Punish The Deed, Not The Breed
As owners of "bullied" breeds, our goal is to dispel harmful myths and stereotypes that characterize our pets as vicious and lead to laws that punish responsible owners and their pets. Who hasn't heard of the pit bull’s "locking jaw" or seen a Doberman or Rottweiler portrayed as the dreaded "junkyard" dog? Both are examples of the negative imagery that reinforces unfounded stereotypes and result in a culture of fear.
By now, everyone has heard of someone who has been attacked by a so called ' vicious ' breed. Anytime such an event occurs it is plastered in the media, often leaving out the pertinent details. A headline may read, "Child killed by pit bull", but makes no mention that the dog was starved and abused by its owners or being trained for illegal dog fighting. The knee jerk reaction to these negative media headlines is Breed Specific Legislation (BSL).
BSL is well intentioned, designed with public safety in mind, however it is unmistakably a form of profiling. BSL characterizes an entire breed by the actions of individual dogs and often results in very vague laws that have heartbreaking consequences. Saying that an entire breed is responsible for one dog's actions is comparable to saying pencils, not writers, misspell words. While we love our dogs and consider them our family, they are still in our care and are the result of their environment, making us the responsible party for tragic events, not breed.
The members of Good Deeds For Bullied Breeds takes every opportunity to showcase our bullied breeds in hopes that we will encourage our friends and neighbors to judge each dog based on behavior, not on physical features, having both a public and political impact. We wholeheartedly believe discrimination, in every form, is wrong and hope that our group will be an example of responsible pet ownership in the hope of breed equality one day.
By now, everyone has heard of someone who has been attacked by a so called ' vicious ' breed. Anytime such an event occurs it is plastered in the media, often leaving out the pertinent details. A headline may read, "Child killed by pit bull", but makes no mention that the dog was starved and abused by its owners or being trained for illegal dog fighting. The knee jerk reaction to these negative media headlines is Breed Specific Legislation (BSL).
BSL is well intentioned, designed with public safety in mind, however it is unmistakably a form of profiling. BSL characterizes an entire breed by the actions of individual dogs and often results in very vague laws that have heartbreaking consequences. Saying that an entire breed is responsible for one dog's actions is comparable to saying pencils, not writers, misspell words. While we love our dogs and consider them our family, they are still in our care and are the result of their environment, making us the responsible party for tragic events, not breed.
The members of Good Deeds For Bullied Breeds takes every opportunity to showcase our bullied breeds in hopes that we will encourage our friends and neighbors to judge each dog based on behavior, not on physical features, having both a public and political impact. We wholeheartedly believe discrimination, in every form, is wrong and hope that our group will be an example of responsible pet ownership in the hope of breed equality one day.
