Marty
08-19-2005, 12:12 PM
Montgomery, AL --
A child robbed of a puppy at gunpoint. Seventeen dogs euthanized after they were confiscated in a drug bust. A north Montgomery man's animals slaughtered by a pack of wild dogs.
One category of dog has been at the center of all of those recent incidents: The pit bull.
Pit bull lovers consider the animals to be great, loveable and loyal pets, but they can be dangerous in the wrong hands. At least one city councilman wants to eliminate that danger.
Montgomery City Councilman Glen Pruitt is considering proposing a city ordinance that would ban the animals from the city limits.
"I want us to be proactive. I don't want to open the paper and see where a child or senior citizen has been hurt or injured by one of these dogs," Pruitt said.
He believes this will eliminate many of these issues and improve public safety.
"Seeing some of the things in the paper lately has brought the issue to light," Pruitt said. "It is something we probably need to address pretty soon."
Pit bulls often are linked to people involved in illegal activity such as drugs, dog fighting and hog-dog rodeos, in which the dogs chase, catch and brutalize wild hogs for people's amusement and gaming.
Councilman C.C. Calhoun has mixed thoughts on a possible ban but believes he could support one.
"People have a right to have their own pets. When it becomes vicious and a threat to society, as lawmakers, we have to make a decision. Is it worth injuries or life?" Calhoun said. "When a dog becomes vicious and attacks innocent citizens, that's not a pet. That's a predator."
Pit bull owners and breeders adamantly are opposed to the ban. They said there is a saying in the pit bull community, "Punish the deed. Not the breed."
Yeterius Mobley was reluctant about pit bulls when her husband first talked about purchasing one as a family pet six years ago.
They had a son, 3, and she was concerned about the dog's reputation.
"I was reluctant because of a lot of things I heard," Mobley said.
Their first pit bull was loving and she said the animal totally changed her opinion.
Her husband, Jay, is now a breeder. He has 12 adults and six puppies that will soon be in new homes with families throughout the country.
Mobley's stud, Juno, is a blue American pit bull terrier. Mobley has three adults at his house and keeps the others at a friend's farm near Tallassee. He sells his dogs through his Web site, www.bluejkennels.com. The person signs a contract, which gives Mobley the right to repossess the dogs if they are ever used for illegal activity. The dogs sell for between $1,000 and $1,500.
He said they are show quality grand champion bloodlines and are not bred to be aggressive or for fighting.
The Mobleys said their dogs are very good with the children, are great family pets and very loving. He said none of his dogs have ever been aggressive toward people.
"People train them to make them aggressive," Mobley said.
People can bring out their violent streak, he said.
He said people often hesitate or grab their children when they see him with his dogs.
Mobley is against a ban on pit bulls and wants to see strict laws and punishment for people who abuse their dogs or use them to fight.
"A lot of people do bad deeds with the dogs," Jay Mobley said. "The breed shouldn't be punished."
Resident Kelvin McDade is opposed to the ban and believes the idea is ridiculous. He believes it is punishing the animal and the people who raise their animals responsibly.
"It's the people who have the dogs that misuse or mistreat them that should be punished and not the dog itself," he said.
McDade is one of many people in the Montgomery area whose pit bull has been stolen. He has been raising pit bulls for 10 years. He has owned other dogs including boxers and Rottweilers and believes the pit bulls are the best pets.
"Believe it or not, they are to me better family dogs than any dog I have ever owned," he said.
McDade said he is very careful about how he trains his dogs.
"The only way a dog will become aggressive is if you train it to be so," he said. "I have not trained my dog to be a guard dog."
McDade believes the poor perception of pit bulls comes from their "scary" look with the big head and cropped ears and the stories in the media about attacks.
Pit bulls are loyal, McDade said, and he likes their look. They are good with people, he said.
Pit bull is not a breed. The term identifies three breeds, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Terrier and the American Pit Bull Terrier.
Several cities in the United States have banned pit bulls or placed serious restrictions on the animals.
Cities in and around Denver have passed or are contemplating a ban.
Denver is the third major metropolitan area to ban pit bulls including Cincinnati and Miami, according to the Associated Press.
Pruitt does not have a timeframe for introducing the ordinance.
"You don't hear about poodles attacking people. You don't hear about Labradors attacking people. It always seems like a pit bull," Pruitt said. "At the city, we should take a close look at it and see if it is something we should be proactive and do."
