Remember. Before you go to the hearing tonight, scroll through Craigslist Pet section. There are so many pit bulls being bought, sold and given away. They are definitely money makers.

City Hall was full.
(wish it always were!)

Among those who spoke were many well-informed, well-prepared and articulate citizens who presented very useful information. Some came prepared with print-outs that they distributed to the council.
Among those who spoke was Dennis Tabella, director of Defenders of Animals, a group which has taken Pawtucket to court, and won custody of dogs who were labeled as vicious without evidence.

Councilmen seemed most impressed by the information provided by citizens on Calgary's highly successful non-breed-specific approach to preventing problem dogs.
For more on the Calgary law:
http://www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/responsible-pet-ownership/calgary-alberta/

The council eventually seemed to be won over to the idea that the ordinance, in its current form, may not be very effective and will unduly punish responsible owners.

Towards the end of the public hearing portion, Council President Ward stated that it was "never his intention" to pass the ordinance he had presented, but that it was only a "starting point", and he hoped more research could produce a better solution.

Voting on the ordinance has been tabled to next March.
Further research, discussion and workshops were mentioned, and the council urged the public to stay involved and become part of a working solution to replace the proposed breed-specific law.

Before pits infested our community, we never had a leashed dog killed on a public sidewalk, we never had a dog killed inside her home, by a dog who broke into kill. Now, sadly our community and most communites have experienced these pit bull traits up close and personal. When a pit bull attacks or kills, it is being a "good" pit bull, doing precisely what pits were created to do.

Forget the pit mongers propaganda. The ficticitious nickname "nanny dog" was invented in the 1980's. The ATTS is to weed out shy police dogs. Pits were created to kill other dogs. When another dog isn't handy, a child will do just fine. No, most pits won't kill, but because "good" pits did not give warning or need a reason to attack, you won't know when a stray pit bull will suddenly become a "good" pit bull.

Most pits are not acquired for companionship, but instead as weapons, for fighting, or for the vicarious power and AGGRESSION they provide their owners. Because dog welfare is not of importance to these pit owners, they do not spay/neuter their dogs. (Those who do care about dog welfare do not aquire THE dog designed to kill dogs.) If you are an aggressive person yourself, you are attracted to dogs called "Bullies". Proof is that when a million too many pits are born in the USA every year, with the result of that number also being killed at busy pounds, not a peep out of the pit mongers to enact spay/neuter. But mention a specific pit bull in danger and the pit mongers attack!

Essentially all US dog fights still use only pit bulls because they are the best. You simply won't find Brittany Spaniels or Keeshonden at dog fight raids, because these dogs have normal dog social skills which prevent them from being "good" at killing each other. "Kill or die trying" was the motto given to pits by the cruel dog men who created the pit bull. If it is illegal to fight dogs, then let's make it illegal to make expert dog fighting dogs.

Colby, a founding father and pit bull fancier (fighter) wrote: "inasmuch as dog fighting is illegal... as long as these dogs are bred, there will be pit contests to see who has the better fighting dog." Of course he was correct! So stop breeding them!

Pit mongers should not resist, as they insist that breed doesn't matter, that pits "are just dogs, just like other dogs" and that training and management is responsible for dog mauling behavior. Great!

Enact and enforce mandatory spay/neuter of all pits, pit mixes, all dog aggressive dogs. Since most dogs who escape and attack are not spayed/neutered, attacks will immediately be reduced. Fewer pits will flood our pounds, so that will be an improvement for all who care about dog welfare. When pits become extinct over the next 15 years, pit mongers can simply adopt any homeless dog and manage/train her to be their charming pet. No responsible pit owner is punished, as his dogs are spays/neutered. If a boxer mix is misindentified, no problem, she gets spayed.

Pit mongers mislead (lie to) the public. They have to, because honesty would lead to pit bull breeding bans.

For example, pit mongers mention the ATTS test as proof of pit bull temperament. Yes, pits do pass with scores of 83-90%, but the ATTS was designed to weed out dogs not brave enough for police work; it is NOT a predictor of future safe behavior. You can't use an IQ test as proof of innocence of a human, either.

No part of the ATTS involves a child playing on her porch. No part of the test involves an elderly neighbor, standing at her mailbox. No part of the test involves another dog, asleep on his own deck furniture, but all these examples are victims of pit bull attacks... pits simply being "good" pit bulls, who attacked for no reason, without warning, immediately did damage, did not stop easily.

