Should we ban some breeds?

[abby]

I dont think that BSL is necessarily the answer as there are a lot of responsible owners, unfortunately its the irresponsible ones that give certain dogs bad reputations. Would dog licensing and compulsory microchipping, stronger leash laws, and bans on ownerships ( when bites, loose dogs, dangerous dogs etc) be a better way forward?
It is hard because OH and i were talking yesterday about it and he said it goes against the constitution, does anybody with two dogs have the right to breed "yes" should they yes/no/maybe
Should people be allowed a certain type of dog because they love that type "yes" is it right for their lifestyle who knows?
I think to blanket ban breeds is silly we had the dangerous dog act in england did it stop dog fighting etc no, did it stop dogs biting people no, other breeds made the headlines instead rottweilers etc.
Well thats my 2 cents

[Klamari]

I know this is an old thread but just thought I would give my two cents

I think we should have tougher fines/jail time for owners whose dogs attack someone. To say that we should make owners of pit bulls get a permit to own the dog is not a solution because to determine what is "responsible" dog ownership is very subjective. You cannot legislate something like that. The definition of a "responsible" owner is not straightforward or set in stone and therefore you cannot keep someone from owning a dog, when they have done nothing wrong so far, just beause they do not line up with what YOU consider responsible ownership.

Selzer made a point about having proper containment for the dog in order to get this permit. Well then how are you going to ensure that these pit owners with permits can control their dogs while out walking on a leash? Are we going to say now that these owners have to be of a certain height and weight to be able to control a dog that MIGHT POSSIBLY become out of control? Then are they going to say that females can't own pits, beause the average female is not as strong as the average male? (notice the "average" there, dont jump my case).

I agree that there is a problem with dog attacks. Not specifically pit bulls, but dog attacks and the owners of these dogs getting off with just fines when they have, in fact, actually done somthing wrong by not controlling their dog. But trying to keep irresponsible people from owning dogs with permit legislation is NOT goingn to solve the problem. These irresposible people will not follow the rules. Hence, the definition of irresponsible. And THEN, all the other tax paying responsible americans have to shell out the cash to implement more useless preventative legislation.

I think 10yrs in a federal prison, OR hard labor that serves the community, for a dog attack will be a much more effective deterant for irresponsible dog owners to take steps to better control their dogs.

[GSD Fan]

This is a bit silly, but this reminds me of these games I used to play growing up. The games were Pokemon and in one of the Pokemon books, it said something like "There is no such thing as an evil pokemon, rather evil trainers who use their pokemon for evil things".

I think it's the same way with not only the so called dangerous breeds, but any dog.