Pit Bull Ban Starts Today In Garfield Heights, OH

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  • #141
  • #142
Exclusive: 3-Year-Old Recovering After Dog Attack
June 13, 2006 06:06 AM EDT
The boy's father spoke exclusively with Your Newschannel 3. He said his son is making an amazing recovery after a very serious attack.
Three-year-old Phillip Shifflett is alert and talking. But his wounds tell a scary story.
"This portion [the cheek] of the child was hanging on his shoulder, where I could literally see skeleton," said his father, Phillip Shifflett.
Last Tuesday, a golden retriever, named Trouble, attacked Phillip in his backyard. Phillip has known Trouble his whole life, even lived in the same house.
"What we considered a friendly, tame household pet came close to killing my son," Shifflett said.
Phillip went outside to play, his father trailing just seconds behind. His dad said he didn't see what provoked Trouble, but saw the dog mauling his son.
"We grabbed the dog by his neck and threw him off the child, and scooped Phillip up," Shifflett said. When I picked the child up, the dog lunged back at us."
But Trouble had already torn off the little boy's cheek, biting him several times.
"He also tore off the facial nerve or the nerve that works the muscles of the face," said Dr. Richard Rosenblum, a pediatric plastic surgeon with CHKD. "So, Phillip is going to need a series of surgeries, not only cosmetic, but functionally to repair muscles, nerves and work on scars."
It took 300 stitches to repair the damage, and Dr. Rosenblum said Phillip was lucky not to lose his eye.
"Children always have to be watched, and you have to be hyper vigilant when your child is with any breed, even the family pet like this," Rosenblum said.
Phillip's dad wants parents to listen to that warning, too.
"They saved his life, and put him back together," Shifflett said. "I am fortunate. They next child may not be so lucky."
Phillip will have more tests Monday, and doctors said he could go home as early as tomorrow.
Phillip's dad said he is thankful for the doctors and staff at CHKD who acted quickly to save Phillip's life.
As for Trouble, he is still under quarantine with his owner. After the 10-day quarantine is over, police said Trouble will stay with his owner.
**Note the statement from the Physician**
"Children always have to be watched, and you have to be hyper vigilant when your child is with any breed, even the family pet like this," Rosenblum said. WITH ANY BREED............what a concept.
 
  • #143
Girl in dog attack healing By HEATHER DONAHOE The Leaf-Chronicle A 4-year-old Brook Mead Drive girl is recovering at home after a neighbor's dog attacked her Saturday. The 8-year-old yellow Labrador retriever thought to have bitten Abby Marie Bent's face multiple times was up to date on his vaccinations, said Animal Control Director David Selby. The dog — named Dyson — is in a 10-day quarantine at the house of his owners, Reinaldo and Cynthia Lopez. Abby was playing with other children Saturday morning in the Lopez's back yard when Dyson — for undetermined reasons — attacked. Abby's mother told an animal control officer the dog bit when Abby tried to pet him, Selby said. "I don't think anybody really knows exactly how or why it happened," Selby said. "We still don't know if the dog was sleeping, and she came up and surprised him — it's just hard to say." The Lopezes indicated they plan to have Dyson euthanized when the quarantine ends, Selby said. Animal Control won't file charges against the Lopezes because Dyson was vaccinated and wasn't running loose, Selby said. Abby was flown to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and underwent surgery. She received numerous internal and external stitches on her cheeks. Selby said a Labrador retriever's bite packs about 1,500 pounds of pressure. "The wounds are severe," Selby said. "It's heartbreaking. She is an absolutely beautiful little girl. I have a 5-year-old daughter myself, and I can't imagine what I'd do." Clarksville police spokesman Detective Vincent Lewis said Abby will have to have reconstructive plastic surgery to repair significant scarring. The Bent and Lopez families declined to comment about the dog attack. Selby warns parents against leaving young children unattended with dogs — of any breed. "It can happen with any kind of dog," he said. "We have people bring in all kinds of dogs — a chocolate Lab just the other day — because they have growled at their kids," Selby said. "It's just really important for parents to watch their young kids when they're around animals."


http://home.hamptonroads.com/blog/threads.cfm?page=87&page_id=603&uid=53

Link has other articles posted about kids being attacked by Labs, Retrievers, etc.
 
  • #144
All dogs will attack if given enough reason but theres no way you can compare a lab to a pittbull..not in my book anyway.
Theres also a big difference between being attacked and being killed.
 
  • #145
dingo said:
All dogs will attack if given enough reason but theres no way you can compare a lab to a pittbull..not in my book anyway.
Theres also a big difference between being attacked and being killed.
Click to expand...

Exacty Dingo! So what? All these links have proven is that any dog can bite, we already knew that, but few other kinds of dogs have the frequency and severity of mauling and fatalities that Pit Bulls do. That's why they are the drug dealers canine weapon of choice. You don't see drug dealers choosing Labs now do you?