Oh, there is one part of the test that involves a starter pistol, fired suddenly behind the dog, 3x. Dogs who panic fail the test. But this part tells a thinking person that if a pit bull is attacking, you must shoot to kill, as warning shots won't stop 83-90% of pit bulls.

And that's what is happening: more pits ARE shot and killed by neighbors, owners, police to stop pit bull attacks than pass that silly ATTS test every year!

Why even mention the test? Pit mongers know that 95% of the naive public won't read the test. So here it is: http://atts.org/tt-test-description/

Since dogs cannot address the pit bull crisis and pit owners/pit mongers DO NOT CARE, that leaves it to Society to take action to reduce attacks, attacks that we all know will happen again and again.

Even if no humans were ever maimed for life or killed, why continue breeding dogs desgned to be dog aggressive? I cannot find a single pit breeder website (APBT, SBT, AST) that states "we never breed dog aggressive dogs; all our dogs have excellent social skills." None exist. The opposite is true. "Pits are the warriors, the gladitors of the dog world." "Dog aggression is what makes a pit a pit." "Kill or die trying." are all pit bull descriptions given by pit fanciers.

Tragically, those who created pit bulls did not care about the welfare of others. Tragically, those who continue to breed and promote pit bulls still DO NOT care about the welfare of others. They only care about themselves and their ability to breed and own the dog of their choice. The disproportionate suffering and death, both caused by and also suffered by pits, is not a problem to selfish, cruel people.

I happened to be going door to door for a charitable reason the other night. As I knocked on the door I heard the most ferocious barking that I nearly jumped out of my shoes. A neighbor mentioned a pit bull was in there. Whether the people were "nice" or not the dog was terrifying.

For Debbie Bell...

AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIER
Official UKC Breed Standard
Revised November 1, 2008
@Copyright 1978, United Kennel Club, Inc.

HISTORY

Sometime during the nineteenth century, dog fanciers in England, Ireland and Scotland began to experiment with crosses between Bulldogs and Terriers, looking for a dog that combined the gameness of the terrier with the strength and athleticism of the Bulldog. The result was a dog that embodied all of the virtues attributed to great warriors: strength, indomitable courage, and gentleness with loved ones. Immigrants brought these bull and terrier crosses to the United States. The American Pit Bull Terrier’s many talents did not go unnoticed by farmers and ranchers who used their APBTs as catch dogs for semi-wild cattle and hogs, to hunt, to drive livestock, and as family companions. Today, the American Pit Bull Terrier continues to demonstrate its versatility, competing successfully in Obedience, Tracking, Agility and Weight Pulls, as well as Conformation.

The United Kennel Club was the first registry to recognize the American Pit Bull Terrier. UKC founder C. Z. Bennett assigned UKC registration number 1 to his own APBT, Bennett’s Ring, in 1898.

Also check out the history of other Bully dogs like the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier.
Don't blame the breed, blame the owner.

So before anyone who wants to make comments like Debbie Bell, do your research and make informed comments. The Pitbull and other Bully breeds are wonderful dogs. Any dog can be made to be aggressive. The blame for a bad dog is on the human who owns them and doesn't train them properly.

Well I don't own a pit but if you walked into my yard (of course it is posted) like a police officer did once and got bit. Tried to take my dog because it attack, but because the yard is posted the dog is licensed they could not. The dog is still with us protecting me and my family. All I’m saying is that you can not blame the dog. Dogs are not born mean they are trained that way just like police dogs. My dogs are not mean but do not be a stranger invading their territory you without escort or they will bite you. That is what the bell at the fence is for, for your protection.

Tina. I was not able to talk to the folks about my charity. It is sad that people want animals to scare others.

I wish people would stop reading stuff from website like dogbite.com and other " all dogs of this breed were born to kill" type sites out there... people who come here that quote stuff that they find from those sites not only sound like parrots spitting back out the words they hear but they also sound very single minded and clueless as to what they are even talking about. Debbie this is a WOONSOCKET RHODE ISLAND issue being discussed on WOONSOCKET.PATCH please leave your fear mongering comments back on the LosGatos.patch where you belong. If people from here do have problems with the breed please let them speak for themselves as that would be constructive as we all live in the same community here and it will help us better understand each others views.

