AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION EDUCATION AND LEGISLATION WEBSITE

THIS WEBSITE IS NO LONGER ACTIVE, GO TO THE URL BELOW FOR THE AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION

americancaninefoudationlaw.com

Welcome to the American Canine Foundation ! The contents on this website may not be copied without permission from ACF.

THE AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION BELIEVES EDUCATION IS NEEDED TO HELP REDUCE IRRESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERSHIP.

IN OUR COUNTRY 5 MILLION PEOPLE ARE BITTEN AND MAULED BY DOGS OF ALL BREEDS EACH YEAR, 70% ARE YOUNG CHILDREN. THERE ARE 52 MILLION CANINES ESTIMATED TO RESIDE IN AMERICA, 2.5 MILLION CANINES END UP IN SHELTERS EACH YEAR AND 5 MILLION PEOPLE ARE BITTEN BY DOGS BECAUSE OF IRRESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS WHO LACK EDUCATION ON CANINE BEHAVIOR.

ACF HAS CANINE BEHAVIOR CONSULTANTS AVAILABLE 24HRS A DAY !

DO YOU WANT TO AID IN STOPPING IRRESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS, DO YOU WANT TO AID IN EDUCATION AND EFFECTIVE LEGISLATION TO PROTECT THE PUBLIC AND INNOCENT DOGS FROM BEING VICTIMS OF IRRESPONSIBLE DOG OWNERS ? DONATE TO ACF NOW !!!!!!! DONATIONS CAN BE SENT TO PAYPAL AT Legislation2003@hotmail.com or ACF 23969 NE STATE RTE 3 SUITE G101 BELFAIR WA. 98528

The American Canine Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 2001 (formerly Washington Animal Foundation) to stop irresponsible dog ownership and abuse to canines. To protect dog owners rights and to promote responsible dog ownership through education and legislation. The Foundation also litigates cases involving canines in the courts of the United States of America.

For assistance if your rights have been violated or your city is planning on passing breed specific legislation contact ACF directly at 360 277 DOGS ACF has represenatatives in many states and if you are interested in become a representative contact legislation2003@hotmail.com

ACF has drafts of dangerous dog legislation available if your city is having problems regulating and controling dangerous dogs. ACF has consultants with PhD's and Veterinarians available to assist with canine behavior problems. ACF has a staff of lawyers for assistance throughout the United States. ACF also has a complete canine education program available that teaches children and adults dog bite prevention and responsible dog ownership.

ACF SUPPORTS STRONG PENALTIES FOR DANGEROUS DOGS LAWS THAT HOLD OWNERS ACCOUNTABLE. BREED BANS ARE UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND BASED ON FLAWED AND ERRONEOUS DATA WHICH HAS CAUSED LAWSUITS TO BE FILED AGAINST SEVERAL CITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. SEVERAL LAWSUITS HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULL IN LAST 3 YEARS OVER LITIGATION INVOLVING CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS OF DOG OWNERS. THE COURTS HAVE RULED BREED BANS VIOLATE THE RIGHT TO BE HEARD.

JUNE 2006: ACF is preparing to fiole a federal complaint against Auburn Washington for breed specific legislation.

JUNE 2006 UPDATES: ACF Filed an ameded federal complaint in California naming Los Angeles, San Francisco and several individuals in state agencies. The lawsuit is over SB861 and local ordinances passed modeled after SB861.

JUNE 2006: ACF is filing a motion to lift a temporary stay placed on the Tellings case in Ohio. ACF is prepared to take the Tellings case to the United States Supreme Court. Both the trial court and the Sixth District Court of Appeals found American Pit Bull Terriers are not dangerous as a breed.

JUNE 2006: ACF is filing a federal lawsuit against Aurora Colorado for passing a breed ban and using manipulated data from Denver.

SUPPORT AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION

Thanks to the American Canine Foundation, its lawyer Sol Syndorf and the top-notch experts ACF hired, the city of Toledo can no longer infringe on the rights of dog owners based on the breed of dog they choose.

CONGRATULATIONS ACF FOR DEFEATING BSL IN TOLEDO!!!

Legal challenges to BSL are extremely difficult and expensive. There is no organization with more experience challenging these laws than ACF. Read the opinion that has been circulated and then ask yourself what other organization could put together a group of experts as qualified to challenge BSL.
I am not aware of any.

If anyone who receives this email wants to help fight BSL then donate to American Canine Foundation. I support and endorse American Canine Foundation completely.

