ohmidog!

Two fatal pit bull attacks on infants in Texas has the state legislature taking a look at revising the state’s dangerous dog laws, including breed specific legislation, creating a separate category for dogs that appear they could be ”vicious” and — believe it or not — maybe even weight-specific legislation.

“I think we ought to by state law determine that if you are a vicious dog, we ought to prevent you from going to public parks, to schools where kids congregate and if you live in a city with more than one million citizens, require that any dog that over 40 pounds be enclosed in a fence,” said Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, (D) San Antonio.

Specifically, that section of his proposed law reads: A person who owns or keeps custody or control of a dog weighing 40 pounds or more shall ensure that the dog, at any time the dog is not on a leash in the immediate control of a person, is kept inside a residence or in a secure enclosure on the premises where the dog is kept.

Perhaps the most troubling part of the bill, though, is that, unlike “dangerous” dogs, who are so deemed because of their actions, the criteria for judging a dog “vicious” is based only on appearance — does he snarl, is he jumping at the fence? No aggressive action needs occur, according to the Texas Humane Legislation Network.

On March 31 in San Antonio, a 7-month-old boy, being taken care of by his great-grandmother, was attacked by her two pit bulls when she went to get a bottle for the child, according to UPI. The week before, in Luling, about 25 miles east of San Antonio, an 18-month-old boy was killed by a pregnant pit bull his mother was dogsitting, according to the Austin American-Statesman.