Pit Bulls are no more dangerous than a German Shepard or poodle. Dogs behave the way they have been trained to behave. I have a Black Lab-Pit Bull mix and she doesn't even bite the fleas that she has. This is just another example of knee "jerk" reaction to a more deep rooted problem, mostly stupid people being able to own loving dogs. Please tell me where in the GA Constitution it allows for legilators to decide how people control their own pets. VOTE NO ON THIS BILL!
State Rep. Earnest Williams admits he drafted this bill for a friend who had a family member attacked by a dog that happened to be a pit bull. He has no solid reasoning behind this bill to support its existence.
Problems with animals, such as pit bulls, almost always originate with humans and not the animals themselves. Outlaw bad owners - not a breed that happens to have a bad reputation.
that happened to be a pit bull. He has no solid reasoning behind this bill to support its existance.
Problems with animals, such as pit bulls, almost always originate with humans and not the animals themselves. Outlaw bad owners - not a breed that happens to have a bad reputation.
I think that the "Coach" should do more research on this breed before proposing such an outragous bill! While I feel sorry for his friend that had an attack by a pit bull, I certainly do not feel everyone that owns a pit bull should be punished for someone else's lack of training or care for the dog. Pit bulls always get a bad reputation, however it should be the owners. I have two Pit Bulls and one little Jack Russell mix (who thinks he is a Pit Bull and has more agresssive tendencies than my Pit's). I don't see them proposing to muzzle other types of dogs. Both my Pit's are loveable, loyal and perfectly sweet. I can't tell you how many people I have converted from the narrow-minded Pit Bull mentality after meeting my dogs and seeing how sweet and nice they are...I wonder if it has anything to do with me TRAINING them and spoiling them???????
I have dealt with this stigma for quite sometime. I am a responsible owner and my dog is perfectly trained and he is as nice as any breed that I have ever known. This is the last straw. People need to stop jumping to conclusions and study the facts. Come meet my dog. We need to go about this in the correct way
This bill is written by the ignorant, for the ignorant.
It blames animals for human irresponsibility. No expert in animal behavior would support the notion that one breed of dog is inherently more violent than another breed. How can refusing a citizen the freedom to responsibly own his choice of a domestic animal (pet) be justified? Is there such a thing as individual responsibility anymore? Or, should we just ban possession of any property that is potentially harmful in the hands of the unlawful and irresponsible minority of the population. Would we ban matches to prevent fires?
Furthermore, it is not enforceable; are mixed bred dogs going to be banned because they are 1/8th Staffordshire Terrier? How does the legislature propose to keep existing dogs from breeding? Are they going to send the National Guard around to everyone's home with a banned dog and force-spay/neuter the animals?
As usual, our elected officials continue to avoid legitimate issues, and waste the taxpayers' time and money on this sort of nonsense.
It's not the breed’s fault it is the owners fault. The fact that tax payer money is being spent on this proposal disgusts me. For the record I do not own a pit bull I own a Golden Retriever.
This is a ridiculous personal agenda that would affect millions of innocent people and truly awesome canines. Sad, Sad People that think these things up.
Breed Specific Legislation will not solve the problem of irresponsible dog ownership. It will only ban a breed that is loyal, clownish, and very loving.
Unfortunately, this will not stop at pit bulls, but continue on until all controbversial breeds (rottweilers (I own two), chow chows, dobermans, etc.) are illegal in Georgia. Irresponsible owners are to blame, not the dogs. We cannot let this pass.
This bill is horrible. Owners must be held responsible for the actions of their animals and prevent the animals from harming others. This bill would basically make the breed extinct in Georgia.
The irresponsible owners should be banned from owning any dog. I owned a pit bull and have met several pit bulls that were not aggresive or mean. It's how you raise your pets. My pit bull would avoid getting into fights with other dogs. You should focus on the owners not the breeds. I have to say that my pit bull was one of the best, sweetest, and most loving pets I have ever owned. He would smile (show his teeth) at me ever time I came home. He died of old age and I miss him very much. I'm 51 and never had children. My pets are my children to me. You can make any pet mean if you do not treat them with love and respect. I'm an experienced pet owner. I have had pets all of my life.
Breed specific legislation is ineffective and discriminatory. To best protect society, pass a dangerous dog law. The AKC and ASPCA recommend this type of law. California has an excellent example in place. This type of law will protect from dogs (and irresponsible owners) that individually have a dangerous history. This law is NOT specific to breed. A dangerous dog law AVOIDS punishing good dogs and responsible owners. Remember - if you outlaw pit bulls only outlaws will own them. Is that what we want? NO! We want to encourage RESPONSIBLE owners to care for these wonderful creatures.
