I would like to start by saying I am outraged that such a discriminative editorial was published. It was pure ignorance. I am the proud owner of two non-aggressive, well-mannered pit bulls and am very offended by this editorial.

The writer should get facts before writing an article such as this. The dog they call a “hero” (Labrador retriever) is in the top of the most-reported-bite list. Pit bulls are not human aggressive; they are actually in the top of the list of best family-orientated and most-affectionate dogs. They are often used as narcotic- and bomb-sniffing dogs, therapy dogs and used in search and rescue. They are also referred to as “nanny dogs” because of their well-mannered, caring personalities toward children. They passed the American Temperament Test with a score of 83.4 percent, which beat the common border collie (79.6 percent) and several other breeds. Another common misconception is that pit bulls have lockjaw; a pit bull’s jaw structure is no different than that of any other breed.

I think that if this woman is really that uncomfortable walking in her neighborhood, she needs to speak to her neighbors and ask if they can keep their dogs in the house or locked up while she is out. I’m curious as to why she is only intimidated by pit bulls; I will assume it is due to her ignorance of the breed and hearsay. Do people not realize that any breed of dog can be aggressive?

For the writer of the editorial to say the slogan “‘Punish the deed, not the breed’ is lame” is also ignorance. This was not created to be used as an excuse; it is the truth and can pertain to any breed. Not every person who owns a pit bull trains them to be aggressive or mean, but, yes, there are some who do. To say all pit bulls are aggressive would be like someone saying all Mexicans are illegal aliens or all blacks are criminals, which they obviously are not. It’s discrimination.

The writer of the article asks the question, “When you read about people getting bitten in the newspaper, why is it always a pit bull?” Well, you’re a writer for a newspaper. What makes a better story “golden Lab bites child” or “Pit bull bites child”? They already have a bad rap; the media chooses to make it worse. I know of several people who have been bitten by small breed dogs, but I never see reports or nasty articles written about them. Why is that? I was born and raised around pit bulls and can honestly say I have never once seen one bite or attack a person.

I ask that everyone please get facts before judging pit bulls. It’s not fair to judge a person by the color of their skin, so why is it OK to judge a dog by its breed?

Montana Zwart

Albert Lea