Ohio Won’t Label Pit Bulls ‘Vicious,’ But Bexley Still Can

Bexley officials are not likely to welcome pit bulls into their community, despite passage of legislation yesterday to end labeling of the dogs as “vicious” animals under Ohio law.

Ohio is the only state with a law labeling a specific breed of animal as vicious. But the state’s shift from that will not affect local ordinances regarding pit bulls or any other breed of dog.

“Any city that is a charter city does not have to follow the state law and can continue to have their own ordinance,” said Lou Chodosh, Bexley city attorney.

“I will be very surprised if Bexley changes its pit-bull law.”

Bexley bans the breed.

“I think I can speak for the (police) chief,” Chodosh said, “that he feels very strongly that these dogs are dangerous.”

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Barbara Sears, R-Toledo, agreed that the change in the state law does not compel Bexley or any other community to change ordinances restricting pit bulls. A handful of other communities in Franklin County have laws about “vicious” dogs but do not specify a breed.

For instance, Columbus bans owners from allowing their animals to run at large off their property. Violators face misdemeanor charges and up to 60 days in jail, or up to 180 days if their pet bites someone, said Bill Hedrick, chief of staff in the Columbus city attorney’s office.

The state’s change, he said, “doesn’t prohibit us from dealing with dogs which are problematic."

Yesterday, the House voted 67-30 to agree with Senate changes to House Bill 14 and send the legislation to Gov. John Kasich for his signature.

Supporters say that Ohio’s 25-year-old law labeling pit bulls as vicious discriminates against a specific breed of dog and has required dog owners to carry expensive liability insurance for their pets regardless of their behavior.

“Breed-specific laws imply that pit bulls, by their very nature, are vicious and are the only types of dogs that can attack without provocation, but this is simply not the case,” Sears said.

The legislation allows dogs showing behavioral problems to be designated in one of three categories: a nuisance, dangerous or vicious.

A “nuisance” dog is one that has chased or attempted to bite a person while off its premises. A “ dangerous” dog has caused injury to a person, or killed another dog, without provocation. A “ vicious” dog has killed or seriously injured a person without provocation.

Owners of dogs placed in one of the three classifications would face penalties ranging from fines to felony charges.

The legislation also sets requirements for how dogs under each classification should be restrained, such as keeping the pet in a locked pen, and also bans felons from owning a dog deemed to be “dangerous” for three years after their release from prison.

Sears said the legislation had a 10-year ban, but it was reduced at Kasich’s request.

“Breed-specific legislation is not a viable solution to dog attacks, and such language does not solve the underlying issue of irresponsible ownership,” said Rep. Matt Szollosi, D-Oregon.

“Such laws are unfair to responsible owners.”

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Newark Might Delay Pit-Bull Vote

NEWARK, Ohio — Pit-bull owners and their supporters have filled the city council chambers for weeks, turning each committee meeting and council gathering into a passionate appeal for equality.

Currently, Newark’s law deems nearly all pit bulls as vicious, requiring their owners to take precautions that owners of other breeds don’t need to heed, such as registration, additional insurance coverage and confinement regulations.

A proposal before the council would eliminate that breed-specific designation. Supporters argue that current law punishes good pit bulls for the actions of the bad, and only dogs that act viciously should be deemed vicious. The catch phrase of those supporting the proposal is “punish the deed, not the breed.”

The council is slated to vote on the issue Tuesday, though council members acknowledged last week that the vote might be postponed.

Councilman Jeremy Blake, who appears to be the only Democrat supporting the proposal, will be in Thailand at a friend’s wedding and can’t attend Tuesday’s council meeting.

The proposal’s sponsor, 3rd Ward Councilman Jeff Rath, tried to delay the vote at the last council meeting. “Because of the outpouring of support that we have for this issue, I felt that it was necessary to have a vote from full council,” he said.

But in the first indication that things weren’t going well for those hoping to eliminate Newark’s breed-specific regulation, Rath’s attempt was thwarted in a 6-4 vote. In the two weeks since then, however, it appears that some of the city’s 10 council members might be second-guessing their decisions.

