Pit Bull Mauling Stresses San Angelo's Animal Control Ops

Well if the truth be known i would rather be bitten by a pesky small dog than a hundred pound vicious pit bull . The difference is like night and day . All the research in the world is not going to help the victim , especially if its a child . All large dogs that bite and do bite should be shot on the spot , no questions , no charges , or fake investigations . I can hear the low class people yelling already , not my dog , he doesn't bite . Face it folks most people who own these dogs , do it as matter of status , gangsters and wanna be gangsters , thugs , drug dealers , and psychos . I see no changes in dog owners behavior since the last ordinance was passed , we need enforcement , not talk , talk is cheap.

Funally, and article about dog aggression based on facts and logic! Thank you!

I am the proud owner of not one but 2 pit bulls , i am not some "low class" person as you said these are my furkids and yes I will agree at times they can be vicious but they have to be provoked they dont just run and maul people or other dogs , and before you get bent out of shape one i have had since it was a pup and the other was rescued from the low life that was breeding her for fighting pups and filed all of her teeth out . It isnt the dog that is born violent it is the ignorant people who get them and raise them that way , and oh yea you said you would rather get bit buy the pesky little dogs ,,, you forget that them little dogs was breed for hunting ( do the research ).... and you also said that and i quote "All large dogs that bite and do bite should be shot on the spot"... say a St Benard , a Rott , even a black mouth curr .. was protecting its family and property and bit the criminal it should be shot no questions asked ............and now for the city if that your excuse for not being prompt to a scene is that you dont have many ACO , then get some more and keep P.A.W.S out of your pockets

This story could have been written at almost any time in recent history. A couple of similar incidents happened back around 2006 and animal control ordinances and staffing levels were looked at and revised. Looked at again in 2009 when dog limits and breeders permits were introduced. It was also noted at that time that a city the size San Angelo should have 9 animal control officers. The limit was set to 5 and there were only 3. Since that time they have tinkered a bit with ordinances and the Animal Shelter Advisory Committee structure, had a large scale walk out by some shelter employees, and used jail trustees to help around the shelter to help reduce costs. Not much changed. Recently they put James Flores in charge and there has been some positive progress but fundamental problems still remain. We still kill far to many stray and abandoned animals, and the turn over rate is still too high. If we only have 3 ACO's on board then we still have problems with salary, working conditions, or most likely both. I wish Mr. Flores success. Still, his first act was to bring before council ordinances making it more expensive and difficult to legally own pets in San Angelo. It's almost as if they think the right mix of ordinances will magically solve the problems. Might want to save a copy of this story. I'm sure you can run it again in a year or so with only minor edits.

Wouldn't it be great if pit bull enthusiasts spent more time preventing attacks rather than pit bull public relations? It's hard to change people's minds when maulings, maimings, and deaths still continue.
Nationwide stats: https://t.co/eKyC3bqkeV

So you write a story about pit bulls attacking other dogs then you go on to claim that jack Russell's, chihuahuas and daschunds are more dangerous? Why? Why did you mention these breeds when they did absolutely nothing?
Pit bulls are the terrorists of the dog breeds. They need to be outlawed before more people and animals are killed. Pit bulls have an incredible grip and shake hold.

He said something that made sense for once and got flamed.

As far as I'm concerned, he's right. If a dog is aggressive enough to attack a person unprovoked, then that dog needs to be put down.

He didn't say all pit bulls need to be shot on sight. He said all biting dogs need to be put down. He also didn't say that every pit bull owner was trash, he said that some pretty low quality people own this breed because of the image/status it conveys to own one.

If you're taking it personally, just take a deep breath, reread his comment, and try not being so defensive. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt.

An extremely angry, rambling response that lacks proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation, as well as implies a reading comprehension level consistent with an elementary level education definitely lends validity to stereotypes.

Well anyway. I appreciate the article making an effort to educate the public while pointing out a large problem with this city that Milo highlights: dog owners and code enforcement. Flores is one man, and he's only got 3 ACOs. I had no idea it was that bad for him. I don't know what we have to do to get the resources necessary to improve Animal Control, but something needs to be done. I see a lot of wasteful spending and even question the integrity of our city officials sometimes, so if we can't really count on our leadership, what can we, as citizens of San Angelo, do to make this city a better place?

