Fulton County Dog Law Eyed

Some folks in Ful­ton County are express­ing their dis­plea­sure with a county pol­icy man­dat­ing that pit bulls be euth­a­nized unless claimed by their right­ful own­ers.

The ani­mal advo­cacy group Ful­ton County No Kill, together with the Ohio Coali­tion of Dog Advo­cates, now plans to fight for the repeal of a res­o­lu­tion pro­hibit­ing the adop­tion of pit bills by res­cue groups or mem­bers of the pub­lic.

Ohio had been the only state in the nation with breed-specific leg­is­la­tion enacted at the state level. That all changed how­ever, when in Feb­ru­ary 2012, the gov­er­nor signed a bill doing away with a 25-year-old law declar­ing pit bull-type dogs to be vicious by nature.

The state law change how­ever, did not affect indi­vid­ual munic­i­pal­i­ties’ home rule regard­ing pit bulls, or any other breed of dog that a local munic­i­pal­ity may see fit to reg­u­late.

As a result, a num­ber of cities, vil­lages and towns statewide, includ­ing Ful­ton County, still have breed-specific leg­is­la­tion on the books.

The group plans a can­dle­light vigil at the Ful­ton County Dog Pound on Sept. 27 from 7–8 p.m.