“I’d hate to leave Jeremy out of what is an important vote,” said the council’s majority leader, Democrat Carol Floyd.

The reconsideration, however, should not be mistaken for a change of heart on the issue itself. Interviews with council members seem to indicate that the proposal could fail by the same 6-4 vote.

The supporters, however, remain optimistic. Swinging one vote from “nay” to “aye” would force Republican council President Don Ellington to break the tie.

“I think he’ll help us,” said Niki Arter, one of the leading proponents of overturning the law. “ He was the first one to pat the pit bulls” when a number of pit-bull owners brought their dogs to City Hall.

Rath has focused on changing the city’s dog laws since he became a councilman five years ago. About 2002, his son, Jason, was bitten in the face by a Labrador retriever, requiring stitches. Thirty days later, the same dog attacked a 5-year-old boy at a Newark Catholic football game, resulting in an injury requiring nearly 200 stitches to reattach the boy’s ear. The owner was never charged, said Rath, and “that dog died of old age.”

“I want to make it incredibly difficult for a vicious dog to live in the city of Newark, and I want to make it incredibly painful for the irresponsible owner of a vicious dog in the city of Newark,” he said.

The current proposal does neither, he concedes. He said he plans to offer changes soon to strengthen Newark’s dog law. He got behind this issue first, he said, because the citizens demanded it.

“We had a council meeting, and 30 or 40 people showed up asking us to overturn our breed-specific legislation. The council president assigned the task to the safety committee, and 50 or 60 people attended that and had a civil discussion of the issue for more than two hours,” he said. Opponents say Newark just tweaked its vicious-dog law barely a year ago to give good pit bulls an out. A clause was added that said pit bulls that pass the American Kennel Club’s “Canine Good Citizen” test each year will not be deemed vicious and owners will be absolved of meeting the city’s additional requirements for vicious breeds.

Of the 118 pit bulls registered in Newark, only three have passed the good-citizen test since the law was approved in December 2013.

Floyd thinks pit-bull owners should take their cause to the citizens.

“If this does not pass, the people who believe in the issue should take out a petition from the board of elections and collect the necessary signatures to get it on the ballot,” she said. “I understand that the vicious-dog law affects their dog, but it affects everybody in the community as well.”

State lawmakers overturned breed-specific language in Ohio law in 2012, though the state’s home rule allows municipalities to adopt their own laws.

Bexley and Reynoldsburg have banned the ownership of pit bulls, while Dublin, Canal Winchester, New Albany and Upper Arlington classify pit bulls as vicious, with restrictions. Columbus, Gahanna, Grove City, Hilliard, Pickerington, Westerville, Whitehall, Worthington and some other cities are breed-neutral.

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Portraits from the Westminster Dog Show

The Westminster Kennel Club show started Monday morning and, to the owners of the 2,711 pooches set to take part, it's the Super Bowl, World Series and Daytona 500 of dogdom in the United States, one giant bark in the park.

The finale of the Westminster Dog Show is February 17, when one dog will be named Best in Show at Madison Square Garden. Here is a collection of portraits of some of the participants. (AP)

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The Truth About Cats: They're Good for Us

- Cats have gotten a bad health rap, as new research suggests they may be beneficial to human health.

- Cats could even help to lower human risk of cancer.

- Cats may harbor T. gondii, but feline ownership does not predict risk of infection with this parasite.

News headlines over the past few years have linked cat ownership to everything from cancer to craziness, but new studies suggest that cats are actually beneficial to human health, and may even reduce our risk for cancer and other diseases.

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Think You Know America's No. 1 Pet? Read On!

With all the press that goes to the dogs, you might think canines are Americans preferred pet. Actually the number of cats kept as pets edges out the dogs by 86 million to 78 million. That’s according to the American Pet Products Association survey.

In celebration of man’s best "feline," let’s talk about helping your cat stay healthy and happy. Indoor cats thrive on social interaction, predatory play and purr-sonal space.

Social interaction is more than "Kitty" sitting in your lap. With a little human effort, indoor cats can enjoy experiences similar to their outdoor cousins, minus the risk of infectious diseases, injuries or accidents.

