This will look like one long sentence. Since blogware isn't supporting its product any more, I've moved to Typepad. NEW ADDRESS IS: http://caveat.typepad.com/blog/

Something is wrong with blogware, they are looking into it. Our first batch of petitions will be presented in the Ontario Legislature today by MPP Julia Munro. We plan to send petitions along as they are signed to keep the issue on the floor until the next election, when McGuinty will hopefully be ousted. If you LIVE IN ONTARIO, please print out a petition from the attached file and try to get it signed. Each page holds 10 signatures, so it's easy to count how many you have collected. You can also get the petition at this link: http://caveat.blogware.com/Petition%20to%20Repeal%20BSL.pdf Be careful when getting signatures. Smudges, crossouts, etc, can invalidate an entire page of petitions. All RESIDENTS OF ONTARIO may sign, including those who have not reached the age of majority. I am taking these to dog shows on a clipboard and asking people to sign. There are many opportunities to get signatures - at the dog park, the pet food shop, the groomers, among family and friends, etc. Once you have some signatures - you don't need a full sheet - please mail them to: Julia Munro, MPP P O Box 1129 18977 Leslie Street Sharon ON L0G 1V0 OR: Julia Munro MPP Room 204 North Wing Legislative Building Queen's Park Toronto, ON M7A 1A8 THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION. TOGETHER, WE CAN END BSL IN ONTARIO! hERE IS THE TEXT OF THE PETITION: TO: The Legislative Assembly of Ontario WHEREAS: Aggressive dogs are found among all breeds and mixed breeds; and WHEREAS breed-specific legislation has been shown to be an expensive and ineffective approach to dog bite prevention; and WHEREAS problem dog owners are best dealt with through education, training and legislation encouraging responsible behaviour; WE the undersigned petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows: To repeal the breed-specific sections of the Dog Owners' Liability Act (2005) and to implement legislation that encourages responsible ownership of all dog breeds and types.

Bowser at 8 weeks

We showed up on Monday for court to support Danny and Bowser.  We had a fantastic lawyer and were well armed and ready to fight the "pit bull" designation that had been applied to Bowser by Mississauga Animal Control back in December, 2008.

Unfortunately for those of us who were looking forward to a good rumble, but fortunately for Danny, the Crown wanted to cut a deal.

They dropped the charge under Ontario's Dog Owners' Liability Act (DOLA) of owning a prohibited "pit bull" (in this case a dog that was too young to be in Ontario) and asked Danny to plead to the lesser charge of owning a dog that "...has behaved in a manner that poses a menace to the safety of persons or domestic animals" (Section 4. 1(b) of DOLA).  With this came a fine, which on hindsight we probably could have bartered down, but that's not a big deal since I don't have to pay it.

This was a win for Danny and Bowser, for dog owners in Ontario and for organizations such as the DLCC that have been quietly helping dog owners get through the nightmarish process of fighting to save their dogs all over the province.

The court has decided that Bowser is NOT a "pit bull" within the meaning of the law but is substantially similar to a Boxer-Rottweiler mixed breed dog.  This precedent can help other dog owners whose pets may resemble Bowser.

In dropping the whole "pit bull" part of the charge, the Crown basically said it didn't have enough to defend the designation.  They had no experts on deck. An Animal Control officer was present but he is not considered an expert.  This was nicely summarized in the Miami decision posted by Brent last Friday and according to our lawyer, there are Canadian precedents that concur with that decision.

We had expert testimony in the form of an excellent letter from a veterinarian with decades of experience, as well as a letter from a CKC (Canadian Kennel Club) licensed all-breed judge also with decades of experience both in Canada and abroad.  In a nutshell, the vet said that in his opinion, Bowser was substantially similar to a Boxer-Rottweiler mix.  The judge pointed out the many areas where Bowser did not fit the standards of any of the three breeds banned in Ontario.

*

A few points I'd like to mention:

1. There has been a hue and cry, especially on Facebook, with people wanting the name of the vet clinic that originally ratted Danny out to Animal Control for owning a prohibited "pit bull".  They didn't get it from me two years ago and they won't get it from me now.

