Pit Bulls Center of Attention Again in San Angelo

On Tuesday, April 18, a petition started popping up on Facebook with the heading "Save The Pit Bulls" and "Tell the City of San Angelo NO on BSL," which stands for "Breed Specific Legislation." When people click on the link, it is a "change.org" page that states, "Help us fight for all "Pitbull" type breeds." It also aks for signatures of support by petition. 

The site reads, "Over the years, we have watched many cities, counties, and states come for people's dogs by way of Breed Specific Legislation. We recently watched them impose and implement common sense legislation. Our animals in San Angelo, TX are now required to be licensed, vaccinated and micro-chipped. Now, they have decided to take things a little further. We the people of this fine city have agreed to the common sense legislation. What we will not agree with is targeting certain breeds of dogs based on their looks. We are fighting to stop San Angelo from implementing what they are wording as "action related to limiting Pit Bull breeds within the city limits."

Over the last 24 hours, friends Debbie Edging, Michael Sheaffer, and Michelle Schlake created a "Public Group" Facebook page and have close to 400 members. According to the group's post, the City of San Angelo's "Notice of Public Meeting" agenda for the Animal Shelter Advisory Committee on Thursday, April 21, 2016, at the McNease Convention Center, includes the following:

"III. REGULAR AGENDA: PUBLIC HEARING AND COMMENT, 
d. Discussion and possible action related to limiting Pit Bull breeds within the city limits."

Group members have been posting various photos, other news articles about the breed, and have generated quite a discussion. One person even posted a friendly reminder that said, "Spay and neuter your pets, y'all, and opt to adopt! For the love of Pities (and all other pets) everywhere!"

Edging also has a photo of three Pit Bulls with the words "My Pits won't fight, but I will!" She also posted a screen shot of the Texas Health and Safety Code Sec. 822.047, which outlines "Local Regulation of Dangerous Dogs." 

In response to an article on BSL at https://stopbsl.org, Chelle said, "BSL does not improve public safety or prevent dog bites and ignores the plight of victims and potential victims of non-targeted breeds. It is costly and requires each and every dog to be identified as a breed; something that has proven impossible to do accurately and objectively. BSL makes targeted breeds more desirable to irresponsible and criminal owners and does nothing to make irresponsible dog owners accountable. BSL punishes responsible dog owners and not a single canine welfare organization supports BSL."

Around 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, Edging posted, "This issue is being discussed right now on the 92.9 morning show! SO PROUD that many citizens seem to be using common sense!"

Another group member posted, "We should show up to the meeting with our dogs. Let them see how misunderstood they are."

Edging suggested a group meeting for concerned citizens today, prior to the city's meeting. She noted, "The most important first step is for everyone to get organized; as many people as possible need to be at this meeting!"

Around 11 a.m., Chelle posted, "Update on possible breed specific legislation in San Angelo: The item was requested by a council member and will be getting pulled. We cannot implement banning any breed of animal so it's a moot point. I got this second hand from a reputable source, so let's hope it is true."

Chelle also said, "In reality, all animals can bite and caution must be used around other animals and especially children. We cannot blame a dog for how it looks or pinpoint its personality or its propensity for aggression based on the shape of its head, shoulders or even its muscle tone." She explained how she has been "mobility impaired" for a number of years, and, after decades of working with rescue animals in shelters, and with the HSUS during Hurricane Katrina, she was completely comfortable when it was decided that her service dog would be an American Pit Bull Terrier. 

"She is an amazing dog, and I would trust her with my life and the life of my children," Chelle added. She noted that there are too many unwanted dogs in our world, and said, "We hear more about Pit Bulls than any other breed because people are not being responsible; [Pit bulls are] being glorified by the pop culture industry in a negative manner, and it is no fault of the dogs." Chelle reiterated this has happened in the past with Dobermans, German Shepherds, Rottweilers and so on. We should not judge a breed based on incorrect information and pop culture." 
 

Chelle cited several sites for those people needing documented proof of "breed temperament statistics" and "behavioral studies," which include the following:

• http://atts.org/breed-statistics
• https://www.psychologytoday.com/blo…

She added, "Just because the animal may have certain features that resemble a traditional Pit Bull, the only way to correctly identify one is through DNA. Mistakenly identifying any dog is bad enough when it can lead to their death, but to mistakenly misidentify 50 percent of them, that is a very startling reality (More here)."

For decades, Pit Bulls have been stereotyped in a negative aspect by the masses with just as many who also defend the breed. Advocates of the breed encourage people to do their research before they adopt. They should also prepare their property in advance with secure fencing, and make sure they will have the time and money to provide for a pet. 

Overall, these same advocates state that banning Pit Bull ownership across the board, and punishing all for the few in violation, is not the answer.

Vancourt Dog Rescue Director and President Richard Oxley said, "In all the years I have been rescuing dogs, a lot of them have been Pit Bulls."  At VDR, the majority of them run free in a large fenced-in area. From Chihuahuas to Hound Dogs to Pitts, very few require their own kennels. I've seen some horrible cases of neglect and abuse and it's not the dog's fault; it's the person or people who failed to care for them properly, regardless of the breed." 

For more information, join in on the discussion, and to get further updates on this subject or to join the groups, go to "No Breed Legislation in San Angelo" and "Pit Bulls For Freedom" on Facebook. For more information on the breed, check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtG…. To have a voice in the matter, people can also attend Thursday's Animal Shelter Advisory Committee Meeting at noon.