Should pit bulls be regulated or banned?

[The Caleshan Valkyrie]

Fucking dachshunds are so mean tempered and quick to bite. They should totally be banned /nod.

[United States of Americanas]

OMG 36 deaths, what a travesty!!! (Sarcasm)

Blanket banning an entire breed of dog is like blanket banning an entire race of humans, it’s foolish at best.

I have seen some pit bulls that are very sweet and mild mannered because they were raised right.

I have also seen some downright scary pit bulls.

What we need to do is not ban but regulate them.

Increased insurance requirements for owners who have not proven their pit bulls are safe is a good start.

Someone gets attacked because either A. They crossed a property line (self defense of owner and property) or B. They saw the dog walking in public and just went to pet without asking the owner (willfully stupid, ASK BEFORE YOU PET SOMEONE ELSES DOG!!!) or C. Owner negligently let their dog off of their property (Owner negligence)

Rarely is it the dogs fault alone. It is willful negligence and stupidity that is to blame.

How’s about we ban humans? Humans kill more humans than every dog breed combined!

EDIT: To answer your form.

What should we do about pit bull violence, and dog violence in general (which is disproportionately and overwhelmingly represented by pit bulls)? Expose owners to liability suits like any other incident that occurs on their property and require their homeowners liability policy to pay out while they incur higher premiums and deductibles or even policy cancellation.

More specifically:
What actions should be taken against owners of vicious dogs who bring harm to humans, pets, livestock, or property?

The dog shall be remanded to a training center for possible rehabilitation and if necessary euthanization. The owner shall be exposed to all and any lawsuits arising from the damages and they may use their homeowners policy liability coverage if the incident happened on their property. Otherwise they shall be financially and criminally responsible if the attack occurred on public property and may be subjected to imprisonment fines or both.

What action should be taken against shelters that re-home dangerous dogs?

Alike websites that host files shelters should be protected under something similar to DMCA safe harbor. They are not responsible for what dog you willfully pick. They are not responsible for your stupidity in not reading the temperament statements and all of the paperwork they provide in the adoption file. If you pick up a badly trained dog, it’s not the shelters fault, it’s yours. Therefore your remedy shall be limited to return of the animal to the same shelter for a refund of all adoption fees.

What should be done with vicious animals proven to be violent against other pets or people?

The animal shall be sent to a licensed animal shelter that has a training and rehabilitation center if rehabilitation cannot be achieved then the animal is to be euthanized.

Should breed-specific legislation restrict who can/can't own pit bulls?

No, however pit bull owners may be required to have a all risk liability policy.

Should breed-specific legislation restrict who can/can't own other dog breeds?

An all risk liability policy should be required and on file with the county or village in which your pet is registered for any breed that may be potentially dangerous.

Should the federal government pass laws to prevent breed-specific legislation from being enacted by city governments?

Yes, the federal law should require all risk insurance on all animals capable of bodily harm and disallow any community from adding restrictions or further legislating than that.

If you went to buy a pit bull with intent of raising it to be a guard dog and then saw you have to pay an extra 75 dollars a month for all risk liability, maybe you’ll be more careful with that dog when it is outside.

Bottom line: If you own a potentially dangerous dog, NEVER LEAVE IT ALONE OUTSIDE UNLESS IT IS INSIDE OF A KENNEL ENCLOSURE!

[An Alan Smithee Nation]

Where's Dogmeat?

[Scomagia]

Where's Dogmeat?

He bit the mailman. We...uhh...sent him to live on a farm.

[An Alan Smithee Nation]

Where's Dogmeat?

He bit the mailman. We...uhh...sent him to live on a farm.

He'll be happy running around in the fields.

[Fahran]

Oddly enough, citing the frequency of pit bull attacks is a lot more shaky than one would initially suspect. You see, pit bulls aren't a rigidly defined breed like a good many working and toy dogs are. The term can apply broadly to any short-haired, mixed-breed dog possessing a block-shaped head and weighing between 30 and 100 pounds, and is seldom applied exclusively to American Pit Bull Terriers. The average temperament pass rate for all breeds of dogs sits at around 83%, meanwhile the American Pit Bull Terrier averages a pass rate of 86.8%, meaning that they're more likely to be well-tempered than other breeds of dogs.

