Texas 2011 Legislature to Focus on Eliminating “Pit Bulls”? Please send sample message.
From Facebook
Sample Letter courtesy of Carin Zellerman
Cynthia Stevens Kent is calling on Texas state legislators to introduce a bill in the 2011 legislative session that would ban “pit bulls” and “pit bull” mixes from the state. In her ideal legislation Kent says people found with their pet “pit bulls” or mixes would be charged with a 3rd degree felony. An alternative proposal would allow local governments to ban or restrict “pit bulls” or other “breeds” in their jurisdiction.
Please contact the two 2011 state legislators Attorney Kent plans to ask to introduce her pit bull ban.
WHOM TO CONTACT
Sen. Kevin Eltife: http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist1/dist1.htm#formRep
Rep. Chuck Hopson:
http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/member-page/email/?district=11&session=81
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Senator Eltife,
OR
Dear Representative Hopson,
I was appalled to learn that Attorney Cynthia Kent has proposed an introduction of a bill in the 2011 legislative session that would ban pit bulls from the state. Study after study has proven that breed bans, breed discriminatory legislation, simply don’t work to reduce bites or attacks. Every national humane organization opposes breed specific legislation, of all types, not just bans, because these policies discriminate against dogs, and are ineffective and expensive to enforce. There is not one major animal or health organization including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the National Animal Control Association, and the Centers for Disease Control, among many others, that supports breed discriminatory laws as a way to reduce bites or attacks.
It is also well-established that people cannot look at a dog and determine the breed. More than two dozen breeds have been mistaken for pit bull breeds. Not to mention the hundreds, if not thousands, of mixed breed dogs said to be “pit bulls” based on speculative identifications. Severe injuries or death from dog bites are exceedingly rare, and “pit bulls”, assuming they were correctly identified, are involved in only a fraction of such incidents. It is the owner’s negligent or criminal actions that are responsible for any potential attack, not the dog’s breed or appearance. BSL penalizes responsible dog owners and means the death of dogs that are not in any way dangerous.
Breed bans simply don’t work to keep communities safe. Such legislation is very costly to enforce and negative for a community and state and will only result in creating a climate where dogs are viewed as enemies rather than family members requiring proper care, management and love. I sincerely hope that you will reject Kent’s proposal to introduce such a pit bull ban.
Thank you for taking the time to read this important message.
NAME
Related, BSL – Breed Specific Legislation – Is your dog safe?
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BACKGROUND
From Animal Law Coalition
During her tenure as a Texas district court judge Cynthia Stevens Kent worked for the right of judges to carry guns while on the bench. Kent herself boasted she carries a Smith and Wesson .38 revolver.
Now back in private practice as an attorney, Kent has made millions of dollars suing dog owners. This week she is calling on Texas state legislators to push them to introduce a bill in the 2011 legislative session that would ban “pit bulls” and “pit bull” mixes from the state. In her ideal legislation Kent says people found with their pet “pit bulls” or mixes would be charged with a 3rd degree felony. An alternative proposal would allow local governments to ban or restrict “pit bulls” or other “breeds” in their jurisdiction.
The proposed bill may be a great publicity stunt for Kent’s dog bite practice, but it would be poor legislation that would do nothing to make citizens safer. It would also mean the deaths of thousands of innocent pets and create a climate of fear and distrust between people and dogs. Currently, Texas is one of a number of states that prohibits breed discrimination. And with good reason. Study after study has proven that breed bans, breed discriminatory legislation, simply don’t work to reduce bites or attacks. There is not one major animal or health organization including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the National Animal Control Association, and the Centers for Disease Control, among many others, that supports breed discriminatory laws as a way to reduce bites or attacks.
That is because dogs don’t bite because of breed or appearance; they bite out of fear that could have been the result of poor socialization, neglect, abuse, tethering or confinement or isolation. In other words, it is the owner’s negligent or criminal actions that are responsible, not the dog’s breed or appearance. These breed discriminatory laws are rooted in myth and fear.
