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Here is what I KNOW having worked with animals for many years, not on a farm, or having pets, or whatever people who haven't really known animals say, but in Veterinary clinics and animal shelters, where all kinds come and go, from the well cared for to the severely abused, and books and articles written by others who dedicate their lives to pets and eat, sleep and breathe them:

I know for a fact that no dog breed is inherently vicious. This is something that any organization dedicated to helping animals would stand by. I am not talking PETA or their ilk. They would like to see all pets eventually nonexistent.

I know that pit bulls DO kill more people most years than any other dog breed. I also know that for the past 10 years or so they have been going up in popularity, and right now are either the most popular or the second most popular dog, by a landslide, and for those years where they weren't as popular, the other most popular strong dog took over the number one spot. They are about 10 percent of the population of ALL dogs, big or small right now, and that is at the least. Yet only 0.000002 percent of their population kills at all, and that is at the most. The percentage for large, strong dogs is the same across the board when it comes to killing people. The numbers for deaths go up and down by breed according to what dog is most popular. And yes, of course, you will have more pit bull deaths than poodles, duh. Please stop comparing them to small dogs or dogs that aren't that strong. That is like comparing them to children's toys, which by the way kill more each year than any dog could dream of.

I know that the vast majority of dogs taken to shelters by their owners for behavioral problems are completely fine pets, and their owners were too stupid or lazy to bother with them. I have had to carry a dead 1 year old dalmation out to the freezer because she wasn't potty trained. I have had people give excuse after excuse of why their dog isn't even leash trained, only for them to tell me they couldn't do what I do. Oh yeah? You can't bring a perfectly fine dog here to be pts because your dumb a$$ can't bother with it?? I can't do what YOU do!!!(That's what I want to say to them, of course I haven't. But I should)

I know that 50 years ago there were still deaths and attacks, just as there are now, but the breed of dog has changed every decade to represent the most popular large breed. I also know that 50 years ago people didn't complain as much about getting bit, because there was no such thing as a lawsuit, and if you got bit, chances are it was your fault. And if it wasn't, then the offending animal was quickly dispatched.

The biggest problem I see with all of this is that people want to go on living their lives without learning from their mistakes. They want a quick solution that doesn't involve getting their hands dirty, or any work at all for that matter. They don't want to learn. They always think it's someone else's problem, even when it is plainly theirs. The world is changing around us to reflect our growing knowledge of everything except pets. It seems to be the last frontier, so to speak.

My solution to this problem is plain and simple. I have never just said "it's not the dog, it's the owner". You can search all my posts, and in all of them dealing with this subject, I have offered that there is something we can do other than banning a breed.

If there are people driving around right now, it's because they went to driving school, took a written test and drove with an instructor. They got a license to drive if they could pass all the tests beyond a certain score. The same can be said for school teachers, mechanics, veterinarians, etc. Why not help animals and people out by making it required to take a course in animal caretaking? We can include it in school so that everyone knows these things. This way, every person will have the education they need to support another living thing the right way. Our dogs are all required to be licensed anyway, so why not get something out of it? If everyone knew as much about pets as say, a reputable breeder, things would go a lot more smoothly. Here are some benefits I can see from this:

1)It would eliminate back yard breeders (no one who knows what happens to most puppies would dare continue, I would hope at least)

2)It would cut down on the number of irresponsible people having pets (If people know how much work it is, and what can happen if you don't care for them the right way, they may be less likely to bother)

3)It would cut down on people who don't have enough money to properly care for pets (there should be a small fee, but large enough to deter people who shouldn't have them in the first place due to money issues)

4)It would cut down on loose pets because if people knew what happened to strays at the shelter behind closed doors, they wouldn't let their pets out at all.

5)It would cut down on attacks on children because people would treat their pets as animals and not toys, and show their children how to act around animals

6)It would cut down on pet overpopulation because once people knew how many health benefits their pets got from being speutered they would all be fixed

7)It would cut down on attacks in general because people would be able to see the warning signs before something happened and take measures to correct the behavior or euthanise the dog, and those people on the streets that encounter strays would know how to act to avoid being attacked in the first place.

But you see that is in a perfect world, where people actually learn things. There are lots and lots of idiot drivers out there that have licenses. It isn't a fail safe, and obviously not the perfect solution. To have that, we would need a world that is willing to actually follow through. But I can see this as a starting point. After all, there are a lot of jerks on the road, but there are a lot less than there would be if there wasn't a system in place to protect the public.