Beyond that, your post exaggerates the bite force of pit bull type dogs compared to Rottweilers and German Shepherds, both of whom have much stronger bite forces than either American Pit Bull Terriers or similar dogs. In point of fact, there's no evidence that American Pit Bull Terriers are inherently more dangerous than breeds of the same size.

The issue, as many others have pointed out, is how these dogs are bred and raised. If you breed for aggression, socialize for aggression, socialize poorly, leave a dog unattended with small children or other animals, or are incapable of understanding signs of fear or irritation in a dog, the chances that a dog will bite or behave aggressively are greatly increased. In the cases you mentioned, dogs all seem to have been left unattended, and, I suspect, many of these dogs were bred and/or socialized to behave aggressively. And the owners should be held liable and fined - unless it can be determined that they were engaged in dog-fighting in which case they should serve a minimum sentence of five to twenty years in prison in the event that the dog mauled and/or killed a person.

Aggressive dogs do often need to be euthanized sadly, and by no real fault of their own. But that's no justification for demonizing a breed that has a gentler temperament on average than other breeds, for euthanizing dogs of said breed that haven't exhibited aggressive behavior, or for mass euthanizing dogs that have a particular appearance and weight because you aren't privy to the facts.

Source.

[Scomagia]

He bit the mailman. We...uhh...sent him to live on a farm.

He'll be happy running around in the fields.

Sure, kid. He's...in a better place.
*stifles tears*

[-Ocelot-]

NSG is basically /pol/ and /pol/ has anti-pit bull threads all the time. They called them "the n-word of dog breeds".

>NSG is basically /pol/

NSG is nothing like /pol/

t. someone who spends more time than they should posting on 4chan /pol/ and lurking on 8chan /pol/

This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Isn't 8chan linked to illegal activity? What are you doing in there?

[Hanafuridake]

No, ban owners who don't actually take the time to train their canines.

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

I blame owners rather than dogs, all the pit bulls I have met have been very sweet natured.

Firstly, unverifiable anecdotes don't trump verifiable data.

Secondly, even if it is true, it's possible that only the owners of sweet-natured pitbulls are willing to introduce them to strangers.

No one needs a pitbull any more than anyone needs a gun. Err on the side of caution, and ban pit bulls.

[Crockerland]

I blame owners rather than dogs, all the pit bulls I have met have been very sweet natured.

Firstly, unverifiable anecdotes don't trump verifiable data.

Secondly, even if it is true, it's possible that only the owners of sweet-natured pitbulls are willing to introduce them to strangers.

No one needs a pitbull any more than anyone needs a gun. Err on the side of caution, and ban pit bulls.

Anti-gun fanatics should be banned.

[Scomagia]

I blame owners rather than dogs, all the pit bulls I have met have been very sweet natured.

Firstly, unverifiable anecdotes don't trump verifiable data.

Secondly, even if it is true, it's possible that only the owners of sweet-natured pitbulls are willing to introduce them to strangers.

No one needs a pitbull any more than anyone needs a gun. Err on the side of caution, and ban pit bulls.

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

[Godular]

In all honesty, the pit bulls that I've known have all been the most infuriatingly affectionate dogs I've ever seen. This is more of a problem with owners being douchebags than the dogs themselves. That they have a reputation for being violent is likely what draws said douchebags to such dogs, which of course tends to further contribute to the reputation.

Sorta like self-fulfilling douchebaggery.

[Crockerland]

Fucking dachshunds are so mean tempered and quick to bite. They should totally be banned /nod.

You are equating a dog that weighs as much as a starter dumbell to an dog that can kill bulls.

[Hanafuridake]

Firstly, unverifiable anecdotes don't trump verifiable data.

Secondly, even if it is true, it's possible that only the owners of sweet-natured pitbulls are willing to introduce them to strangers.

No one needs a pitbull any more than anyone needs a gun. Err on the side of caution, and ban pit bulls.

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

You're more likely to die from being killed by a person than either of those.

You know what this means....

[Scomagia]

In all honesty, the pit bulls that I've known have all been the most infuriatingly affectionate dogs I've ever seen. This is more of a problem with owners being douchebags than the dogs themselves.

Well, maybe not even that many of the owners are douchebags. OP's sources don't parse these numbers (probably because its all yellow journalism) but some portion of pit "attacks" on humans are A) Caused by the "victim" through abuse or rough treatment of the dog, and B) actually dog fights where a human intervened and caught some referred aggression.

