Knowing About Memphis-The Special Pit Bull Edition

Another person in Memphis was attacked by a pit bull this weekend. A 2 year old child had his face mauled off by the dog. Last November I mapped dog attacks calls MPD had received. It was shocking data. You can view the maps and the blog post here. I strong recommend you read it. Here is some national data. US Government Centers For Disease Control conducted a study and reported that 32% of all dog related killings of human beings in the United States are caused by Pit Bulls attacks, yet Pit Bulls constitute only 2% of all dogs. 70% of those mauling deaths were of children. Another study over 20 years found pitbulls accounted for 1/3 of fatal dog attacks in the United States. Children were most vulnerable to pitbull attacks. Children under 14 accounted for 42% of dog bit injuries and most mauling victims were between the age of 5 and 9. In England the Dangerous Dog Act was enacted in 1991. That act makes it illegal to own any of these dogs in England and the UK including Pit Bulls without specific exemption from a court of law. The dogs that are privately held are required to be muzzled and kept on a leash in public, they must be registered and insured, neutered and receive microchip implants. The Act also bans the breeding and exchange of pit bulls. The numbers of dog attacks and serious incidents has dropped dramatically all across the UK. In case you were wondering about what type of thing trigger pit bull attacks, here is a list of accounts from attack victims. A lot of times the media locally sanitizes the images of the damage pitbulls can cause to the human body. I've seen pictures of a husky with pitbull bites but not people. Here are some examples