[mathilda]

we had BSL removed in a few states in Germany there were neither less nor more cases of SoKas acting aggressive towards humans or other dogs.
It's good for the shelters though at my local shelter 2/3 of the dogs there are part bully breed and people won't adopt them out when they pay 3 times as much for taxes than other companion breeds every month.
the BSL only hits the good owners that care. the owners that don't care to train their dog and pass the dog-leadership test often also don't register their dog and don't pay taxes. :I
laws are awesome, but informing people is much better.
not only on the dog owner side, but but also informing people without a dog, how they can help themself and prevent situations from excalating. a running child is much more likely to make a dogs chasing drive kick in, than a child acting calmer.

 

[mathilda]

One thing that I think people neglect to acknowledge about BSL is that 80% of the time, being born a pitbull is a death sentence even WITHOUT BSL. They are, as I like to call them, the most popular puppies and the least popular adults. Shelters are crawling with pitties who got ditched as soon as they got too big, too strong and too exhuberant-- as soon as they no longer made their owner look 'cool'. They say that to walk into a shelter as a pittie is pretty much lethal.

I don't agree that they are monsters, but I do agree that they are more dog than most can handle. I don't believe it's "all in how you raise them". They are not bred to be mellow, biddable, tolerate-anything spaniels. They are terriers and can manifest all the traits that come with the territory: They are iffy with dogs, kids and small animals and can be energetic and even a bit temperamental.

Your question really hits home with me today as I got the news that a bully mix I had been helping to train was put down for "snapping at a child". Take that for what you will. I don't know the whole story yet, but I can't help but wonder if the story would not have ended so badly, had the dog been homed with a family that didn't have a small kid. IMO not a good fit for:

a) A dog not raised around kids (she was a rescue).
b) A terrier, a breed known to be on the mouthier, nippier side of the spectrum.

I don't know that a ban would really solve all problems, but I really wish bullies were less popular than they are. They are not bad dogs, some of them even make fantastic family pets (Thinking here of @MRSbullies' girl who 'mothered' a guinea pig) but I think they require a special type of owner that is prepared for every possibility about owning a 60 lb terrier.

@MrsCunningham WOW that's crazy legislation. I can't imagine that much can be done bylaw-wise if owners decide to let their dog run loose in the home, so long as nobody reports it. Still, that sounds like a crappy life for a dog. I'm surprised they wouldn't just ban them outright rather than stipulating that any animal spend most of their waking hours in a kennel.

I'm sorry for the dog. It's sad that dogs get killed for being brought to the wrong fmaily, because the new owner didn't do their home work researching.

I think this post tells everything.
Dogs aren't monsters, but there are a lot of dog breeds bred for one specific job and as awesome good they are at these specific tasks, their abilities to perform like that makes them a unfitting match for the typical 0815-dogowner.
It's a fact, that some breeds have special requirements to their owner and their new home and it has not only to do with how you raise thre individual dog.
Some breeds come with being prone to same-species aggression, some come with prey or protection drive... if you the new owner doesn't specifically state they know the risk and they can work with a certain behaviour or even want it, I'm all for discouraging people to own that kind of breed.
not only with SoKas but also with other breeds like JRTs for example.
I've seen so many fat, sad, badly behaving, neurotic JRTs. ;n;