Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Communities look at vicious-dog rules
Some tighten leash on owners' control
BY SARA J. BENNETT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Sandra Linson doesn't let her grandchildren play in her yard for fear the neighbors' pit bulls will get loose and bite. The Woodlawn woman saw the damage vicious dogs can do last fall when a friend's grandson was attacked by a dog that crawled under the grandmother's fence.
“You have this constant fear,” said Ms. Linson, who has been pressuring Woodlawn to tighten its restrictions on vicious dogs. “I don't want to say ban (pit bulls) because you can make a poodle vicious, but I would feel safer if the dogs had a muzzle.”
With more people and pooches out enjoying spring weather, the risk of encountering a vicious dog rises. Some Tristate communities have revisited their dog ordinances recently, either tightening the reign owners must keep on vicious dogs or banning certain types of dogs altogether.
Experts, however, say the best way to cut down on dog bites is to strictly enforce leash laws while teaching people to be responsible pet own ers.
“People need to know that their neighborhoods need to be protected from the nuisance of their dogs,” said Norma Bennett Woolf, spokeswoman for the Ohio Valley Dog Owners, a coalition of dog clubs and owners. “(Communities) have been quick to ban a breed or restrict a breed rather than look into any kind of education.”
Controlling vicious dogs long has been a concern for local communities. In 1986, Cincinnati banned pit bulls because of their powerful bite and tenacity.
The city changed its law late last year. It now requires owners of pit bulls and dogs that have demonstrated vicious behavior to register the animals with the city, get liability insurance, and properly confine the dogs.
Other Tristate communities that recently have amended or passed new dog laws include:
• Covington: A law requiring owners to register pit bulls and vicious dogs, purchase insurance, and keep them leashed and muzzled in public goes into effect in April.
• Walton: Passed a law in February that bans dogs commonly known as pit bulls.
• Kenton County: Passed an ordinance in October mak ing it illegal to have a dog that has demonstrated vicious behavior. The law does not single out pit bulls or any specific breed.
In Woodlawn, lawmakers are looking at tightening the restrictions owners must place on pit bulls and dogs that have shown vicious behavior. The village already has a law requiring the dogs to be on leashes both while being walked and while on their owner's property.
In the future, Woodlawn may require owners both to leash and muzzle vicious dogs while walking them, Law Director Louis Lausche said. The village also may explore requiring owners to keep the dogs in locked pens on the owner's property rather than giving them the choice of keeping the dogs on tethers.
Delores Matthews would like the law to go further. Her grandson was attacked by a vicious dog last fall in Woodlawn.
Eight-year-old Da-Quan Payne jumped the fence into his grandmother's yard at the same time her neighbor dropped the leash restraining his pit bull. The dog crawled under Ms. Matthews' fence, grabbed Da-Quan and shook him so hard his jeans came off.
Da-Quan still has scars on his chest, arm and leg. He'll need reconstructive surgery, his grandmother said. And he's terrified of dogs now. A judge ordered the neighbor to put the dog to sleep, fix his fence, pay a fine, and serve time on probation.
“Pits shouldn't be allowed,” Ms. Matthews said. “I think the village should ban them.”
But laws that ban specific breeds or types of dog are unpopular with dog lovers, who say they unfairly brand certain dogs as mean. Ohio law, for example, labels pit bulls inherently vicious.
And such laws also can be tough to enforce because it's difficult sometimes to determine whether a dog really is a pit bull. The term refers not to a specific breed but to a type of dog that has a certain shaped body and head and is used by some people for fighting.
Rick Foreman of Miami Township had an American Staffordshire Terri er named Kitty who worked as a therapy dog in nursing homes before she died last year at age 15.
Mr. Foreman avoided taking Kitty into Cincinnati because she belonged to a breed referred to as a pit bull.
But he doesn't mind laws that crack down on bad behavior.
“I do encourage laws that are action specific,” he said. “By that I mean that if a dog makes an unprovoked attack on a human, define it as vicious and tell the person who owns the dog, you have committed an act that is against the law.”
Several communities have such temperament-based laws. They include Forest Park and Butler and Clermont counties.
An important companion to vicious-dog laws are laws that ban all dogs from running loose, experts say.
When Cincinnati passed its new dog ordinance, it included a leash law, said Carol Walker, administrative assistant to the city's safety director.
“If you solve your running-at-large problem, you have solved a lot of your problems,” she said. “The important issue is that if your dog is on a leash, we can reduce an enormous number of negative incidents with dogs.”
Education also is key, said Norma Bennett Woolf. New dog owners can get an early start tackling behavior problems by taking their dogs to puppy training classes offered at dog clubs across the Tristate.
Woodlawn Police Chief Walt Obermeyer said he may consider holding a police department-sponsored workshop to teach dog owners about local laws and responsible pet ownership.
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