A small town in Missouri, Sikeston, is outraged over the most recent round-up of all the Pit Bulls in the community. This story makes me sick! I can't believe that communities go to this extent to get rid of the breed. Dogster broke this story on Saturday, it is important and there is a way we can help. Please read below and help send the alert, especially if you live in Missouri.
The small southern Missouri town of Sikeston is outraged over a Pit Bull roundup that took place there earlier this week, according to Fox 2.
Under Sikeston's current breed-discriminatory ordinance, the city can
seize dogs that have no reports against them -- or might not even be
Pit Bulls, but just look like them.
Sikeston even seized dogs from families, including Yulonda
Mitchell’s. She said officers took her brother's dogs, which she
believed were Bulldogs.
"We did everything, you know, complied with the city ordinance, but they still wanted to remove the dogs,” she said.
Mitchell then told reporters that officers weren't doing anything
about all the stray dogs running around -- which, indeed, were running
around during her news segment -- because they don't fall under the
breed-discriminatory ordinance. And officers can't catch them.
“I said, 'why don't you guys get those dogs?' They say, 'Well, those dogs are just too smart for us. We can't catch 'em.'”
One woman, Holly Job, stopped officers from taking her Pit Bull, but
only after a fight.
According to Fox 2, "she complied with a long list
of regulations that only apply to Pit Bulls in Sikeston: put up a
‘beware of dog’ sign, get insurance, put a hard collar on the dog, take
multiple pictures, and so on."
Because the seized Pit Bulls faced immediate euthanasia, a local
shelter swung into action, shipping 35 shelter dogs away from Sikeston
to make room for the influx of Pit Bulls, allowing them to live, for
now.
SEMO Animal Rescue Alliance and Paws New England took in dogs, as did
other private rescue groups. A day before the roundup, Five Acres
Animal Shelter in St. Charles went up to Sikeston and took in a "bunch"
of dogs, which will soon be available for adoption, according to its Facebook page.
In response to the roundup, Best Friends Animal Society created an action alert to allow people to easily send letters to Sikeston City Council members and the mayor asking them to repeal the ordinance.
The alert reads:
I urge you to repeal your breed-discriminatory ordinance, as
Wentzville, Chesterfield, Town and Country and Manchester have recently
done.
We all want safe and humane communities. People should be
protected against all dangerous dogs, but seizure of a dog should be
based on the dog’s behavior, not its appearance. Reckless owners should
be prohibited from owning any dog.
I hope you will reunite the seized pets with their families.
The current policy is a waste of tax dollars and infringes on citizens’ property rights.
If you'd like to send this alert, please visit the page. Include your personal information and hit send.
