Along that same vein, one might also ask “Why is it so important to have a pool (many children die every year in backyard pools); why is it so important to have a 4–wheel drive SUV (especially if you don’t live in a rural area that gets a lot of snow); why is it so important to have a gun (if you’re not a hunter, don’t live in a high crime area, how many stories are there about kids getting a hold of improperly secured guns)? According to the CDC the leading causes of accidental childhood death are car crashes, poisoning and suffocation.
The leading causes of childhood injury are falls, bicycles, drowning, airway obstruction (in infants), and 45% of all unintentional injury deaths occurred in and around the home being the result of fire and burns, suffocation, drowning, firearms, falls, choking and poisoning.
Am I saying that dogs cannot be potential dangerous? No. Am I saying that some dogs in particular cannot be dangerously aggressive? No. Am I saying that young children should be left with a dog unsupervised? No. In fact interestingly a number of dogs (I don’t have the # handy) are injured every year by children, most through falls or playing too rough with a small or elderly dog.
There are millions of dogs of all sizes and breeds living in homes with children and the vast majority of these children and adults will never be bitten or injured by their dogs. And where aggressive dogs do attack and injure or kill children; sorry to be blunt here, but when you look closely at a lot of these “families”, they are irresponsible and neglectful to both their dogs and their children; can you say Holder’s people – I knew you could; or for that matter, just to be fair and honest, lighter skinned trailer trash, meth lab types. Kids in these homes are also just as likely to be poisoned by picking up some leftover crack from last night’s party or pick up a loaded gun carelessly left out.
I have yet to see a pool, a SUV a gun, etc. get up and injure anyone on its own. Dogs are capable of independent action they are self aware and self motivated animals. They are NOT inanimate objects. Your analogy is totally false - akin to the arguments put out by the Luddites in the democratic party that want to do away with guns, SUVs, etc.
45% of all unintentional injury deaths occurred
So what? This discussion is not about deaths, but injuries. We are discussing injuries, not deaths, so quoting death statistics is irrelevant at best and more likely disingenuous, but definitely irrelevant.
There are millions of dogs of all sizes and breeds living in homes with children and the vast majority of these children and adults will never be bitten or injured by their dogs.
The actualy numbers from the CDC make this statement out to be false. 800,000 bitten severely enough to require medical attention yearly. 300 million people in the USA. Average lifespan 75 years. do the math. .8/300 = annual odds = .002667. Multiply by 75 year life span = 20% that a person will be bitten severely enough during their life to require medical treatment. Now if you just confine the pool to those who own dogs (Not necessarily true I know - only truing to simplify the math) then this becomes 300/75*.2 = 80%. Use the 4.6 million bitten (all bites not just severe ones) and the odds go up to virtual certainty.