Greg Kohler
Attorney at Law

NEWS BULLITEN !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OHIO COURT OF APPEALS RULES BSL UNCONSTITUTOINAL !!!

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060304/NEWS02/603040406/-1/NEWS

UPDATED MARCH 2006 !!!!!!!

THE CITY OF AUBURN WASHINGTON PASSED BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION NAMING 12 BREEDS OF DOGS AND ANYTHING RESEMBLING THEM AS POTENTIONALLY DANGEROUS IN LATE FEBRUARY 2006. THE AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION HAS FILED A CLAIM FOR 1 MILLION DOLLARS IN DAMAGES !!!!!!

http://www.kingcountyjournal.com/sited/story/html/231588

UPDATED MARCH 2006 !!!!!!!!!

THE AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION FILED A FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST LANETT ALABAMA IN JANUARY 2006 FOR PASSING BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION

UPDATED MARCH 2006 !!!!!

DENVER CITY ATTORNEY KORY NELSON CAN NOT DEFEND DENVERS BREED BAN.

ON JULY 6-7 2004 HOWARD MARGOLIUS WENT TO TRIAL IN DENVER FOR CHARGES OF VIOLATING DENVERS BREED BAN. ( MARGOLIUS V DENVER ) KORY NELSON REPRESENTED DENVER AND COULD NOT UPHOLD DENVERS BREED BAN AS SOUND LAW ! ACF HIRED ATTORNEY WALTER GERASH, AT TRIAL IS WAS PROVEN THAT DENVERS ANIMAL AGENCY COULD NOT IDENTIFY AN AMERICAN PIT BULL TERREIR BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT. CRIMINAL CHARGES WERE DISMISSED AGAINST MR MARGOLIUS.

DENVER CITY ATTONREY KORY NELSON HAS BEEN QUOTED BY THE MEDIA ENCOURAGING THE SHOOTING OF AMERICAN PIT BULL TERREIRS BY US CITIZENS WHO SEE THEM RUNNING LOOSE. DENVER CITY ATTORNEY KORY NELSON HAS SOLITICED INTENTIONAL MANIPULATED DATA REGARDING ACF AND THE LITIGATIONS TAKING PLACE IN COLORADO AT THIS TIME TO MISLEAD POLITICIANS LEADING THEM TO BELIEVE BREED BANS ARE CONSTITUTIONAL !

AURORA FACES LAWSUIT AFTER PASSING A BREED BAN ( NOV 2005 )

http://www.aurorasentinel.com/main.asp?SectionID=8&SubSectionID=8&ArticleID=11157

PLEASE DONATE TO LINDA BLAIR WORLDHEART FOUNDATION http://celebrityjustice.warnerbros.com/news/0505/19c.html

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_3807423,00.html

ARE PIT BULLS THE ONLY DOGS BITING PEOPLE ?

http://www.understand-a-bull.com/BSL/OtherBreedBites/AllDogsBite.htm

BREED DISCRIMINATION (LANDLORD ISSUES) IS THE #2 LEADING CAUSE OF DOGS ENDING UP IN SHELTERS http://www.petpopulation.org/

ACF OPPOSES INSURANCE DISCRIMINATION: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/text/2002214386_dogs21m.html

2005 NEW MEXICO : ACF Board members along with representatives stopped SB188 a law targeting several breeds of dogs to prohibit ownership rights. The bill was sponsored by Senator Beffort and tabled after oposition from repsonsible dog owners and ACF lobbyists. SB 432 was signed by Governor Richardson on May 31st 2005. The law targets irresponsible dog owners instead of breeds.

2005 GEORGIA : ACF Representative Robin Wilson presented Georgia State Reprsentative "Coach" Williams with data to prove no breed of dog is inherently dangerous and thats its irresponsible dog owners that cause problems. The "Coach" was sponsoring a bill HB78 to ban specific breeds at the state level. After meeting with ACF the "Coach" decided not to move HB78 forward.

2005 COUNCIL BLUFFS IOWA : ACF along with the IABSL are getting ready to consitutionally challenge a breed specific ordinance the city passed earlier this year.

TOLEDO OHIO JULY 2004: ACF constitutional challenge (Tellings v Lucas County Dog Warden) July 2004. The Toledo Muni Court ruled that American Pit Bull Terriers are not dangerous. The court however did not rule on all the challenges raised and ACF is appealing. The court did however grant due process rights by ruling that dog owners are exempt from the Ohio breed specific law by proving their dog has not bitten in the past.