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From Poodles to Deerhounds, Dogs Seek Honors at Westminster Kennel Club Show

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Perfectly coifed Standard Poodles and small and sprightly Bichon Frises were among more than 2,700 dogs from 15 countries primping and prancing on Monday at the opening of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

The show, which is in its 139th year, is the second longest continuously running sporting event in the United States, behind the Kentucky Derby horse race.

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Patty Hearst Back in the News With Early Win at Westminster

NEW YORK (AP) — Famed and infamous heiress Patty Hearst was back in the news Monday after a dog she co-owns won its group at the Westminster Kennel Club show.

A shih tzu called Rocket was picked as the top toy dog at Madison Square Garden.

Hearst is the granddaughter of William Randolph Hearst and gained great notoriety in 1974 when she was kidnapped by the radical group the Symbionese Liberation Army. She was seen brandishing a semiautomatic rifle while robbing a California bank, pictured in the group's poster holding a machine gun and later spent almost two years in prison.

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Woman Carrying Baby Kangaroo in a Blanket, Asked to Leave McDonald's Restaurant

Beaver Dam,Wisconsin - A Wisconsin police officer says he's quite certain he's never responded to a call like the one he handled recently at a McDonald's restaurant.

Officer Rich Dahl of Beaver Dam responded to an anonymous complaint about a woman who brought a kangaroo into McDonald's. Dahl said Tuesday the woman had the baby kangaroo wrapped in a blanket and tucked in an infant car seat.

Dahl says when he confronted the woman she explained the kangaroo was a service animal to help her cope with emotional distress and she produced a letter from a doctor.

The officer says the woman was upset at first, but then agreed to leave the restaurant. Dahl says he doesn't know if a kangaroo would qualify as a service animal under the law, but he says he's glad he didn't have to find out. FOLLOW US!

Living with a House Rabbit

Perhaps you've just adopted your first rabbit, or maybe you already have a rabbit and would like more information to help you understand her better. The House Rabbit Society, a national nonprofit organization, recommends that you keep your rabbit in the house rather than outdoors. Rabbits are intelligent, social animals who need affection, and they can become wonderful companion animals if given a chance to interact with their human families.

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Why Does Your Dog Yawn?

(PETS/DOG BEHAVIOR/PUPPIES) Many pet guardians become concerned with the amount of yawning displayed through their dog or puppy’s habits. Is it possible that dogs are that tired all the time? The Dogtime article below reveals the meaning behind dogs’ yawns, and explains how yawning can actually be a form of communication between you and your pet. — Global Animal

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Winged Beast Descends from Heavens to Trash Missouri Man’s Bedroom

The explosive burst followed by the sound of shattering glass in Drew Arnold’s bedroom probably meant one of two things: Either an intruder was entering through the window, or a tree had smashed through his roof.

Sitting a few feet away in his living room, Arnold, who had just rolled out of bed a few minutes earlier, had no choice but to investigate.

He crept toward his bedroom door and opened it cautiously.

“Was he wearing any pants?” you may be wondering. The answer — which becomes relevant — is no.

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Signs It Might Be Time To Switch Vets

I have a unique perspective on owners’ relationships with their veterinarians. I provide end of life care, including hospice and euthanasia services, in my patients’ homes. Clients tend to be very candid with me regarding their feelings about their “regular” veterinarians. Most have nothing but good things to say about the doctors, technicians, and support staff, but every now and then, I’ll hear a comment that makes me think, “Why do you keep going back?”

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Westminster Kennel Club Show: Top 5 Dogs to Look Out For

It's going to be dog-eat-dog at Madison Square Garden today, where more than 2,711 dogs representing 192 breeds and varieties will be competing for various awards at the Westminster Kennel Club Show. But only one pooch will win the top honor, Best in Show, Tuesday night.

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Pair of New Breeds Join Field in 139th Westminster Dog Show

NEW YORK — Two new breeds will make their debuts at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City this week, joining a field of nearly 200 blood lines competing in this year's edition of the prestigious canine showcase.

The show, in its 139th year, is billed as the second-longest continuously running sporting event in the United States, behind only the Kentucky Derby.


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