BSL penalizes responsible dog owners and means the death of dogs that are not in any way dangerous.
It is also well-established that people cannot look at a dog and determine its breed. More than two dozen breeds have been mistaken for pit bull breeds. Not to mention the hundreds, if not thousands, of mixed breed dogs said to be “pit bulls” based on speculative identifications. Recently, in Denver Dr. Victoria Voith did a little test on animal shelter directors, dog trainers and others who work with dogs.
They were asked to view 20 dogs on a videotape and identify each one by breed including whether the dog was a purebred or a mix. The professionals were surprised by how few dogs they identified correctly by breed. Voith believes as many as 75% of the pit bull identifications made by shelter workers, animal control or law enforcement are wrong. She is the author of Shelter Medicine: A Comparison of Visual and DNA Identifications of BREEDS of Dogs. As DNA testing becomes more reliable, it is proving that many of the dogs identified as pit bull are actually a mix of dozens of breeds with little or none of the DNA of pit bull type dogs.
That means a lot of dogs condemned by BSL are not even “pit bull” breeds. Will the State of Texas or local governments pay for the DNA tests that will be required to prove a particular dog is a “pit bull” or pit bull mix? Not to mention the costs to litigate endless challenges to the breed discriminatory laws and confiscations of dogs under those laws.
BSL is a very costly negative for a community and state and will create a climate where dogs are viewed as enemies rather than family members requiring proper care, management and love. Indeed, note this 1999 bite study of 83 Texas counties – Severe injuries or death from dog bites are exceedingly rare, and “pit bulls”, assuming they were correctly identified, were involved in a fraction of such incidents.
Indeed, over the past 45 years, there have been 63 fatal injuries in Texas from bites involving a number of breeds and mixes. Yet, in just one year, 2007, in Texas 3,466 people died in traffic accidents, 68 people died riding ATVs and 66 drowned in swimming pools. Is Kent planning to ask for a ban on automobiles, ATVs and swimming pools?
WHAT YOU CAN DO
If you live in Texas, contact the two 2011 state legislators Attorney Kent plans to ask to introduce her pit bull ban. Tell them breed bans don’t work to keep communities safe, penalize responsible dog owners, and are very costly to enforce and prosecute:
Texas State Sen. Kevin Eltife who has said he will work with Kent to repeal the state ban on breed discrimination and allow local governments to pass breed bans and other breed restrictions.
Check out Animal Law Coalition’s BSL Watch to find out where local governments are passing breed bans or breed discriminatory laws and how you can help stop them.
See More …
Stop BSL Blog | Get an overview of all BSL alerts issued by StopBSL and their current status. Click here to view the spreadsheet. (*Note: Data entry is currently in progress.)
ignorant and stupid
is not excuse
for man not so kind
to be so obtuse!!!!Karen Lyons Kalmenson
Our Compass 
The dogs are not the issue, maybe if your state focused on the people who do wrong with these dogs, make more mandatory sentences for those that use the dogs to fight, those that abuse them, those that make them become a breed that people fear. These dogs are wonderful in their homes/loyal/ caring/ and etc. I think your state needs to learn more about the pro’s of the breed and stop listening to nay sayers! My pittie mix is great and I would not ever let anyone hurt him
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Cynthia Stevens Kent has an opinion she knows nothing about.. Thats just for starters.. There are so many people out there that have no idea what these breed of dogs are about.. Would you let your child go to college w/out checking out the school?? Would you sign a child up for a medical trial to test a new drug for kids?? I didn’t think so.. Then, you need to go to a shelter to watch, or just take a pit Bull out for a walk, pet one, play w/one.. Take your child w/you. There is no doubt you’d trust this great dog over the other two examples I gave.. If all this interest is in the outside of these dogs, you’ll be totally wrong.. We have raised these dogs around our 5 kids, 9 grandchildren.. So, I know for a fact you are dead wrong.. It’s like someone telling lies about you that aren’t true.. You’d be past upset.. My point, Don’t judge before YOUR homework is done…. Please take the challenge to find out what you thought you knew is WRONG…. Thank You for your time….
