So what does that mean for dog owners in Pennsylvania?

Are pit bulls an inherently vicious and dangerous breed of dog? That’s what the Maryland Court of Appeals held in a four-to-three decision that will affect every pit bull owner in that state.

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It’s called strict liability.

“If we had a strict liability statute, and the dog — for example, in Maryland — was a pit bull and it bit somebody, they’re automatically liable,” says attorney Mitch Dugan, who handles dog bite cases for the injured. “You wouldn’t have to prove negligence. You wouldn’t have to prove that you didn’t have him on a leash, or that they broke through a fence or something like that.”

Dugan says to recover damages from pit bull owners in Maryland now all you’ll need to prove is that the dog who bit is part pit bull.

But that’s not Pennsylvania law, and local pit bull advocates say it never should be.

“Most pit bulls that I’ve known are stable and friendly and love people,” says Daisy Balawejder of Hello Bully that rescues pit bulls.

She says it’s like racism or sexism to classify a specific breed as dangerous when it’s the owners, not the dog, that’s at fault.

“Breed specific rulings of any kind are usually a knee jerk reaction to something that’s happened as a result of irresponsible dog ownership,” she adds.

State law prohibits local municipalities from banning any particular dog.

And if ever there was a pit bull who could be labeled vicious and dangerous, it would be a pit bull like Sam, an 8-year-old who was rescued from a dog-fighting ring in Jacksonville, Fla.

Sam’s face shows the scars of being forced to fight other pit bulls to save his life — but now is a different story.

“Sam is a big lapdog,” says Balawejder. “I mean he’s just a big love bug.”

RELATED LINKS
Hello Bully
More Reports By Jon Delano

Now, a local group is working to find the dog’s owner.

“My husband was trying to get it off of him and he couldn’t get it off of him. So, he busted him in the head with a rock a couple of times and the dog finally let go,” Jennifer Stoll said.

Hayden Stoll is only 5-years-old and he has already had to endure so much in his young life.His father and grandfather pulled a pit bull off of him in front of his house in Herminie.

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The dog’s jaws were clamped tightly around the boy’s face.

Locating the dog’s owner has been difficult because the dog had no identification or tags.

A group called Hello Bully wants to help locate the owner.

“Well our heart goes out to this child. Because of this incident it’s forever changed this child’s life and it was all due to irresponsible ownership,” Nicole Meloy said.

Meloy is on the board of directors for Hello Bully. She owns three pit bulls and said the organization is determined to find the owner of the dog.

“We are offering a $1,000 reward for any information leading to the prosecution of the owner of this dog,” Meloy said.

Hello Bully, the Animal Rescue League, the Western Pa. Area Humane Society and Animal Friends have partnered together to offer the $1,000 reward.

Initially, doctors thought Hayden would lose all muscle control in his face. Luckily, that will not happen now.

However, his father said he will have to undergo various surgeries for the next 15 years of his life.

Anyone with information is asked to call Animal Control in Sutersville at (724)-872-7797.

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One of those dogs is pit bull Hector. Now, his scarred body and missing teeth are the only remnants of his once cruel life.

Under owner Roo Yuri, Hector has become a docile, friendly dog who now spends his time touring the country to help raise awareness for his breed and show other people that badly-treated dogs can learn new tricks.

Roo and Hector, joined by Gretchen Fieser and Lynne Ready of the Western Pa. Humane Society, and Nicole Mallory of Pittsburgh-based pit bull advocacy group Hello Bully, stopped by Studio K to meet KDKA AM’s Larry Richert and talk about why Hector is in Pittsburgh for a very special cause.

“There are a lot of misperceptions (about pit bulls).  Hector didn’t have a choice of where he was, and as soon as he got out of that situation and had a chance to be a dog… this is who he actually is,” said Yuri.

You can meet Hector and Roo on Thursday at Emiliano’s Mexican Restaurant in Ross Township. People can pose for photos for $4 each; $3.50 of that will be donated to Hello Bully and The Western Pennsylvania Humane Society. The event runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.

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RELATED LINKS:
Western Pa. Humane Society
Hello Bully
More from NEWSRADIO 1020 KDKA

Advocates: Dog laws shouldn’t be breed-specific

August 14, 2009 02:38 AM

By Gema Maria Duarte
The Doylestown Intelligencer

[...] That attack and two others since then have borough and state officials trying to adjust the state’s dog law to allow municipalities to create their own dog ordinances. While that proposed legislation sits in Harrisburg, the borough will enforce the state’s current dog law, officials said.

State law allows attacking dogs to be returned to their owners with a warning to keep the pets under control. Pennsylvania has a three-strike policy, which allows the pet’s return after two incidents unless a dog kills or grievously injures a person. A third incident and the dog is euthanized.[...]

Full article retrieved 8/17/09 from http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/28/2009/august/14/advocates-dog-laws-shouldnt-be-breed-specific-1.html