This bill is a violation of the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution. Legislation of this sort is reactionary and counterproductive. What ever happened to personal responsibility in this country? This bill will go nowhere.
The thought of allowing the government to ban certain breeds is appalling. This is just one more example of the government overstepping their bounds. Why doesnt the government enact stricter laws against the OWNERS of the dogs instead of punishing the actual dogs themselves? You ban one breed, and the people who gave that breed a bad name will just move on to another. This is not the way for the goverment to handle the problem!
AGAIN THE LEGISLATURE IS PUNISHING A DOG FOR BAD PEOPLE. I'VE HAD 12 BULL DOGS AND NOT A ONE HAS EVER HURT OR EVEN LOOK MEAN AT ANY OF MY 12 GRANDCHILDREN OR NEIGHBORS. 6 OF THESE WERE RESCUED DOGS FROM POOR OWNERS AND ANYONE WHO KNOW US AND OUR DOGS CAN SEE THESE LOVING DOGS ARE LOVING BECAUSE THEY ARE HANDLED CORRECTLY. LEASH LAWS ARE GOOD FOR ALL DOGS IN PUBLIC BUT WHAT IS THE USE OF LEASH AND MUZZLE IN A FENCED YARD?
With all the problems in our society, this legislator is attacking innocence pit bulls. If this law is pasted, what dog is next. Is this what we pay these people for?
The responsibility lies in the dog owner. The breed is not responsible for how individual dogs are raised. Pass strong legislation to punish irresponsible dog owners and I will back it.
I am a proud owner of a pit bull. Do you want to know the "monster" he is? I have a 20 month old little girl, and I trust my pit around her more than I trust most people around her. Pits are, by nature incredible family pets. To say all pit bulls are dangerous violent dogs is like saying all men are abusers. They are products of their environment.
This attempt to go after a breed so intimately tied to American history is disheartening. There are many other dangerous, unassuming breeds that do damage but are not attacked. Hooah and Hoorah, this is the symbol of American Armed forces we are speaking of!
This is a travesty. I cannot believe this would actually be put up, my dog who looks to be a pit because of her being brindle, but is papered an american bulldog, is a sweetheart. These breeds always get a bad rap.
My 11 year old pit has never even thought of biting anyone, and never been in a fight with another dog. Some children with poor home training grow up to be criminals. Whats next? Ban Kids?
I HAVE LOVED AND RAISED PIT BULL FOR 17 YEARS,ITS NOT RIGHT TO BAN THE RIGHT TO OWN ANY ANIMAL JUST BEAUSE OF THEIR BREED,NOT ALL OF THESE ANIMALS ARE VICIOUS,MOST OF ARE INNOCENT FAMILY PETS. President-The China Foundation Shelter and Pitbull Rescue.
I have a dog I got from the pound that is black lab and pit bull. He is the nicest dog and loves to be around people. All he ever wants to do is play. Any dog can be mean if it is brought up to be mean.
This is a terrible bill. Banning specific breeds is a bad idea. I agree with the sentiment "punish the deed, not the breed". As a staffordshire bull terrier enthusiast, who has raised children with these wonderful nanny dogs, I find this legislation very offensive and obviously ignorant.
It is ridiculous and cruel that anyone could be so heartless as to take away the heart of my family. For anyone to even call my sweet angels viscouis and mean and demand for them to be muzzeled in the backyard of their home makes me irrate and heartbroken. I will not go quitely or sitting down on this issue and i pray you will not either.
I agree that it is ridiculous to ban a breed and especially to ban any dog displaying these breed's physical traits. My dog is a service dog (I am confined to a wheelchair) and she has been mistaken for a pit-cross many times although she is a purebred of a totally differnt breed. She is not papered, so I would have no way of proving her breeding. Would they want to outlaw my service dog or make me put a muzzle on her so that she would be unable to perform her job???
Oh, because pit bulls train THEMSELVES to attack other dogs. They are supposed to remember not to run out of their unfenced yard. Their owners train them to run out of an open door, but they don't listen? Sounds to me like it's not the pit bulls fault if he is aggressive towards other dogs or is not properly contained. That's the owner's reposnsiblity. Stupid owners, stupid backyard breeders, stupid state for being racist.
Punish the deed, not the breed. Make rules on breeding harsher. Dogs should be temperment tested, health cleared, and match the breed standard before breeding. You'll find that every attack involved dogs whose breeders did none of these things. Break the backyard breeders and irresponsible owners. Not the dog.