Oh BTW here is what the ATTS is actually about. Get your facts straight before you come here and troll our comment threads.

The American Temperament Test Society, Inc. (ATTS) is a national not-for-profit organization (registered in the state of Missouri) for the promotion of uniform temperament evaluation of purebred and spayed/neutered mixed-breed dogs.

ATTS was established to:

Provide for a uniform national program of temperament testing of purebred and spayed/neutered mixed-breed dogs.
Conduct seminars to disseminate information to dog owners, dog breeders and evaluators (testers) concerning dog psychology, motivation, reaction and other aspects of temperament testing.
Recognize and award certificates to dogs that pass the requirements of the temperament evaluation.
Work for the betterment of all breeds of dogs.
Select, train, prepare and register temperament evaluators.

I live in a suburb in the greater Boston area. Pit bulls are not the most common dog in my town, but they cause a disproportionate amount of problems. I know several self-described "responsible" pit bull owners who raised their dogs as well loved family pets..... yet their pit bulls went on to attack and maul other dogs, bite people, and, in one case, actually kill the family dog it grew up with.
There is a small but vocal minority of dog owners who have a fetish for this particular breed. Yet virtually every pit bull type dog you see was bred by someone with bad intentions...criminals, drug dealers, dog fighters, gang members, or losers looking to make some beer money. Look on CL, or any on-line classifieds and see where these dogs are being sold from...mostly high crime, urban areas. At worst, many of these dogs are selected for aggressive temperaments, at best temperament is ignored in favor of big heads, the color blue, or whatever the newest thug fashion dictates. Anyone who thinks that the types of people breeding fighting dogs are producing stable family pets is a fool.

Pit bull advocates are fighting to allow the continued breeding of a dog hard wired to kill other dogs, and that is reprehensible to me. A good compromise legislation would be manadatory s/n, mandatory microchip, and mandatory insurance coverage. Responsible pit owners should already be in compliance, so they would be unaffected.

Wow,lots of comments on this subject!!!! I agree it is the owners who are at fault. They are breeding dogs to fight in this city. You can take almost any breed and make them aggressive. There is a hugh population of pitbulls and bulldogs in this city and a huge population of unresponsible owners. I hope new laws are put into force so that those who are "caring & loving" to their pets may keep theirs. I do agree that something needs to be done and very quickly. I am a walker and I see up front and live the problems with crappy owners have this breed. Just bein real.

You are right, AmStaffs APBT usually do have some degree of aggression toward other animals. I'm not going to dispute that, it's something that needs to be managed with the dog.However, it is not unique to these types of dogs. Most terriers display aggression toward other animals. Now one could argue that most terriers are smaller dogs, and less likely to cause serious damage, but there are other large terrier breeds, I grew up with an Airedale and given the opportunity he'd get into a scrap with any dog. Know your dog, manage your dog.

I agree something needs to be done to stop the abuse of these animals, and all animals. However, breed specific laws have been put into place in several municipalities over the past 20 years and none of them have proven effective. Why copy a model that doesn't work?

"You People" I take issue with that. I am not, have never and will never be a breeder of dogs. I did not choose to own a pitbull type dog because it was cool, it looked tough or to guard my stash of drugs. I thought about purchasing a lab from a breeder but decided that there are too many unwanted dogs in shelters and I would save a life. I knew I wanted a medium sized short haired dog. Dog fighting is an appalling practice.

As for dog parks, I would argue that very few dogs, beyond their puppy years belong at dog parks. They are unsupervised off leash messes most of the time the owner of the dog is on the other side of the park chatting and not watching their dog.

@Matt; I told you who it is and how it operates. Good job offering FACTS and education, but the person needs professional help dealing with her imaginary devil dog obsession. New days, new names, same method, same bull. Ms.Know-it-All actually knows nothing at all. She's not an animal behaviorist or expert, just an obsessed manipulator who plagiarizes info and rearranges it for her mission to rid the world of pit bull TYPE dogs.

