Marty
08-07-2005, 03:12 PM
Madison, WI -- Police in California say a 150-pound Rottweiler attacked a toddler this week, killing her. The tragedy comes as Denver cracks down on its ordinance banning another breed ... pit bulls. But do the dogs deserve the designation as dangerous?
Meet ... Spanky ... Spot, Smiley and Snow White ...
"She is definitely very sweet, just wants to play more than anything," Tracy Earll of the Dane County Humane Society says of Snow White.
All animals considered adoptable by the Dane County Humane Society ... all pit bulls.
"I'm about ready to have a baby and I would feel comfortable letting any of the pit bulls that come out of here be around my family," Earll says.
But some cities ... such as Denver, Colorado ... ban the breed altogether while other jurisdictions nationwide consider similar measures.
"Any breed can be dangerous if not properly socialized and behavior trained," Earll says.
Humane officer Renee Stodola gave this pit bull named Chance ... a second chance.
She says, "I would trust him with toddlers. He's got a great, gentle heart."
Stodola deals with dogs every day and thinks banning pit bulls is a bad idea because it affects more good dogs than bad ...
" ... and most likely won't affect the people who aren't registering their dogs and don't want it to be known they have multiple pit bulls," Stodola says.
Dog owner Page Pisapia says the thought of prohibiting pit bulls frightens a pit bull owner she met.
"And her dog was fine ... There wasn't any problem with her dog," Pisapia says.
But Pisapia and other visitors to this Madison dog park also report more questionable experiences.
"I do have a pit bull in our neighborhood who isn't socialized and kept inside all day and so I worry about that dog getting out," Pisapia says.
"The dog got off the leash and just came immediately running up to our dog ... they kind of squared off ... until we could separate them," dog owner Thom Belekevich says.
Dr. Richard Karlburg says blame ought to fall on irresponsible dog owners letting poorly trained pooches roam free.
"If you're gonna impose a ban on pit bulls you might as well impose a ban on every other large breed of dog," he says.
He says it takes people to enforce current laws to keep a community safe.
"If a person is going to have a dog they know is dangerous ... have to learn to control it."
Lawmakers have either proposed or plan to introduce pit bull bans in Georgia and Oklahoma. California also is considering a bill on breed specific legislation.
Meet ... Spanky ... Spot, Smiley and Snow White ...
"She is definitely very sweet, just wants to play more than anything," Tracy Earll of the Dane County Humane Society says of Snow White.
All animals considered adoptable by the Dane County Humane Society ... all pit bulls.
"I'm about ready to have a baby and I would feel comfortable letting any of the pit bulls that come out of here be around my family," Earll says.
But some cities ... such as Denver, Colorado ... ban the breed altogether while other jurisdictions nationwide consider similar measures.
"Any breed can be dangerous if not properly socialized and behavior trained," Earll says.
Humane officer Renee Stodola gave this pit bull named Chance ... a second chance.
She says, "I would trust him with toddlers. He's got a great, gentle heart."
Stodola deals with dogs every day and thinks banning pit bulls is a bad idea because it affects more good dogs than bad ...
" ... and most likely won't affect the people who aren't registering their dogs and don't want it to be known they have multiple pit bulls," Stodola says.
Dog owner Page Pisapia says the thought of prohibiting pit bulls frightens a pit bull owner she met.
"And her dog was fine ... There wasn't any problem with her dog," Pisapia says.
But Pisapia and other visitors to this Madison dog park also report more questionable experiences.
"I do have a pit bull in our neighborhood who isn't socialized and kept inside all day and so I worry about that dog getting out," Pisapia says.
"The dog got off the leash and just came immediately running up to our dog ... they kind of squared off ... until we could separate them," dog owner Thom Belekevich says.
Dr. Richard Karlburg says blame ought to fall on irresponsible dog owners letting poorly trained pooches roam free.
"If you're gonna impose a ban on pit bulls you might as well impose a ban on every other large breed of dog," he says.
He says it takes people to enforce current laws to keep a community safe.
"If a person is going to have a dog they know is dangerous ... have to learn to control it."
Lawmakers have either proposed or plan to introduce pit bull bans in Georgia and Oklahoma. California also is considering a bill on breed specific legislation.