"Paws Up" Wentzville!

From: Phoenix Pack

REPEAL ALERT!    Wentzville, Missouri The Board of Aldermen has directed the police chief to work with attorneys to draft  new animal control ordinances that emphasize owner responsibility and eliminate the breed specific language that targets pit bulls.  The draft will be presented at the January 25, 2012 meeting. Kudos to the Wentzville city officials for acknowledging that statistics and knowledge about "pit bulls" and breed bans have changed since the city passed its original ordinance, and for being open to the information offered to them by residents. While this is not a "done deal" until the final vote, still a great job was done by all those who have attended the board meetings in Wentzville and offered their assistance and suggestions in helping the city reach what looks to be a very promising ordinance! Wentzville currently requires pit bulls be kept indoors or enclosed in locked pens or kennels with roofs.  Current laws also require that pit bulls be muzzled at all times when outdoors.  It is possible that the new laws would repeal this muzzle requirement. The new laws focus on requiring owners to maintain control of their dogs at all times, rather than requiring them to build specific structures and fences. Veterinarian Mark Lucas, owner of the Animal Talk Medical Center in Wentzville, is contracted to handle rabies control and bite cases for Wentzville and O'Fallon, MO.  Lucas said pit bulls were responsible for just three of 19 bites cases his office has handled during the last year in both cities. "Small breeds like Chihuahuas are more aggressive and inflict more damage than pit bulls and other large dogs", Lucas said.  "Instead of regulating the breed, ordinances should regulate the way owners treat their animals," he said. Alderman Rick Stokes said the most serious recent animal attack in Wentzville happened earlier this year when a big, black dog bit a girl on the cheek, requiring her to have plastic surgery.  "The dog was not a pit bull." Stokes said. "So our ordinances did not help that girl at all," Stokes said.  "We all agree that we need to make changes.  We need more owner responsibility, not breed-specific ordinances."