Despite the passing of a local legislation to ban pit bulls in Miami, the federal law has trumped the local regulation to allow pit bull ownership if the dogs are registered as service animals.
The pit bull ban came after an eight-year-old girl was attacked and killed by a pit bull in 2008. According to the Miami-Dade Animal Services website, the amended law prohibits the acquisition and keeping of “American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, or any other dog that substantially conforms to any of these breeds’ characteristics.”
The local law requires a payment of a $500 fine for violating the pit bull ban and court action to force the removal of the dog from the Miami-Dade County.
The federal law, however, has provided pit bull lovers with a loophole. If the dogs are registered as service animals for people with disabilities, then they are still allowed within the county limits.
There are currently four pit bulls registered in the Miami-Dade County as service animals, according to Animal Services’ Investigator Supervisor Kathleen Labrada.
The verification of the dog’s status as a service animal remains a difficult task for investigators, since no official documentation standard exists.
Labrada said that it is “extremely difficult” to verify whether the registered pit bulls are actually service animals, because federal law does not require certification or any formal training and also prohibits inquiries into the nature of the disabled owner’s disability.
According the the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website, “The ADA defines a service animal as any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability.”
Labrada said that pit bulls have not been common service animals in her experience.
The International Association of Assistance Dog Partners lists the Golden Retriever and Labrador Retriever as the most popular breeds for service work.
The pit bull ban came after an eight-year-old girl was attacked and killed by a pit bull in 2008. According to the Miami-Dade Animal Services website, the amended law prohibits the acquisition and keeping of “American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, or any other dog that substantially conforms to any of these breeds’ characteristics.”
The local law requires a payment of a $500 fine for violating the pit bull ban and court action to force the removal of the dog from the Miami-Dade County.
The federal law, however, has provided pit bull lovers with a loophole. If the dogs are registered as service animals for people with disabilities, then they are still allowed within the county limits.
There are currently four pit bulls registered in the Miami-Dade County as service animals, according to Animal Services’ Investigator Supervisor Kathleen Labrada.
The verification of the dog’s status as a service animal remains a difficult task for investigators, since no official documentation standard exists.
Labrada said that it is “extremely difficult” to verify whether the registered pit bulls are actually service animals, because federal law does not require certification or any formal training and also prohibits inquiries into the nature of the disabled owner’s disability.
According the the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website, “The ADA defines a service animal as any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability.”
Labrada said that pit bulls have not been common service animals in her experience.
The International Association of Assistance Dog Partners lists the Golden Retriever and Labrador Retriever as the most popular breeds for service work.