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ignorant and stupid
is not excuse
for man not so kind
to be so obtuse!!!!
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Will Jews and people of colour be allowed in Texas or will the authorities wish to exterminate them as well.
The only solution is those politicos that want to use Pits as vote-catchers Vote them out.
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Dear Representative Hopson,
I was appalled to learn that Attorney Cynthia Kent has proposed an introduction of a bill in the 2011 legislative session that would ban pit bulls from the state. Study after study has proven that breed bans, breed discriminatory legislation, simply don’t work to reduce bites or attacks. Every national humane organization opposes breed specific legislation, of all types, not just bans, because these policies discriminate against dogs, and are ineffective and expensive to enforce. There is not one major animal or health organization including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the National Animal Control Association, and the Centers for Disease Control, among many others, that supports breed discriminatory laws as a way to reduce bites or attacks.
It is also well-established that people cannot look at a dog and determine the breed. More than two dozen breeds have been mistaken for pit bull breeds. Not to mention the hundreds, if not thousands, of mixed breed dogs said to be “pit bulls” based on speculative identifications. Severe injuries or death from dog bites are exceedingly rare, and “pit bulls”, assuming they were correctly identified, are involved in only a fraction of such incidents. It is the owner’s negligent or criminal actions that are responsible for any potential attack, not the dog’s breed or appearance. BSL penalizes responsible dog owners and means the death of dogs that are not in any way dangerous.
Breed bans simply don’t work to keep communities safe. Such legislation is very costly to enforce and negative for a community and state and will only result in creating a climate where dogs are viewed as enemies rather than family members requiring proper care, management and love. I sincerely hope that you will reject Kent’s proposal to introduce such a pit bull ban.
Thank you for taking the time to read this important message.
Kim Brewer
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Somebody stupid at the wheel again, ugh! When is this going to stop.
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http://www.guerrillaeconomics.biz/bestfriends/
Best Friends Animal Society has a Breed Ban calculator that demonstrates the fiscal costs on communities that are banning specific breeds of dogs.
Sent the attachment to the Senator from Texas.
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HE LEIDO I OIDO MUCHAS LOCURAS, PERO ESTO SE LLEVA UN PREMIO MAYOR. POR FAVOR NO SEAN TAN IGNORANTES!!
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I’m not a fan of pit bulls, but I don’t believe in this drastic measure. License dogs, license breeders, arrest people who partake in dog-fighting (sponsors and attendants). This is wrong.
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At the cost of 6.5 million dollars a year, why would the state of Texas even think of doing this. It isn’t the dogs fault. Bad dogs come from improper breeding, and ignorant owners.
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W Polsce no problem PIT BULLE, ale mieszance Wolf i inne .Pit bull and Amer.Staff Terier LOVE.
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I’m an animal lover, but I do believe that their is something chemically wrong with a pitbull in their heads.
I have seen for myself a full blooded pitbull attack their 3 year old child. The same dog killed another dog when it accidentally got into the back yard.
I have also heard from my family members that own a 1/2 pitbull, she attacked one of the other dogs in the home. These dogs have been together for many years & yes its the 1st time it happened, but it almost killed the little dog. It popped her eye out, broke her jaw, & she had to have stitches.
I do not approve of pitbulls as being part of any family pet.
Thank you,
Priscilla Kuhleman
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wow. ok. this is crazy and retarded… Cynthia Stevens Kent is a total and complete idiot. banning a crapload of stuff wont fix anything… and baning pit bulls is being totally ignorant! omg. im so officailly pissed off now. there is NOTHING wrong with pit bulls no matter who says it or what idiot tries to claim theyre dangerous… there being retarded and blind to not see the love that comes from a pit bull. my friends had LABRADORS attack and destroy a pug.