I suspect that because people are angry and frustrated over the "pit bull" legislation, they are looking for someone to blame, someone to punish.  I say look no further than Dalton McGuinty - he is the one who should have leashed and muzzled his then-Attorney General.  He is the one who should have listened to the overwhelming opposition to his scheme in the Legislature, in public opinion polls and correspondence and especially at Committee where many expert organizations and individuals spent time and money appearing to explain why the "breed" (lol) ban was the wrong route to dog bite prevention.  Dalton McGuinty and his minions MUST be voted out in October.  If you are angry, show up and vote.

I personally won't be held responsible for vandalism or other mischief that may befall that clinic.  Since they obviously didn't want to testify in favour of the designation - remember, the Crown had no expert witnesses  - for all we know it was just a staff member who called it in.  That person may not even be working there anymore.

Anyway, ultimately they did dog owners in Mississauga a favour because Bowser is NOT a "pit bull" in that city.

2.  We were chatting with the Animal Control officer after the hearing.  I asked him what people could do to protect themselves, since most people have no idea that they own a "pit bull". All you have to do is look at how different all the dogs are that have been identified as "pit bulls" by authorities.  You can see just a few of them in my slideshow, left sidebar right under the search box near the top.

He said they should get a note from their vet stating that their dog is, for example, a Labrador retriever-Boxer mix, and carry it with them.  That's good enough for Animal Control in Mississauga if they stop someone.

Yes, it does sound rather Naziesque - "Veer ah yo papuz?" but so what?  This is Nazi-type legislation, discrimination based not on behaviour but appearance, so like it or not, if you see your vet and get such a note you will be protected.  This applies in Mississauga but in my view, it couldn't hurt no matter where you live in Ontario if you own a short-haired, medium-sized mutt.  Remember, under the law vets can identify dogs as "pit bulls" which means they can also identify dogs as not "pit bulls".

*

Anyway, congratulations to Danny for standing up and getting through the past two-plus years with your dignity intact.  I'm glad we could help in a small way and I hope you and Bowser have a great time together from here on in.  It was a pleasure to work with you on this case.

I'm a Rabbit too.  So this is our year!

If you want to congratulate Danny, visit this page on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=61941358224

Almost forgot!  Brindlestick has a post about this as well, you can read it here.

Bowser in June, 2010

I just wanted to briefly comment on the Vancouver games because I'm furious at the way people are behaving.  This is being written by a non-sports fan, just so you know.  I did used to ski a lot when I was younger, though, and my brother was even on the ski patrol.

Canadian sports fans, you're embarrassing me.

At first, our hope was to win one gold medal, since Canada hadn't won a gold at either of the games we previously hosted - summer games in Montreal in 1976 (which was when lotteries came into being, they were so in debt they legalized lottery games for that one time only lol) and winter sports in Calgary in 1988.

Alexandre Bilodeau won the first gold medal for Canada with a jaw-dropping performance in men's moguls.  Everybody was happy and excited and proud of this charming young athlete who had finally broken our bum record.

Then the whining started.

Media talking heads began irresponsibly hyping every event and every Canadian athlete as a shoe-in for a medal.  When that didn't occur, the tone changed to 'What happened?  What went wrong?'.

Nothing went wrong, you wankers, real life got in the way.  This isn't a video game or a movie set where you do 100 takes if need be until you get it right.  This is once out of the gate and down the hill or around the rink.  As I say, real life.

These kids are playing their hearts out on the hills and ice and I certainly hope they are ignoring the media coverage because it's disgusting.

The culmination, for me, was when I read on the front page of last Saturday's Toronto Star that we were promised lots of medals and it wasn't happening, so everything sux. Waaah.  Melissa Hollingsworth was supposed to get gold in Skeleton and she only got 5th place, so OwnThePodium.ca and everybody on the Olympic team are big, fat liars.  Waaah.

That article infuriated me, but it got worse.

