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ANIMAL WATCH - As Pit Bulls are increasingly unleashing their wrath on loving owners and the weakest in society, infants, children and the elderly across the country are becoming victims of attacks by dogs they love and live with, or have never seen before.
Sadly it appears there is now an organized plan to force Pit Bulls and other dangerous breed dogs on society by animal organizations that have legal-lobbying staffs to oppose Breed Specific Legislation ( See Best Friends Animal Society website: Ending restrictions based on dog breed.)
Best Friends I(BFAS) is apparently being joined in this effort by the ADBA (American Dog Breeders Association), which describes its history on Wikipedia as:
The American Dog Breeders Association (ADBA) is an all-breed dog registry founded in 1909 by Guy McCord and Con Feeley. The registry is headquartered in Salt Lake City, UT in the U.S., but has multiple affiliate clubs located around the world. The registry began by promoting the John Colby strain of pit bull types. Over time, the focus changed to the registration and promotion of purebred American Pit Bull Terriers, a breed that few other breed registries have recognized because of its ancestral origins as a fighting dog in England
EBA stands for “Endangered Breeds Association” according to the site, and it invites members to sign up to “Help Save Endangered Dogs.” However, although it states it will apply to all breeds, there does not seem to be any dog endangered other than Pit Bulls (fighting dogs) and the method of “saving” them is to not allow them to be restricted In any way in local, state or national laws.
These are dogs that react violently to most dogs and other animals, so why is there an insistence to have them living in close proximity to families in rental units. or in low-income housing where there are rarely fences or walls that would confine them so they are not a danger to the community and other pets?
On its “About Us” page, the EBA states clearly: “The Endangered Breeds Association was originally established in 1980 to challenge and reverse breeds specific legislation (BSL) across the country. Today we lobby against unconstitutional and breed specific ordinances at the municipal, state, and federal levels. We are founded in the American Pit Bull Terrier who was targeted the most with this type of legislation. (Read more here.)
By Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS) and the American Dog Breeders Association (ADBA) partnering for this purpose, it would mean the political power and money behind two major non-profit organizations could influence legislation (No BSL) directly for the purpose of permanently blocking any efforts to restrict activities involving Pit Bulls--even for their own protection and to keep them from being used for fighting and the lucrative gambling earnings that are generated. It would also increase the danger of attacks on the public.
THE REALITY OF PIT BULL ATTACKS TODAY
Minneapolis mother and her 2 sons hospitalized after terrifying Pit Bull attack
Earlier this week, a beautiful young woman and her two children (pictured below) were the victims of a horrific attack by two Pit Bulls on Wednesday night, May 22, near Hall Curve and Harry Davis Lane, in Minneapolis, according to WCCO-4. News.
All three were hospitalized, with the mother, Angel, said to be in serious condition, and the two boys, Markell, 8, and Junior, 3, reported as severely injured and remaining in the hospital.” Angel, was initially reported in life-threatening condition but has progressed and both boys seriously injured but now expected to survive.
Minneapolis Animal Care and Control Responded to the Call
“We saw a neighbor waving his arms in the air and saying, ‘Call an ambulance, call an ambulance,'” said Callie Murphy, a neighbor, who was with her boyfriend when both witnessed the terrifying event.
“We ran out back and the mom was sitting on the ground covered in blood with her youngest kid in her lap,” she said.
“It was pretty bad, the dog tore her forearm up all the way down to the bone,” added DJ Smith, another witness, who returned home to witness the aftermath of the gruesome attack.
Minneapolis Animal Control responded and said that it took two dogs from the home, while EMS rushed the mom and both boys to the hospital.
The dog’s owner, who apparently lived close by, was also cooperative, authorities said. However, for some of the neighbors that does not offset the fact that these dogs had been reported loose and potentially dangerous before.
Other neighbors expressed concern because, “the police didn’t show up.”
“It wasn’t just like a small little incident. It was pretty serious so it was a little concerning that the police didn’t come to further investigate,” Callie Murphy said.
Minneapolis Police confirmed the attack happened but said that Animal Control is the lead agency here and the police department plays a supporting role.
Neighbors have questions as to how this happened and “if anyone will be held accountable,” the report states, “We’ve had problems with these homeowners before with their dogs,” Smith said.
KSTP reported the owners of the dog did not reply to requests for an interview and “someone at the house said they’re not talking.”
Four Pit Bulls Attack Woman and 12-year-old Son
On May 21, 2024, Chatham County Sheriff’s Office announced that a mother and her 12-year-old son had been attacked by four Pit Bulls at about 6:30 p.m. on Monday as they were walking around a luxury housing development near Jordan Lake, called Firefly Overlook.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived to find both victims suffering from multiple bite wounds. The mother was bitten numerous times on her legs and was also bitten on the back of her left hand. The boy had severe bite wounds on his legs, the report stated.
According to the report, 31-year-old Brittney Patrice Fountain of Hope Mills was identified as the owner of the dogs and charged in connection with a series of attacks by the same four Pit Bulls, as follows, CBS reported:
12 counts of violation of Chatham County Ordinance 91.035 (“Unlawful to maintain a public nuisance”)
- 4 counts of violation of Chatham County Ordinance 91.036 (“Running at Large Prohibited”)
- 4 counts of cruelty to animals
- 4 counts of abandonment of an animal
- ·1 count of violation of rabies vaccination for a dog
Both victims received medical attention for their injuries at WakeMed Hospital.
The sheriff’s office reported that Deputies used “less-than-lethal” means to subdue and capture three of the aggressive Pit Bulls, while “a fourth got away initially.”