OHIO SEPTEMBER 2004: The Ohio Supreme Court (State v Cowan) ruled ORC955:22 as applied to 955:11 is unconstitutional because it denies dog owners due process and supports the Toledo decision where the court is granting dog owners due process over Pit Bull ownership. These two cases are for the first time a major decision in the right direction. Never before in Ohio's history have there been decisions handed down like in the Tellings and Cowan cases. Accurate statisitcs show breed bans do not protect the public, do not stop illegal activity and only target responsible dog owners while causing the extermination of thousands of innocent family pets. Breed bans also criminalize US citizens by dogs denying them due process.

ARE PIT BULLS REALLY ATTACKING ????? There has been a rash of reported Pit Bulls attacks, it always occurs before city council is lobbied to try and pass a breed ban. We have discovered a pattern of reported attacks in countless cities across the United States. The reported attacks are not accurate and intentional, fueled by propganda from organizations that want the end to domestic pet ownership. Investigations show the breed of dog was not an American Pit Bull Terrier. Go to the link below for information on fake Pit Bull Attacks

http://www.pulse24.com/News/Top_Story/20041126-014/page.asp

LAKEWOOD WA. 11/9/04: Lakewood Wahington just passed a strong dangerous dog law thats focus is on the irresponsible dog owners and the behavior of each individual dog.

NEW MEXICO NEWS: http://web.abqtrib.com/archives/news04/091004_news_dogbite.shtml

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ON BSL http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/06/0617_040617_dogbans.html#main

WHATS REALLY BEHIND FATAL DOG ATTACKS ??? THE NATIONAL CANINE RESEARCH FOUNDATION RESEARCHES FATAL DOG ATTACKS AND HAS PROVIDED A WEBSITE http://ncrf2004.tripod.com/

(JULY 2004) DENVER COLORADO, AT TRIAL ON JULY 7TH 2004 ACF ATTORNEY ANDY RIED / WALTER GERASH DISQUAILIFIED 4 EXPERTS DENVER PRESENTED AT TRIAL FOR HOWARD MARGOLIUS A PIT BULL OWNER WHO WAS FOCED TO MOVE FROM DENVER. MR MARGOLIUS WAS FOUND NOT GULITY OF VIOLATING THE DENVER BREED BAN.

(JULY 2004) DENVER COLORADO, ACF RECEIVED A DECISION ON JULY 6TH FROM THE DENVER MUNI COURT THAT THE DENVER PIT BULL BAN IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL LAW BUT DENIED ACF AN EVIDENCE HEARING ON THE ISSUE. ACF FILED AN APPEAL.

(JULY 2004) ACF BROUGHT A CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGE TO THE OHIO REVISED CODE DECLARING A PIT BULL VICIOUS. ACF IS NOT SATISFIED WITH THE DECISION AND HAS FILED AN APPEAL. THE COURT RULED THAT THE AMERCIAN PIT BULL TERRIER IS NOT DANGEROUS/VICIOUS AND THAT THE LAW IS UNFAIR, BUT REFUSED TO RULE ON ALL THE CONSTITUTIONAL ARGUMENTS PRESENTED.

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?SearchID=73181166374364&Avis=TO&Dato=20040710&Kategori=NEWS02&Lopenr=407100353&Ref=AR

(MAY 2004) AUBURN WASHINGTON PASSED A NON BREED SPECIFIC LAW AFTER MANY MONTHS OF CONSIDERING VARIOUS TYPES OF DICSCRIMINATORY LEGISLATION INCLUDING DECLARING ALL DOGS OVER 30LBS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS. AUBURNS NEW LAW REQUIRES DOG OWNERS TO TRAIN THEIR DOGS WHEN THEY HAVE BEEN FOUND TO BE AGGRESSIVE.

( MAY 2004) ALGONA WASHINGTON AFTER 16 YEARS REPEALED THEIR BREED BAN ON AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIERS AND DRAFTED A STRONG DANGEROUS DOG ORDINANCE WHICH DOES NOT ALLOW DANGEROUS DOGS TO RESIDE IN THEIR CITY.

( MAY 2004) ROSEVILLE MICHIGAN VOTES AGAINST A BREED BAN

( AUGUST 2003) ACF CONSULTANT JEFF ARMSTRONG LOBBIED THE STATE OF ILLINOIS FOR A STRONGER DANGEROUS DOG LAW. ON AUGUST 25 2003 THE GOVERNOR OF ILLINOIS SIGNED THE "RYAN ARMSTRONG LAW" WHICH PROHIBITS BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION AND HOLDS OWNERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR DOGS BEHAVIOR.

