Posted on 09/07/2007 11:24:07 AM PDT by yorkie
When Rossana Belfiore was dragged down a Pleasantville street last month while trying to stop three pit bulls from killing her fiance's dog, it was the last straw for Linwood lawyer Joseph Jacobs. "It's gotten to the point where every other day you pick up the paper and and there's another problem with pit bulls somewhere in the country," said Jacobs, whose activism spurred state Sen. James "Sonny" McCullough, R-Atlantic, to prepare new legislation to force pit bull owners to muzzle their animals while in public.
A muzzle, McCullough said in a statement, "is a minor inconvenience for the animal's owner compared to the increased level of safety it provides for others. The incidence of savage and unprovoked attacks by pit bulls, often resulting in fatal wounds, is simply too great to overlook."
Before a Thursday news conference, held outside the Atlantic County Animal Shelter in Pleasantville, McCullough said that his bill, which has yet to be introduced in the Legislature, wouldn't mandate muzzles statewide but would give municipalities the option to pass an ordinance. Still, said Jacobs, it is a step in the right direction.
"This little thing could save people's lives and put an end to pain, suffering and misery," said Jacobs, who also pointed to recent attacks in Bridgeton and Somers Point. "It's a safety measure that really needs to happen." Just last week, he added, he was talking with the Linwood city clerk when he looked up and saw a pit bull, "running around the playing fields without a leash, its owner 75 yards away and a little kid playing baseball nearby."
But unfortunately, most of the maulings are dogs that got out of the backyard or 'set off' in the home by something else.
I prefer muzzles for PBT-hating senators
Now, only if we can muzzle politicians ....
Yeah, just what we need --politicians working in silence.
No thanks. I'd prefer hearing what they say so that I can tell the good ones from the bad ones.
Their ability to think is questionable, so hearing what they are saying probably is not worth the effort. If muzzled maybe they wouldn’t be able to voice vote our freedoms and money away.
I’d prefer much harsher legal consequences for dog owners whose pets attack anyone, regardless of breed. Give dog owners more incentive to keep their animals under firm control at all times.
Who is going to determine whether the dog is actually a Pit, as opposed to...say an American Bulldog, or a Boxer, or any of the other breeds with a similar head type? Are they going to have special classes for police and animal control so that they can tell the differences?
Not to mention...thugs who let their pits run free across the neighborhood, or who tie them to stakes in yards are not the type to muzzle the dogs. Most likely, the only muzzled Pits will be those who belong to responsible, caring owners, who probably have respectable, well behaved dogs.
Other problems I see: From the news article posted by another user...that dog attacked a family member in the owner’s home. This potential law would not have prevented that mauling. Likewise, it would not prevent maulings of children who come too close to chained dogs, or children who put arms through chainlink fences to pet the doggie.
I’m just not thinking this is the way to get the results desired...
Good. If you can’t own a tiger as a pit, I don’t see why you should own a Dog of Peace. Obviously they aren’t as bad a tiger but they are a danger and are pointless with so many nice dog breeds out there that can’t eat your face if they get angry.
It’s ridiculous. It’s like gun control - only the responsible people with good dogs will muzzle them, the creeps that let their dogs run loose will just ignore the law, as usual.
I’m sure there are some pit bull attacks when people are walking their dogs, but most are in the home unsupervised or loose dogs.
Creepy people also tie their dogs out for hours unattended. Can you just see a dog in the muzzle in the hot sun, unable to pant or drink? I just read another post by a freeper who heard a dog die of thirst in the neighbors back yard. I’m still upset.
Too bad Vick didn’t get to that dog first.
Right. People should stop depending on laws to protect them. I'd rather rely on my Glock when walking the neighborhood.
Let's make it weight.
Any dog over a designated weight must be muzzled in public.
Period.
What's a child to rely on, a cap gun?
The safety of people comes before animals.
It's up to the owner to provide a safe environment for his dog--if he cannot afford a suitably large, walled enclosure for his pet monster to go unmuzzled in private, then he should not have a monster for a pet.
The only muzzle that I use on pit bulls is the muzzle on my 12 gauge. Justified of course.
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