For many years now, people have been denied a place to live simply because of their dog's breed resulting in limited options for a place to call home. Many apartment complexes and landlords implement a pet breed restriction policy which is completely discriminatory or else it would be labeled as “pet behavior policy” rather than “restricted breeds policy.” They are taking incidents that have taken place by a “mean dog” of a certain breed and banning that breed as a whole.

Although there are dogs who are dangerous and unsafe to a community due to either purposeful or unintentional processes of being a guard dog, this should not be defined by breed. All dogs are guilty of having bad habits until properly trained. Being a petsitter for several years now has allowed me to connect and understand dogs that I don’t know if I ever would have in the past. I used to think every Pit Bull, German Shephard, Doberman, Husky and other stereotypical breeds were mean. My job has shown me that not all “mean dogs” are mean. Therefore, I have come up with an alternative method for apartments and landlords to consider when determining which dogs should and should not be accepted. If you own a Husky, Pit Bull, German Shepard or any other breed listed on the breed restricted policy, I know you’ll understand why I made this petition and hope I receive your support with a signature. 

As for those who do not own a pet listed on the breed restriction policy, thank you for reading this far. Let me start by saying I know this doesn’t apply to you, but with your support as a pet parent, your signature would create a new path for those who have been punished solely based on their breed when they are nothing like their typical negative stereotype. With that being said I strongly believe that any dog, no matter the breed, has unpredictable tendencies and aggressive behaviors towards people and other pets IF not raised responsibly. Here is my attempt to persuade you otherwise.

When my friend and I rescued our first Siberian Husky, Zion, from a shelter he was already one year old and so aggressive that we truly didn’t know if we could handle him. We quickly realized he had so many bad habits due to the life he had been living thus far, and that it would be a journey to break them. He would resource guard which led to him growling and attempting to bite us even if we tried to pick up his empty food bowl when he was done eating, initiate fights with other dogs to show his dominance and would pull so hard on the leash resulting in him choking himself. We debated several times whether or not we should give him back to the shelter, but then remembered they said he had been in and out his whole life due to aggressive behaviors. We wanted to try to give him a fighting chance, be the ones to help him become a better dog and show him someone out there loves and cares for him. After just a few short months of intensive training, we found ourselves standing at the starting line of him becoming the sweetest and furthest thing from the “stereotypical husky.” 

Fast forward to 3 years later, he is as followed: Non-aggressive which has made him the best friend of several new pups that come over for boarding and daycare, a mommas boy who loves to be cuddled and has no personal space bubble, an off-leash trained dog that can be trusted to roam free as pleased at the dog beach and open fields, is no longer reactive towards other dogs, leash trained, loves strangers and will say hi if they allow, does not resource guard and is the happiest and most friendliest dog.

Therefore, because we not only put in the effort to properly train him; but also put in the effort to build a trustworthy, forgiving, loving and safe environment for him, it goes to show that not ALL huskies are “bad.” This applies to other dogs that are a part of the breed restriction as well. Along with my several years of petsitting experience I have come across several dog breeds such as Golden Retrievers, Poodles, Pomeranians, Golden Doodles and more who have had the exact traits that are the very reason why Huskies and others are restricted. Unpredictability, aggressive tendencies, separation anxiety, extensive shedding and destructive behaviors. 

You may not prefer to have a Husky, German Shepard, Pit Bull or any other big “intimidating” looking dogs, but at the end of the day, all dogs are equal. We have all had to train our dogs to not be either reactive, aggressive or destructive whether it was when they were a puppy and didn’t know better, or developed these habits at a later age. So why have a specified breed restriction? 

My attempt to a new method in determining who is restricted, is for apartment complexes and landlords to do a meet and greet with you and your dog(s). This will allow them to still keep their rights in accepting and denying whoever they want, meet with the dog in person so they can be the judge of whether or not the INDIVIDUAL dog is a good fit and make sure they are not blindly judged based solely on their breed when they receive the application. Those who have put in the hard work to help a broken dog deserve the chance to showcase who they have become.

So, I ask you to join me by sharing a signature to stand up for those who are not like their breed's stereotype to reward them for their good representation and side with accepting the individuals that are deserving, instead of punishing the breed as a whole.