Dogs BANNED in one WI Village!

Dogs BANNED in one WI Village!

Topic Author: Christine Bellport

Posted: 9:48 AM Apr 28, 2008

Replies Posted: 29 comments

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Dogs BANNED in one WI Village!

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Dogs BANNED in one WI Village!

Hello,

Pit Bulls and even Pit Bull mixes are no longer welcome in Arpin, WI. Arpin is located between Wisconsin Rapids and Marshfield.

According to the Associated Press, the Wood County Village has amended its dog ordinance to ban the breed after complaints from residents. Village President John Esser says there was a discussion about whether it was fair to single out one breed, but it was only a short talk. Dogs of that breed breed already registered with the village as of April 1 are exempted.

What do you think? Do you agree with this or do you agree that bad dog = bad owner?

Christine

Posted by: Nelson Location: Madison, WI
Bad Owner = bad dog. Unfortunately for the dog, the dog will lose. But, People are more important. I was attacked twice by two rotweilers and a ridgeback mix in pack attack mode. I even like dogs, these did not like me. I fought them off, but what about a child or small adult? Do we wait for a gruesome news story? Dog owners should be required to prove training and control dogs to obtain a license.

Posted by: Wendy Bad owner= bad dog. I'd rather live next to a quite, well trained pitbull than a yippie ankle biter!!!! Owners are the difference. My two year old niece pulls on my dog and jumps all over him and he has never so much as batted an eye at her. He knows better because I am a responsible pet owner. If he were a pitbull it would be the same, he would know better because I am a responsible pet owner.

Posted by: Tina Location: Madison
One of my best friends is blind, and has a great guide dog. Recently, he broke his leg on the UW campus slipping on ice, and that dog never left his side- it even laid down next to him on the freezing sidewalk to stay with him and keep him warm until the ambulance arrived. Dogs, by opinion, are living extensions of the love of the owner, therefore, if the dog is loved, it will show love, if it is treated badly... how many times has some human had a bad relationship and hated the other sex for months on end?

Posted by: Sarah Location: Arena, WI
Having had dogs all of my life, and having worked at a vet clinic, I think it unfair for one breed of dog to be singled out because of poor socialization and training by its owner. Every Pitbull and Pitbull mix I have been acquainted with has been a "big sweetie". As we would tell people who were looking at getting a dog - "Any dog can be a good dog. Any dog can be a bad dog." Of all of the breeds I have been associated with, my least favorite is the Golden Retreiver - they "look" happy all of the time, which makes their reactions hard to read, and, of all of the incidents of bites at our clinic, they were responsible for all but two. With proper training, socialization any breed of dog can be great. With proper training, any owner can turn their dog into a fabulous companion. Accidents, and terrible things can happen with any pet, dog, cat or otherwise. Educate yourself before making a snap judgement.

Posted by: Al Location: Lake Delton
Just the other day we had two of these dogs move in here. It only took one week before they attacked a small dog that was being walked on a leash. The poor little dog was hurt badly, and the Pit Bulls are still here even though they are not premitted in our sub division. Now the owner has to get the law involed, but why is it so many times that the people that have these dogs do not care about others?

Posted by: Sarah Location: Monroe
I have a pitbull boxer mix and a 1 year old. I have never had any issues with my dog growling or snapping at anybody. I also have an autistic 3 year old nephew who pulls on the dogs arms and legs, slaps him, and chases him everywhere. My dog does not like it no, but I cannot tell my nephew no since he does not understand. If it gets on my dogs nerves, the dog goes into the bedroom and hides under the bed. The dog tolerates it very well. I was raised to believe that dogs are going to react to how you treat them. I would not trade my dog for any other dog and would not mind having a purebred pitbull. They are strong, beautiful, and intelligent animals and don't deserve the stereotype they are getting.

Posted by: John Location: Portage
Come on, Christine....new topic!!!

Posted by: Gary and Nancy Location: Jefferson
We have 2 dogs, a chocolate lab and a bishon. I for one, feel it is not right to stereo type dogs. It is the owners who make dogs vicious. When treated and trained properly, all dogs are loving and friendly animals. Ok, so there is the occasional dog that is just mean, but I feel they are very few and far between. It is unfair to animal owners and the animals to ban any breed. Wonder how many of the people complaining to the town board are actually animal haters? Seriously, I have seen many children that are far worse acting and violent than any dogs. Can we ban them from living in the city?

Posted by: Sandy Location: Madison
Awww, she sounds cute! Thank you for telling us about her. Dogs are so awesome. They really can help fill that empty gap if your real family is far away. Hey, my dog smiles, too!! And I love when she nudges my arm and licks my nose when I fall asleep on the couch. My favorite time of the day is the afternoon when I come home from work and she is just waking up from her nap, still too groggy to know who I am. But then I say HI to her and her tail starts wagging like crazy!! It must be my "fragile personality" as someone else here stated, but I just LOVE when she is happy to see me. I'm sure Mia is always very happy to see you at the end of your workday, too, Christine!

Posted by: Christine Location: Madison
Hi Sandy, Thank you for asking. My dog's name is Mia. She looks like a very skinny black lab with a deep chest like a greyhound. She has 4 white paws and a little white cross on her chest. I adopted her off my show in San Diego where I also did pet segments. I named her after Mia Farrow because Mia adopts children from all over the world (way before Angelina Jolie)! She howls at ambulance sirens and her favorite toy is my adopted cat, Diego. Poor thing! She likes to sneak up and pounce just behind him. I swear I can see her smiling when she does it! Thanks again for asking. They are my family out here.