P.S. That hunter deserved the Darwin award for stupidity, that doesn't count as his Lab biting and killing him.:doh:
 
  • #146
Of course all dogs can bite and all of those bites have the potential to be fatal, that is why we should not single out just one breed of dog to ban. I just posted the links about the labs, etc because people have said plenty of times, when do you hear about this type of thing happening with Labs, Goldens, etc.
 
  • #147
teonspaleprincess said:
Of course all dogs can bite and all of those bites have the potential to be fatal, that is why we should not single out just one breed of dog to ban. I just posted the links about the labs, etc because people have said plenty of times, when do you hear about this type of thing happening with Labs, Goldens, etc.
Click to expand...

It's the frequency and severity of the maulings that the pit owners seem to be ignoring. This is why this breed needs to be banned, not all breeds!

A good friend of mine used to work for the local animal rescue and evaluate dogs temperments for placement. She has personally told me how mentally unstable pits are and that they will just snap for no reason. She would never own one. Other breeds don't have this happening.
 
  • #148
dogbitelaw.com is really a great website.
This is an interesting read:
The disagreement among experts, and the dearth of recent statistics, were two of the reasons why an appellate court for the State of Ohio ruled in 2006 that a pair of breed-based dangerous dog laws were unconstitutional. City of Toledo v. Tellings, 5th Dist. No. L-04-1224, 2006-Ohio-975 (Ohio App. 2006). The supreme court of the state accepted this case for review in August 2006 (110 Ohio St.3d 1435). The court of appeals began its analysis by noting:
Breed-specific laws were enacted because, in the past, courts and legislatures considered it to be a "well-known fact" that pit bulls are "unpredictable," "vicious" creatures owned only by "drug dealers, dog fighters, gang members," or other undesirable members of society. [Citing State v. Anderson (1991), 57 Ohio St.3d 168.] ... As scientific information advances and becomes available, courts have a duty to reconsider issues and make decisions which are supported by the actual evidence presented, instead of relying on "common knowledge" and opinion generated by newspaper sensationalism and hearsay, rather than accurate, scientific evidence. [Par.] As the evidence presented in this case demonstrates, previous cases involving "vicious dog" laws, especially from the late 1980's and early 1990's, relied on what is now outdated information which perpetuated a stereotypical image of pit bulls. ... The trial court noted that all the animal behaviorists from both parties testified that a pit bull, trained and properly socialized like other dogs, would not exhibit any more dangerous characteristics than any other breed of dog. After considering all the evidence before it, the trial court agreed, finding that pit bulls, as a breed, are not more dangerous than other breeds."
​
The court then stated that,
Our review of the record reveals no current statistics since 1996 were presented to support the notion that pit bulls have continued to be involved in a "disproportionate number" of attacks or fatalities. In our view, despite its own factual finding to the contrary, the trial court improperly relied on an outdated, irrelevant, and inadmissible source of factual information to revive the "vicious" pit bull sentiment and justify the finding that the statutes and ordinance are constitutional

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/danger.htm
​
 
  • #149
This website really offers the most unbiased info I have seen. Everyone should read this next passage all the way through.

There have been many news reports about deaths caused by dogs in the USA. The attention given to the homicides has put the spotlight on pit bulls and Rottweilers. There is a very good reason for focusing on these two breeds: in recent years, they have usually been the number one and number two canine killers of humans. (See below, The breeds most likely to kill.) It therefore is correct to single out those two breeds when talking about canine homicides, because those two breeds lately have caused half or more of the deaths -- a disgraceful statistic whether it is regarded as the fault of the dogs, their breeders, their owners, or all three.
However, the focus on death cases may leave the public with the false impression that pit bulls and Rottweilers are responsible for the dog bite epidemic. It is a much broader problem than that, involving all dogs and all dog owners. While pit bulls and Rottweilers inflict a disproportionate number of serious and even fatal injuries, the dog bite epidemic involves many different breeds, and results from many different causes. A clear distinction needs to be made between canine homicides (i.e., incidents in which dogs kill people) and the dog bite epidemic.
The confusion caused by discussing the homicides and the dog bites in the same breath has its most important ramification in the area of prevention. Some are advocating the banning of pit bulls, Rottweilers and possibly other breeds, for reasons that range from their alleged dangerousness to the fact that they are very often treated inhumanely. Those who hear about the homicides often support breed bans. (See Breed Specific Laws, Regulations and Bans.)
However, while banning the pit bull might lower the number of human deaths, such a ban would probably not reduce the number dog bites in any significant manner. After the United Kingdom banned pit bulls in the 1990s, a study showed that the number of dog bites remained the same even though the number of pit bulls had steeply declined. (Study cited in B. Heady and P. Krause, "Health Benefits and Potential Public Savings Due to Pets: Australian and German Survey Results," Australian Social Monitor, Vol.2, No.2, May 1999.)

