With the exception of Fairfield, which still maintains its ban on pit bulls, other municipalities in the county follow the state’s 2012 version of dangerous and vicious dog laws where no particular breed is mentioned.
The death of a 7-month-old boy last week in Dayton from injuries inflicted by 4-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier, coupled with an attack of two pit bulls on June 4 in Cincinnati that left 6-year-old Zainabou Drame with critical injuries, raises questions again about the breed.
No doubt, pit bulls and mixed breeds with the pit bull’s traits are popular in Butler County, according to Deputy Dog Warden Supervisor Kurt Merbs.
“Eight out of 10 dogs I pick up are pit bulls,” he said.
But they are not the only breed on the county’s list of “dangerous dogs.”
By law, a dog is declared a nuisance if it tries to attack a person or approaches them in a menacing fashion. They get an upgrade to “dangerous dog” if they have bitten a person (unprovoked or when the person wasn’t trespassing) or killed another dog.
The “dangerous” classification requires the dog’s owner to pay an extra $50 license fee and obtain liability insurance. The dog must wear a special tag, which has a picture of a snarling dog with sharp teeth inscribed on it, be in a locked enclosure, on a leash when off the property and be spayed or neutered.
Currently, there are about 30 dogs on the dangerous list in Butler County, many of them pit bulls. The list also includes Rottweilers, shepherds, cattle dogs, golden retrievers, Chihuahuas, an English Mastiff and a shih tzu.
“If they have teeth, they will bite,” Merbs said. “But you can get bit by a Chihuahua and it will hurt. If you get bit by a pit bull, you will likely be in surgery.”
One of those on the dangerous list is Angel, a 12-inch daschund belonging to Carol and Corwin Bryant of Middletown. They raised Angel since she was a puppy and won’t give her up despite the expense.
The black-and-tan wiener dog once bit a child who was visiting the residence. The little girl apparently got too close to the dog’s face and Angel lashed out.
“She had never done anything like that,” Carol Bryant said, adding the parents of the child didn’t believe it was the dog’s fault. “But she had to go to the hospital and all. I understand, she (Angel) bit, so she has a history. That’s the way it is.”
The most serious classification of vicious dog requires a dog to kill or seriously injure a person, and usually results in the euthanization of the dog. Merbs said there are currently no dogs with that classification in the county.
Merbs and Meg Stephenson, executive director of Animal Friends Humane Society, both said they believe the current law is fair. But there are some downfalls.
“Dogs are getting a free bite,” Merbs said. “Because people don’t want to go to court. You mention going to court and they just ask you to talk to the dog’s owner about keeping the dog up.”
And then there are the hundreds of bites not reported.
“We would have a lot more in the list if all bites were reported, and people agreed to go to court to make a case against the dog,” Merbs said.
According to the Middletown Health Department, 84 dog bites were reported in that city in 2013; 74 bites in 2012; 77 bites in 2011; 79 bites in 2010 and 74 bites in 2009.
Stephenson said dog laws should address the owners, not the dog or any specific breed. But she acknowledged pit bulls do have a “very strong bite”
“People have created this breed and they are doing exactly what we created them to be. It is not fair to outlaw them for something we created,” Stephenson said.
Responsible dog ownership and socialization of all dogs to create happy, healthy and friendly pets is the key, she said.
“And making owners accountable for behavior, abuse and neglect,” Stephenson said.
In the city of Fairfield, pit bulls and American Staffordshire Terriers are banned and have been for about 15 years, according to city Animal Control Officer Chuck Geurin.
But he has no delusions — there are pit bulls living in Fairfield.
“It’s a constant battle,” Geurin said. “And we don’t go looking in people’s houses for pit bulls.”
Owners in Fairfield are given a chance to relocate the pit bull and most, Geurin said, indicate they are not aware of the ban.
He agreed that a dog’s behavior most often comes down to the owner.
“And I have met a lot of nice bit bulls, and it is true other breeds can be dangerous,” Geurin said. “But the pit bull just has so much power in the bite.”
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