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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lycanthrope" data-source="post: 350331" data-attributes="member: 562">Here was a letter to the editor that failed to influence the Minot City council enough to keep their pittbull ban. Its worth reading IMO:As a Minot Physician for the past 37 years, and as a Ward county coroner, I strongly encourage the pit bull and related breed ban ordinance which was previously passed be upheld. I see Alderwoman Evans noted there were no pit bull bites in the last 3 years. Might I point out this would be expected, since there is a pit bull ban, and is good evidence the ban is working, not an excuse to get rid of it. She stated the ban was “vague, punitive, and unproven effectiveness.” I beg to differ. In addition to our own supporting pit bull bite statistic there are statistics from many cities that demonstrate the effectiveness of a ban. I’ll list a couple. Salina, Kansas, population 46,550, had 24 pit bull bites in the 2 year span prior to a pit bull ban being enacted. Over the next 15 years there were 17 pit bull bites, a 10 fold reduction. Their city council wisely voted to uphold it by a 3-2 vote in 2019. Pawtucket, Rhode Island instituted a ban in 2004 and was forced to rescind it in 2013. The rate of pit bull bites rose by 10 fold in the 6 years after the reversal.Far from punitive, the issue comes down to the inherent differences between pit bull type dogs and other dogs. As North Dakotans we know and have observed various dogs and their behavior based on genetics, those bred for hunting versus those bred for herding, as examples. The pit bull was bred for fighting to the death. Unlike the usual dog, pit bulls were bred to be very muscular, very powerful, attacking without provocation, latching on, going for the face, persisting in the attack, tearing, mauling, disemboweling, and killing. Their body build reflects their bred purpose. They have a very high pain threshold and have been known to persist in an attack despite having been shot several times. They are difficult to physically control and, not infrequently, impossible to subdue when on the attack, at least before the victim is severely injured or dead. They have been known to dig under, climb over and tear through ordinary fences. They can be even more dangerous when chained, to any child who ventures within reach. They have been known to come through a neighbor’s screen door and jump out a second story window in pursuit of its victim. Several have killed the first time they ever attacked, without ever displaying previous aggressive behavior. While it may help some, no amount of love and discipline can change the dog’s DNA. Now, obviously, all pit bulls are not behaving this way. The problem is the inborn potential for them to behave this way is present, its expression is unpredictable, and its outcome is catastrophic. Several fatalities are documented where a pit bull was raised in a loving home and out of the blue attacked and killed, typically a child or older adult.To give some statistics, from 2005 to 2020, the last year of a complete data set, 67% of dog bite fatalities were due to pit bulls, generally making up about 6% of dogs at that time. Rottweilers caused another 9%, and the remaining fatalities were caused by 37 different breeds. Pit bull type dogs tend to maul rather than bite, which can tear off large chunks of flesh and muscle rather than leaving more typical puncture wounds or smaller tears. Their bites result in greater hospitalizations, disfigurement, ocular injuries, complex injuries, and deaths. They are far more likely to inflict multiple wounds, to attack off property, and to attack unprovoked. There are no collected statistics on pet deaths as a result of pit bulls but it is know to be very high. Attacks on horses and other farm animals are well known.Unfortunately, when a child or adult is maimed and disfigured for life, or is killed, there is no justice and there is little if any financial compensation. There is no penalty when our pet is killed by one of these. These animals are known to be dangerous yet no felony charges are leveled against their owners. Persons who own pit bulls rarely have the insurance to cover the devastating medical bills and loss of function a pit bull mauling causes. Pit bull owners seldom have insight into the potential devastation their animal can cause, sometimes even when they show aggressive behavior or have previously bitten. Our council members are the only ones who are in a position to protect our community from these potentially dangerous animals. The police can only act after the fact. By then it is too late. There have been no pit bull attacks in Minot for the past 3 years, because there have been no pit bulls. Let’s keep it that way.</blockquote>

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