In Praise Of Pit Bulls: Author Jim Gorant Speaks Out About Misunderstood Dogs And The Laws Aimed At Them

In 2008 Sports Illustrated senior editor Jim Gorant stumbled into a story about the dogs rescued from the Michael Vick fighting case. His story for the magazine wound up on the cover and led to a book, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption, which became a New York Times bestseller.

In 2012, Gorant came back with Wallace: The Underdog Who Conquered a Sport, Saved a Marriage and Championed Pit Bulls—One Flying Disc at a Time, which told the story of an abandoned pit bull who went from death row at a “low-kill” shelter to world champion Frisbee dog. Along the way, Wallace became a rallying point for those fighting to change the breed’s perception and the breed bans that were popping up around the country. With the buzz in the air about the Westminster show, we caught up with Gorant to talk pit bulls, BSL and pitcher  Mark Buehrle.

How did you meet Wallace? 

When I was writing The Lost Dogs I met Roo and Clara Yori, who had adopted one of the Vick refugees, Hector. As it turns out, they had also adopted Wallace about six years earlier. I came to know them pretty well and eventually they approached me about working on a book about Wallace. I had heard of Wallace, but I didn’t really know the details of his story. Once I dug into it a little, I knew it was too good a story to pass up.

What is breed specific legislation (BSL)? 

It’s any law that attempts to ban a specific breed of dog in a given area—almost always pit bulls. There are dozens of BSL laws across the U.S., including major metropolitan areas such as Miami and Denver. All these laws start with the assumption that entire populations of certain breeds are inherently dangerous, which defies simple logic. Another quirk is that despite the name, they’re not very specific: The wording in most doesn’t outlaw American pit bull terriers or American Staffordshire terriers but refers to “pit bull type” dogs, which covers an awful lot of ground. They also don’t specify how much of a dog’s genetic make-up needs to derive from a particular breed to be considered part of that breed. There aren’t that many purebred pit bulls out there, so is a dog that a 50% mix a pit bull? What about 25%, 10%?

What’s your take on BSL? 

It’s ineffective, inexact and overly punitive. If you got rid of every dog that had any pit bull blood in it tomorrow, you would not eliminate problem dogs. There are still a lot of other large strong breeds out there and the type of dog owner that’s going to cause problems will simply switch to one of those other breeds. I believe, like a lot of others, that a simple “bad dog” law is better. It allows residents to take action against a problem dog, regardless of breed. As the saying goes, Punish the deed, not the breed.

What would you say to the people who disagree with you? 

I’d ask to see the evidence of how BSL helps, because there have been studies that show the places that have these laws are no safer. And the enforcement costs money.

What did you think about pitcher Mark Buehrle’s reaction to the Canadian BSL after he got traded to the Toronto Blue Jays? 

I’ve spent some time on the phome with Mark’s wife, Jamie, and I think they’re a great example. A great family with a model dog who have been forced to rearrange their lives because of these indiscriminate laws that treat all dogs of a certain genetic make-up the same way. This year the family will actually be split up, because Mark was traded to the Blue Jays and they’d have to get rid of their dog if they moved anywhere near Toronto. All because they have a dog that has never caused a problem but has the wrong genes.

There was a story earlier this year in Belfast, Northern Ireland about a family pet named Lennox who had never bitten anyone or shown any aggressive tendencies and yet he was euthanized because of a BSL. This despite a huge outcry including TV personality Victoria Stillwell offering to find Lennox a home in the U.S. at her own expense. What can we learn from stories like the one about Lennox? 

Hopefully, we can see how sad and wrongheaded these breed bans are. Here was a dog that was not a pit bull (a bull dog/Lab mix) that had never caused a problem, yet he was seized, arbitrarily deemed to be a pit bull, and put down. None of it was necessary. It caused the family who lost its dog a great deal of pain and did nothing to make the community safer.

Why do you like writing about dogs? 

I like telling good, compelling stories, regardless of the topic. It just so happens that I found a few of those that dealt with dogs. That said, there’s a satisfaction in writing about dogs because you’re giving voice to creatures that can’t speak for themselves. And for the most part, people love dogs.

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