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The more I see of the representatives of the people,
the more I admire my dogs.
- Alphonse de Lamartine
I just received word the Senator Doug Jackson ( sen.doug.jackson@legislature.state.tn.us) is proposing amending the vicious dog laws in Tennessee to make irresponsible owners more liable for the actions of their
dogs. All I have to say is IT'S ABOUT TIME!!!
SB0139 Increases punishment for the offense of owning a dog running at large and provides staggered punishments for such offense
depending upon the amount of damage or injury to another caused by the dog at large.
SB0140 Enhances the punishment for the offense of dog running at large if the dog was trained to fight, attack or kill, had a prior
history of biting people, or the owner knew of the dangerous nature of the dog.
SB0141 Increases from Class C to Class A misdemeanor the punishment for the offense of being present as a spectator at an animal
fight.
SB0142 Creates Class E felony offense of failing to take all available means to terminate a dog attack on another and a Class A
misdemeanor offense of failing to take all available means to terminate a justified dog attack on another once the threat
no longer exists.
SB0143 Imposes liability upon owner of a dog that causes injury to another regardless of whether the dog had any past propensity
for viciousness or whether the owner had knowledge of the dog's viciousness.
Please contact him in support of this proposal, but be sure to mention that you are supporting making owners more responsible
and thank him for not mentioning BSL.
5/30/06
Due to a lack of time, I will no longer be updating this site. I will leave the content up for the time being. For more
information on how to fight BSL in your community, please visit Jodi Preis's web-sites at Bless The Bullys and Defending Dog.
COLORED BULL TERRIER WINS BEST IN SHOW AT WESTMINSTER!!!!
Hopefully this will garner some positive press for bully breeds everywhere! Rufus is supposed to be on a ton of talk and
new shows over the next few days! Yippee!!!
Here is a link to the official Westminster Kennel Club web-site.
Here is a link to the AP story on Yahoo News.
As of today, February 2, 2006, there has been no activity on the part of the ad hoc committee on animal control issues. At
this point, it seems to be defunct. Hopefully the commission will still take some sort of action to improve the effectiveness
of animal control in the county and impose tougher sanctions on irresponisble dog owners.
Since this seems to be the case, and due to other family and personal obligations, I can't devote the kind of time to this
site that I could a few months ago, as some of the people who visit regularly have probably noticed. I will still be on the
lookout for proposed BSL in my area, but there are others vastly more dedicated and knowledgeable about this fight than me.
Jodi Preis with Bless the Bullys in Cookeville is actively working on a campaign to target irresponsible owners in our respective communities. I encourage
you to visit her web-site for more information. Below is part of an e-mail I received from her recently. I urge each of
you to join (IT'S FREE!!!!) and send her pictures of your family and your bully at jodi_preis@yahoo.com.
Leisa brought up the idea of issuing press releases on behalf of responsible pit bull owners that would encourage authorities
to bring criminal charges against the irresponsible owners of dogs involved in attacks. Everyone was very responsive to the
idea with the hope that it might somehow draw a distinguishing line between the people who make a conscience effort to be
responsible and the people who simply don't care. The plain and simple truth is that across the country, pit bull owners
are lumped into the same negative group, and we are losing our rights to own these incredible dogs due to the careless actions
of others!
So... in keeping with the theme of making 2006 the year responsible pit bull owners take a stand against those irresponsible
owners, I just put the finishing touches on a project I've been working on. I invite everyone to check it out on my website:
www.blessthebullys.com/id56.html
I would really love for responsible Tennessee bully owners to join and take a stand for responsible ownership. All I need
for membership is a picture of you with your bully. I have not set up the member page because, right now, its only me, and
I'm LONELY...!!
Actually, my true hope is that bully owners in other states will set up the same type of virtual "organization." Although
right now it is a means to make our collective voices heard, it could possibly expand into activitieas and network opportunities
for responsible pit bull owners to meet and share ideas. By doing this, pit bull owners across the country can present a
united front to encourage the pursuit and education of irresponsible owners as opposed to banning innocent dogs.
Anyone in another state who wants to use my format, please feel free to do so. Who knows, you may even have a better idea
than me, and I can use your format!! :-)
Please check it out, and please pass this message on to responsible Tennessee pit bull owners who might be interested.
Jodi
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"Animal control legislation has traditionally been considered a constitutionally legitimate exercise of local government
power to protect public safety and welfare. Breed-specific ordinances, however, raise constitutional questions concerning
dog owners' fourteenth amendment rights of due process and equal protection. When a specific breed of dog is selected for
control, 2 constitutional questions are raised: first, because all types of dogs may inflict injury to people and property,
ordinances addressing only 1 breed of dog appear to be underinclusive and, therefore, violate owners' equal protection rights;
and second, because identification of a dog's breed with the certainty necessary to impose sanctions on the dog's owner is
impossible, such ordinances have been considered unconstitutionally vague, and therefore, to violate due process."
- excerpted from "A Community Approach to Dog Bite Prevention" by the American Veterinary Medical Association Task
Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interactions - printed in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association,
Vol 218, No. 11, June 1, 2001.
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What's New?
02/02/06 - Added information for Bless the Bullys and Jodi's responsible owners campaign. Removed petition form
and old information regarding Sumner County.
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| Bo at 10 months |
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