New Delaware Law Prohibits Breed Specific Legislation
I’m doing the happy dance today because Delaware just passed a law that prohibits breed specific legislation. The new law prohibits cities and counties in Delaware from enacting discriminatory laws against specific dog breeds.
From now on the act of deeming a dog dangerous will be based on the actions of the dog, or an individual demonstration of aggressive behavior by the dog. No dog shall be considered dangerous or potentially dangerous because of the dogs breed (or perceived breed). Animal shelters won’t be allowed to discriminate against certain breeds for the purposes of facilitating adoption.
Findings to deem a dog dangerous will be based on actions of the dog, or an individualized demonstration of vicious behavior. It also prohibits municipalities from enacting breed-specific ordinances or regulations. – House Bill 13, 149th General Assembly
This is great news for dogs in Delaware. When breed specific legislation (BSL) is in place it targets dogs based on their breed and/or appearance, rather than their behavior. And when it comes to determining whether a dog is dangerous or not the only thing that should matter is the dog’s behavior – not their looks. Fair laws hold all owners responsible for the care, custody and control of their dogs, regardless of breed or appearance.
Why Breed Specific Legislation Is Ineffective
Breed specific legislation (BSL) are laws & restrictions that are based on the appearance of dogs. It stems from the belief that certain breeds of dogs (usually Pit Bulls) are dangerous.
But there’s a big problem: Breed specific legislation has never been shown to work. It has no basis in science, and it doesn’t help to make communities safer. They don’t take into account how a dog was raised, how he was trained or how he behaves. They just equate any dog that looks like a Pit as dangerous. And when it comes to guessing what a dog’s breed is it turns out we’re really bad.
These laws unfairly target dogs whose fate is already hard enough in shelters – any dog that looks like it might have “pit bull” in his genes. 65% of the dogs taken in by U.S. shelters are labeled as pits or pit mixes. Current estimates are that only 1 out of every 600 pit bulls makes it out of a shelter alive. About 4,000 of them are are euthanized every single day.
BSL is unfair to owners of well behaved dogs. If your dog meets the criteria (looks like a Pit) you’re required to comply with local bans and regulations. This can lead to housing issues, increased insurance rates, legal fees and possible relinquishment of the animal.
Any dog can bite, regardless of breed. Fair laws hold all owners responsible for the care, custody and control of their dogs, regardless of breed or appearance.
Nice to see some good news. Hooray for Delaware!
Loving this trend of states starting to repealing all these BSL laws and regulations.
Sampson has a boxy head, and stocky chest. Some people could say he looked like a pit, which terrifies me. I’m glad to see Delaware enacting these laws and I hope other states follow suit. It’s important to hold dog owners responsible for their dog, no matter what the breed.
I should be clear…I’m not terrified that he would be mistaken for a pit bull, as I have nothing against them. I am terrified that something could happen to him, based solely on his looks. I hope that makes sense.
It absolutely makes sense.
Exactly. Fair laws treat individuals the same (including dogs). It is scary when you consider how bad a lot of us are at guessing breeds & breed mixes. A boxy head and stocky chest might make someone assume he’s part Pit. It’s scary to think that assumption can have such dire consequences for a dog, regardless of their behavior.
My neighboring town has BSL restriction, so I remember when I was looking for a dog I had to keep the whole ‘can’t look like a Pit’ mantra in my mind, rather than being able to choose freely. It was heartbreaking meeting so many good dogs, but having to say no because I kept thinking of all the what if’s. The county shelter here won’t adopt out any dogs labeled as Pits or Pit mixes to the public, however they can be rescued. Luckily some local rescues (like the Michigan Pit Bull Education Project) have stepped up and are helping to find them homes.
I live in Delaware and sadly, apartment complexes are still discriminating against breed. Stating we still can’t bring pits because theyre on an “Aggressive Breeds” list that the ASPCA has created. One that I have never seen in a search on google or even on paper which makes me believe it isn’t true.
I don’t have a pittie, but my dog does resemble one. He’s a mix of a lot of different breeds and he’s just stocky. (cute as a button too!)
I want to save a pittie, especially now because ourse SPCA locally has just caught fire as a result of a car crashing into it. These dogs litter the SPCA and I want to give one a home. 🙁
That’s very frustrating. I haven’t heard of the ASPCA’s list of ‘aggressive breeds’ either, and because they’re publicly opposed to breed specific legislation (https://www.aspca.org/about-us/aspca-policy-and-position-statements/position-statement-breed-specific-legislation) it makes me wonder if landlord/apartment managers are trying to disguise the legitimacy of their own policies.