BY: SAMANTHA BARTLETT, DVM

Missouri lawmakers considered a bill that would bar local governments from banning specific breeds of dog.  Rep. David Gregory sponsored the bill, known as HB 365 that states only the Legislature can make rules regulating dogs based on their breeds. The bill would still allow local government to make rules to control or regulate dogs, but would draw the line at restrictions based on breed alone. For example, restrictions applying to vicious dogs could still be implemented, but the term vicious would have to be fully defined by behavior and not by breed. Representative Gregory sponsored a similar bill last year that was preliminarily approved by the house, but never finalized to the Senate. 

Arguments supporting the bill focus on the ability of any dog to bite and injure. Arguments against the bill bring up the statistics within specific localities of injuries related to specific breeds as well as the incidence of illegal activities associated with specific breeds.  The AVMA stance is that it is opposed to breed specific legislations in general. The AVMA argues that breed-specific legislation (BSL) is not a reliable method for preventing dog bites. According to the AVMA BSL can be difficult to enforce with dogs of unknown or mixed lineage, can unfairly penalize responsible dog owners, and do not address the importance of responsible pet ownership. Instead, the AVMA recommends a multi-faced approach to reducing dog bites and improving community safety. This includes enforcing non-breed specific dangerous/vicious dog laws and emphasizing chronically irresponsible owner behaviors, enforcement of leash laws and other animal control ordinances by animal care and control officers, prohibition of dog fighting, encouraging neutering for dogs not intended for breeding and education programs that teach pet care and responsibility as well as bite prevention.