Miami Voters Can End Pit Bull Ban on Aug. 14

Miami Voters Can End Pit Bull Ban Aug. 14

For the first time since it was enacted in 1989, voters in Miami-Dade County, Fla., will be able to decide next week whether to repeal the county’s ban on Pit Bulls.

Miami-Dade is the only county in Florida with a breed ban. It was started after an 8-year-old girl was severely bitten by a Pit Bull 23 years ago.

Commissioner Sally Heyman, who sponsored the referendum to end the ban, told The Miami Herald it was “an emotional response to a travesty in 1989 … Now it’s time for us to make an intelligent decision.”

Breed-specific legislation (BSL), including bans of “Bully breeds,” has recently come under international scrutiny. More than 211,000 people signed a petition asking the Belfast City Council to spare the life of Lennox, a family pet killed last month only because he was deemed by non-experts to be a “Pit Bull type,” which are banned in Northern Ireland.

Two weeks ago in Montreal, which also enforces BSL, a Pit Bull named Wicca was euthanized because she nipped at a woman. A heartbreaking photo of her dog dad tearfully hugging her goodbye went viral.

The Miami-Dade County ban was in the media spotlight earlier this year after the Miami Marlins signed star pitcher – and American Staffordshire Terrier dog dad – Mark Buehrle. He publicly complained that since they couldn’t live with their dog in Miami, his family had to settle instead in breed-friendly Broward County.

“It’s kind of ridiculous that because of the way a dog looks, people will ban it,” Buehrle told The Miami Herald in January.

Because of that ridiculousness, this year both Ohio and Massachusetts dropped breed-specific language from statewide dangerous dog laws.

In April, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), which opposes BSL, released the results of a 40-year study on the role of breeds in dog-bite cases. The study found that “the breeds that were more aggressive towards people were small to medium-sized dogs such as the Collies, toy breeds and Spaniels” – not Pit Bulls.

The study concluded, “it has not been demonstrated that breed-specific bans affect the rate or severity of bite injuries occurring in the community.”

In a June 2 letter to Miami-Dade County veterinarians, the South Florida Veterinary Medical Association wrote, “BSL is costly to taxpayers to implement, and difficult to enforce by the already short-staffed Miami-Dade Animal Services … Moreover, the breed ban increases the already-exorbitant euthanasia rate in our county shelter, because the banned breeds are unable to be adopted by Miami-Dade residents.”

The question on the primary election ballot reads, “Shall the ordinance repealing the county’s 23 year old law prohibiting the ownership of pit bulls as a dangerous breed of dogs become effective?”

Miami-Dade County voters, if you believe dogs should not be judged on the way they look, vote YES.

PHOTO: Facebook

Laura Goldman

Laura Goldman is senior social media writer for i Love Dogs, Inc. She does love dogs. And elephants and turtles. Along with writing about the loves of her life, Laura likes to play with her two pound pups and tell anyone who’ll listen just how awesome Pit Bulls are.