My dog votes

October 26, 2005, press release -- Are dog owners a political constituency? To answer that question, My Dog Votesâ„¢ announced today the launch of The My Dog Votesâ„¢ 2005 Voter Opinion Survey. The My Dog Votesâ„¢ 2005 Voter Opinion Survey will seek to benchmark the political impact of anti-dog laws and policy through a random sampling of 1000 dog owners who are also registered voters. Dog owners are faced with rising local and state anti-dog legislation and measures.
The survey, which may be the first of its kind, will query dog owners on issues that negatively effect dog ownership, such as homeownerâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s insurance discrimination, breed bans, weight and size restrictions, pet limit laws and public space bans. And as RFID microchip pet identification programs become more popular, data privacy of dog owner information is seen as an emerging issue.

Insurers in many states have blacklisted more than 40 dog breeds, including Collies, Boxers, Dalmatians, Chows and Siberian Huskies. My Dog Votesâ„¢ founder and director, Barbara Haywood, commented, “Many responsible dog owners are faced with loss of insurance coverage or artificially inflated rates, even though their dog does not have a bite history. These are real issues for dog owners across the nation, and insurance discrimination is legal in many states.â€

Dog ownership cuts across political, social and economic barriers, and according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, close to 40% of U.S. households own a dog.

In what could be called a “wake up call†for local politics, preliminary polls conducted by My Dog Votes™ indicate that a high percentage of dog owners are willing to cross party lines in local or state races where candidates have supported anti-dog legislation or policies.

The My Dog Votesâ„¢ 2005 Voter Opinion Survey may validate the notion that dog owners are a viable, cultural political constituency in local or state elections, and establish a benchmark by which future studies can be measured. The results of My Dog Votesâ„¢ 2005 Voter Opinion Survey will be published later this year.

For additional information about the My Dog Votesâ„¢ 2005 Voter Opinion Survey, please visit mydogvotes.com.

“My Dog Votesâ„¢â€, and “mydogvotes.comâ€, and the "Patriot Paw" are trademarks or service marks of MY DOG VOTESâ„¢.

The bumpersticker has been reprinted with permission of Barbara Haywood, president of My Dog Votes.

http://news.bestfriends.org/index.cf...4B3969B409157F

I do agree that some dogs shouldn't be as penalized as they currently are. Some dogs, though, need to be restricted in urban areas. It's not the dog's fault, it's the owner's fault. Dogs like Pit Bulls, Dobermans, and possibly German Shephards (although I have yet to meet a poorly-behaved, or untrained German Shephard, so I wouldn't know) should probably be banned in cities. A friend of my boyfriend has a Pit Bull, and it's never been to a training class. Sometimes, it wakes up and attacks whatever is next to it... the other dog, a couch, a person's arm, it doesn't really care. Dogs like that really shouldn't be allowed in urban areas, because they can get free and go after small children, or adults for that matter.

While it's sad that everyone has to be penalized because of the poor ownership of just a few people, it's necissary. Maybe those breeds should just require a special license, that can only be obtained with proof of passing obediance training or something like that, but people would just ignore the law (like cat owners do with leash laws). It's much easier to tell if a dog is illegally owned if the breed itself is banned, than trying to figure out if the dog across the street has had obediance classes.

though i can understand some of the breeds that are looked down upon, it depends on the dog. i ahve worked at a vet office for 5 years now, i know of some very nice pitts, and some evil labs. why do the insurance companies care what dog you have. its a dog.

banning a breed will not solve problems, those who fight dogs will find another breed to use. most german shepards are a muzzel now type of dog. they jsut get that look (vet techs know what i mean)

my biggest problem with this is that it punishes a person for owning a dog. if raised right any dog can be a joy to have.