Breed-Specific Legislation

1. Breed-Specific Legislation Joey Steinman

2. What is Breed Specific Legislation? • BSL is a blanket term that refers to any ordinance or law that bans or places restrictions on ownership of certain types of dogs based solely on the dog’s perceived breed. • BSL restricts ownership regardless of an animal’s individual behavior or temperament. Certain type of dogs are defined as “vicious” with no prior bite history. • Through the years a number of breeds including Rottweilers, German Shepherds, and Doberman Pinschers have been regulated by BSL. • Recently “pit bull” type dogs are the most likely to be targeted.

3. Who does this impact? There are currently an estimated 73.6 million dogs living in the United States. At least 5 million of these pets would be at risk for seizure and possible euthanasia. • The estimate of the total number of dogs is based on an analysis conducted by John Dunham and Associates for Best Friends Animal Society in 2012. The percentage of ownership figures is from American Pet Products Association, 2011-2012 APPA National Pet Owners Survey, available online at: www.americanpetproducts.org/press_industrytrends.asp.

4. What is a “pit bull?” “Pit bull” is a generic term, not a specific breed. Dogs which can be described as pit bulls usually include the pure breeds: • American Pit Bull Terrier, • American Staffordshire Terrier, and • Staffordshire Bull Terrier, As well as any mixed breed dog which shares lineage with any of the previously mentioned pure breeds, or has “the appearance and characteristics“ of the aforementioned breeds. In some cases any short haired, big headed, muscular dog.

6. Visual Identification 687 people were asked to correctly identify a pure bred American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT). Among those were 100 canine professionals including veterinarians, veterinarian technicians, dog show judges, and animal control officers. Over half of the participants, including all of the canine professionals, claimed to have firsthand experience with the APBT. Presented with 23 dogs of different breeds: 30% misidentified an adult Boxer, 63% misidentified an Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog; 45% misidentified a Mastiff; 44% misidentified a PresaCanario; Only 2% of those surveyed correctly identified the APBT without also incorrectly identifying other breeds. Conclusion: Visual analysis as a tool for breed identification is not reliable. • Scott Dowd, Ph.D, • Matrix Canine Research Institute

7. Fiscal Impact Analysis produced by John Dunham and Associates for the Best Friends Animal Society, based on the best available information on dog ownership rates and the costs of animal control programs, indicates breed-specific legislation is estimated to cost the United States $476,937,320 annually. • Animal control and enforcement costs • Expenses for kenneling and veterinary care • Expenses related to euthanasia and carcass disposal • Litigation costs from residents appealing or contesting the law • Possible DNA testing costs Actual costs to the citizens of the community could be even higher since these estimates do not include a shelter veterinarian if not onsite, capital costs associated with increased shelter space necessary to hold the seized pets during the hearing and appeal process, or the increased staffing needed for added enforcement tasks such as training, identification, seizure, testimony, etc.

8. Agenda Setting Media Documentary film-maker, Libby Sherrill, looked at how the media reported on two significant dog-related fatalities of children. • The first was Kate-Lynn Logel, fatally attacked by her family's Malamutesin 2005 in Mesa County, CO . A newslibrary.com search containing the phrase "Kate-Lynn Logel" yielded 18 articles. • The second was Nicholas Faibish, fatally attacked by pit bulls in San Francisco in 2005. A newslibrary.com search containing the phrase "Nicholas Faibish" yielded 292 articles. That is over 16 times more articles on Nicholas Faibish than on Kate-Lynn Logel. Additionally, the study showed that 68% of news articles reporting "pit bull" or "pit bull mix" attacks mentioned "pit bull" in the headline. Only 8% of news articles reporting on attacks by other breeds mentioned the breed in the headline.

9. Media Bias Animal control officers across the country have told the ASPCA that when they alert the media to a dog attack, news outlets respond that they have no interest in reporting on the incident unless it involved a pit bull. A quantitative study by the National Canine Research Council of dog-bite reportage in a four-day period proves that anti-pit bull bias in the media is more than just a theory—it’s a fact. • August 18, 2007—A Labrador mix attacked a 70-year-old man, sending him to the hospital in critical condition. Police officers arrived at the scene and the dog was shot after charging the officers. This was reported in one article in the local paper. • August 19, 2007—A 16-month-old child received fatal head and neck injuries after being attacked by a mixed-breed dog. This was reported on twice by the local paper. • August 20, 2007—A six-year-old boy was hospitalized after having his ear torn off and receiving a severe bite to the head by a medium-sized, mixed-breed dog. This was reported in one article in the local paper. • August 21, 2007—A 59-year-old woman was attacked in her home by two “pit bulls” and was hospitalized with severe, but not fatal, injuries. This was reported in over 230 articles in national and international newspapers, as well as major television news networks including CNN, MSNBC and FOX.

10. Local Legislation • Cudahy, Wisconsin - Pit Bull Ordinance (enacted 2008)http://www.cudahy-wi.gov/cudahy/residents/pet+license+information/default.asp "Pit bull" dogs are allowed, but must adhere to about six pages worth of regulations (mandatory micro-chipping, leashed/never off-leash unless in kennel, orange collar, $100k liability insurance, etc.), obtain a special permit, and pay additional licensing fees. • Saint Francis, Wisconsin - Pit bull ban - flat ban on all "pit bulls" unless grandfathered in by October 1, 2001. http://www.animallaw.info/local/louswistfrancisbsl.htm • South Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Pit bull ban - flat ban on all "pit bulls" unless grandfathered in by April 1, 1989. http://www.animallaw.info/local/louswisouthmilwaukeebsl.htm • Watertown, Wisconsin is currently considering BSL.

11. OHIO House Bill 14 For 25 years, an Ohio law made the state the only in the country to automatically declare any “pit bull” type dog, or any dog resembling a pit bull, “vicious.” Signed into law on February 21, 2012, HB 14 removed the breed designation and strengthened the state’s dangerous dog laws by targeting reckless owners and dangerous dogs. HOME RULE: The new law does not overturn community pit bull bans, like those in some Northeast Ohio communities such as Lakewood, Parma, Garfield Heights and Warrensville Heights.

12. Americans with Disabilities Act BSL discriminates against people with disabilities because often BSL does not have adequate exemptions for service dogs. • Grider, Belcher, and Piltz v. City and County of Denver (2010) – Dismissed, however Denver changed it’s policy: “On April 5, 2011, Director of Animal Care and Control Doug Kelley issued an order changing the division's official policy. From now on, animal control officers ‘will not immediately impound a pit bull that is identified as a service animal by the owner.’” • CHAKO v. City and County of San Francisco (2008) – RE: Mandatory sterilization. Dismissed all claims with the exception of the federal ADA claim. Both parties have since settled the remaining claim, which resulted in dismissal of the lawsuit. Under the terms of the settlement, the City agreed not to enforce the sterilization ordinance against any person with a mobility-related disability who: (i) owned an unsterilized pit bull service dog at the time the ordinance was enacted; (ii) uses that unsterilized pit bull service dog to accommodate his/her mobility-related disability; and (iii) had registered his/her unsterilized pit bull service dog with the San Francisco Department of Animal Care and Control by the time the ordinance was enacted. Any person who does not fall within this specific category remains subject to the ordinance. • Aurelia, Iowa (2011) – Federal judge granted injunction allowing retired Chicago Police Officer Jim Sak to keep his mixed breed service dog, “Snickers,” even though the town bans pit bulls.