More Problems with Pit Bulls — And Their Owners
Remembering the encounter we had last December in Fort Greene Park with a pit bull, a reader sent in this harrowing tale: “A guy was walking down my block the other night with his pit bull–and the dog (while on the leash) attacked a cat that lives across the street and tore it to pieces…
Remembering the encounter we had last December in Fort Greene Park with a pit bull, a reader sent in this harrowing tale: “A guy was walking down my block the other night with his pit bull–and the dog (while on the leash) attacked a cat that lives across the street and tore it to pieces in front of several witnesses,” she writes. “The police were called–arrived and did…nothing. They said unless it was a person nothing could be done.” That’s what we were told at the time as well. Seems crazy. What would someone be charged with for shooting a cat with a gun? Same thing, ain’t it?
Disagree, that’s what I get for trying to defend the cops. I was looking at the orginal statue from 1997. The 2006 revision makes clear the distinction.
Anyway, I think it was stated upthread that the owner lives in One Hanson, so I’m assuming ‘information’ was exchanged. The owner and/or neighbors could/should still file a dangerous dog complaint.
What I find interesting about the law is,
2. If any dog shall, without justification, attack a companion animal, farm animal or domestic animal, or shall behave in a manner which a reasonable person would believe poses a serious and unjustified imminent threat of serious physical injury or death to a companion animal, farm animal or domestic animal, where such animal is in any place where it may lawfully be, the owner or caretaker of such animal, or any other person witnessing the attack, may destroy such dog, and no liability in damages or otherwise shall be incurred on account of such destruction.
So next time a dog attacks your precious dog or cat, it is entirely legal for you to kill the attacker. Instead of waiting for the police to arrive… just handle your business. Take street justice with the knowledge that the law is one your side.
Putnamdenizen
did i read correctly that you defended “a young man who was accused of beating a cat with a stick and then trying to feed it to a pit bull”?
i_disagree, go back and read what colonel steve austin wrote. he’s not citing a statute. he’s referring to a “statue.” the law he references must be inscribed on a sculpture of some sort, perhaps a marble dog.
my “you’re wrong” was intended for CSA, not Chosen. Chosen, thanks for the info. it does seem to me that there is already a gap between what the law provides for and what the NYPD is actually doing, in practice. seems to me they could/should take the complaint and/or call ASPCA officers to the scene regardless of who does the investigation, or advise the complainants who to call. but saying that “nothing can be done” unless a person is attacked is clearly not true.
but of course, the laws always could be made more explicit, and stronger.
I don’t consider a dog attacking a cat as unusual as a dog attacking a child. I don’t imagine you do either, I think you’re letting your emotions cloud your judgment. This IS largely an emotional issue; dogs and cats are animals. It’s only because we love them and choose to share our homes with them that a dog attacking a cat is worth of such debate. If a hawk attacked a squirrel would any amongst us care? Better yet, if one of us had a pet squirrel that we let roam the neighborhood and it was eaten by a hawk, what would the response be? Likely pretty tepid.
To clarify: my dog is NOT aggressive toward humans. He is NOT aggressive toward other dogs. He IS on leash whenever he is in public and he IS obedient, although not to the level of Schutzhund 3, which is what you are describing. He is a companion animal and knows what’s expected of him as such.
He DOES like to chase cats, although as I stated, I believe it is more an instinct to chase rather than intent to harm or kill. He also chases birds.
Children should be taught by their parents how to approach a dog and they should always ask before approaching. Dogs should be socialized with children and should be taught to respect and accept them. Dogs should be leashed when they are in public and if any doubt exists in the dog handler’s mind he should avoid situations where the dog might come into close contact with children.
Cats, on the other hand, are ALSO companion animals. We impose our will on them; we did so by domesticating them. While I don’t mind them being allowed to roam free and I quite like and enjoy cats, I also think that as domestic animals they should be restricted to the home. Failure to do so means that you accept the multitude of dangers that your pet faces.
SO: While I don’t feel quite as casually about it as *rob* seems to, I do think that dogs and children are both members of our society and both can be unruly and erratic in their behaviors. If my dog is minding his business and behaving like a good member of polite society and an unruly child decides to hit him with a stick,poke him in the eye, grab him in an aggressive manner or some other similar transgression I would feel that an aggressive response by the dog would be acceptable. Regrettable, to be sure, but acceptable.
Remember, dogs are ANIMALS. They don’t ‘reason things out’. They ignore whatever is not pertinent to them and react to whatever is. If a dog is made to feel threatened or is hurt, he’s not likely to want to talk about it over herbal tea after he’s taken a few days to cool down and collect his thoughts. He’s going to snarl, bark, lunge or snap. That is the extent of his language in such a situation. Don’t put it in a human context; it doesn’t belong there.
bklyn20, I mis-typed – our girl came from the CACC, which is why I was saying the foster care was important.
NYC Housing has issued new policies concerning dogs, now they can’t exceed 25lbs., nor can they be pure or mixed bred pit bulls, dobermans or rotties. Existing animals must be registered by 4-30 to be grandfathered-in.
South Korean scientists say they have engineered four beagles that glow red using cloning techniques that could help develop cures for human diseases.
The four dogs, all named “Ruppy” — a combination of the words “ruby” and “puppy” — look like typical beagles by daylight. But they glow red under ultraviolet light, and the dogs’ nails and abdomens, which have thin skins, look red even to the naked eye.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090428/ap_on_re_as/as_skorea_cloned_dogs
actually no i sorta take that back. children are definitely in the right regardless before dogs. situations like that are just tragic when they happen. i try my hardest (and hope my dog walker does too) that something like that wouldnt occur. ugh what happens if someone else is walking your dog and something happens?
*rob*