The phone call nobody wants: animal control has received a complaint about your dog. Or your city council has announced hearings on a breed ban. Or you are moving and discovered your new city has BSL on the books.
After ten years in rescue, I have helped hundreds of families navigate these situations. Some lost their dogs. Many kept them. The difference almost always came down to preparation, documentation, and knowing when to fight versus when to comply strategically.
This guide covers both scenarios: protecting your individual dog when enforcement comes, and fighting BSL at the community level when legislation threatens. Both fights matter. Both can be won.
Immediate Steps When Your Dog is Targeted
If animal control contacts you about your dog's breed status, the next 48 hours are critical. What you do or fail to do in this window often determines the outcome.
Do not volunteer information. Be polite but brief. You are not required to discuss your dog's breed with animal control unless served with an official notice. Saying nothing is not lying. Offering your opinion that your dog is a Lab mix when you have no documentation can be used against you later.
Request everything in writing. Verbal warnings or demands have no legal weight and cannot be properly appealed. Ask for the specific ordinance your dog allegedly violates, the exact determination they have made, and the evidence supporting that determination.
Do not surrender your dog voluntarily. Once you relinquish your dog to animal control, your options narrow dramatically. Until they have a court order or other legal authorization, your dog is your property. Note that this applies to voluntary surrender, not to situations where officers are executing a valid seizure order.
Document everything. Photograph your dog from multiple angles. Record dates and times of all interactions with officials. Keep copies of all correspondence. This documentation becomes crucial in appeals and legal challenges.
Time-Sensitive Actions
Most jurisdictions have strict deadlines for appealing breed determinations. Missing these deadlines can forfeit your rights entirely. Identify your appeal window immediately and calendar every deadline.
Building Your Defense
Whether your dog has been identified as a restricted breed or you anticipate future challenges, building a strong defensive file protects your family.
DNA testing provides the strongest evidence. Visual breed identification is wrong more than half the time. A DNA test from a reputable laboratory like Embark or Wisdom Panel creates a documented record of your dog's actual genetic makeup. This evidence has overturned breed determinations in numerous cases.
Note that DNA testing cuts both ways. If your dog actually is a restricted breed, the test will confirm it. Consider whether testing serves your specific situation. In some cases, maintaining ambiguity while challenging the reliability of visual identification may be a better strategy. Consult an attorney before testing.
Veterinary documentation helps establish history. Long-term veterinary records showing how your vet has listed your dog's breed carry weight, especially if that listing differs from animal control's determination. A vet who has treated your dog for years has more credibility than an officer who glanced at your dog for thirty seconds.
Behavioral credentials strengthen your case. If your dog has passed a Canine Good Citizen test, completed obedience classes, or earned any behavioral certifications, these documents demonstrate responsible ownership and a non-dangerous dog. Judges and appeals boards respond to evidence that a specific dog poses no threat.
Character witnesses matter. Neighbors, veterinary staff, dog trainers, and anyone who interacts regularly with your dog can provide statements about the dog's temperament and behavior. Collect these proactively. Waiting until enforcement begins makes witness recruitment harder.
Understanding Your Legal Options
BSL varies enormously by jurisdiction, and your legal options depend on local specifics. However, certain strategies apply broadly.
Administrative appeals exist in most jurisdictions. When animal control makes a breed determination, you typically have the right to appeal to a hearing officer, animal control board, or similar body. These appeals rarely succeed on their own, but they create a record, buy time, and sometimes reveal weaknesses in the enforcement case.
Court challenges may be available if administrative appeals fail. Some BSL has been overturned as unconstitutionally vague, as violating property rights, or as lacking rational basis. These challenges require attorneys and resources, but they have succeeded. A 2012 case in Ohio found that city's BSL unconstitutional under the state constitution's requirements for property rights.
Exemption processes exist in some jurisdictions for registered, well-behaved dogs. These typically require documentation, possibly behavioral assessment, and sometimes additional insurance or licensing. Pursuing an exemption may be the fastest path to keeping your dog, even if you believe the underlying law is unjust.
