Criminally charge owners of pit bulls

SOUTH Africa has been rocked by the recent spate of vicious attacks by pit bull dogs, particularly on children, many of them fatal. The outrage is understandable. In at least one incident, community members have taken the law into their own hands and stoned the animal to death.

Moves are now afoot to have the breed banned altogether across the country. One consequence of this has been the pressure on owners to surrender their animals to the non-profit SPCA. In turn, the SPCA now faces being bankrupted by the unprecedented dumping of dogs which have to be fed, rehomed or in all probability euthanised.

What is significant is the lack of any guidance – or even utterance on the matter – by the government itself, which, although unsurprising, is intolerable. There is a historical problem with pit bulls, but it has little to do with the breed itself and everything to do with the mentality and demeanour of those who own them. There are many other breeds that are capable of being trained for aggression, especially those in service of law enforcement and military, yet none have earned the notoriety that pit bulls have.

As South Africans, we are exceptionally good at describing problems and world champions at over-reacting – and still not finding solutions. We believe the government has to do two things urgently: (a) support the SPCA to receive these surrendered animals and either rehome or euthanise them and (b) relook at the law.

It seems inhumane and unfair that man’s best friend must bear the full responsibility for man’s selfishness, vanity and toxic masculinity. The law must recognise the responsibility of the owner. The NPA can start by criminally charging each dog owner for every tragic attack.

Perhaps then, we will all be safe from pit bulls – or any other dog.