Pit bull facts to be focus of event

A family-friendly event to educate and dispel myths about pit bull terriers is scheduled for Saturday at Veterans Park, 1875 S. Boulder Ave. (Sept. 12, 2009)

"Pit bulls are great dogs that are victimized by our society," said Jean Letcher, the manager of Tulsa's Animal Welfare Shelter. The day of awareness and appreciation for pit bulls is sponsored by the shelter, Green Country American Pit Bull Terrier Club and a local breed rescue and education association. The hours for the free event will be 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dogs should be left at home. The goal is to educate the community about pit bulls and "how to be a responsible dog owner, whether your favorite breed is a retriever, a chihuahua or a pit bull terrier," Letcher said. Pit bulls and pit bull mixes represent 25 percent of all the dogs in the shelter but only 5 percent of the dogs adopted, she said.

Molly Gibb is scheduled to appear at the event with her dog, Alf, who was among the dogs rescued from the property of Michael Vick, an NFL quarterback who spent 18 months in federal custody for his role in running a dogfighting ring. He was released July 20.

Bill Stauss, the author of "Billy's World," is also expected to attend. His book is an uplifting story about Billy, a pit bull terrier who was rescued from a dogfighting operation, and Rick, his owner.

Laura Morris, the owner of Club K9 Training, will be on hand to demonstrate dog training techniques and to talk about "understanding your dog." Morris
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has 30 years of dog training experience, specializing in developing appropriate relationships between pets and owners. She is a veteran trainer for Tulsa's Dog Training Club and is affiliated with several rescue and animal welfare groups in the area. Animal advocates maintain that no reputable study has found any breed of dog to be inherently dangerous and cite irresponsible dog ownership as the root of problematic dogs in society, Morris said.

P.J. Lassek 581-8382 pj.lassek@tulsaworld.com

There have been several comments to this article, most showing the total lack of knowledge among most of the public about the "bully breeds". My response to some of these comments is as follows:

First of all, I would like to thank P. J. Lassek for the informative article on the Pit Bull education day to be held on Saturday, September 12. Some of the comments by the readers have shown a lack of understanding about the bully breeds. There is no such breed as a “pit bull.” The term is but a coarse reminder of the pits in which noble dogs of Bulldog and Bull-and Terrier blood, in addition to other Mastiff descendents, are forced to fight. Regrettably, the “P” word was wedged into the official denomination of one of the popular breeds, the American “Pit” Bull Terrier. This breed is as docile and eager to please as the other bully breeds, and also as maligned and discriminated against.

For the commenter who said the breed is “dumb,” these breeds are considered to be among the most intelligent. Their jaw strength is less than the German Shepherd or the Rottweiler. The American Temperament Testing Society give them a better than passing grade at 83.9%. This is better than miniature poodles (76.6%), beagles (80.3%) and collies (79.4%).

If you will make an effort to come to this event on September 12, you will find a Myth vs. Fact sheet that will inform you about how these breeds were the most popular in American at the beginning of the 1900’s when they were known as America’s Dog. Farm families called their bully breeds the Nurse Maid Dog because of the loyalty in protecting their young children when the parents had to work in the field. The dog breed has not changed. Unfortunately another element of our society has changed. You need to come to this event to learn what this group of sad individuals is doing to these dogs. They make Michael Vick look like a Sunday school teacher.

Bill Stauss, author of "Billy's World"