Like many other dog lovers, Einhorn Insurance thinks Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) is BS!

BSL is known as a dangerous dog law which says that a dog is “dangerous” because of its breed.  While other breeds such as Labradors, Beagles and Cocker Spaniels (not impacted by BSL) have to bite someone/something or cause harm to be labeled as Dangerous or Vicious, dogs affected by BSL are given these labels solely because of their breed.

With BSL, a dog doesn’t have to bite, doesn’t have to show aggression, doesn’t have to hurt another animal…… they are considered dangerous just because they were born a Pit Bull. 

How can a world that is so technologically advanced and “civilized” be so dumb to assume all dogs of a certain breed will cause harm, bodily injury or danger?  It’s like saying all people from California surf or all people from New York like cheesecake or everyone that lives in Alaska is an Eskimo.  BSL is complete stereotyping and discrimination!  Can people really be this stupid?

The answer is unfortunately, YES.

BSL affects 650+ cities, counties and municipalities.  Here are a few states where BSL is present:

–       Kentucky

–       Ohio

–       Nebraska

–       Colorado

–       Iowa

–       Arkansas

–       Missouri

–       Wisconsin

–       Washington

–       District of Columbia

–       Florida

–       New Mexico

–       Virginia

–       Utah

–       Kansas

Info found on Dogsbite.org

Please let us know if you live in or know of a State or City that has Pit Bull Bans or BSL.  The more common dog breeds that are affected by BSL are Pit Bulls, Staffordshire Terriers, Bull Terriers, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Akitas, Chows, Dobermans, Huskies and Wolf Hybrids. 

I’d like to think that we are not this stupid and the act of BSL came with good intentions as its goal was to keep irresponsible dog owners from fighting, breeding, mistreating and neglecting certain breeds.  Unfortunately, this backfired and BSL now hurts all of us, especially the responsible dog lovers.

When a breed is given a title of “dangerous,” it puts all the blame on the dog.  The dog’s behavior lies mainly on the owner and environment, not the type of dog.  Einhorn Insurance knows as well as you do, the dog’s breed has little to do with aggressiveness.  There are many other variables that cause a dog (OF ANY BREED) to be dangerous: a negligent owner, an owner that inflicts pain on their dog, a dog that is chained, a dog that is food deprived, a horrible environment, lack of socialization, not spaying/neutering your dog and the list goes on and on. 

BSL causes honest, good, responsible, loving and law abiding owners to lose the potential of owning a blacklisted breed, or even worse, having to give up a family member that has been loyal to them for years. 

There are so many other (and less costly) solutions to promote responsible dog ownership:

1.  Enforce Leash Laws:  We have a neighbor that lets their Lab run all over the neighborhood, chase cats and crap on everyone’s lawn.  If this was my Pit Bull, we’d have hate mail or Animal Control knocking on our door.  Many dog attacks occur with loose and roaming dogs (especially if they are unneutered males).
2. STOP CHAINING/TEATHERING DOGS:  A chained or tied up dog is an unhappy dog.  It is mean and inhumane to have a dog live like this.  Almost a quarter of dog attacks are by chained dogs.
3. Enforce Breeding Laws: Over 1 Million Pit Bulls are put down yearly due to overpopulation, back yard breeders and puppy mills that produce mass quantities of puppies.  Those breeding in this manner only care about money and not the welfare of the dog.  Many don’t care where the dogs end up so long as they can make a few bucks.
4. Offer more Free or Low Cost Spay & Neuter Opportunities.  A majority of dog claims are with unneutered males.  By spaying your female dog, you won’t have an accidental litter.

As proud Pit Bull parents, we understand how it feels to have people stereotype us and our Pit Bull Bernice.  We’ve had people cross the street when they see us coming, ask if  she makes a good fighter and warn us that one day, “she’ll just snap.”  I used to get angry and take offense, but now I try to educate people about Pit Bulls and the loving people who own them. 

Getting mad and angry just validates the poor images people have of owners of these wonderful breeds.  We need to focus on education to overcome such ignorance and hopefully eliminate BSL in the near future!