Banning Certain Dogs

There's been quite a bit of talk about banning pit bulls and other "vicious" dogs in my city (Wichita, Kansas) and so I thought I'd talk a little bit about it and give my opinion. I do not believe any dog should be banned just because it is a certain breed. A pit bull becomes vicious when an irresponsible and inexperienced owner doesn't train and socialize it properly as a puppy. There are so many irresponsible owners that don's raise their puppies properly and it has become a public safety issue. I'll agree that some kind of action needs to be taken when police are out constantly shooting these dogs just to protect themselves and others. However, I don't believe a breed ban is the answer.

It's not just pit bulls that suffer from poor ownership. There are plenty of people that get puppies or even kittens because they are so darn cute. But when these pets outgrow their cuteness, they get less attention and neglected. Some dogs develop aggression, some do not. Don't blame the dogs, blame the owner. I think they should have a required class of some sort before pet owners get certain pets. I'm sure the Kansas Humane Society could set something up at a reasonable cost. And in my opinion, if you can't afford the class, then you can't afford the proper care of the pet.

Dogs turn out to be mean because people make them that way. If you treat them with respect and love, they will love you back. However, never under any circumstances leave your children alone with one, no matter the breed. Dogs are not humans. They may not understand that a 2 year old tugging on it's tail is just the child playing and they could snap. In the same sense the two year old probably doesn't understand that the dog doesn't like its tail being yanked. Both need to be taught.

Basically this whole thing boils down to the fact that the City needs to do something about the animal abusers instead of banning the animal. Kansas recently passed a law making animal cruelty a felony. They need to do a better job enforcing it.

This is just my personal opinion of the whole situation. What are your thoughts?