Obama's Public Support of Michael Vick

[JustJo]

Originally Posted by June

Let me tell you what I am hearing between the lines in some cases:

Poor people shouldn't be allowed to own dogs because they are irresponsible pet owners. (What this means to me is that the people who are likely to be poor, are also more likely to be people of color, especially in the USA).

I guess I'm not seeing where you're getting this part June...

I don't think that income has anything to do with responsible pet ownership (other than the fact that vet bills can be expensive).

On the subject of dogs for protection...having grown up in a dangerous neighborhood, I also think that protection is a viable reason for having a dog. Certainly, anyone looking for a dog to provide protection isn't going to have a mini-doxie like we do. They're going to want something bigger, that will give an intruder pause. I don't have a problem with that either. For me, dogs can serve a number of purposes...and companionship is only one of those.

For me, there's a huge difference between an individual that chooses a doberman or a pit or a rottie and handles it intelligently, trains it, cares for it...and also expects it to provide protection....and the individual that gets that same breed and then goads and baits the dog into being actively aggressive at every opportunity because it feeds their ego or image or whatever.