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/statistics.html#homicide
 
  • #150
<A good friend of mine used to work for the local animal rescue and evaluate dogs temperments for placement. She has personally told me how mentally unstable pits are and that they will just snap for no reason. She would never own one. Other breeds don't have this happening.>

thank you, thank you, thank you!
this is exactly what i have been sayng over, and over, and over. however i don't need to say it... reality speaks for itself. it's too bad that those who might have a cute, sweet adorable dog who happens to be a pit bull, and who hasn't snapped... (yet)... are so in denial of the FACTS.
Even if their dog lives their whole life and never snaps.. that does not erase the FACTS we are speaking of.

that pit bulls, BY NATURE,, are, in general... a dangerous and unpredictable breed that are PHYSICALLY capable of doing FAR more damage than most other dogs.
and on top of that, we are dealing with their ever-increasing numbers... it's a deadly combination.
 
  • #151
JBean said:
This website really offers the most unbiased info I have seen. Everyone should read this next passage all the way through.
....However, while banning the pit bull might lower the number of human deaths, such a ban would probably not reduce the number dog bites in any significant manner. ...
Click to expand...
See, it's deaths, and serious injury of the type pit bulls are most likely to inflict that I think most anti-pit-bull people are concerned about. Any dog can bite. Some are far more likely to bite than a pit bull. But dog bite stats don't matter. Dog deaths, dog massive injuries - that's the problem.

From my perspective, that link explains precisely why pit bulls should be banned.
 
  • #152
Details said:
See, it's deaths, and serious injury of the type pit bulls are most likely to inflict that I think most anti-pit-bull people are concerned about. Any dog can bite. Some are far more likely to bite than a pit bull. But dog bite stats don't matter. Dog deaths, dog massive injuries - that's the problem.

From my perspective, that link explains precisely why pit bulls should be banned.
Click to expand...
This makes the most sense to me:

As a practical matter, the current tide of public outrage should be focused on the enactment of measures that would deal effectively with the entire epidemic, not merely the breeds that kill. It would be unwise to enact all kinds of controls on one or two breeds, not necessarily because it would be unfair, but because it would produce narrow and therefore unsatisfactory results. The war against crime isn't a war against just the bank robbers, but against all criminals; the war against drugs isn't a war against just the Colombian drug lords, but all drug lords. For the same reason, the dog bite epidemic must not focus on just one or two breeds and stop there. The war on this epidemic must be comprehensive.
 
  • #153
I can't agree. The war on crime should take the strongest measures against the murderers, not the jaywalkers. Any attempts to help people and dogs live together should focus the strongest measures (breed ban) on breeds that do the worst damage (death, severe maulings), the more minor measures (current animal control regs are more than adequate) on all other dogs.


When we're fighting crime, the police spend more time on gangs than on people who drive 5 miles over the speed limit. A war on dog bites - I'm not even interested in it. To me, this is about preventable dog deaths, and one breed that has a tendency to snap (several breeds have this), combined with a strong jaw, and a tendency to not ever give up, let go, back down - that's the combo that is lethal. A chiuaua snaps plenty. But they are not going to kill you. It's the combination of size, an unstable temper with a lethal determination to kill once the attack is started, that is the problem.
 
  • #154
Details said:
I can't agree. The war on crime should take the strongest measures against the murderers, not the jaywalkers. Any attempts to help people and dogs live together should focus the strongest measures (breed ban) on breeds that do the worst damage (death, severe maulings), the more minor measures (current animal control regs are more than adequate) on all other dogs.


When we're fighting crime, the police spend more time on gangs than on people who drive 5 miles over the speed limit. A war on dog bites - I'm not even interested in it. To me, this is about preventable dog deaths, and one breed that has a tendency to snap (several breeds have this), combined with a strong jaw, and a tendency to not ever give up, let go, back down - that's the combo that is lethal. A chiuaua snaps plenty. But they are not going to kill you. It's the combination of size, an unstable temper with a lethal determination to kill once the attack is started, that is the problem.
Click to expand...

Exactly, because many dog bites from the family pet are accidental. My Springer Spaniel accidentally bit me when we were playing with her tug-of-war toy, she just chomped wrong and got my thumb instead of her stringy toy, should she have been put down because of it? I think not! I called an ask-a-nurse when it happened. Big mistake. They kept calling me back trying to get me to go the ER for a rabies shot! I know my dog had her rabies shot and did not have rabies. I just wanted to know how to stop the bleeding.
This incident doesn't even begin to compare to a mauling by a pit bull.
 
