Desperately Seeking (a home for) Stella

A fringe benefit of grass-roots campaigning is you get to meet a lot of dogs. They seem to sense how much I like them and will often charge through slightly opened doors to greet me. I usually come home with many different types of dog hair on me. Too bad they can't vote! This is Stella the Pit Bull. I met her a few Saturdays ago at the Hyde Park Homes Tour. She's currently under foster care and looking for a permanent home. It's hard enough to find homes for adult dogs, but these days it's almost impossible to find a home for a pit bull. As you can see from the picture, Stella is very aggressive. Aggressive for affection that is. This dog makes my 15 year-old Border Collie look like a vicious killer. She spent more time falling over looking to have her tummy scratched than anything else. I don't blame people for being hesitant to adopt a Pit Bull in Kansas City. With all the bans being passed, I'm sure there is a fear that Kansas City will soon follow. Stella is just one of hundreds, if not thousands of animals orphaned because of poorly conceived breed-specific laws (BSL). Does it really take a genius to see that when you outlaw a breed that the irresponsible owners will simply turn them out on the streets? Isn't neglected animals running loose what we're trying to prevent? I'll leave the BSL lobbying to my friends over at KC Dog Blog. It's a must read for all you dog lovers out there. And from what I've seen as I go door to door, there's a lot of you!