Full disclosure: I own a dog that is 1/4 American Staffordshire Terrier.

Unfortunately I have 0 faith in our so called Animal Control. I love how this story went from talking about a dog attack to switching to Animal controls under staffed problem to talking about how small breeds are more aggressive (sorry sarcasm).
My problem is with them keeping dangerous dogs that hey know are dangerous off the streets and holding the owners more accountable. I have a neighbor who has 2 pit dogs and he doesn't think he has to put them on a leash when he has them out. They often get out and run all over the neighborhood. One attacked the little boy next door and bit him in the throat and animal control gave the dog back. A few weeks later the dogs came after my daughter. I could not get a hold of anyone at animal control. A few days after that they were lose again I called animal control and after 5 hours and no one coming by My husband called again. No one ever came by that we know of. Eventually the owner came home and put them up. They showed no urgency in the matter and they knew these dogs were aggressive and had a past. I even told them on the phone, just in case they didn't put 2 and 2 together. I have nothing against pits, I know several that are great dogs. I have a problem with dangerous dogs being given back to the owners and the owners not taking proper care of them. And according to animal control it's ok if these dogs are chained up all day (even though there is a law against it) or left in a small crate outside all day without being let out.

Did a quick bit of googling and other research to refresh my memory on the whole dangerous dog/pit bull debate. This is how I see the current state of affairs.

First off, San Angelo has been wrestling with how to deal with dangerous animals for a very long time. Best I can tell, we currently have a dangerous dog/animal ordinance that is a long process that involves the courts, postal notifications, and a trial before an animal can be declared dangerous. There are circumstances where an animal control official or police officer can kill a dangerous dog but those are exceptional circumstances.

My second observation is that studies show attacks and fatalities by the top 2 most dangerous breeds, pit bulls and rottweilers, are fairly recent. 60's through 80's seemed to have more problems with Saint Bernards, Bull Terriers, and Great Danes. Boxers, German Shepards, and Collies seem to have had their fair share of problems. I found a reported case of a fatality by a cocker spaniel. The rise in Pit Bull and Rottweiler fatalities seems to track the rise of illegal dog fighting and war on drugs. Considering how these breeds have been connected to these two criminal activities, the connection is not that hard to figure out.

People need to read up on BSL ....Breed-specific legislation (BSL) is a law that bans OR restricts certain types of dogs based on their appearance, usually because they are perceived as “dangerous” breeds or types of dogs. ........... in the 70's it was the German Shepherds , in the 80's it was the Doberman , in the 90's it was the Rotty , and now it is the pitbull ( all breeds of bullies) but look they now use K9 (German Shepherds) for protecting our officers and military and to hunt for bodies in rubble , Dobermans are use to protect goverment officals now , business owners use Rotties to protect their personal business .... so trying to ban a certain breed because people ( i use that word lightly) use them for illegal activites but remember yall they tried this before and it failed just like this Hopefully will

Readers, be careful not to fall into a diversion from the seriousness of this matter. The writer of this article moved from the main problem, which is the inability of our Animal Control Enforcement Division to respond in a timely manner to critical situations, to discussing "animal behavior" patterns that have caused many of you to go at each others throats. As Mr. Turner stated, Mr. Flores, is dealing with the issue of not having enough Animal Control Officers to properly deal with these problems. Perhaps our City Council Members might consider putting more funding into our Animal Control Enforcement Division and not spending our tax payer dollars on other foolish things. Our City Council recently passed an ordinance regarding the spaying, neutering, and micro-chipping of pets that will be beginning soon. Perhaps the question to our current Mayor, Dwain Morrison should be; "If the current Animal Control Division cannot effectively respond to critical situations as noted above, how can you expect them to properly enforce an ordinance that you and our City Council were so quick to adopt? This is just another sad problem in our community that will fade into the dark until "YOU" the Citizens of San Angelo, TX, put a new City Council Government into place!

True enough, outlawing pit bull ownership and breeding is not the answer, however as with gun ownership, those who've proven themselves inept and irresponsible, need to be prevented from harboring these impending disasters.

