Should All Pit Bulls Die?

Outraged dog lovers and pit bull advocates reacted to recent remarks made by Dr. Laura Schlessinger about pit bulls. In a nut shell, she said that shelters are full of pit bulls and pit mixes no one wants, so they should all be put down. She felt it was wasteful for shelters to spend so much money on their food. That breeder churn them out and dump them. And if two pit bulls met on a street, they would probably fight. Listen to the segment here.

When I learned of this today, I decided to turn it into an opportunity to help misunderstood dogs who often get a bad rap. I hope this open letter to Dr. Laura helps her and others see these dogs and their plight in a new light.

Dear Dr. Laura,

I was happy to hear you recommending that people walk with their pets to meet people and feel less lonely. Pets make wonderful companions and enhance our lives in many ways.

Your comments about killing all pit bulls, however, left me feeling sad. Instead of reacting in anger, I am choosing to separate fact from fallacy and to use this as an opportunity for compassion and education. I hope you will read this letter. Even though I disagree with your opinions, I respect your right to them. I know many others share the same perceptions and beliefs. It is my hope that my responses to your words cause you to consider this problem in a new light.

1- You are right in saying many pit bull type dogs are in shelters. According to the ASPCA, they account for 20% of shelter populations nationwide, not 95%. One-third of shelters do not allow pit and pit mix adoptions. The dogs, regardless of their disposition, must be rescued or killed, often within days. Estimates are that shelters kill one million pit bulls yearly and that over 90% never make it out alive.

2- It is true that unscrupulous pit bull breeders churn out too many dogs. To make it worse, they purposely breed dogs to be aggressive, especially with other dogs. However, not all their dogs acquire that trait. You may remember that that several of Michael Vick’s fighting dogs were rehabilitated and became therapy dogs or live with children.

Bait dogs are often submissive and gentle. Responsible breeders produce loving, gentle, loyal pit bulls who make wonderful family members and good citizens. You may be surprised to learn that 86.4% of 804 Pit Bulls tested by the ATTS had a good temperament. This is a higher percentage than every dog breed on the list except for the Labrador Retriever.

3- Far too many pit bulls are dumped. For that matter, far too many dogs of all kinds are dumped, approximately 8 million a year. Sometimes people have to give up their pitties and other blacklisted breeds because their communities or housing areas ban them. Sometimes people fall on hard times or get dogs they can’t handle. Sometimes, they can’t be bothered with the dog. Often, the dog did nothing to deserve getting dumped.

4- Do people want pit bulls as pets? Yes. Many people have pitties and adore them. We have a high percentage in our community shelters. It may take a few months, but eventually most of them get adopted. I know in some areas it is more difficult. This beauty is Winnie, a pit bull/greyhound mix adopted and much loved by Letha Hundley. Their story is in our book, Rescue Me.

5- Should adoptable pitties be killed because there are too many of them, they stay too long, and eat too much food? Should we shun all pit bulls because a number of them have been made bad by humans? It seems to me the humans creating this problem should be dealt with, not their innocent dog victims.

You may find these rhetorical questions offensive, but I ask them to make a point. Should homeless children no one wants be killed because they take up space and eat too much food?

Would it be appropriate for people to cross the street to get away from an individual because a high percentage of people from his race or religion commit crimes? Should we ban all of those people from our communities? Most of us would say, “Of course not.” We know decisions like that are based on ignorance, prejudice and fear.

But that’s different you say. Is it really? We humans like to think we are special and so different than animals. We are not. MRI scans show that dog brains light up in the same region as human brains when they see someone they love. They have preferences. They think, problem solve, and have emotions. They feel pain.

Dr. Laura, I know that you, like me, grew up in a time when we were taught that animals don’t feel or think. We were taught to refer to them as “it” even if we knew their sex. We were taught humans are superior to animals even though they are clearly superior to us in some ways. Instead of valuing them as fellow creations with whom we share the earth, we were taught animals exist for our use. This is all lies.

We humans fall into the trap of thinking that because we can, we have the right to use, abuse and decide which animals have the right to live or die. We forget that God who made us all gave humans the responsibility to be stewards of the earth. He expects us who are made in his likeness to care for all of creation as He would. Dominion is not license to destroy, it is a call to the highest responsibility.

“Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.” Proverbs 12:10

“For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.” Psalm 50:10-11 ”

Martin Luther King said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”

I believe the world would be a much better place if we took those words to heart. Every person deserves to be treated as an individual. Each deserves to be considered and treated as innocent until proven guilty. Dogs and other animals deserve the same. Do you agree that is the moral thing to do?

If so, I am asking you to make it right, not by issuing an “apology” for causing distress (you and I both know that really isn’t an apology), but by sharing the facts with your readers and listeners. Admit where you were wrong, even if you thought you had your facts straight. Use it as a lesson. Encourage them to discern truth from fallacy, to judge by the content of one’s character, and to act responsibly toward all creatures, human and animal. We will all be better for it.

Sincerely,

Val Silver

Sources:

• http://www.aspcapro.org/resource/disaster-cruelty-animal-cruelty-animal-fighting/facts-about-pit-bull-cruelty
• http://einhorninsurance.com/california-insurance/pit-bulls-pass-atts-temperament-test/

Readers, if you have facts or opinions to share, please do so in the comments below. Inflammatory remarks will not be published.

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