Melissa Hollingsworth held a press conference to apologize, tearfully outlining how she had let the country down, what a failure she was, etc. She appeared to me to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

I was shouting at the TV  "Kid!  You're a champ!  Placing fifth these days is like placing first!  You didn't let the country down.  These are games, get it?  They're supposed to be fun!  Somebody has to place first, somebody has to place fifth.  Cut yourself some slack!"

The difference between first place and fifth place in Women's Skeleton was .96 of a second.

Get it?

I think we have a few problems here.

1.  The ability to measure distance and time is exact to such minute quantities that it's almost become meaningless.  Maybe we should be giving out more medals, expanding to 10th place or something.

2.  The human body has obviously  not kept up with technology.

3.  The over-hyping and phoney patriotism* have put nearly unendurable pressure on the kids competing at the games, especially those representing Canada since we are hosting it.  Maybe some of these media wankers who are criticizing people's performances would like to try an event.  That's if they can pry their weak, doughnut-eating selves away from their keyboards and actually gear up for some outdoor exercise, which is a big 'if'.


Let's try to retain the spirit of the Olympic games - clean competition by the best athletes each country has to enter (I wonder how the Snow Leopard from Ethiopa is making out?).  Let's try cheering for the winners, even those dastardly Americans, who finally beat us at hockey after a 50-year dry spell. 

Maybe there's hope for the Leafs after all.

And another oldie from the bin.   Now I'm fresh out and will have to start working again.

Seriously, is it?

Do we want kennel clubs to be afraid to put their breed standards online in case some demented politician or stupid shelter worker decides that some animals are more equal than others?

Do we want people who work in pounds to be considered 'experts' by the courts on dog breeds and behaviour?

Do we want breed standards, which are not used for identification but for judging purposes, something quite different, put into the hands of people who don't know their purpose, don't understand the terminology, don't have any experience or credentials in the purebred dog fancy?

Do we want our provincial government to railroad people just so they can prove that legislated discrimination will stand the judicial test?

Do we want dog owners to be afraid to walk their dogs in public because media- and government-driven hysteria has turned pet dogs into a threat to 'public safety'?

Do we want to allow vapid, showboating politicians who don't understand an issue to force the enactment of useless, downright dangerous laws that turn innocent people into criminals?

Do we want the liars and fear-mongers, the ignoramuses and followers dictating public policy?

Well, do we?

Because that's what we've got - and don't blame me, I didn't vote for them - either time.

Another oldie I decided to post.

You want to ban 'pit bulls' - but own a  'shepherd';

You think that 'pit bulls' are crowding the shelters because of overbreeding, not because they are being seized and taken to the shelters by you-know-who;

You believe dogs can be bred to fetch slippers, heel and jump hurdles;

You think 'pit bull' is a breed;

You think that media stories are equivalent to scientific evidence, facts and data;

You think dogs named 'pit bulls' have locking jaws and super-canine powers;

You believe all the bravado nonsense posted on internet forums by guys who are so macho they sit and type all day;

You know that 'pit bulls' weigh over 100 pounds;

You are nodding your head in agreement right about now.

I managed to start and finish this oil of my friend's dog over the summer and fall.   I painted it from a photo.  I've never painted dogs before.  I'd like to try some more of these, it is a relaxing way to spend time.


I finished this one of another friend's dog, Ivy, this summer.  It's in acrylic, you can see the difference in paint, can't you?  The dog is from a photo, the background is invented.



These pictures are Copyrighted material and are not to be copied or used without permission.

Around...   more »

Seriously, folks   more »

Is anybody else sick of watching the media wankers as they paint Michael Bryant as the victim in Monday night's tragic incident?

Well, Fred over at One Bark at a Time has had about enough of it.  Lori at Wag the Dog is really annoyed too.