There are two important facts about pit bull ownership, which need to be addressed:

1. Pit bulls are capable of inflicting life threatening injuries, with minimal effort, to human beings as well as other animals.
2. Many pit bull owners (specifically on the north side of San Angelo) are the furthest examples of "responsible", you'd ever have the misfortune of living next to.

Being that the resources of our animal control department are strained, it would make more sense to enact stricter guidelines for repeat offenders (e.g. permanent removal of the offending animal, exorbitant fines). With permanent, proactive solutions, our 3 animal control officers can conveniently be M.I.A., with a lot less risk to public safety.

A few concerned neighbors and I, are calling animal control at least twice a week for the same 3 roaming pit bulls. Two of these pits enjoy chasing pedestrians and bicyclists, ALL 3 have been seen running after neighborhood cats. What ends up happening? The officer eventually makes his way here, and "talks to the owner". For an entire 4-5 hours, the dogs are brought inside or contained, and then released back into their yards with the open gates and broken fences.

Surprise, all 3 pits belong to the typical, tatted up street scum, who have about as much comprehension of boundaries and personal responsibility as their dogs. You let some household of drug addled, career convicts raise pit bulls, the blowback the public eventually feels as a result, is never favorable.

One of these lowlifes had the audacity to claim "my dog just gets out, but it's ok". It's not ok. The dog is charging my fence (head first) trying to get at my CONTAINED animals, as well as confronting and chasing passers by. "He jumps at people because he wants to play", the clown continued. As if the facial tattoos were not evident of a lifetime of poor choices and flawed logic, I was now getting a first hand demonstration of the genius which IS "thug life".

If you can't contain your idiot dogs, then find an alternate, less involved display of manhood extension. This way, you can still let the world know what a bad ass you are, without it becoming a public safety issue.

Again, the answer is not going after pit bulls or pit bull owners in general, rather those pit bulls belonging to the local riff raff, who themselves shouldn't be allowed to roam free, much less own potentially dangerous animals with unpredictable dispositions,

Is it going to take a mauled or fatally injured family pet, or child for something to change? Sadly, yes. Everyone will act as if they never saw it coming, and the owner will mumble the usual "he was always such a sweet dog/never hurt a fly" garbage to the media. Once the memories fade, and the neighborhood gets lulled into another false sense of security, we'll do this dance of denial, yet again.

This is the most insulting, ridiculous load of crap I've ever read! My child is a survivor of a pit bull mauling, she wasn't expected to live, and unfortunately many don't. It's NOT the way they're raised its how they are bred. While I won't say ALL of them are bad /mean dogs why take the chance? Would you leave a loaded gun sitting on the table with the potential of a child picking it up and prospectively shooting it? Most would answer NO! It may sound cliche but pit bulls are like a box of chocolates you never know what you're going to get. If you'd like to see first hand what these animals are capable of go check out dogsbite.org. ...

Being uneducated on how the city allocates monies to different departments to allow enough staff, why are there only three animal control officers? Surely the city has money for something as trivial as additional employees that are obviously necessary. Where is the monies for the putt putt golf course coming from and are volunteers going to run it? Or is that another employee that could have been funded for animal control? Why is funding being spent on unnecessary non-essentials when obviously there is a need for productive staff. The new walking trail is great but funding was allocated from? Not to mention the other "beautification" projects that are being considered. Yes, growing San Angelo is important, but the safety of our citizens is more so.

Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Pit bulls are not only problematic in large cities; they threaten mid-sized cities and small towns as well. Located in the heartland, Council Bluffs, Iowa has about 60,000 citizens.

After a series of devastating attacks, beginning in 2003, Council Bluffs joined over 600 U.S. cities and began regulating pit bulls.

The results of the Council Bluffs pit bull ban, which began January 1, 2005, show the positive effects such legislation can have on public safety in just a few years time:1

Council Bluffs: Pit Bull Bite Statistics.

Year Pit Bull Bites % of All Bites.

2004 29 23%.

2005 12 10% (year ban enacted).

2006 6 4%.

2007 2 2%.

