Controlling dangerous dogsThis letter was sent to Minister of the Environment, Marc Bean, and was copied to The Royal Gazette.May 15 2012Dear Mr Bean,Last Saturday, May 12, our 13-year-old pet dog was viciously savaged by a stray pit bull that had wandered onto our property in an unprovoked, frenzied attack. Our dog required immediate veterinary attention, having sustained damage to its jaw, a broken tooth, and required 15 stitches to the area of her neck and chest, following the attack.I was therefore completely shocked to see you on ZBM news last evening, stating that you are considering relaxing the present legislation, whereby certain breeds of dog, such as pit bull, would no longer be included on the ‘banned or restricted’ list. Your justification for the change in the present law was that having been provided with more recent information, your belief was that there was no further need to maintain the pit bull breed of dog on the banned or restricted list.Perhaps you could share with me this recent information or data that has prompted you to reconsider the present list of banned or restricted dogs. By removing the pit bull breed of dog from the list, you would be reversing the decision of one of your predecessors, Dennis Lister, who had placed the pit bull breed on the banned or restricted list in July 2003. In your deliberations, did you invite or consider input from the Canine Advisory Committee, the SPCA, the dog wardens or the Veterinary Association? If so, did they concur with your present thought process to change the law?Your decision to consider relaxing the legislation surrounding pit bulls would seem to be inconsistent with recent evidence and information that exists in other parts of the world. The ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) still rates the pit bull as the number one most dangerous dog breeds. Two recent examples, occurring in the US illustrate how dangerous these dogs can be — in August 2011 a pregnant woman was mauled to death by a pit bull and, in May 2012, a family pit bull mauled two toddlers. You also need only refer to previous articles in the Bermuda press during the past few years to find examples of where pit bulls have mauled/savaged pets or humans in unprovoked attacks.Published in the UK press today, the Sentencing Council has introduced tougher punishments for dog owners whose pets harm others. Owners can be sentenced for at least six months in jail, which can extend to 18 months for the more serious offences, such as repeated attacks or where the victim is a child or elderly. The introduction of this legislation follows a rise in the convictions for dangerous dog offences — a 39 percent increase in the number of people sentenced for dangerous dog crimes between 2009 and 2010.Minister, given the foregoing, I would urge you to reconsider your position in reviewing the current legislation and allow the banned or restricted list to remain unchanged. It is clear that both the ASPCA and the UK authorities believe certain breeds of dog are considered dangerous — pit bulls fall within that category.Yours sincerely,RICHARD M KEANE,Harbour Road,Warwick