I started to lose it when the smarmy news-readers at CTV, shortly after Bryant was charged, were breathlessly analyzing grainy video footage on the six o'clock news.  The point was that witnesses had reported seeing the Saab driving on the wrong side of Bloor Street on Monday night.  It sounds bad, alright, but guess what, folks?  There was a construction truck parked on the right side of the road, see?  So Bryant had no choice but to go around it - he had to drive on the left!  Phew, that was a close one!

And so the bullshit flows.

Lately, there have been stories in the print media about Bryant's family, about what a swell guy he is, about how many loyal friends he has and so on and so forth.  As if any of that matters.

It's so obvious that the slick PR firm hired by Bryant, Navigator, is behind all this sickly sweet nonsense.  The question is whether the media minions are doing it because orders have come down from on high or because they, too are being cleverly manipulated by Navigator.

They are practically arguing the case on the suppertime news and are painting Bryant as a sterling fellow who was victimized by that nasty cyclist.

The day after the tragic incident, the insufferable snake-oil salesmen at CTV were yammering about all the collisions between cyclists and vehicles - thousands of them, see?   It's a very common thing.  They also ran the leaked resignation letter Bryant sent where he claims to be innocent.  The next day, they were analyzing evidence - the videotape - to show why the wrong side of the road was the right side of the road.  The next day it was all about how Darcy Sheppard, the person who was killed Monday night when he was knocked from Bryant's car, hit a mailbox and then smashed his head on a fire hydrant, had been cautioned by police over a disturbance that afternoon.  The police sent him on his way, yet an unidentified person was commenting about how he was drunk, which doesn't make much sense.

Spin, spin, buzz, buzz.

I've been trying to pretend that Bryant is just a normal person, someone I don't despise, to see if the propaganda is as bad as it seems to be.  I've even pretended that I like the little knob, that he's one of my friends, to see how the whitewash looks.

No matter how I try to spin it in my own head, the relentless coverage and clear bias are so obviously over-the-top that it's an insult to anyone of even average intelligence.  I'm even wondering if they've crossed a line since this is a criminal matter that will be before the courts in October.

Everybody is saying Bryant will get off because of who he is (if anything, he should fry because of who he is as far as I'm concerned).   I don't expect him to get life in prison, only hard-core deviants ever get that.  I do expect him to be tried, convicted and punished, though, and I'm not talking about community service or house arrest.

Through all the fluff pieces and sugar syrup, let's keep something in mind:   A person is dead.

Spin that, Navigator.

All the time, silly - there's no such thing as a 'pit bull'.

In Ontario these days, another answer would be duh, when some nimrod in Animal Control wants to pretend he knows a little sumpin' bout dogs.

But I digress.

Check out my PowerPoint presentation (965K).  It's the same as the display board I did for our booth at the All About Pets show this past Easter weekend.

Here's the link.

UPDATE ONE SECOND LATER:  Damn, the link didn't work.  I've tried attaching it as a file instead.  Just click on the paper clip to view it.

The bizarre events continue to unfold here in Ontario.

I watched former Attorney General Michael Bryant's short comment after his release yesterday.  There's a video of the statement at the Toronto Star if you want to watch.

He was offering condolences to the family of Darcy Alan Sheppard, the 33-year-old cyclist who died after an encounter with Bryant on Monday night.  He went on to thank people who were supporting his family.  His comments made it sound as though Bryant thought he was the victim in the case.

I get that the matter is before the courts so he obviously wouldn't comment on any details, but condolences?  A simple 'no comment' would have made more sense.


Some U.S. readers have expressed concerns about the 'slap on the wrist' aspect of Bryant's charges in the case.

Dangerous driving is a crminal offense in Canada, it is not a traffic offense.  Here's some info from an Ontario criminal lawyers' site:

Criminal negligence causing death carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, which in Canada is 25 years.  Here's the section from the Criminal Code of Canada.

So Bryant is in serious trouble.

