PIT BULLS & THE “DOG BITE EPIDEMIC” MYTH

• There is no dog bite epidemic.Reports to public health agencies of dog bites have declined significantly since the 1970’s, despite significant increases in both human and canine populations.Across the board, communities are safer than ever before.

• Dog bites are a societal problem that cannot be characterized apart from people.They result from problematic human behaviors that place people and animals at risk. Responsible dog ownership is the key to addressing public safety issues involving dogs.

• Intense focus on select and isolated incidents of serious dog bite injuries incites fear and hysteria. It is not a sound basis for making effective public policy. Such an approach prevents a useful understanding of the complexity of dog bite-related incidents, and ignores the benefits to society of positive human-canine bonds and responsible pet ownership.

• To reduce dog bites, expert recommendations have remained consistent since the 1960’s: dog-safety education,owner responsibility, detailed reporting, and enforcement of dangerous dog laws.The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Task Force details these proactive approaches in their report A Community Approach to Dog Bite Prevention.

• No dog bite study claiming to correlate dog biterelated injuries by breed – whether published recently or in earlier decades – can be considered valid or reliable because the reporting is based primarily on visual breed identification, a methodology which has been discredited by modern science.

• We all deserve to be safe in our communities.We all want fair, effective laws that are based on the best scientific evidence available.Animal and legal experts from the AVMA to the American Bar Association advocate for safe communities via breed neutral, responsible dog ownership.

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