Staffordshire Terrier Club of America - Legislative Committee

After an unfortunate, but vague run in between a pit bull and a police officer, the town of Hope Mills, North Carolina is proposing to ban all “vicious dogs” from the city limits. So far as I can tell, the definition of vicious simply means that the dog is a Pit Bull, a Rottweiller, or a Doberman. One commissioner, by the name of Collins, went so far as to go on record saying,  “Through all my years of law enforcement, pits, Doberman and Rottweilers have been the most vicious …I’m concerned about the public safety and the citizens.”  Hope Mills’ Commissioner Maynor said, “I think we need to do whatever it takes…If it’s banning them within the city, then so be it.”

While there is no breed specific wording yet in the written legislation, NC residents would do well to take a proactive approach towards this situation.  The Legislative Liasions for the NC region will be sending a letter containing both the STCA’s position on BSL and some proposals to help Hope Mills better deal with the owners of dangerous dogs of any breed.

Hope Mills city officials can be reached as follows:

Mayor Eddie Dees
Mayor Pro Tempore Robert Gorman
Commissioner Tonzie Collins
Commissioner Eddie Maynor
Commissioner Doris Luther
Commissioner Jackie Warner

Town of Hope Mills
PO Box 367
5770 Rockfish Road
Hope Mills, NC 28348

Main Phone Number: 910-424-4555
Central Fax Number: 910-424-4902

Office Hours: 8 am to 5 pm Monday thru Friday

The Durham County Board of Commissioners held a public hearing to discuss the proposed anti-tether ordinance at 7:00pm on 8/25/2008. STCA Region 3 Legislative Liaisons Kristin Tresidder and Al Bincarousky attended the meeting to speak in support of the current legislation which already addresses the animal cruelty issues possible with any means of animal confinement.

Of the seventy four speakers at the meeting, sixty seven were in support and seven against, including private citizens, representatives of the North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners Alliance, the Cape Fear APBT club, and the STCA.  The seven speakers who were against the ordinance and in support of responsible animal confinement, be it in kennels or on tethers, were often subjected to derisive heckling and veiled threats by the proponents of the tethering ban and kennel size restrictions.

Those in favor of the ban relied almost solely on anecdotal evidence and personal grievances against neighbors to bolster their case, while those against were able to offer scientific studies and existing laws with subsequent penalties as evidence that the new ordinance banning tethering was unnecessary and would not be more effective than the current statutes.

In retrospect, it would have been useful to speak at greater length about the impracticalities of the kenneling size restrictions, as that is being largely ignored by proponents of the ban, as well as those who are against it.  Many more people keep their dogs in kennels than on runs, and it is doubtful that all of them meet the minimum size requirements proposed in the new ordinance.  If this law passes, the use of a 5′x10′ kennel will become a crime in Durham County, no matter how small the dog it contains, and that could be an eye opener for many who thought that they were in simply favor of ‘unchaining the dogs.’

The American Kennel Club (AKC) has announced that they will officially be joining
Karen R. Breslin of the Progressive Law Center, LLC of Lakewood,
Colorado and the Washington D.C. office of Kaye Scholer LLP in
representing dog-owning plaintiffs Sonya Dias and others who are
asserting that the Denver ordinance banning pit bulls within the city
limits is unconstitutional.

The Denver ordinance bans ownership or possession of the Staffordshire
Bull Terrier, the American Staffordshire Bull Terrier and the American
Pit Bull Terrier and/or any dog with a majority of physical traits of
one or more of these breeds within the city or county of Denver. Since
2005, as a result of this ordinance, several hundred dogs within the
city limits had been euthanized.

The AKC’s position statement on BSL reads as follows:

“The AKC supports reasonable, enforceable, non-discriminatory laws to
govern the ownership of dogs and that dog owners should be
responsible for their dogs. We support laws that: establish a fair
process by which specific dogs are identified as “dangerous” based on
stated, measurable actions; impose appropriate penalties on
irresponsible owners; and establish a well-defined method for dealing
with dogs proven to be dangerous. We believe that, if necessary, dogs
proven to be “dangerous” may need to be humanely destroyed. The AKC
strongly opposes any legislation that determines a dog to be “dangerous”
based on specific breeds or phenotypic classes of dogs.”

Please send your support for their decision to fight BSL in Denver to the AKC!