Former Attorney General of Ontario involved in bizarre incident last night on Toronto's tony Bloor Street.   more »

The media 'journalists' use a simple formula for their 'news' items about dog bites these days.  If it can be at all passed off as a 'pit bull', do it - not showing a picture helps.  Otherwise, just bury it somewhere because the fake hysteria over 'pit bulls' we've created might get diluted - and we can't have that, can we?  We need the hits on our websites to generate ad revenue and stay alive.  A poll about the wisdom of banning 'pit bulls' should be run whenever possible as well - it puts audience share through the roof when all the anti-BSL folk hit it to vote.

Here's a neat little blog you might want to check out:

Dog Attacks You Never Hear About

I was cleaning out some trivial stuff and deleted a couple of posts by mistake.

I re-attach the letter from Denver's assistant city attorney to places considering revising their animal control policies.

Phase One is over for Banned Aid   more »

The FBI has added Daniel San Diego to its list of most wanted terrorists.  He shares the honour with Osama bin Laden and others but has the dubious distinction of being the first domestic terrorist added to the list.

Oh, and thanks a lot, ABC. I was using the same title but had to change it after I visited your story.

The FBI put out a press release on April 22 listing various rewards for information in attacks targeting scientific researchers.

A couple of ALF members were indicted in Los Angeles on  April 22, charged with conspiracy, stalking, and other crimes against researchers at UCLA.

A pro-research rally in Los Angeles attracted hundreds of supporters, vastly outnumbering the animal liberaton extremists protesting at the same time.  I guess the animal liberation schtick is finally wearing thin with mainstream groups, which is a good thing indeed.

And then there's Mr Vick (rhymes with...).  A buddy out west gave me the heads-up on this one:

Michael Vick in Talks to Become PETA Spokesman

Jailed NFL Superstar Looks to Rehab Image After Dog-fighting Rap

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Michael Vick is in talks to become the new spokesman for PETA.

Yes, you read that correctly. The disgraced one-time NFL superstar serving prison time for funding an illegal dog-fighting ring is primed to do public-service ads for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals upon his release later this month. According to three people with knowledge of the matter, the proposed endorsement is part of a comprehensive PR scheme aimed at rehabilitating the quarterback's image and gaining him readmission to the league that banned him from playing.

Well, at least Vick and Peta have something in common - both have used 'pit bulls' to further their own ends, both have shown no respect for animal life and both appear to be greedy and manipulative enough to deserve each other.

What's the difference between bumping off animals you promised to place in new homes then throwing the corpses into a dumpster and bumping off animals you were supposed to care for and burying the bodies in the backyard?  Thirty million bucks a year, I guess.

This guy Vick isn't too bright, is he?  Doesn't he have teh Google?  Somebody should let him know that the worst thing he could do to rehab his image (such as it is) is to join forces with the most hypocritical, self-serving, histrionic group of animal-killing phonies around. 

If Vick thinks people who love dogs are mad at him now, just wait until his goofy mug appears in a Peta commercial.  I hope he goes for it just because I'm nice that way.

Roll 'em!

The target is different, the outcome may be different, but I'm definitely spotting a pattern here, and have been for some time.   more »

Are 'pit bull' owners perceived as members of the outcast class in the human social order?   more »

Nathan Winograd has a couple of good posts up about the meeting of the 'pit bull' profiteers in Las Vegas.

I know that nobody is surprised that the HSUS continues to exhibit what amounts to a corporate sociopathy or by the fact that no progress was made.

The burning question isn't whether 'pit bulls' are just dogs (they are), whether fighting dogs are a product of their environment (they are), whether any thinking human would agree that dogs shouldn't die for our sins (they would) or whether the HSUS will veer away from its set course of animal liberation (it won't - at least not until the current BOD is booted out and some truly humane leaders are voted in).

No, to me, the most important question is this:

What makes these people think that they have the right to speak for 'pit bulls', dogs in general, 'bust dogs' (as they call them)  or for all of us who are out here in the frontlines - in rescue, in the courts, and on the streets? 

I deeply resent the intrusive, self-serving, double-dealing campaign by the HSUS to legislate pet breeding and ownership into oblivion while crying crocodile tears for dogs, cats, horses and chickens.

I'm insulted by the unending stream of contradictory, duplicitous and illogical statements that wouldn't fool a first-grader.

