Thousands sign petition to stop possible dog ban

Proposed state law would let cities ban certain breeds

Roughly 8,000 Oklahomans have signed an online petition to stop a proposed state law that would give cities and town the authority to ban certain breeds of dogs.

The law is presumably aimed at breeds that have a reputation as being violent or dangerous.

Bartlesville resident Sherry Stimson is the one who started the online petition and thinks the proposed law is too intrusive.

She says pit bulls typically have the worst reputation with the general public, but she says the dangers posed by pit bulls are more perception than reality.

"Y'know, really what it comes down to is that people feel that it's just a little too much government telling you what kind of animal you can own and sort of like saying you can only buy Chevys, you can't buy Fords," Stimson said.

She says every breed of dog has had incidents where they bite or attack people, but  she says for some reason, those incidents don't get the same amount of attention in the news.

She says the issue might become a moot point, because she's says she's heard the lawmaker who's sponsoring the law might be having second thoughts about pursuing it.