Pit Bulls, something to ponder

[RFB]

Something to ponder in the debate over whether Pit Bulls should be banned.

“They are not large dogs, but they have an enormous power-to-weight ratio. Their jaw strength is far greater than any other dog.
A Rottweiler will exert 800 pounds-per-square-inch jaw pressure and a Bull Terrier will exert 1200psi. A Pit Bull will exert more than 2000 psi.
You can have savage Labradors and savage Chihuahuas, but none of them has the potential to maim & kill that a pit bull does.
42% of all dog related deaths in the US are from Pit Bulls - & they constitute 1% of all dogs. 70% of those deaths were children. “

It’s nice to think, that in an ideal world everyone would train their dogs properly , and act responsibly when selling the animals they have bred. Unfortunately this doesn’t happen in the real world. Too often Pit Bulls end up in the wrong hands and that’s when the problems start to occur.

So what do we do? Regulating the sale of animals to qualified candidates would be the ideal solution, but in reality, who’s going to enforce such a program. Government at all levels is overwhelmed this days and I can’t see the political will to set aside the money and resources that such an act would entail.

Everyone always says that the key to alleviating the problem is to educate the public, but once again who pays for this and maintains it. It’s just not going to happen. And education even with the best intentions has never really solved anything. Look at the AIDS epedemic. We’ve been educating people for years about the potential dangers and it hasn’t made a huge difference. And what about gun education? It doesn’t work in the states and the only reason we’ve managed to avoid the same trap is that we ban handguns and assault weapons.

Pit Bulls are beautiful animals. But the potential for abuse is too high. People will never modify their ways enough to make a real difference. Most things in life, when used properly, are harmless. Handguns if correctly maintained and used, cause no problems. But the potential for abuse is too high so we ban them. I think the same can be said for Pit Bulls. In the right hands and in the right environment, they are fantastic animals. The problem is they don’t end up in the right hands often enough. Since that’s the case, an outright ban is the only solution.