I am galled by their hubris in implying to the rubes ithat they are a government-sanctioned agency - worse, a law enforcement group - rather than a private special interest lobbying outfit which does not represent mainstream views.

Their arrogance in presuming to 'negotiate' repulsive ideas such as breed (ha ha) bans 'down' to breed-specific mandatory neutering (Louisville) and then say it's somehow better than a ban - would be hilarious were it not so deadly to dogs.

Most of all, I get really, really, really pissed off by all these people who make money and promote themselves on the backs of 'pit bulls' - be they incompetent politicians like Old Nanny McGuinty in Ontario, cheese-ass journalists who need a hook because they're too lazy or hung over to write an actual story, rescue groups who post all kinds of nonsense about how weird 'pit bulls' are on their websites, hysterics who get information from personal injury lawyers and white-hooders so they can get a hate on and all the rest of them - fooling themselves into believing that people like me give a damn about what they think or say.

If I want an opinion about 'pit bulls', I'll ask a 'pit bull'.  At least they aren't in it for the money.  Sometimes I think they're the only ones who aren't.

It sure looks that way.  Dog owners in Missouri stood up and voted out several candidates who think banning and killing dogs is where it's at.

Brent has the details.

I wonder if we'll have more luck here in 2011 than we did in 2007 trying to get people to oust McGuinty?  Surely by then even the lowest of the low-information voters will have realized that the Ontario Liberals are anything but - and not only because of their draconian, antiquated approach to dog ownership.  They treat everybody as if they need Old Nanny McGuinty looking over their shoulders, telling them what to buy, what to eat, how to garden...you name it, Old McGuinty will ban it or tax the hell out of it.  The rest he just mismanages.

Today, I wish I were from Missouri, too.

This weekend we will be manning the DLCC booth at the All About Pets show.

The show is huge, and apparently very busy, so if you're in Toronto area and attending, please drop by our booth, number 536.  I attach the floor plan.  We are almost in the centre near the big rectangular area with the red dot on its left side.  If you view the plan at 150%, you'll see where we are.  Unfortunately, I can't save it as a rotated version because I'm too cheap frugal to buy Adobe software, so you'll have to turn your monitor 90 degrees, or your head, whichever is easier.

Information about what's happening and directions are on the All About Pets website.  We'll be beside our friends from Southern Ontario Animal Rescue so if you're visiting them, you'll see us.

Now, back to working on my display for our booth.  I never do things ahead of time since half the fun is staying up late with clenched teeth working to a harsh deadline.  Isn't it?

I'm really knocking 'em dead here....   more »

That went well....   more »

Update at the end.

Well, well, well.  Who'da thunk it.

Someone using the immensely credible handle, 'Anonymous',  has been posting a comment...

Interpret that as you will.

Thanks to the efforts of another blogger, we have seen the testimony in the Wilkes County, North Carolina dog-killing by representatives of the Humane Society of the United States.  The dogs were seized from a Mr Faron, who couldn't afford the ransom to get his dogs back, including puppies that were born in the hoosegow.  He pleaded guilty to 14 counts of dog-fighting, something which was legal in North Carolina until 1997.

A hearing was held to determine the fate of the dogs seized in the case and the puppies born in custody.  The representatives of the HSUS testified on February 16, 2009.

First up was Amanda Harrington, former office manager, anti-tethering activist, and member of an animal welfare advisory board.  She is now the North Carolina State Director for the HSUS and, like most HSUS spokepeople, seems to know very little about dog behaviour or dog breeding.

Wow, I guess a lot of people owe me a lot of money for all the dogs I've adopted that needed rehabilitation training.  We all know that 8-week-old puppies need a lot of rehab.  Way to scare the rubes, Amanda, using big numbers like that.  Did they all touch their wallets when you dropped that bombshell?  This kind of begs the question, though:  How much does it cost to rehab somebody from the Dr Phil show, if it costs almost 200 grand to rehab a dog?

