasive culture of violence, both rural and urban, that extols machismo and a tough image. An essential accoutrement for thugs and wannabes is a tough looking dog. This world in all its forms...white, black and Latino has created a demand for and a proliferation of big muscular dogs that has essentially turned them into a commodity.

Add exploitive and unsound breeding practices, poor socialization and abusive handling and it’s not hard to identify a source of the problem. Interestingly, all the experts agree that banning a breed will not stop these folks from owning and breeding banned breeds. Breed bans only punish law abiding responsible care-givers and their animals.

The Summit also looked at how we can organize ourselves as a movement to not only roll back and pre-empt breed bans, but to genuinely address the problem of dog aggression in a way that protects people, individual animals and breeds in a comprehensive way.

To help the assembled company appreciate the potential power for change that we embodied were featured guest speakers, politics set aside for the day, were Joe Trippi, the genius behind Howard Dean’s meteoric rise to prominence via the internet, and John Hlinko, one of the co-creators of “MoveOn.Org”.

Both men had a hand in changing the political and social landscape from the position of underdog and grassroots activism. They helped and continue to help Best Friends in our campaign to protect family pets. They also reminded us, in the words of the Chinese proverb, "that a journey of thousand miles begins with a single step."

The net result of the Summit? A commitment by Best Friends and those assembled to begin the journey of a thousand miles, and work together toward the day when dog slaughter laws are no longer accepted in any community as a lazy political solution to a complex issue.

Comments

November 12, 2006 at 12:59 PM
posted by: Celeste

Thank you, Sheryl.

For more details about what was learned and discussed at the Summit, please see the Dangerous Dogs Summit Report in the Blogs section of this community. Three attendees, including Sheryl, answered questions about the Summit and BSL.

Doggedly yours,
Celeste Crimi
No More Homeless Pets
Best Friends Animal Society

November 11, 2006 at 7:15 AM
posted by: doglit

The ADOA, unfortunately, has consistently lost constitutional challenges over a decade, which resulted in the cases being used in FAVOR of BSL law! They are not experts in dangerous dog laws.

Dangerous dogs and aggression in dogs requires experts---actual experts who have education and training and a lot of experience. Laypersons are not going to be able to do this. Stopping Breed Specific Legislation (dog slaughter laws, as you have called it) requires scientific evidence to overcome the rational basis that the governments use to keep these laws, unless you can convince them NOT to adopt it in the first place. (As they did in Parker, CO)

Even if one town passes on BSL, another will crop up. Misguided opinions and ignorance fuels the law, and if it isn't BSL, then they will use mandatory spay/neuter instead. It does boil down to ignoring the issue----the victims are usually kids----and the dogs are usually running loose. The focus needs to drop off the dogs, and onto the people who are not good owners, and then on the people that want to protect their kids. (Since the law won't work)

What the community can do is to get animal control's leash law enforced, and get all the kids to have DOG SAFETY training. People act as if there are menacing dogs everywhere---not usually the case. Animal shelters, parents, the schools, everyone can easily teach kids dog safety. If there really are that many dogs running around in the area then your animal control isn't doing its job. Tell them.

Most dogs on leash aren't attacking anyone. Trying to eliminate "aggressive" dogs by focusing on breedings is not the key---most dogs have to diligently be trained to be aggressive from an early age, they have to be unsocial, they have to be fairly isolated from people. Even so, a law aimed at curtailing the breeding of a dangerous dog is fraught with too many variables that would likely be unworkable in terms of proof.

The dog ban in Denver is based on a lot of complicated facts, but the one that is never told to the public is the fact that the court never allowed the 'dangerous dog' expert group (American canine foundation---ACF) to testify as an expert. Instead, the judge ruled without the experts. This is being challenged currently but of course the process is very slow. However ACF is very diligent and never gives up---ACF is also currently pursuing the Tellings case to the Ohio Supreme Court since the city appealed the case. AKC, UKC and others will be filing amicus briefs on behalf of Tellings.

Kory Nelson of Denver has done much damage to dogs---in fact, his personal Yahoo group re dangerous dogs, says that people who are anti-BSL are strawmen for dogfighters, related to dog fighters, are involved in dog fighting, and such nonsense----------see http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DangerousDogLaw/

One of our goals is to get rid of Kory Nelson in due time. His prejudice/bias/discriminatory efforts are very pervasive, and he travels the country preaching about BSL and how great it is. It's a wonder that the city hasn't fired him for conduct unbecoming.