14 STATES NOW PROHIBIT BREED BANS, DENVER AND ILLINOIS ARE THE LATEST TO REALIZE BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION IS A FAILED ATTEMPT AT PROTECTING THE PUBLIC AND STOPPING ILLEGAL ACTIVITY INVOLVING CANINES.

DENVER'S BREED BAN IS STOPPED AFTER 16 YEARS OF FAILURE !

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_2831200,00.html

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~53~2099300,00.html

STATE REPRESENTATIVE DEBBIE STAFFORD SPONSORED HB 1279 WHICH PROHIBITS BSL IN THE STATE OF COLORADO:

Dear Mr. Bui,

I want to thank you and the American Canine Foundation for your tireless effort and assistance in providing statistical data which helped me convince my collegues in the Colorado Legislature to do the right thing and strengthen Colorado's dangerous dog laws and prohibit breed bans at the local level in Colorado.

In the past 15 years in Denver, thousands of innocent family pets have
been taken from their responsible owners and massacred. Denver's own statistics indicate that in 2003 2.6% of the dog bites were from Pit
Bulls. The factual data from the American Canine Foundation assisted me in the challenge of bringing fairness and equity for all dog owners. We have now put the burden of responsibility where it belongs, on the dog owner, not on the breed of a dog.

I hope that other states will utilize your valuable resources as they
find occaision to re-evalute their dangerous dog legislation. Thank you
for helping Colorado do the right thing. Take care.

Rep. Debbie Stafford
Colorado House of Representatives
House District 40

ALABAMA SUPREME COURT FREES AMERICAN PITBULL TERRIERS AFTER TWO YEARS OF CUSTODY AT THE HUNTSVILLE ANIMAL SHLETER. THE CITY CLAIMED AMERICAN PITBULL TERRIERS ARE GENETICALLY VICIOUS.

Below is a picture of Elizabeth and Justice, two of the four American Pit Bull Terriers from the Historic Alabama Supreme Court Case (2002)

On August 30, 2002 the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed a Trial Court decision that American Pit Bull Terriers are not vicious. The American Pit Bull Terriers were born at the Huntsville Animal Shelter, after more than two years the Alabama Supreme court gave them their freedom.

Reported by Attorney S. Zendorf

On August 30, 2002 the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed a Circuit Court Decision that four American Pit Bull Terriers born at the Huntsville Animal Control Shelter "did not lack any usefull purpose" as required by the local ordinance. Huntsville v. Four Pit Bull Puppies (Ala. 08-30-02), No. 1010459, unreported. The court determined that the puppies were not trained to fight and were not vicious. In addition, it held that three women who wanted to adopt them had a right to intervene. The City of Huntsville claimed the Pit Bull puppies were genetically dangerous, used expert witness testimony, and appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court after the lower court rejected its arguments and evidence.

The Alabama Supreme Court granted the Washington Animal Foundations's petition to participate in the proceedings as Amicus Curiae because the Foundation is an expert on canine genetics. The Foundation provided expert testimony to prove that Pit Bulls and other breeds are not inherently genetically dangerous and must be trained to fight .

By S. Zendorf (Attorney at Law) Ohio

More on Alabama: http://home.comcast.net/~dawn.c/library.html

http://www.ourdogs.co.uk/News/September2002/News060902/bsl.htm

EFFECTIVE CANINE LEGISLATION

From American Canine Foundation

One of the most serious problems with some of the existing "dangerous dog laws" is that the dog may face destruction or lengthy impoundment, while the owner receives little or no punishment. Irresponsible owners are chronic repeat offenders of animal control laws. Thus, the dog suffers the consequences of its owners irresponsibility.

Do the current laws address each of the problem areas with dogs?
Are they being enforced?
Is there a problem repeat offenders?

Problems stem from inadequate budget or manpower to enforce the laws, inadequate training to effectively deal with the problem dogs in a humane way, and low priority of animal control issues. Poor community education of existing animal control laws and lack of judicial support in upholding effective penalties also create serious problems. Strong laws that penalize the owners, regardless of the breed, are what is needed. These types of laws are valid, have merit, are not vague or capricious. Non-breed specific laws are what is needed. ACF supports laws that hold owners accountable for their dogs behavior. Laws need to declare a dog potentially dangerous when it menaces a human, dogs need to be declared potentially dangerous when they bite a human or domestic animal, owners need to be cited and placed under restrictions. A second offense should automatically declare the dog dangerous and call for a misdemeanor charge against the owner.

