Bill would give a break to Ohio’s pit bulls
Three years after mulling a statewide ban on pit bulls, Ohio’s legislature is considering legislation to end the practice of automatically labeling them vicious dogs.
The proposed law is currently in the state House and, if it passes there, would still need to be approved by the Senate, according to a Fox News report.
The proposal comes on the heels of two Ohio cities — Cleveland and Toledo — rewriting local ordinances to require restrictions be imposed on troublesome dogs based on behavior, instead of breed.
Under Ohio’s current, breed-specific state law, pit bull owners are required to have $100,000 worth of insurance, and a specific containment area for their pet.
“You could have the sweetest pit bull in the world and you would have those restrictions I could have the meanest chihuahua in the world and there would be no restrictions,” said John Dinon of the Toledo Area Humane Society.
Toledo changed its dog rule last year, and Cleveland recently followed suit.
Dinon believes labeling a dog based on its behavior will help keep more citizens in Ohio safe: “It protects people a lot better because right now if you have a dangerous dog that isn’t a pit bull likely nothing’s going to happen.”
The changes in Cleveland were sparked by a pit bull owning councilman, according to the Toledo Blade.
“It just seemed fundamentally wrong to say that a certain breed is bad. That’s like me saying that all people that come from northwest Ohio aren’t good people,” said Cleveland Councilman Matt Zone, who introduced the legislation. “In today’s day and age to really determine and know what a breed is [is] virtually impossible with all of the cross-breeding that goes on.”
Under the changes in Cleveland, authorities can classify any type of dog as a “Level 1” threat to public safety if it attempts to cause harm to a person or domestic animal, and as a “Level 2” threat if it bites or otherwise injures a person or animal.
Owners of these dogs must abide by strict regulations that include keeping the animal in a secure enclosure, muzzling the dog while out in public, and obtaining a minimum of $100,000 in liability insurance. Those who violate the rules can be fined up to $1,000.
The rules are similar to those laid out in Toledo’s vicious dogs ordinance, and, as with Toledo’s, they don’t set forth restrictions based on breed alone.
“I was really proud as a policy maker and as a dog owner to see the foresight and vision on the [Toledo City] council’s part to examine this based on fact, not fear,” Zone said. “Too often you get council people who will try to make policies based on fear or peer pressure that they’re hearing from the community.”
Despite the local changes, “pit bull” owners continue to face requirements for additional restraint, muzzling, and liability insurance under state law.
The Ohio General Assembly is expected to vote before the end of this month on whether to remove the pit bull-specific language from the law.
Cleveland council member Zone said he rescued a pit bull puppy hit by a truck outside his office three years ago. When an animal control officer told him the dog would be automatically destroyed because it was a pit bull, Zone took it home. Since then, Gordon has become a much-loved member of his family.
“It just goes to show that when you show love and care to an animal they give it back tenfold,” he said.
Posted by jwoestendiek June 27th, 2011 under Muttsblog.
Tags: animal welfare, animals, behavior, bill, breed, breed specific legislation, bsl, city council, cleveland, council, dangerous, dogs, gordon, house, insurance, john dinon, labeling, labels, law, laws, matt zone, ohio, ordinances, pets, pit bulls, pitbulls, proposal, rescue, restrictions, senate, shelter, toledo, toledo area humane society, vicious
Comments
Comment from Jess @InStyleDog
Time June 27, 2011 at 1:06 pm
Isn’t this great news? As a resident of Ohio, I’m glad things are finally moving in the right direction. It’s pretty embarrassing to be in the ONLY state with a statewide ban like this.
Comment from selwyn marock
Time June 27, 2011 at 1:30 pm
Congratulations Mr Zone for seeing the light,
and from Lucas county Mr Konop is my man,well done guys.
Comment from Lauren Schwaar
Time June 27, 2011 at 2:57 pm
What should be legislated is the type of training that any dog receives. Any dog can be turned into an aggressive, violent animal — likewise, any dog can become a valuable, safe pet. Sure, characteristics brought about by selective breeding can be an issue. But the real heart of the matter is how a dog is raised to behave. That is by far what matters the most. This legislation would be a huge step towards better dog ownership and awareness. Pit bulls are some of the most fantastic dogs in the world and their bad rap is (for the most part) undeserved!
Lauren
ResponseRevolution.com
Comment from jim
Time June 30, 2011 at 10:08 am
Really, really tired of the silly argument that chihuahua’s can bite too. Please. They don’t KILL or MAIM or rip huge pieces of flesh off of people. So ridiculous of a comparison. There was a reason they did this ban in the first place. Pits are responsible for most/all of the serious injuries and fatalities for dog bites. Period. Say what you want about the sweet one Uncle Joe has, they still are a serious dog and require a serious owner who gets the responsibility.
Comment from Penny Flitcraft
Time June 30, 2011 at 11:07 am
I have a 4 year old Pittie, Fenny, who has all of his advanced obedience requirements, AKC – Good Citizen rating and is a registered Therapy Dog with Therapy Dog, Inc. Several years he and I were invited to speak at the Statehouse against BSL. I pray our legislators will see the light in this issue!!! Know real love – love a pittie!!
Comment from Donna
Time June 30, 2011 at 11:19 am
I live in Canton,Ohio and we are praying for this law to pass,our pitt/boxer is anything but mean all the kids love her and she is very good with them,we used to be friend with our neighbors that we have known for yrs now longer talk because of our Abby.After only owning her for 4 days we had the dog warden called and the police called and both came to our home and saw for themselves what a sweetheart she is,but we had to take her down to the dog warden were they looked at her for 5 min and said she was mostly pitt,so we had to go get 100,000 insurance on her and all of the other trappings because of this law i do know and understand that there are bad,mean,biting dogs out there but they are not all pitbulls,but usually mutts you only hear about the ones that pertain to pitbulls.Im sick of it arent you
Comment from Jay
Time June 30, 2011 at 12:41 pm
It’s not even how they’re trained it’s also how lacking in training some dogs get. My pit bull is perfectly friendly and knows what I expect of her but I keep her away from any dog that is obviously the dominant one over their owner. Those dogs generally do whatever the hell they want and are completely untrustworthy to behave correctly.
It’s nice to see a politician act according to facts instead of hysteria for a change. Go, Zone!
Comment from Katie
Time June 30, 2011 at 2:29 pm
Well..now that’s using your head Ohio 
Comment from jonzie
Time June 30, 2011 at 2:47 pm
well lets fact it……..they are a backwards state
Comment from KateH
Time June 27, 2011 at 9:52 am
Yeah for Matt Zone! One day I hope to able to just tell people, “Yes, isn’t she a beautiful APBT” instead of lying about my dog’s parentage. Come on Ohio (and then I’ll work on my little town’s laws)!