November 11, 2006 at 12:22 AM
posted by: apbtdawg

Denver BSL has been on the law books since 1989 and, I believe, is getting more attention now since the law has been challenged and upheld in the Colorado court system. This is not a new problem and organizations like The American Dog Owner's Association (ADOA) has been fighting it since the 1970's. In addition to supporting organizations that fight BSL, I encourage people to support ADOA and contribute to their Canine Defense Fund. They have a group of lawyers who can advise individuals and communities, and, as funding allows, come into your community to fight. They can be found at www.adoa.org. They also keep up to date information on current breed bans and communities that are considering it or fighting it.

I think that Katrina opened up the eyes of a lot of rescue organizations due to the vast number of Pit Bulls that became homeless due to the hurricane. More and more people are becoming aware of the breed's plight and the racism they experience. I hope that some of the good that will come out of this will be to restore the image of the breed and end the canine racism that has been going on for far too long.

November 10, 2006 at 3:55 PM
posted by: sherylcatmom

eunverz, I'm glad you asked why Best Friends is taking on this issue, and why now. I don't speak for Best Friends, but I have volunteered with them for a while and I did attend the Summit, so I'll try to answer your question.

Before Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, Best Friends did not do the kind of national outreach it suddenly seems famous for. The organization was busy caring for the 1,800 animals at its Kanab Sanctuary (including many pit bulls) and was just starting to create regionally-based volunteer networks to help animals throughout the US.

Then the hurricanes happened. Best Friends dispatched many staff members and supplies to the Gulf Coast and built two rescue centers. Volunteers contacted Best Friends in such numbers that the phone system couldn't handle it and staff was overwhelmed with more emails than they could possibly respond to. Volunteers just started showing up at Best Friends' rescue centers in Metairie, LA and Tylertown, MS.

Since then, Best Friends has restructured, with Paul Berry becoming CEO and generally gearing up to be the organization that its supporters are insisting it be. This expansion effort enabled the spay, neuter, and placement of over 1,000 rabbits in Reno, Nevada and the airlift of 300 homeless cats and dogs from Beirut, Lebanon to Utah.

Best Friends is well aware of the horrors of breed bans and dog slaughter. Best Friends created the Dangerous Dogs Summit to help get as many people involved as possible and launch the new Family Dog Protection Campaign.

Best Friends hopes to educate the public with the truth about breed-stereotyping and the threat it presents to all dogs and their families. At the Summit, we learned about creating community support around this issue so we can get organized and get the word out about ways to protect animals. We discussed the importance of creating alliances with community members, humane organizations, civic agencies (including animal control), faith-based groups, and elected officials.

Summit presenters emphasized that it is essential for animal advocates to work together (and stop the in-fighting) so we can stop breed-bans and take other measures to promote a more humane world.

Best Friends freely offers the information generated in this developing campaign to anyone who wants it. Best Friends continues to receive countless calls and emails for help, and does whatever it can to help.

Still, it is up to each of us to mobilize within our own communities and work toward legislation that protects dogs and people, and toward a culture that treats all beings humanely.

November 9, 2006 at 12:11 AM
posted by: eunverz

BSL, or dog slaughter laws (a term I've been using for a number of years now), has been going on for years. There is some level of success fighting these laws by locals, on the local front, when these laws are proposed. Of course a national organization can help. I've been asking for help in Prince George's County, Maryland, for years, and have received no assistance from BF or any of the other national humane organizations in our effort to stop the seizure and slaughter of innocent family members. Please don't take the question the wrong way, but why is Best Friends arriving on the scene so late? How is BF going to help us, now, today, to stop the cruelty of breed specific laws?

November 5, 2006 at 5:05 PM
posted by: pattyfiv6

The people who enact these bans on so called dangerous dogs are idiots. They do not know what they are doing half the time. Dogs are made dangerous only by the people who have them. The families of these innocent dogs who have been slaughtered should be compensated or at least issued a public apologhy by the people who did this.
The people who did this should be treated the same way the dogs were. Then they would know how it feels to be mistreated.