Dogs that have been declared dangerous because they caused severe injury should be required to be kept confined, muzzled and have insurance coverage of 150 thousand dollars or more, if a second incident happens with a dog declared dangerous, if the dog causes injury the owner should be charged with a felony, if the dog kills a human there should be a charge of negligent homicide and the owner should be prohibited from owning dogs. If a dog has been declared potentially dangerous and kills a human, the owner should be charged with negligent homicide, under Washingtons RCW its a serious felony, ACF is lobbying for negligent homicide charges for owners of dogs that kill people.

Breed bans do nothing to stop dog attacks, they do nothing to stop illegal activity, they do nothing to protect the public from irresponsible dog owners and punish responsible dog owners, causing court litigation, wasted tax money and impoundment of innocent dogs while criminalizing U.S. Citizens.

Non-breed specific laws are valid under the Constitution, and are for the protection of the public welfare and safety with the degree of precision that characterizes effective legislation.

The only justice for the irresponsible owner are strong penalties such as the state of Washington RCW16.08.100 penalties for owners of dogs allowed to cause damage, bite, or perpetrate unprovoked attacks on other animals and humans. On August 25th 2003 the Governor of Illinois signed the Ryan Armstrong Law which prohibits breed specific legislation in Illinois and hold dog owners accountable for their dogs behavior. On April 21, 2004 a bill HB1279 sponsored by Colorado State Representative Debbie Stafford was signed by Governor Owens, it prohibits breed bans in Colorado and stopped Denvers breed ban after 16 years. Denvers breed ban was a failed attempt at protecting the public from dangerous dogs.

The American Canine Foundation does not support breed specific legislation and has drafts of laws available for control of dangerous dogs. View research on fatal dog attacks at http://ncrf2004.tripod.com/

AMERICAN CANINE FOUNDATION

360-277-DOGS

legislation2003@hotmail.com

http://acf2004.tripod.com/

http://ncrf2004.tripod.com/

Dr Nitschke PhD

"Variability in behavior has a wider range within a breed than between breeds. Within the discipline of Psychobiology and Animal Behavior there is no data from empirically supported studies, published in refereed scientific literature, to support the idea that one breed of dog is "vicious". The adult behavior of a domestic dog is determined overwhelmingly by its experiential history, environmental management and training".

By Dr M.L. Nitschke PhD Psychology

Marci Grebing BS Micro Biology

My name is Marci Grebing. I have a Bachelors of Science in Microbiology from Montana State University and have been a professional K9 trainer for 10 years. I have trained and owned American Pit Bull Terriers for 10 years.

At this point in time, there is no scientific proof that any breed of dog is inherently more aggressive or vicious than any other breed. I believe that socialization and training are the most important factors in producing the final temperament of an individual dog. Many people misunderstand canine behavioral cues, which can lead to bites and attacks by dogs. This is especially true with children, and no child should ever be left alone with a dog. If a child is attacked it is almost always due to a lack of supervision or dog training on part of the parents. Proper training and socialization require a large commitment of time from dog owners. If this is not accomplished effectively a dog may bite or attack; this is not the fault of the breed or subpopulation of a breed. If it were, it would be eliminated in a few generations by genetic drift or negative selection because aggression is not a desirable characteristic in companion animals and therefore is not selected for by pet dog breeders.

Assigning an individual dog to a certain breed is not possible using current scientific knowledge or techniques. Factors that may influence the specific danger of dog bite/attack imposed by an individual dog include

(1) the theoretical danger associated with keeping an animal and

(2) the particular danger associated with an individual animal, the latter being the result of individual characteristics including temperament, body characteristics of a dog, the individual personality of the dog owner, the accident situation, and the personality of the victim. Neither experimental investigation of temperament differences among breeds, which are extremely difficult to perform, nor studies investigating which breeds are more dangerous than others, can prove, using current scientific knowledge, the existence of a particular threat of certain breeds based on body characteristics (e.g. size, strength, pain threshold etc.).

The individual personality of the dog owner, the accident situation, and the personality of the victim are independent of the dog breed involved in the bite incident, and hence do not justify discrimination against certain breeds.

Dogs that have a history of (1) inappropriate bite (i.e. not in self defense), (2) chasing and taking down livestock or game, or (3) aggressively jumping up on people are to be considered particularly dangerous when compared to dogs with no such history. This applies to ALL breeds.

Marci Grebing B.S. Microbiology