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

Firstly, unverifiable anecdotes don't trump verifiable data.

Secondly, even if it is true, it's possible that only the owners of sweet-natured pitbulls are willing to introduce them to strangers.

No one needs a pitbull any more than anyone needs a gun. Err on the side of caution, and ban pit bulls.

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

I see. And does owning a pitbull; or legalizing the ownership thereof; do anything to reduce hot dog choking deaths?

Hot dogs are popular because they're a quick source of food for those traveling. That's why there are hot dog trucks. It's a choice between a few people dying and thousands of travelers going hungry.

Meanwhile, there is no discernable reason to own a pit bull.

[Scomagia]

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

I see. And does owning a pitbull; or legalizing the ownership thereof; do anything to reduce hot dog choking deaths?

Hot dogs are popular because they're a quick source of food for those traveling. That's why there are hot dog trucks. It's a choice between a few people dying and thousands of travelers going hungry.

Meanwhile, there is no discernable reason to own a pit bull.

Companionship, security, therapy, sport.

I just gave you four very, very easily discernable reasons.

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

You're more likely to die from being killed by a person than either of those.

You know what this means....

Dogs' personalities are caused by human beings. Pit bulls were bred for aggression. Other breeds; for the most part; were not.

There is a breed of dog whose personality is NOT a product of human beings. It's called the wolf, and it's INCREDIBLY aggressive. The only reason they're not as deadly as pit bulls is because most people actually have the sense to avoid them, which is more than can be said for pit bulls.

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

I see. And does owning a pitbull; or legalizing the ownership thereof; do anything to reduce hot dog choking deaths?

Hot dogs are popular because they're a quick source of food for those traveling. That's why there are hot dog trucks. It's a choice between a few people dying and thousands of travelers going hungry.

Meanwhile, there is no discernable reason to own a pit bull.

Companionship, security, therapy, sport.

I just gave you four very, very easily discernable reasons.

These reasons apply as well; and probably apply better; to other breeds.

[Heloin]

No. That's stupid. The amount of people injured by all dogs is seriously low. The amount of serious injuries and fatalities is even lower. You are more likely to die choking on a hot dog than you are to be killed by a dog. Drastically more likely. Ban hotdogs!

I see. And does owning a pitbull; or legalizing the ownership thereof; do anything to reduce hot dog choking deaths?

Hot dogs are popular because they're a quick source of food for those traveling. That's why there are hot dog trucks. It's a choice between a few people dying and thousands of travelers going hungry.

Meanwhile, there is no discernable reason to own a pit bull.

They're cute, they're friendly as fuck, and they enjoy playing.

[Nakena]

>NSG is basically /pol/

NSG is nothing like /pol/

t. someone who spends more time than they should posting on 4chan /pol/ and lurking on 8chan /pol/

This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Isn't 8chan linked to illegal activity? What are you doing in there?

Some of us want to be informed what is going on in the grittier corners of the internet.

I do lurk sometimes on 4chan during newsworthy incidents - or as they say "happenings" - as they tend to have occassionally unfiltered, raw and uncensored information regarding developing matters. That is, if you manage to filter out the garbage and misinformation among the mess.

[Threlizdun]

Pit bulls are adorable and I will defend them with my life. Shitty owners raise aggressive dogs. Punish the owners, not the dog.

[Scomagia]

Fucking dachshunds are so mean tempered and quick to bite. They should totally be banned /nod.

You are equating a dog that weighs as much as a starter dumbell to an dog that can kill bulls.

Pitbulls cannot kill bulls on their own. Jesus Christ. That's like calling hounds "cougar killers" or Catahoulas "boar killers". It's dumb. So very dumb.

[Ors Might]

You're more likely to die from being killed by a person than either of those.

You know what this means....

Dogs' personalities are caused by human beings. Pit bulls were bred for aggression. Other breeds; for the most part; were not.

There is a breed of dog whose personality is NOT a product of human beings. It's called the wolf, and it's INCREDIBLY aggressive. The only reason they're not as deadly as pit bulls is because most people actually have the sense to avoid them, which is more than can be said for pit bulls.

Of the pit bulls that have bitten and killed someone, how many of them were raised in dog fighting arenas?