Reply #181: The K9 article from your post # 145

[baldguy]

"Britain’s Ban on Pit Bulls Extended to Previously Legal Breeds"

http://www.dogmagazine.net/archives/2165/breaking-britains-ban-on-pit-bulls-extended-to-previously-legal-breeds/

Any dog weighing in excess of 20 kgs. (44 lbs)

Any dog in excess of 16” of height to the shoulder.

Dogs carrying liver, black, white or brindle markings.

The bill will not take in to account parentage, breed or DNA profiles


This is Zelda.



When I got her (when she was 1½) she was 24" tall and 50 lbs. She had been returned to the shelter twice already because she was "too much to handle" according to the shelter & she had bitten one child already.

She is exactly the type of dog which this legislation targets. Under this law, she would have been banned. And if I hadn't adopted her she would've been killed.

The thing is, once I got her I was able to train her not to bite. Anyone ... Ever. After a few months, I never had a problem with her. My nieces, nephews & neighbor kids could tackle her, ride her like a horse & pull on her anywhere – and even if she didn't like it, might even have cried out, but over 10 yrs she never once even attempted to bare her teeth at another human being.

I didn't leave her entirely defenseless: A few years ago she was able to catch a squirrel, and last summer she killed a small bird. I wasn't pleased, but she was very proud of herself.

In March she developed a large tumor on her back leg. We got it removed, and she recovered, but she got another one in September on her lung. She died at home, in her own bed, surrounded by her family. (That's the last pic I took of her.)

Now, after a few months, I'm seriously thinking of getting a Pit Bull. (Rescued, of course.)