Odhora Alo: Stop PetSmart from Discriminating Against Certain Dog Breeds ...

By Billie Hassim

Target: PetSmart

Goal:?Stop the discrimination certain dog breeds face as a result of PetSmart?s policies

PetSmart, a company that claims to love pets, is currently practicing breed stereotyping and discrimination. They currently offer a program called ?Doggie Day Camp? in which dogs can spend the day interacting and socializing with each other under the supervision of employees. The invitation to attend ?Doggie Day Camp? is extended to all healthy dogs with the exception of ?bully breeds.? Pit Bulls, Bull Dogs, and Bull Terriers are among the breeds listed on PetSmart?s website as ?bully breeds.?

Stereotyping and discriminating against certain breeds of dogs demonstrates the lack of knowledge about these breeds. Each year, several dogs that are deemed as ?bully breeds? are abused and euthanized based on the misconception that they are dangerous.These animals did not choose to be born into a specific breed; they are being condemned from birth by a society that fails to understand them.

A pet is not a bad pet simply because they belong to a breed with a bad reputation; being a specific breed does not automatically make a pet ?dangerous.? A pet?s behavior and temperament should be based on their upbringing and their training, not on how they look or their breed.

As a company that claims to love pets, PetSmart should not be encouraging discrimination against specific dog breeds. By supporting the stereotype of ?bully breeds,??PetSmart is sending the message that these breeds are in fact dangerous. On their website, PetSmart also discriminates against ?mixed breeds that have the appearance or characteristics of one of these breeds.? According to PetSmart, simply looking like a ?dangerous? pet automatically makes a pet dangerous.

Other measures must be taken in order to assess if a pet is actually dangerous or not. Instead of excluding dogs from ?Doggie Day Camp? because they are of a certain breed, PetSmart should require a behavior assessment from either a veterinarian or a trainer. This would be a fair requirement not only for ?bully breeds? but for all of their doggy?campers.

There is always a chance that a truly aggressive dog will be let into ?Doggie Day Camp? because they are not classified as a dangerous ?bully breed.? Demand that PetSmart stop discriminating against the pets they claim to love. Sign the petition below to urge PetSmart to change their discrimination policy against innocent dogs that are classified as ?bully breeds.?

PETITION LETTER:

Dear PetSmart,

As a company that claims to love pets, you should not be encouraging nor practicing breed stereotyping and discrimination. The polices regarding your ?Doggie Day Camp? program are extremely unfair to what you deem to be ?bully breeds.? These dogs cannot attend ?Doggie Day Camp? simply because they are deemed ?dangerous? by society; no other measures are taken to ensure that these pets are in fact dangerous. These dogs are being denied the enjoyment of interacting and socializing with other dogs because they belong to specific breed.

I am urging you to find a more efficient method when attempting to exclude dangerous dogs from your ?Doggie Day Camp? program. Behavior assessments from a veterinarian or a trainer would be a much more effective method of determining whether or not a dog should be allowed to attend the day camp. You cannot claim to love pets if you continue to discriminate against certain types of pets, especially if they are innocent of the accusations you are making against them.

Do not exclude an innocent dog from your program just because they look dangerous or belong to a breed that is considered to be dangerous. Please take the action to end discrimination against ?bully breeds? by setting the example that these dogs are not dangerous by default.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Photo credit: markyeg via Flickr