 

Then we get into the fun part, where HSUS people, as usual, show that they really know their stuff.

       

AARRRGGHHH!!!  I can't take it anymore! Make it stop!  It isn't frickin' euthanasia when you are destroying healthy animals.  It's killing.  Face it HSUS/Peta/Shelter euphemizers, that's what you are doing - in record numbers.

But wait, there's more:

Ooh, I bet they touched their wallets that time.  The old 'hit 'em with liability' trick, eh?  You know that liability is the one thing that keeps government lackeys up at night, don't you?

There's an HSUS double-whammy here because what this bird is really saying is that nobody should try to place a dog into a new home through a city facility.  Because, you know, a few years might pass and the dog might 'do something' and the city will be left wearing a barrel and suspenders, I tell you what.

Quelle cruche de merde.  Yes, you heard me, merde.  I'm surprised the judge didn't call it as he obviously saw it.  He was probably trying to appear objective while being slimed with a bucketful of vintage HSUS being hurled in his general direction by these witnesses.

Next up is former animal control officer Chris Schindler (oh, the irony) who wants to make it clear that he knows dogs:

Yesbiscuit! has more.

You believe that there really are 4.7 million dog bites in the US every year.

You believe that somebody is actually counting dog bites.

You think that bites by dogs are always a big deal.

You think that if a dog of a particular breed (or shape) bites someone, then all dogs of that breed (or shape) will bite someone.

You believe there are dangerous breeds, rather than dangerous dogs created by dangerous owners.

You believe there are safe or friendly breeds.

You believe that mutts that look vaguely like a purebred are the same thing as a purebred.

You believe that shelter staff, veterinarians and animal control personnel can accurately identify the breeds in a mutt's ancestry.

You believe that there is a breed named 'pit bull'.

You believe that Golden retrievers and other popular breeds don't bite, attack or kill.

You believe that banning a breed is logical, fair and an effective way to stop dog bites.

You believe that the breeds hyped in news reports bite, attack and kill more often than other breeds do.

You believe that the breed names appearing in news reports are determined by experts who verify purebred identification and registration information before media report (and report, and report, and report) the story.

You think there is a pet overpopulation problem.

You think that legislating the neutering of dogs will stop shelter killing.

You think dogs can be 'bred to fight'.

You think 'fighting dogs' are dangerous as housepets.

You believe that dogfighting (and other cruelty to dogs) is widespread.

You believe that only marginal people own media darlings such as 'pit bulls', 'rottweilers' and 'mastiffs'.

You believe that alleged 'pit bulls' are easily identified by neighbours, bystanders, media reporters and animal control personnel, even though the term applies to 3 - 5 core breeds, over two dozen lookalike breeds and an unknown number of mongrels.

You believe that breed differences are hard-wired and more significant than individual personality differences among dogs.

You believe that so-called 'pit bulls' do more damage when they attack, have superior strength, more powerful jaws than other dogs and are not only unpredictable but also impossible to control if they are intent on doing something.

You believe that 'pit bulls' are in shelters because of overbreeding and overpopulation rather than legislation designed to put them there.

You think the HSUS is a humane society and that Peta cares about animal welfare.

If you believe any or all of these points you have a couple of options.

1.  Get your information from reliable sources - not mass media reports or groups with an agenda geared towards eliminating pet ownership or filling their coffers.
2.  Zip it and let the people who know what's what discuss issues around the problems caused by incompetent dog owners because seriously, you're not f$#%@ing helping.

Peta is keeping it really creepy.  The 2008 numbers are out and as usual they are grim.

In 2008, Peta killed 95% of adoptable pets that were unfortunate enough to end up (literally) at the cult's headquarters.

I can't wait to hear how Ingrid's lobotomized flying monkeys rationalize this year's numbers.

CCF has the details here.

Tip of the hat to KC Dog Blog; commentary here.

Terrierman rips Peta to shreds here.

Nathan Winograd takes no prisoners in his post, The Butcher of Norfolk.

Gee, I don't turn on my computer for a couple of days and miss the whole thing.