By Sloane Quealy-Miner

Thanks to Cindy Marabito many of us are now aware of the pit bull HATE walk/rally that is scheduled to take place on October 27th in Tucson, AZ. It comes as no surprise that is being put on by liar extraordinaire Colleen Lynn who irresponsibly attempts to make people believe that banning “pit bulls” will make their communities safer. A better way for community members in Tucson, AZ to spend October 27th would be to attend the screening event of the film Guilty Til Proven Innocent. If Colleen were serious about safety she would be pushing to strengthen and properly enforce dangerous dog laws.

For example she should be looking at the Calgary and Alberta, Canada, model, as they have the lowest bite rates and no breed specific legislation. They incorporate licensing, public education and enforcement, with supporting agencies all working together. Key aspects of the program include no breed specific legislation, stronger licensing programs and stronger enforcement as well as safety public awareness and education campaigns. “We don’t punish breeds, we punish behavior,” said Chief Officer Bill Bruce. “The bottom line is, we believe all dogs are capable of biting.”

DOGSBITE.ORG website is not run by an “expert” in the field of canine behavior. It is run by a woman with a grudge.  Her name is Colleen Lynn and she was the victim of a dog bite in 2007. Because of this incident that involved one individual dog she has decided to enact revenge on ALL pit bull type dogs.

Colleen Lynn blatantly lies on her website when she claims that pit bulls lead dog bite fatalities. She gathers all of her information from media reports, no questions asked. Clearly she doesn’t ask questions because most of what is reported in the media surrounding pit bulls and “attacks” is incorrect and has been repeatedly proven to be untrue.

Many question the truthfulness of Colleen’s account of what happened to her in June of 2007. Her story has changed multiple times. Pit Bulletin Legal News thoroughly investigated the incident and published these never before seen documents. It is clear to myself and many others “that Ms. Lynn never published the Seattle Animal Control records regarding the investigation because the story she is now telling bears very little resemblance to what actually happened, and are in total conflict with the only other witness involved: the dogwalker.” 

While Colleen’s blatant disregard for the truth on her website  is not a surprise and not unexpected, it is important for all of us to have the correct information easily available. Thankfully there is the National Canine Research Council whose dedicated staff comb through the details of every dog bite related fatality.

I encourage everyone to spend time carefully reading the invaluable information on NCR’s website including the 2010 Dog Bite Fatalities NCR and 2011 Preliminary Dog Bite Fatalities Report

The National Canine Research Council “re-interviews sources the media has reached, and located others they have not, among whom may be police investigators, animal control officers, coroners, veterinarians, health department officials, dog owners, and eye witnesses. They have obtained incident reports, bite reports, human and animal autopsy reports, summaries of judicial proceedings, and crime scene data and photographs when available.”

Access the National Canine Research Dog Bite Statistics HERE
NCRC’s informative section on ineffective laws including breed specific legislation HERE
FAQ’s regarding dog bites HERE and Breed Specific FAQ’s HERE

Dog bite-related fatalities are exceedingly rare. In 2010, 33 fatalities occurrd within a population of more than 308 million and a canine population estimated at over 78 million. NCRC is currently investigating 31 incidents in a dog population of over 78 million that occurred during 2011 thay may qualify as dog bite related fatalities. A final tally is subject to change as a result of NCRC’s thorough investigations. Their final report will be available the first week of 2013.

It is important to recognize that when attempting to research dog bites, researchers have frequently failed to acknowledge the relevance of stressful or inhumane situations that humans often force dogs to endure. At NCRC, they  urge people to consider what the world looks like from their dog’s point of view.

“There are at least two parties involved in a dog bite; a dog and one or more humans. Dog behavior cannot be understood or analyzed apart from humans, or the situations in which humans have placed dogs.”

Originally posted in The REAL Dog Bite Statistics Plus Media, Myths & Colleen Lynn EXPOSED on January 24th, 2012