Hi all,
i know I've been scarce for quite some time. I don't like that. I wish i was making time to blog at least a few times a week. Well, i guess that's another goal to shoot for.
When i was living with my Mom (parents were separated) we had a few different dogs: poodles, collie mix, jack russel, american staffordshire terrier, and i know there were more but i can't remember them right now.
There are two breeds that i have loved for as long as i can remember and i do want one of each breed. First Love is American Staffordshire Terriers and Second Love is Yorkshire Terriers. I know they're quite opposites, but they are my loves when it comes to dogs.
I have been looking a LOT on petfinder and also searching information on these breeds, and one day i came across something that said American Staffordshire Terriers are BANNED in ontario just because they are considered Pit Bulls!!! What crazy messed up shit is this!!!!!!!!!!!!! That! was my first reaction. Reasons:
It is sooooo wrong to ban a breed, it is not the dog or the breed that is bad, it is the irresponsible owner, or the owner that has taught the dog to be aggressive and attack. They are the ones the government should have gone after, not a whole breed of dogs. Oh I completely understand that the government felt they had to get a handle on dog attacks and get control of the situation to eradicate all dog attacks. Think of this, you ban pit bulls in a certain area and those former-owners of attacking pit bulls WILL find another breed that they can train to attack!!
Instead of banning a breed i wish the government of ontario had done what other areas have done with much success and this is put restrictions on the owners of the breeds to make the owners more responsible. The owner(s) that allow a pit bull to get loose and it ends up attacking, it's not the dog's fault it was only doing what it was taught to do, it is the owner's fault and the owner is punished.
By the way a 'pit bull' is not a breed, following are the breeds that are most commonly referred to as pit bulls......
American Bull Terriers
American Staffordshire Terriers
Staffordshire Bull Terriers
American Pit Bull Terriers
However, many of the general public will look at many dogs of other breeds and assume they are pit bulls simply because of that person's interpretation of what a pit bull should look like. I had found a great site yesterday of a little game where you need to pick out a pit bull. Basically it has several different pictures of dogs of different breeds and you click on the picture and it will tell what breed that dog is. Now i know a lot and a lot about pit bulls and it took me 4 tries before i actually successfully picked out the pit bull. I wish i could remember where that site was. it's a good thing to try it takes only a few seconds and it's fun and more informative that you might think...I'll look for that site and when i find it again i will post it for you to try out.
Now, i ended up speaking to animal control here in the city i live in and she did agree with me that breed specific legislation(meaning laws that ban a specific breed)is wrong. She was able to give me more information than i had. Apparently any 'pit bulls' born before 2005 are allowed here as long as they have papers that prove their date of birth thus showing that they are 6yrs old or above and they MUST be spayed/neutered.
I was glad to finally be able to speak to someone who could tell me more, at least now i know that i can have my Am Staff as long as i can meet the above requirements and of course i will need to be a responsible owner and keep my dog on leash at all times that he is outside, some areas in ontario will also require a musle(sp?). Also in order to be a responsible owner of such a dog plenty of exercise (on leash!!) is a must and obedience training. Now i know some people are short on cash in the current economy but you can do obedience training at home with your dog yourself.
I'm signing off on this topic for now but i have a feeling i may need to revisit this topic in the future!
Hugs, Dixtra
XOXO