2008 0 0%.

2009 0 0%.

2010 1 1%.

2011 0 0%.

Over 1000 years ago The Invading Roman Legions of the English Islands brought with them the Roman Alaunt war dogs which they then mixed with the English Mastiff, the outcome of this careful breeding process of the two dog types was the Ol English Bulldogge.

The Ol English Bulldogge.was Breed to kill Bears, Bulls & Large draft horses in the pit and then later each other in dog fights after it was crossed with the Terrier to create the Pit Bull Terrier, they are what they do, Kill, Maul, Maim, Disfigure, Dismember, cause Life Flights or trips to the Intensive Care Unit.

Any dog type that has the pit bull terrier genetic precursor genetics from the Ol English Bulldogge & Roman Alaunt war dog is a Pit Bull Type Dog with the same genetics and outcome and danger.

The American Bulldog is a mix of this original Ol English Bulldogge with a mastiff type and can also be classified within this group; the two breeds share a common gene pool and are close cousins. The breed standard for the American bulldog, Scott-type, was developed by crossing early Johnson lines with the American pit bull terrier.

In Effect it is a Pit Bull Mix with the same genetics and threat to public safety that is the case in the American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire bull terriers, American pit bull terriers.

This is what an American Bull dog is, in effect a pit bull type dog, 6 of one half a dozen of another, same difference same outcome:

Progressive pit bull legislation includes the American bulldog in its definition of a pit bull.

The term Pit bull type dog refers to many variants with the same mutated genetic truth and reality and outcome.

They include the American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire bull terriers, American pit bull terriers, and their glorified Pit Bull Mixes such as :

the American Bulldog, Bull mastiffs, dogo argentinos, fila brasieros, presa canarios, Japanese Tosa, cane corsos, Bandog, Boerboel, Rhodesian Ridgeback, & Catahoula Bulldog and their mixes.!

My Legislation Proposal to be enacted by all states,
cities and counties in the US & Canada.

All Pit Bull Type Dogs must be Banned:
Including pit bulls (American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire bull terriers, American pit bull terriers, and their glorified Pit Bull Mixes such as the American Bulldog, Bull mastiffs, dogo argentinos, fila brasieros, presa canarios, Japanese Tosa, cane corsos, Bandog, Boerboel, Rhodesian Ridgeback, & Catahoula Bulldog and their mixes and any dog generally recognized as a pit bull or pit bull terrier and includes a dog of mixed breed with predominant pit bull or pit bull terrier characteristics)

As well the following should be labeled as Dangerous dogs after single bite incident: rottweilers, chow chows, Doberman pinschers, German shepherds, they as well as all Grandfathered Pit Bull Type Dogs must be:

* Licensed

* Micro-chipped with any bite history in database for reference.

* Insured: All dogs must be covered by mandatory liability insurance of $100,000 min. generic and $500,000 after a skin breaking bite with insurance companies based on actuarial statistic's determining said rate.

* All Dogs Spayed/neutered (except for limited approved show dog breeders)

* All breeds involved in any bite incident and Grandfathered Pit Bull Type Dogs must be kenneled in a locked five-sided enclosure with concrete bottom.

For all other dog owners language can be written that enclosure such as fences must be capable of containing your dog period, such generic language puts the onus on the owner, have the fines be so onerous that said owner will ensure this they make this so.

1,000 the first time, double the second time and permanent confiscation the third time with a ban on said person from owning any dog within city limits, this will create an effective outcome directly or indirectly.

* All dogs must be on leashes outside of home enclosure

* All Grandfathered Pit Bull Type Dogs must also be muzzled outside of home enclosure

* No transport of declared dangerous dogs for the purpose of re-homing. (Dangerous dogs must be dealt with where their history is known.)

* All of the rules listed above also apply to rescues: rescued dogs must be licensed and subject to inspection.

$1,000 fine for noncompliance

Elimination of the one-bite rule in all of the 50 U.S. states
Manslaughter charges for owner of dog that kills a human
Felony charge for owner of dog that mauls human, dog, or other domestic animal.

Pit bulls have KILLED more people than every other breed COMBINED, every decade since 1851.