Dogs of any breed are only as dangerous as their owners allow them to be! This is not a breed problem, it is an irresponsible owner problem. By banning a particular breed, you give your residents a FALSE sense of security. People wrongly and dangerously assume that if a dog is not banned then it is safe. Statistics and reality prove this is not true. All dogs have teeth and all dogs can bite. Any large dog can be dangerous to a human and when children are involved, it doesn't have to be a large dog to do significant damage or cause death to a child. To be truely effective, legislation needs to address the potential of any dog to bite and punish the owners who allow dangerous behavior. By banning pit bulls, you are simply punishing law abiding citizens that choose to have this breed as their family members. Those pit bull owners who use their dogs as weapons or for intimidation purposes do not follow the licensing, vaccination or leash laws you already have in place, they are certainly not going to start being law abiding citizens simply because you pass a breed ban. Only those responsible owners of pit bulls will leave the state or give up their cherished family members is response to this law, and these are not the owners that are causing problems.
Please do not pass this law. Protect your residents by passing and ENFORCING dangerous dog laws that protect against all breeds!
Banning breeds does not help keep people from dog fighting. Pitbulls in fact are not the majority of reported dog bits-cocker spaniels are! Yet we do not hear of anyone protesting the ownership of cocker spaniels! If the media were more fair in reporting what viscious cruel owners did instead of just what a dog does after it has been tortured then perhaps REAL change could be affected. But even when someone harms an animal, the penalty is all to often a slap on the wrist...and it is the dog who loses its life. Additionally, it is a poor dog who loses its life just by virtue of its heritage! If someone did that to a human (even a vile one who torured animals or kids) there would be a massive public outcry. But if a dog is 'humanely euthanized' just because it was a pitbull, no one flinches! Just heinous!
Pitbulls are not the problem-ignorant owners are. However, we need a leash and containment law that is enforced on ALL dogs. And yes, I live in Georgia! It is shocking how many strays there are of ALL breeds, and how many so called PETS are allowed to run and spread disease...but the emphasis is on particular breeds-many which are maligned needlessly.
It's sad to see our law makers endeavor to make changes in the wrong place. Inform yourself about a breed before deeming that breed as vicious. Look at the statistics for dog bites....the pit IS NOT the leader of that list. The issue is responsible dog owners, not irresponsible dogs.
This country is going down hill quick, where do we live in the USA or in some communists country that dictates our every move. Any dog can be trained to be nasty, it is NOT the breed it is the owner. What next, are we going to be told how many children we have and what color their hair and eyes must be. this is insane.
I think that they have no right what-so-ever to say what kind of dog you can have on your own property! Also, Pit Bulls are not as dangerous as a lot of stupid people say they are. They are just as fierce as any poodle can be!
our pit is the best dog we have ever had. he is sweetest dog around. if these people actually owned a pit they wouldn't be trying to do this. they would know what are breed is like.
Bad owners make bad dogs. My pit is the sweetest, most nurturing dog I have. Please visit this site, it will change your mind
www.deviantart.com/view/1 1454716
Even the ASPCA is against BSL.
Here we go again !!! People who are ignorant of the subject are trying to make laws regarding it. Being a pitbull owner i am outraged at this law. My pit is the best dog i have ever owned, she is loving, loyal and friendly. The dogs are not bad, the people who raise them to be vicious and hate people, them tie them out in thier yard on a closeline are the bad people. I would like the addresses of the people who are trying to pass this bill so i can send them some pitbull puppies to raise. I think then they will see the true nature of the dogs, and the predjuice against the owners.
When topics like this are brought to my attention, it makes me wonder...just how free are we in the USA? How can we let some government official, who has probably never owned this amazing breed, tell other people wheather or not we can own one. Honestly, what is next? What stats are given to these "officials"? Do they really know how little the percentage is of pitbull dog bites...? Someone needs to inform these "dictators". Give us back our freedom. Our freedom to love a wonderful loving breed of dog. The pitbull is too precious a breed, to ban. How could you live with yourself if you allow these "hate crimes" against pitbulls to continue? That's profiling and that's wrong!!!!Long Live The Pitbull and The Loving Owners!!
My question is why do people keep going on and on about pitbulls. Don't they know that the problem starts with the owner and trainer of the dog. It's not fair to put the blame on the dog but i guess there are people who would rather blame a dog instead of the inhumane human who was the irresbonsible one. Please look into the eyes of this breed and tell me what you see. these dogs a born lovers not fighers or killers. They are ruined by DAMN humans and it's a shame that they have to take the blame. Thanks!
Pet owners in Georgia should not be penalized at the behest of those who are not respopnsible for the care and treatment of their animals. My pit bull lived to a ripe old age of 15 years and lived in harmony with our family,neighbors and our FIVE stray, mixed breed pets.
