Proposed Pit Bull Ban - Lakewood OH

This topic didn't really affect me until Thursday, July 3, 2008 when I got a call at work from my aunt saying that my 13 year old son was bitten by a dog. He was riding his bike to the corner to get a donut and rode past a lady walking her dog. He rode past her and he said he felt something scratch his leg. He didn't stop but kept riding until he felt the blood running down his leg. He then looked at his leg and saw the blood. He rode home and told his aunt that he was just bit by a dog. My fiance and son tried to find the house where the lady was walking her dog and found it. He reported it to the animal warden and gave the address. The warden went to the home and determined that the dog that bit my son was a pitbull. I took my son to the emergency room. He was terrified he was going to have to get a shot. Because the bite was deep, they do not stitch dog bites because they do not want to trap any bacteria in the punture. So, now my son has a hole in his leg along with the pain from the bite, missing his opportunity to be in the 4th of July parade, missing baseball games and not being able to swim until this bite heals. I spoke to the owner and she seemed very nice. Which in turn, makes me believe that it doesn't matter what kind of owner these dogs have. This dog was not provoked by any means.

Sorry to hear about your son's bite. Your comments left me feeling a need to respond.

You state your son was the victim of an unprovoked attack - and you seem to be blaming the breed. As a trainer, I have a bit of a different view on this incident. Please understand I didn't see the incident (and neither did you), so all I can do is offer what would be some of my thoughts in such cases.

When I talk of responsibility, I mean an owner knows their dog and has its respect. In such cases, an owner will be supervising their dog closely in unusual circumstances (bike coming nearby). Even if the owner of this dog was "nice", that has nothing to do with being a responsible owner. Was she supervising her dog thoroughly? Does the dog have history of nipping or biting and has she sought professional help to correct the problem? Did she offer to pay for your child's medical expenses if the dog was truly at fault?

Also, regarding parents, I often take issue with the thought of an unprovoked attack. To a dog, a child on a bike moving quickly nearby can be seen as a threatening gesture by even well adjusted dogs. It's important for parents to teach their children proper etiquette around animals, especially those they do not know. A child close enough to be bitten would raise my suspicion that the dog actually may have felt threatened - regardless of the child's intentions. In such cases, it's simply unfair to blame the animal alone.

I'm not trying to downplay the seriousness of this situation. But we see stories daily in the press regarding vicious dogs. I'm only trying to point out "unprovoked" attacks often aren't, and nice owners don't equal responsible owners.

Given that this dog did bite, a visit from a professional that deals with these problems is highly recommended, as is counseling and education for the child so a similar incident doesn't occur. Yes, the dog may have some issues, but it's not breed specific and the humans in this equation have a responsibility as well.

The ordinance passed last night. Hopefully, this will make the city safer and discourage the wrong element from moving in with their dangerous dogs.

I do not understand how taking people's pets away from them will fix the problem of having the wrong type of people living in an area. It is because of those people that the dog's are vicious to begin with, not the breed! All it is going to do is cause them to pick another breed to train and raise incorrectly, Dobermans went through this persecution, Rottweilers, what next? ANY breed can cause harm and learn to be aggressive.