An unsuccessful attempt to capture it was made later that evening, when the dog was spotted; however, it was necessary to shoot and kill it to “prevent additional danger” to the community, the sheriff’s statement said.
It was later discovered that a 66-year-old man had also been attacked earlier by the same dogs.
The dogs are being held for a 10-day rabies quarantine at Chatham Sheriff’s Animal Resource Center, which would indicate the owner had no proof of required vaccinations.
Philadelphia Police Shoot Pit Bull that Killed Tiny Pet Dog
On May 23, a panicked Philadelphia dog owner, Jeff Burger, spoke to FOX 29 about the tragic death of his small canine companion, Belinda, after police were forced to shoot and kill a Pit Bull that attacked the tiny dog while they were out for their usual morning walk.
Inspector Scott Small of Philadelphia Police Department told reporters that officers were called to South Dover Street around 4 a.m. for reports of a "vicious dog" and “two dogs fighting in the street.”
He said, “Officers found a dead dog on the side of the road and its 67-year-old owner struggling to hold down the Pit Bull as he was being bitten and scratched.”
The officer also stated that “an officer was bitten while trying to help the man control the dog,” and “that’s when investigators say two officers shot and killed the Pit Bull.” Neither of the officers suffered life-threatening wounds, the report stated.
Police officer shot and killed a pit bull during a dog attack in North Philadelphia.
This was at least the third incident of a Philadelphia police officer shooting at a dog this month.
In this incident, officials said a call for a dog attack came in Wednesday afternoon at 16th and Clearfield streets.
The officer reportedly fired his weapon multiple times to get the Pit Bull to stop attacking another dog. The Pit Bull was wounded in the shooting and died.
The smaller dog also died from injuries during the attack.
One of the dog owners suffered a minor injury when a piece of a bullet hit him in the arm.
This comes just one day after an off-duty officer had to open fire to stop a dog attack on a woman in Southwest Philadelphia, according to 6ABC.
An officer also fatally shot a Cane Corso dog after it and three pit bulls attacked a man in the city's Mantua neighborhood earlier this month.
There is something wrong with an enforcement system which does not allow action against dangerous dogs to be taken until someone (or a pet) is tragically injured or killed. From the boldness displayed, it is unlikely these were the first attacks by any of these dogs.
It is also unfair that, thanks to the “No Kill” rate in shelters and aversion to euthanasia, police officers must increasingly be the executioners, with the added stress and danger of being in a public venue.
TWO FATAL PIT BULL ATTACKS IN OAKLAND COUNTY IN LESS THAN A WEEK
On May 20, The Oakland Press reports that the body of a Farmington Hills man, 40, was found dead after he was attacked by his own Pit Bull, according to police. (Farmington Hills is located in Oakland County, MI, and has a population of 1.27M).
Farmington Hills police stated that “a family member discovered the man unconscious with the dog pulling on his body in his backyard on Saturday evening.”
“Officers responded to the scene and found the man unconscious and with significant wounds consistent with animal bites," the police report stated, “First responders provided some aid on the scene and then transported the man to Cornwell Hospital, Farmington Hills, where he died from his wounds,” according to the Oakland Press report.
The Oakland County Medical Examiner's Office autopsy determined the man's death “was accidental and caused by mauling from a dog,” the report states.
“This is the second attack by a Pit Bull or Pit Bull-mix dog in Oakland County in less than a week,” according to the Oakland Press.
“Last Wednesday, a one-year-old child sustained severe lacerations to her face, forehead, lower back and leg from her family's two dogs while at her grandmother's home/ The homeowner was also injured by the dogs,” according to the police.
The child underwent surgery at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor, police said. And the dogs were impounded by Oakland County Animal Control.
WIFE OF DETROIT PIT BULL VICTIM FIGHTS BACK
Fatal dog-mauling lawsuit claims Detroit’s ‘no-kill’ model is dangerous.
Harold Phillips was walking home from the bus stop on Detroit’s west side when three dogs viciously attacked him in January, the Metro Times reports.
In the lawsuit over the death of the father of six, attorney Paul Huebner stated, “Mr. Phillips was sadly no match for the pack mentality of the Goodmans’ dogs…With their more than sufficient bite force, the Goodmans’ dogs tore the flesh from Mr. Phillips’ body focusing it would seem on the vulnerable inner upper extremity of Mr. Phillips’ right side — chewing a literal hole into his arm.”
His wife Shauntaye Phillips is suing the dogs’ owners Roy and Trevina Phillips, Detroit Animal Care and Control (DACC), former Animal Control Director Mark Kumpf, interim Director Lori Sowle, two investigators, and the nonprofit that helps find homes for neglected dogs, Friends of Detroit Animal Care and Control.,” according to the filing papers.
“The no-kill model is “utterly ineffective, reckless, and deadly,” the lawsuit argues”
VICTIMS AND THOSE WHO CARE ABOUT PUBLIC SAFETY MUST SPEAK OUT
Thousands of Pit Bull attack victims have joined in discussion and education on Facebook to share their stories, their lingering pain (physical and emotional), their disfigurement and loss of who they were and what they planned for the future for themselves and their families. All that, plus their loss of income due to injuries, is an almost unbearable burden.
But, also victims can fight back by joining together and standing up for themselves and others—writing letters and comments on news articles to educate the public, calling and/or visiting your local and state legislator's office and, above all, opposing “No BSL” an recognition of the “Endangered Breeds Association" (EBA).
(Phyllis M. Daugherty is a former Los Angeles City employee, an animal activist and a contributor to CityWatch.)