This is the genetic truth and it's outcome of the Pit Bull type dog then, now and hopefully for not much longer in the future.!!

Fatal Pit Bull Attacks
Stop the Maulings
An archive of U.S. fatal pit bull attacks dating back to 1833 by DogsBite.org

http://www.fatalpitbullattacks.com/

The point is, other dogs bite and release causing a band aid or a stitch or two, it is only Pit bulls and Pit bull crosses and others like Bullmastiffs, Rotts etc. that attack and can not change their Genetic reality to Kill, Maul, Maim, Disfigure, Dismember, cause Life Flights or trips to the Intensive Care Unit.

These are the kind of attacks that BSL is designed to stop and they do so very successfully, they are not meant to stop everyday minor fear bites from normal dogs as those are not the attacks that pit bull type dogs carry out.

That is the big difference in the outcome and should result in a completely different attitude towards these dogs and why they should be banned outright.

The stats are very clear and accurate and show this reality even if you want to put your head in the sand, it still is what it is.

Pitbulls are like any other living creature, including humans, a product of their environment. Pitbulls that are raised in a loving, caring and responsible environment are wonderful family pets. When they are raised by people, who shouldn't be allowed to raise anything, including children, that's where the trouble starts and that's where it should end. When something happens involving any animal, the investigation should be centered on the owner and way the animal is treated at home. The people who let their dogs roam free are the same people who let their kids roam at all hours and in both instances it is trouble waiting to happen. Don't blame the dog, blame the human.

While we've all gotten onto the Pitbull fans vs Pitbull haters train here, we need to get back to the main subject and problem which is the lack of this city and the pound to a: have enough staff to do the job and b: care enough to do the job.
The pound has now become more tighter security than our city jail. Visitors can no longer go out and walk the kennel lines to see if any animals strike their fancy or even to look for their own lost dogs. Adoptable dogs are shown with pictures on a kiosk in the lobby. ANYONE knows that this is NOT an acceptable way of trying to find homes for the animals who find themselves there. The HIGH KILL #'s of this pound reflect this also, they can say the #'s have gone down, but the bottom line is too many are being killed monthly and not enough is being done to give the animals any kind of chance at new homes. We used to go out weekly & take pics of all the animals and post them online but the manager didn't like that people were getting upset at the filth in the kennels that were showing up in the pics so then the story came out that someone was trying to give pills to some animals and they were now off limits. ok, & all those that believed that raise your hands?
The shelter did start allowing some low cost adoptions and many animals found their homes however SOME GOOD CITIZEN complained that the costs was set by the council and that wasn't allowed so guess what, no more low cost adoptions. SURE< lets just kill them rather than let people adopt them cheaper. IDIOTS !
So now, were here. You can call animal control for a loose animal, attack taking place & if you are lucky someone might make it out that day, most likely not. Don't even dream of calling for a deceased animal pick up, you'll still see it there weeks later.
They are short handed yes, does the city care to give them more money for help - nope - too busy building sidewalks and flower parks etc. So disgusted with this city government. They should all have to go out and personally hold the paw of the animals put down in just one day while they take their last breath and go to sleep that night knowing they are doing nothing to help.

Not at all surprised to see dachshunds and chihuahuas topping the aggression list. They tend to be very spazzy and snappy breeds.. most pits I've ever worked with are cuddly little wimps inside.

A dog that bites and a dangerous dog are different things. I don't have much respect for people who blame careless neglect of their children on others. It's your job to teach them how to approach or not approach animals.

Come to think of it I've been bitten by more kids than dogs personally. Personally most dogs I've met are more predictable and trainable than children. Not every dog that bites is a threat. We don't put down little Billy because he bit Jim on the playground when he got scared.

There are cases of street dogs with violent nature. That's probably due to their environment but yeah then it makes sense to put them down if you can't do anything about them. Human safety is more important than dog safety. On the other hand people who sue others or file charges to have a pet killed for peace-of-mind are pathetic worms having the worst kind of first world problems.

If people only took action against pets and animals that were real dangers (not just because an animal offended your pride) there would be more room for real problem animals in the shelters. Risk is part of life, don't be a baby.