On August 25th, the Durham County Board of Commissioners will hear both supporters and opponents of a proposed tethering ordinance. Amongst other things, the ordinance would completely ban tethering a dog while unattended, for any length of time, and mandate certain square footages for kennel dogs: ie a dog twenty pounds or less would have to be kenneled in an enclosure off at least one hundred square feet, or a 10′x10′ kennel. Any dog over twenty pounds would require two hundred square feet, or a 10′x20′ kennel.

The following is a copy of the letter sent by the Region 3 STCA Legislative Liaisons to the five County Commisioners:

The Staffordshire Terrier Club of America opposes any and all legislation limiting the rights of dog owners to keep dogs in a responsible manner, including anti-tether legislation. Where there are already laws in place dealing with neglect and animal cruelty, there is no need for further legislation to address the same issues.

The Durham County Animal Cruelty code currently in place states:
“It is not considered animal cruelty to house an animal outdoors. However, all animals must be provided adequate food, a constant supply of clean, fresh water and adequate shelter from the weather at all times.

Animals that are tethered outdoors are required to have no less than 10 feet of chain with swivels on both ends and are to be tethered in such a manner that the animal cannot become entangled. A chain or tether cannot exceed 10% of the animals body weight. A chain cannot be used as a primary collar. For the purpose of chaining or tethering a collar must be made of nylon or leather

It is unlawful to allow a collar, rope or chain to become embedded in or cause injury to an animal’s neck. It is important to monitor a growing animal’s collar for the necessity of adjustment. It is also unlawful to use a choke or pinch collar to be used as a primary collar when the animal is left unsupervised.”
http://www.durhamcountync.gov/departments/anml/Animal_Cruelty.html
Considering that it is entirely possible to tether a dog and meet all of the stated requirements above, it is contradictory to define tethering in and of itself an act of cruelty. Dogs tethered in a manor inconsistent with existing laws are already protected under said laws. We support the laws as they stand now and fully condone continued efforts to enforce them against those that choose not to comply. Those dog owners who keep their dogs responsibly on tethers, meeting all the requirements of the law, should not be penalized for the negligent actions of those who choose not to abide by the law.

Please add your voice by either coming out to the meeting at 7:00pm on August 25th, or by writing, emailing, or calling the following Durham County Commissioners:

Ellen W. Reckhow
Chairman
E-mail: ereckhow@aol.com
Mailing Address:
11 Pine Top Place
Durham, NC 27705
Phone Numbers:
(919) 383-3883 (H)
(919) 383-3833 (Fax)

Michael D. Page
Vice Chairman
E-mail: mpage@durhamcountync.gov
Mailing Address:
702 Basil Drive
Durham, NC 27713
Phone Numbers:
(919) 361-2146 (H)
(919) 699-3299 (C)
(919) 806-0866 (Fax)

Lewis A. Cheek
E-mail: lewis_cheek@nc.rr.com
Mailing Address:
5105 Copper Ridge Drive, #308
Durham, NC 27707
Phone Numbers:
(919) 401-8538 (Fax)

Philip R Cousin, Jr.
E-mail: prcousin@earthlink.net
Mailing Address:
509 Wellingham Drive
Durham, NC 27713
Phone Numbers:
(919) 683-1379 (W)
(919) 572-2257 (H)
(919) 572-9161 (Fax)

Becky M Heron
E-mail: bmheron@durhamcountync.gov
Mailing Address:
4425 Kerley Road
Durham, NC 27705
Phone Numbers:
(919) 489-4402 (H)
(919) 419-1398 (Fax)

A picture can say a thousand words…and help fight legislation at the same time!

The new and improved STCA Legislative Committee has found a new way to allow you to “showcase” your wonderful Staf with everyone in attendance at the banquet! The slide show will also be available on CD for purchase during the Club Banquet.

For a donation, your AST can be seen on the “Big Screen” during our National Club Banquet. Your donations will go to help build our club’s Legislative Defense Fund, with proceeds earmarked to help various clubs around the country defray the costs of battling crippling BSL and various other laws and lawsuits aimed at making owning our breed, or purebred dogs in general a thing of the past.

For the full specifics on this fundraiser please check out the page below.

2008 National Specialty Legislative Committee Fundraiser

Also make sure to check out the new region specific legislative pages by clicking your appropriate region on the map found on our STCA Legislative Zones page.

The Legislative Committee and the STCA thank you for your support!