Sticking your head over a neighbor's fence to see what's on the other side is no different than sticking your hand through a hole in the fence to touch something on the other side. The purpose of a fence is to establish a boundary. People need to keep that in mind and respect such boundaries. The owners of the dog had met their legal obligation to restrain their dog. Strictly speaking, the child in this story trespassed. Furthermore, it is frequently the case that children are bitten by a variety of breeds - not just pit bulls - when they violate fences.

(Hay) Bert- Simpson That was part of a joke i watched on you tube . OK BERT

I have had the privilege of knowing some nasty pit bulls .

Ya i maried 2 of them .

Yes, that is true. They are used as therapy dogs, and were originally used as "farm and family" dogs. They were bred, to be good around children, and take orders well. Pitbulls do have strong jaws, but not stronger than any other dog on the planet. They do not have a "locking jaw" that is a myth. In many poor communities where I do rescue, a big pitbull with chains around it's neck, is a status symbol, along with shoes and diamond earrings. They are dragged around for show only. To have a dog that can kill another dog, or human is attractive to these people. They would own tigers, if it were legal. Fighting dogs, most times, are starved half to death, given steroids and have their noses shoved in cocaine to make them crazy. It's so very very sad. If every pitbull in the country were gone, they would just switch to another breed, and in 100 years, the lab or husky would be known as the most vicious dog on the planet.

In my opinion, a dog is as wonderful or vicious as its owner makes it. If you treat your dog poorly it will reflect in the dogs personality.

I have had the privilege of knowing some fine pit bulls and pit bull mixes. I really like them as a breed. They are VERY people friendly if raised well and if you socialize them they can be great with other dogs, cats, etc. The problem as I understand it is if they do bite, they have incredibly powerful jaws and can inflict a lot of damage.

But I agree that enforcing dog safety with all breeds is the way to go. The only dog that ever bit me was a black lab!

vista, you hit it right on the head...
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if I'm not mistaken, the government still uses them for search and rescue efforts, right along with the german sheapards... they are also a great therapy dog as well...
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what many fail to acknowledge because of a negative medial reputation is that they were originally used in Europe as farm dogs... not only did they protect the homestead, but they were also used as a substitute for a horse to plow the fields, if the farmer was having financial difficulties... that was in the 1800's...

A dog is what the owner makes it.

This may be surprising to all you anti pit bull people, but pit bulls test higher than golden retrievers and Labradors in temperament testing.

The reason pit bulls were chosen as fighters, wasn't because they were naturally aggressive, it was because they are more eager to please, and learn, than almost any other breed. 100 years ago, the pitbull was known as the "all American dog" Presidents had them, they were put in famous paintings, "petey" from "our gang" was a pitbull, even Helen Keller had a pitbull. Naturally, they are not dog/human or animal aggressive. The only natural trait they have, is to listen very attentively and do what their owners ask of them, and if that happens to be attacking dogs or humans, they do it. I have been involved with dog training for a long time, and in my opinion, they are hands down the easiest dogs to train. They are truly a phenomenal dog when raised well, and it's so sad to see how many of them never get a chance, because of stereotypes. Just remember, you can train a 2 pound toy poodle, and a pitbull to fight exactly the same, it's just the pitbull will do more damage because of it's size, not it's natural obsession with killing.

A Breed Ban is the totaly wrong . It's all about how there raised and treated , if raised with love and attention you will posatively have a great dog that will show you loyalty , companionship, There great with kids and people, in 25 over years of owning this breed NO problems ever ! If you dont pay attention to a child or dont give them the guidance they need, see where that leads....Its basically the same princapal. Its all about the kind of owners, not the kind of dogs !

Oh I meant tough before anyone jumps down my throat about spelling and such.

P.S. As a public service I hate all of the dumb owners that think they are so tought and will make the big bucks by breeding them...I always said I would not have one; but when my ex had one that he was abusing I took him and he has been a godsend for my retired dad. They give what they get. IF YOU ARE A PITBULL BREEDER...PLEASE STOP!

Woodsman...I guess let you loose in my yard than..because you are more violent then my pitbull...and so am I. My dog would lick your face but if you tried to hurt him it would be a different story. Sorry to threaten but I think a bit of the attitude comes with being a pitbull owner. They are great!!!!

Damn, now I'll have to relocate my chihuahua fighting ring... and we almost had Taco Bell signed up for a grudge match with the local champ, Del Taco.

I think the breed should never exist,all you fluffy the big baby pit bull owners,your ALL in denile.Until it happens,and it will,if not yours,it will be someone else's,promise. Just don't let it loose in my yard,catch my drift!

You really don't want to start down the slippery slope of "banning" . The statistics on Pit bulls is alarmng to me. A dogs reputation can put it on the endargered list. That or ban.

i guess that leaves west allis as an option for mike vick upon release;)

well said fubar... I have one myself, and he's the biggest baby I could've ever imagined...

didn't dan devine used to coach the packers, then notre dame football. he was very successful at notredame, winning one national championship, but his laid back personality led too his being replaced. too bad.

Standing ovation for that guy. Being an owner of two loving pit bulls its nice to see that someone will stand up and make the issue "vicious dogs" and not dogs that are properly raised and belong to loving families.

I am glad to see that the mayor is addressing the behavior of all dogs and not just making the ordinace to the pit bull breed. I know I just read a article where the pit bull is listed only 6th or 7th as a vicious dog, the chiaua was number 1.
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After all it is the individual dog not the breed that should be considered. Good job Milwaukke mayor Dan Devine for seeing that this was vetoed.

as a dog owner, I'm glad that this ban is going to be vetoed... having lived in Milwaukee a while back, the ban would've been too difficult to enforce... all that a person would have to do to bypass it is say that they owned their pit bull prior to any ordinance being approved... at least other communities in the Milwaukee Co. area have restrictions and strict regulations for this particular breed... the only reason why pit bulls have a bad reputation is because of improper breeding and how the dog, much like any other, is raised...