A child robbed of a puppy at gunpoint. Seventeen dogs euthanized after they were confiscated in a drug bust. A north Montgomery man's animals slaughtered by a pack of wild dogs.
One category of dog has been at the center of all of those recent incidents: The pit bull.
Pit bull lovers consider the animals to be great, loveable and loyal pets, but they can be dangerous in the wrong hands. At least one city councilman wants to eliminate that danger.
Montgomery City Councilman Glen Pruitt is considering proposing a city ordinance that would ban the animals from the city limits.
"I want us to be proactive. I don't want to open the paper and see where a child or senior citizen has been hurt or injured by one of these dogs," Pruitt said.
He believes this will eliminate many of these issues and improve public safety.
"Seeing some of the things in the paper lately has brought the issue to light," Pruitt said. "It is something we probably need to address pretty soon."
Pit bulls often are linked to people involved in illegal activity such as drugs, dog fighting and hog-dog rodeos, in which the dogs chase, catch and brutalize wild hogs for people's amusement and gaming.
Councilman C.C. Calhoun has mixed thoughts on a possible ban but believes he could support one.
"People have a right to have their own pets. When it becomes vicious and a threat to society, as lawmakers, we have to make a decision. Is it worth injuries or life?" Calhoun said. "When a dog becomes vicious and attacks innocent citizens, that's not a pet. That's a predator."
Pit bull owners and breeders adamantly are opposed to the ban. They said there is a saying in the pit bull community, "Punish the deed. Not the breed."
Yeterius Mobley was reluctant about pit bulls when her husband first talked about purchasing one as a family pet six years ago.
They had a son, 3, and she was concerned about the dog's reputation.
"I was reluctant because of a lot of things I heard," Mobley said.
Their first pit bull was loving and she said the animal totally changed her opinion.
Her husband, Jay, is now a breeder. He has 12 adults and six puppies that will soon be in new homes with families throughout the country.
Mobley's stud, Juno, is a blue American pit bull terrier. Mobley has three adults at his house and keeps the others at a friend's farm near Tallassee. He sells his dogs through his Web site, www.bluejkennels.com. The person signs a contract, which gives Mobley the right to repossess the dogs if they are ever used for illegal activity. The dogs sell for between $1,000 and $1,500.
He said they are show quality grand champion bloodlines and are not bred to be aggressive or for fighting.
The Mobleys said their dogs are very good with the children, are great family pets and very loving. He said none of his dogs have ever been aggressive toward people.
"People train them to make them aggressive," Mobley said.
People can bring out their violent streak, he said.
He said people often hesitate or grab their children when they see him with his dogs.
Mobley is against a ban on pit bulls and wants to see strict laws and punishment for people who abuse their dogs or use them to fight.
"A lot of people do bad deeds with the dogs," Jay Mobley said. "The breed shouldn't be punished."
Resident Kelvin McDade is opposed to the ban and believes the idea is ridiculous. He believes it is punishing the animal and the people who raise their animals responsibly.
"It's the people who have the dogs that misuse or mistreat them that should be punished and not the dog itself," he said.
McDade is one of many people in the Montgomery area whose pit bull has been stolen. He has been raising pit bulls for 10 years. He has owned other dogs including boxers and Rottweilers and believes the pit bulls are the best pets.
"Believe it or not, they are to me better family dogs than any dog I have ever owned," he said.
McDade said he is very careful about how he trains his dogs.
"The only way a dog will become aggressive is if you train it to be so," he said. "I have not trained my dog to be a guard dog."
McDade believes the poor perception of pit bulls comes from their "scary" look with the big head and cropped ears and the stories in the media about attacks.
Pit bulls are loyal, McDade said, and he likes their look. They are good with people, he said.
Pit bull is not a breed. The term identifies three breeds, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Terrier and the American Pit Bull Terrier.
Several cities in the United States have banned pit bulls or placed serious restrictions on the animals.
Cities in and around Denver have passed or are contemplating a ban.
Denver is the third major metropolitan area to ban pit bulls including Cincinnati and Miami, according to the Associated Press.
Pruitt does not have a timeframe for introducing the ordinance.
"You don't hear about poodles attacking people. You don't hear about Labradors attacking people. It always seems like a pit bull," Pruitt said. "At the city, we should take a close look at it and see if it is something we should be proactive and do."