440,000 peopple die due to cigarrets
38,000 kids are killed from gunshot related injuries
2,000 kids are killed by their own parents
3 people are killed per year by pit bulls
saying that banning pit bulls would decrease the number of deaths wherever the hell they plan to set it pisses me off totally and completely.
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I totally agree, it’s insane. Then I see “Kent says people found with their pet “pit bulls” or mixes would be charged with a 3rd degree felony”! Are you freaking kidding me. The jerk that nearly killed Claire the Great Dane with animal cruelty is only facing a misdeamenor! So you can slowing torture and darn near kill an animal & you will get lessor time & a lessor charge than if you are taking good care of a pit bull/pit bull mix…. That totally PISSES me off & people need to start looking at the owners of these dogs & putting blame where it needs to be!
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OMG Please ban pitbulls They are a horrible breed for their jealousy and killings among attacks. I do hope Texas will ban them.
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@Alicia you are ignorant and an idiot
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Alicia you need to ban rapists, murderers, thieves, etc. not dogs, they are a better friend to me.
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Alicia, yes you are completely entitled to your opinion. But have you ever actually been around a pit bull that has been raised properly or are you basing your opinion on what you have seen on/in the news? I have been around tons of pit bulls. They are not born bad, they are trained bad.
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Someone shoots someone, we try to ban guns or sue the gun makers. Someone gets lung cancer because they choose to smoke, we sue the tobacco companies. Someones dog bites someone, we punish the dog. Why can’t the responsible parties be held accountable?
It’s ridiculous to think that the loving and loyal pet that I’ve had for the last 9 years could be taken away because someone doesn’t like the breed of dog that he is, that I would be a felon just for owning him. With all the problems in our society, isn’t there more pressing issues that folks should be concerned about?
Punish the irresponsible dog owners, enact stiffer senttences, don’t punish the poor animals.
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Jody, I couldn’t agree more! This is just crazy!
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You got too much emphasis on dogs, you need to change the rules for how meat is grown in America, nasty and greed to the owners, it spells CANCER and all kinds of disease, thats why we are so sick, due to greed of the hog, chicken and cow farms.
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this is cruelty to animals and absurd
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Are you kidding me? Really? These animals are not the issue. The owners are the issue. I have been around animals my entire life. I have had dogs of all sizes & breeds. I have never had an animal that was mean or that has bitten anyone. It’s all in the way they are treated/trained & raised. You are taking your fears & anger out on innocent animals when you need to be going after the owners. And a 3rd degree felony for having one??? Really, when it’s only a misdeamenor to commit animal cruelty… You can starve, beat & darn near kill a pet & get less time in jail than if this passes & you are taking care of a pit bull or pit bull mix. Wow!!! This is just insane!
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Many children and adults will be traumatized by killing their beloved “Nanny Dogs.” Slaughtering breeds has done NOTHING to stop do attacks except waste taxpayers’ money. Laws on breeding for profit, “fixing” dogs, and owner resposibility is MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE.
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I live in Oegstgeest, Netherlands and my career in fact
deals with this topic. Genuinely doing what you desire and writing about
it in such a smart way is a great gift. Your article is informative, illuminating, and passion-driven, all of which I
seriously admire when dealing with this topic.
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People need to wake up and stop the slaughter of dogs based on there status (bully) breed. I believe, bad owner, bad dogs. People don’t want to change, but you can change the animal. With lots of love and patients. Shame on people! Humans are more distructive and dangerous then any foyr legged animal. Human are the one that are suppose to have knowledge, remorse, forgiveness, understanding… animals loose in the long run. I don’t think it’s fair. We need to stick up for animal who can’t speak for themselves…. I will stand up for animal who can’t speak for themselves.
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Reblogged this on " OUR WORLD".
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