  • #155
Details said:
I can't agree. The war on crime should take the strongest measures against the murderers, not the jaywalkers. Any attempts to help people and dogs live together should focus the strongest measures (breed ban) on breeds that do the worst damage (death, severe maulings), the more minor measures (current animal control regs are more than adequate) on all other dogs.


When we're fighting crime, the police spend more time on gangs than on people who drive 5 miles over the speed limit. A war on dog bites - I'm not even interested in it. To me, this is about preventable dog deaths, and one breed that has a tendency to snap (several breeds have this), combined with a strong jaw, and a tendency to not ever give up, let go, back down - that's the combo that is lethal. A chiuaua snaps plenty. But they are not going to kill you. It's the combination of size, an unstable temper with a lethal determination to kill once the attack is started, that is the problem.
Click to expand...
I guess I don't consider dog attacks that don't result in death to be on the same level as jaywalking and speed violations. there are serious dog attacks each year that do not end up in death but mame people and they are not necessarily the result of pitbull attacks. They are the result of attacks by all breeds.
The story below is pretty serious. It could have easily ended up in death. I could post lots of them but this was the first one on the page.
My point is that the epidemic is dog biting. We need to treat the whole situation ..not just ban breeds. I am not satisfied with just having scalps and faces ripped off by other breeds as long as no one is killed by a banned pit bull. We need to address all of it. It's a bigger problem than that. Per dogbitelaw.com, banning pitbulls will not address the dog bite epidemic.

Braeden Kelly -- neighbor's German shepard ripped off scalp and cheek of 5-year-old boy

August 1, 2003, Atlanta, Ga. A neighbor's German shepard ripped off the center of Braeden Kelly's scalp, his entire right cheek, and part of his left cheek. Although there was a law in Atlanta that required dogs to be confined or on a leash, the neighbors always allowed their children to take the dog out to play without a leash. On the day of this attack, the dog went 300 feet up the street to attack the boy. The Braeden Kelly Case is significant to Georgia dog bite victims because the trial court recognized that, despite 100 years of contrary legal precedents in that state, a victim should be able to bring a claim based upon dog owner negligence. Attorney Kenneth Phillips represented Braeden Kelly and upon request will transmit the court documents without charge to Georgia attorneys who represent victims. Click here to contact Mr. Phillips.
 
  • #156
LinasK said:
Exactly, because many dog bites from the family pet are accidental. My Springer Spaniel accidentally bit me when we were playing with her tug-of-war toy, she just chomped wrong and got my thumb instead of her stringy toy, should she have been put down because of it? I think not! I called an ask-a-nurse when it happened. Big mistake. They kept calling me back trying to get me to go the ER for a rabies shot! I know my dog had her rabies shot and did not have rabies. I just wanted to know how to stop the bleeding.
This incident doesn't even begin to compare to a mauling by a pit bull.
Click to expand...
sometimes dogs bite for a very good reason...my last lab bit a kid because said kid was riding on his back in a dam and drowning him..while I was frantically waving from the bank telling the kid to get the hell off Jeds back..Jed came up for air and bit the little darling.....it was a lab dog bite alright but it was a justified one.
 
  • #157
if a kid was doing that to my dog, i would have bit the little brat myself!
 
  • #158
It IS the owners fault, at least here.

City Prosecutor Tim Riley said the law got its start because residents ignored an earlier law mandating pit bulls be muzzled, leashed or penned and insured.

http://www.cleveland.com/cuyahoga/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1193387865264590.xml&coll=2

and here is some more I found.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21488712/

"When you're confronted by a dog that's about to attack you, you're not saying, 'well it's not a pit bull then it must be nice,' " Klein said. "You're afraid because it's a dog that's not being controlled by its owner."
 
  • #159
reb said:
<A good friend of mine used to work for the local animal rescue and evaluate dogs temperments for placement. She has personally told me how mentally unstable pits are and that they will just snap for no reason. She would never own one. Other breeds don't have this happening.>

thank you, thank you, thank you!
this is exactly what i have been sayng over, and over, and over. however i don't need to say it... reality speaks for itself. it's too bad that those who might have a cute, sweet adorable dog who happens to be a pit bull, and who hasn't snapped... (yet)... are so in denial of the FACTS.
Even if their dog lives their whole life and never snaps.. that does not erase the FACTS we are speaking of.

that pit bulls, BY NATURE,, are, in general... a dangerous and unpredictable breed that are PHYSICALLY capable of doing FAR more damage than most other dogs.
and on top of that, we are dealing with their ever-increasing numbers... it's a deadly combination.
Click to expand...


I think that most of the dogs she works with probably came from bad owners, which is why they are in a rescue center, that may explain why most of the ones she see's are unstable. Has she had a chance to work with other pits that are raised right and trained correctly?
 
  • #160
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