Pit bulls shouldn’t be judged by their breed, just as humans shouldn’t be judged by the color of their skin. More often than not dogs are discriminated just as much as people, and as it is wrong to do such things to another human being, it should be just as wrong to do the same to dogs or any other animal for that matter. In some cities or states Pit bulls are considered too dangerous to own due to the fear of being attacked. They are increasingly associated by their malevolence and unpredictability but as well as loyalty, strength, confidence, and honest compassion so long as treated right. Any dog can be a “bad dog”, but it is too difficult to identify breeds like Pit bulls, people with bad intentions turn harmless breeds into killer breeds.

In some cases even owning the breeds has become illegal, this is called the BSL act which means Breed-specific legislation, also referred to breed-discriminatory legislation which prohibits or restricts the keeping of dogs of specific breeds. Twelve of the fifty states in the US have written this law as mandatory; Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, New Mexico, Ohio, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and even the District of Columbia. In Ohio, Pit bulls are frequently shot during drug raids because Pit bulls are encountered more frequently in those raids than any other dog but yet this is due to the owners not the dogs. Pit bull attacks are most often associated with the type of owner than the dog itself.

Dogs are a product of their environment; the owners who train any dogs to be vicious should be faced with more severe punishment. When we as humans do wrong we are sent to prisons or correctional centers provided with programs such as therapy or support circles. If these things are provided to us then I don’t see why these same luxuries couldn’t be provided just the same but in different terms for our pets instead of being faced with automatic death. The Alabama Supreme Court recently ruled that there is no genetic evidence that one breed of dog is more dangerous than another. Pit bulls are known by their strong and athletic build therefore automatically labeling them as a dangerous threat, we perceive them to be mean, creating a reputation leading to people treating dogs to be mean, thus creating a circle of events that feeds the reputation.

Sometimes reputation means very little, eleven years old Pit bull, Champ saved his owner Millie from a mugging. One day Millie walked outside her home to simply pick up a few stray pieces of trash when a mugger preceded to knock her down and demand her of her money, not knowing what to do, Millie called out for her Champ who then barked and scared the mugger to run away. Champ stayed by his owner’s side till help had arrived but by no means did Champ maliciously and fatally harm the mugger, owner Millie described Champ as a “gentle giant” not as a guard dog, especially for one of her age. Another story where four intruders entered a home with the intent of robbing and possibly killing the owner of Pit bull, Lefty; Lefty then advanced on one of the men who was holding and aiming a gun at her owner. That night Lefty took the bullet that wasn’t meant for her, she suffered bleeding in her right, left shoulder where her muscles had been town and her humorous bone shattered. Doctors concluded that young, brave Lefty had to have her leg amputated. Four year old Chief dashed in from of two women using himself as a shield against a cobra that had entered the home. Chief seized the cobra by the neck, killing it. Unfortunately, during the struggle, he sustained a bite to the jaw, dying minutes later knowing he had saved his family. Pit bull, Destiny saved nine year old boy from abduction, or countless other stories where this breed was a savior, not the bad guy people are making them out to be. None of these acts came from a malicious and dangerous breed. These breeds as a whole have countless times proven their stability and good canine citizenry by becoming ‘Search and Rescue dogs, Therapy dogs working inside hospitals, professional Herding dogs and family companions for years. Though studies have shown that environment could be much more of a factor then genetics with Pit bulls.

Humans are more to blame than the dog therefore the human should be held more accountable. Pit bulls should be protected and not judged because we fear their power. They should not be judged by their appearance, but by the content of their character. The people who make the rules against breeds should study the facts instead of making rulings based on fear.