Just wanted to point out that Paradis is refering to Debbie Bell before anyone else thinks its directed at them ;P Local resident I do not believe that there are many people here in Woonsocket breeding them to fight I do however believe they are doing so to make a quick buck off selling puppies. If you have the time please visit the "stop woonsocket bsl" page and view my Oct 23rd post about what I think would be safe rules for ALL dog owners. As I have said and many of us have said.. WE DO NOT want back yard breeders to exist here and we do not want thugs using their dogs at mere accessories to there look. The responsible owners of the dog type called "pit bulls" pretty much all agree that something needs to be done but that its something that needs to be addressed across all breeds. Please just take the 5 minutes and read my suggestions that I gave the city council and see for yourself that we are not being unreasonable in saying that BSL just does not work. Also please read up on the Vancouver breed neutral laws and the success they have had there. Together we can come up with something like those and show the rest of RI that we can make things safer without punishing the innocent.

wow don't know why I just put Vancouver when I meant Calgary... Sorry about that.

It is true that many terrier breds are aggressive toward small animals. Yet most of the larger terrier breeds are not easily available to anyone who wants one....try finding a purebred Airedale at a shelter. There are not large numbers of bybers breeding Airdales and selecting for aggressive temperaments, flooding communities and shelters with unstable dogs. There ARE large numbers of bybers breeding pit bulls and selecting for aggresive temperaments. The issue is breed stewardship, which doesn't exist amongst pit bull fanciers....owners and breeders and rescues which adopt them out.
I believe in strong, non-breed specific dangerous dog laws which would apply to any dog that menaces or attacks people or other animals. But when a community finds that pit bulls are causing most of the problems, this needs to be addressed. Punishing owners after an attack with a fine won't help victims of pit bull attacks.I believe a good compromise law would not require banning or muzzling, but mandatory s/n, microchipping, and insurance. Take the financial incentive away from the criminals and thugs who are breeding them for cash. Require microchipping to help humane officers track owners of abused and abandoned pit bulls, and also identify owners of dogs involved in attacks. Require insurance coverage to help keep these dogs in the hands of responsible adults, not teenagers, or young, transient, irresponsible owners, and provide recourse for the victims of attacks.

I would also suggest that owners of pit bull type dogs, who declare themselves "responsible", try to educate other owners as to what responsible ownership looks like. The pit bull attacks in my suburb are not generally the result of thugs or criminals using the dogs as weapons, but are the result of ignorant, naive suburbanites who believe that "its all how you raise them", and ignore their dogs genetic heritage. Most serious attacks have been on other dogs, but a few have involved people. All would have been prevented if the pit bull owners had recognized the potential danger their dogs pose to other dogs and made sure they were ALWAYS kept on a leash and only walked by an adult strong enough to handle them; ALWAYS contained in a securely fenced yard, (a 4 ft. fence will, NOT contain your pit bull!) and supervised when outside, NEVER taken to a dog park; and their handlers ALWAYS carry, and know how to use, a break stick.
I had the great misfortune of witnessing, many years ago, a pit bull kill another dog in a completely unprovoked attack. The pit bull gave no warning... no signal, or growl or body posture before it latched onto the other dogs throat. The victim's dog screamed and flailed trying to escape. It took two adult men beating the pit bull unconscious to get it to release the other dog, whose throat was crushed. As a dog lover, it was the most violent, traumatic thing I have ever seen. It's why I believe pit bull ownership and breeding needs to be regulated.

Andie and Paradis, I have to admit I did not approach and knock on the door of the house after hearing the dog barking.it was very loud and scary. Perhaps I did bring a lot of fear about the dog. But I knew that there are people out there who don't teach their dogs well and that dog behind that door might have been one of them. How is someone supposed to know the difference without knowing the dog or the owner? So I avoid big, loud dogs. That being said. the only time I ever got a dog bite was at the Lincoln Animal Shelter and that was from a very small dog. It was loose in the office area and belonged to one of the volunteers. I was looking to adopt a cat.

English, I'm glad you went to a shelter to adopt a cat so many of them need new homes. It's awful that you got hurt though.

I follow the comments on many of the articles regarding hot-button issues on the Woonsocket Patch and this issue has got to beat all the others in the quantity and quality of the comments. I attended the meeting on Nov. 5th and spoke in opposition to the ban. It's unfortunate that there are people out there that think that bully breeds should be irradicated from the face of the earth because they can be such loving dogs with the right owners. These dogs are not for everyone, but for people that have them, I'm sure they will agree that they are very lovable companions.