W Va -BSL Passed

[Missi]

http://tinyurl.com/5we6jk

Dog owners don't muzzle opinions on new ordinance

By GREG JORDAN
Bluefield Daily Telegraph

BLUEFIELD - Should pit bulls and other dog breeds with reputations for
biting always be muzzled? Local dog owners have differing views of a
new
dangerous animal ordinance recently passed by the Bluefield Board of
Directors.

The directors voted unanimously April 8 to overhaul the city's
dangerous
animal ordinance. Registered pit bulls and wolf-hybrid dogs must now be

secured by a leash no longer than six feet in length and under the
control of a person 18-years-old or older who has the physical ability
to control the dog. Such dogs must also wear a muzzling device when
outside their kennels.

Pit bulls are frequently used in illegal dog fights. They also have a
reputation for attacking people without provocation, but there are pit
bull owners who argue that labeling all examples of the breed vicious
is
unfair.

Jennifer Sullivan of Bluefield, who keeps a pit bull named Empress,
emphasized that her dog was anything but dangerous.

"You can come in and she will lick you to death. She loves children,
she
loves people," Sullivan said. "We have a cat, and she won't even bite
our cat. She loves other animals. That's why I can't understand why
they
say all pit bulls are vicious and need to be registered. They say they
need to be muzzled, but I will never muzzle her because I think it's
very cruel to muzzle an animal if they're not mean."

Empress was a puppy when Sullivan acquired her. "I think it's all in
how
pit bulls are raised. I've been bitten by two Chihuahuas and I've never

been snapped at by a pit bull," Sullivan said.

However, Sullivan added that she and her Carolina Avenue neighbors have

been harassed by a large stray mutt. The dog has lingered in the
neighborhood "for years," she said.

The city's animal control officer has not been able to catch it, and is

not licensed to use a tranquilizer dart gun on it, Sullivan added.

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