Posted by: Sandy Location: Madison
Hey Christine ~ You always talk about your dog but we don't know anything about him/her.... what kind do you have? Is it a boy or a girl? What's its name? :)

Posted by: Caitlin Location: Madison
Those pictures were very cute. It looks like a great time! The muddy puppy was the best picture.

Posted by: Sandy Location: Madison
Christine, those dog pictures this morning were absolutely adorable!!! Thanks for sharing. Hope you stayed out of the mud. :)

Posted by: Mary Location: Madison
That statement is very generalized "animal lover". Why should ALL dog owners suffer because of the irresponsible ones? Saying we have "hyper needy parent-child relationships" and "fragile personalities" is totally unfair. So........ lets say this, just for the flip side of the arguement. (NOTE: THIS IS NOT MY OPINION; JUST STATING THE OPPOSITE SIDE) Having a cat is a LAZY relationship. A cat poops in a box and sleeps all day. People who have cats are obviously lazy people who don't want to take care of their animals! How do ya like that????? Your name should be "lazy cat lover".

Posted by: animal lover Location: western Dane County
I saw ban ALL dogs! I'm sick and tired of lazy, self-centered dog owners who let their mutts poop wherever they want without any regard for peoples' private (or public) property. In my experience dog owners are the type of fragile personalities that need constant reinforcement from an animal too stupid to know it's being used. The entire bike trail (ANY bike trail) reeks because DOG OWNERS don't bother cleaning up after their pets. I'll take a cat any day - at least they're not gullible enough to blindly do anything their owners want. Cats still cuddle - when THEY want to. Having a cat is a much more mature relationship than the hyper-needy parent-child relationship of being a dog owner.

Posted by: Katie Location: Madison
I think that if dogs are raised to be nice and gentle, then for the most part they remain that way. But, some dogs are naturally territorial and if someone comes into "their space" and the dog feels threatened it might try to attack. There's no way to predict any type of dogs potential behavior, no matter what breed. My dog, for example, is the sweetest thing in the world, but she is VERY protective. There are many times where a stranger is walking towards us and she will growl at them. I always pull her back and scold her, then have her sit and be nice before we keep walking. She's never bitten anyone, but like I said.... VERY protective of me and her space. I believe, though, that if the owner is responsible about having a dog and how its raised and how its contained to a yard or a leash, then everything will be fine!

Posted by: Joe Location: Paoli
Amen Sister! I could't agree with you more completely.

Posted by: Christine Location: Madison
Joe, Even a dog would probably not want to be around Michael Moore...

Posted by: Joe Location: Paoli
Hey, does anyone know what kind of dog Michael Moore has?

Posted by: debbie Location: beaver dam, wi
Yes I agree with this. There is a difference between a dog that may bite and one that may attack. they are bred for this and too many people don't take their responsibility seriously.

Posted by: Annie Location: Black Earth
Honestly, there really are no "bad dogs", but I still will not chance my life or my Lab's life at the dog park knowing that there are pit bulls there. I don't trust them no matter how well they are raised. But, I also don't trust any dog that I don't know well. I've had dogs for 40 years. I trust my Lab. I trust my parent's 2 Labs. I don't know if I would trust any of them completely around strangers though. Too many people get pit bulls because they think they make them look tough. There are way too many people out there with pets that should not have them. PS: Spay or nueter your animals, please!

Posted by: Sarah Location: Madison
There is little to no evidence that breeds are inherently dangerous, so once again we have a case of ignorance and fear winning out. Bestfriends.org, an animal sanctuary in Utah, has some great articles and recommendations on what to do if your community is considering banning dog breeds. Dogs are trained to be violent, this is not specific to a breed -- I can train a chihuahua to attack my neighbors for goodness sake. In fact I believe one of the most common incidents of dog bites (insurance stats) is the labrador retriever. I'm sorry but this case of ignorance in Arpin truly leaves me speechless.

Posted by: Eleanor Location: Baraboo
Banning specific breeds makes little sense. Do genetics matter? You bet. Genes do influence temperament. But there is wide genetic variation within each dog breed. And training and socialization exert HUGE influence on a dog's behavior. Don't ban specific breeds. Instead, encourage responsible pet breeding, training, and ownership.

Posted by: Erick Location: Madison
I'm definitely of the "bad dog=bad owner" mind-set. Any animal (or person, for that matter) can turn out poorly if not raised properly. Maybe instead of banning the breed all together, they should take a look at the people buying them and look at imposing a mandatory ordinance that all dog owners have to attend training classes for their pets, if they are having such a problem with problem dogs.

Posted by: John Location: Poynette
Hey Christine...nice to see you reply once in while to our comments. It's helpful/interesting to see what your thoughts are to readers' responses. Keep it up when possible. Thanks!

Posted by: Anonymous The breed of the dog should not be the issue but the temperament of the dog. I was attacked by a black lab (the breed with the gentlest reputation) on my own property. I have never been attacked by a pit bull, doberman, or rottweiler even when on their "turf" I think that any dog can be a safe dog if it handled kind in early life and any dog that is mistreated from early life can be a dangerous dog no matter the breed.

Posted by: filbert Location: Anytown, USA
Hopefully they banned Michael Moore as well. :)

Posted by: Christine Location: Madison
Hi John, I wasn't transitioning anything. I am glad to have written a blog that receives so many thoughtful/passionate responses. I write a new blog every week. This appealed to me because I am a big dog lover. That's all. Just keeping current.

Posted by: John Location: Poynette
Way to transition from the controversial MM blog to this. I'm sure people will still blog Mr. Moore though.