BSL Coming to Massachusetts?

So a couple of weeks ago an article came out indicating Representative Pedone of Worcester, MA was looking at banning pit bulls from MA. I like many responsible pit bull owners and MA residents was surprised, scared, then just plain angry. The thought that a Legislator feels it's ok to punish me and my beloved pets for nothing is just not acceptable.

Today was the public hearing. I was unable to get time off work to attend, so I sit hear watching more news than I ever have trying to get bits and pieces of what is happening. So far it's looking good for our side. The majority of testimony has been against any forms of BSL and all for Rep. Hill's breed neutral dangerous dog bill, which I fully support and have for the past 3 years that he has tried getting it thru committee.

As for Rep. Pedone, this is someone I strongly feel needs to be removed from office. He's obviously reactionary and starts panic before doing any research on a topic. His quotes in the papers have been irresponsible and inaccurate:

"These dogs are kept specifically for fighting or as weapons," Massachusetts state Rep. Vincent A. Pedone, D-Worcester, told the Boston Globe recently, "and I don't think they have any place in civilized society."

Obviously, this Representative knows nothing about the majority of Pit Bull owning MA residents. I know a great number of responsible pit bull owners in the State that are no different than anyone else. Makes you wonder what else Rep. Pedone is unaware of in the State.

I wonder if he would make those comments to the several Pit Bulls that are active in Search and Rescue? Such as Dakota who was hand-picked by NASA to aid in recovering the Columbia shuttle crew when the shuttle crashed. Or the countless people she has been asked to help find. Or how about the countless therapy and service pit bulls aiding voting Americans.

Some famous pit bull owners:
President Theadore Roosevelt, President Woodrow Wilson, Helen Keller, Fred Astaire, Anthony Robbins, Humphrey Bogart, John Steinbeck, Barbara Eden, Walter Scott, Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft, Rachel Ray and there are many, many more. Forgive me for saying I don't see these people keeping the dogs as "weapons" nor are, or were, they involved in "dog fighting." Rep. Pedone needs to get out and meet real dog owners and stop relying on the media stereotype of pit bull owners as a basis for considering State legislation.

“We see, firsthand, problems that exist with dogs that were bred to fight, bred as nothing more than weapons, and he and I are both interested in hearing testimony on the matter,” Pedone told the News Service Tuesday.

First hand? I wonder if Rep. Pedone has seen any canine attack victims first hand. We can certainly provide him with photos of all sorts of attack victims by all different breeds.

In fact, in MA there has been 8 canine fatalities since 1922 and NONE of them involved a pit bull type dog. In his own district in 1997 an elderly woman was killed by a West highland Terrier. Other fatalities involved Boston Terriers and a Collie.

As for severe attacks in the State we have had many by many different breeds including: Golden retrievers (multiple), Labrador Retrievers (Multiple), Springer Spainel, Akita/Chow, Boxer/Lab, Kerry Blue Terrier, Police K9, Greyhounds (multiple) and Great Danes (couple).

Pedone said it was his view that the pit bull – which had been bred to fight – has strong jaws and physical characteristics that make it more dangerous than other breeds. “Without question, these animals are bigger, stronger and faster than other animals," Pedone said.

Without Question, the last quote is just absurd.

Bigger? No. He says "animals" but that's just too easy to pick apart. So I'll stick to canines. Presa Canarios, Rotties, Bull Mastiffs, Great Danes, St. Bernards are just a few that are BIGGER than pit bull type dogs.

Stronger, while they are strong, I doubt there has ever been a measurement of which canine is stronger. I can think of a few of the breeds listed above that are equally as strong or stronger than many pit bulls. In fact there was a study done by Dr. Barr of National Geographic where bite pressure was researched. They looked at many animals and 3 domestic canines, Rottie, German Shepherd and a pit bull type dog. Guess which tested as the weakest? The Pit Bull. Check out: http://www.understand-a-bull.com/PitbullInformation/Urbanlegends.htm under Jaw Pressure.

Faster? Heck, I've seen little Jack Russels out run many a pit bull.

Wouldn't it be great if we had Legislators that acutally looked into something before talking about legislating it....