Legal resources have expanded as BSL opposition has grown. The Animal Legal Defense Fund, Best Friends Animal Society, and various breed-specific rescue organizations may provide guidance or referrals. Some attorneys specialize in animal law and have specific BSL experience.
When Relocation Makes Sense
Sometimes the strategic choice is to move your dog rather than fight where you are. This is not surrender. It is tactical retreat to protect your pet while you consider longer-term options.
Temporary relocation to a friend or family member outside the jurisdiction can protect your dog while administrative or legal processes proceed. Document that the dog remains your property and that the placement is temporary to avoid complications later.
Permanent moves sometimes make sense when fighting is unlikely to succeed and the costs, both financial and emotional, outweigh the benefits. Many families have relocated to BSL-free communities rather than risk their pets. This is a personal decision that depends on individual circumstances.
Know where BSL exists before you move anywhere. DogsBite.org maintains a list of jurisdictions with breed restrictions, though their framing is pro-BSL. Best Friends Animal Society and ASPCA provide more neutral directories. Twenty-three states have preemption laws preventing local BSL, making them safer destinations.
Fighting BSL at the Community Level
Protecting your individual dog is necessary but insufficient. As long as BSL exists in your community, every dog owner faces risk. The strategies that have repealed breed bans elsewhere can work where you live.
Build a coalition. Start by identifying everyone affected by BSL: dog owners, veterinarians, trainers, shelter workers, rescue organizations, and concerned citizens who recognize the policy's failure. Create a communication channel, whether a Facebook group, email list, or regular meeting. Coordinate messaging and actions.
Gather local data. File public records requests for animal control data: how many dogs have been seized, what breeds were they identified as, what happened to them, what did enforcement cost. This data often reveals that BSL consumes significant resources while producing no improvement in public safety.
Recruit expert voices. Local veterinarians carry particular weight with politicians. Animal behaviorists, dog trainers, and shelter directors can speak to the scientific consensus against BSL. Insurance professionals can address liability concerns. These voices legitimize opposition beyond breed enthusiasts.
Attend every meeting. City councils make decisions in public meetings. When BSL is discussed, the room should be full of opponents with informed, calm, factual testimony. But do not wait for BSL to be on the agenda. Building relationships with council members before votes come matters.
Propose alternatives. Coming to a council meeting only to oppose BSL looks obstructionist. Coming with a detailed proposal for breed-neutral dangerous dog legislation, modeled on successful programs in Calgary or other communities, gives officials something to vote for.
The Long Game
BSL repeal rarely happens quickly. Denver's ban stood for thirty years before falling. Ohio's statewide change took a decade of advocacy. Prepare mentally and organizationally for extended effort.
Develop new leaders. Any movement that depends on one person will fail when that person burns out. Identify and train multiple people who can speak to the media, testify at hearings, and organize events. Succession planning is not pessimistic. It is realistic.
Document everything. Keep records of all advocacy activities, media coverage, political contacts, and outcomes. When leadership changes, this institutional memory prevents starting over.
Celebrate incremental wins. Getting a council member to express doubts about BSL is progress. Obtaining supportive media coverage is progress. Preventing a proposed expansion is progress. Recognizing these victories sustains morale for longer fights.
Connect with statewide efforts. Many states have organizations working on preemption laws that would prevent local BSL. Joining these broader coalitions amplifies local efforts and provides resources that small community groups cannot generate alone.
Resources for Your Fight
Legal and Policy Resources:
- Animal Legal Defense Fund - aldf.org
- Best Friends Animal Society - bestfriends.org
- National Canine Research Council - nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com
- ASPCA Position on BSL - aspca.org
Scientific Evidence:
- Our comprehensive science review
- AVMA Literature Review on Dog Bite Prevention
- CDC Position Statement on Breed Identification
Community Organizing:
- Victory stories and strategies
- Local breed clubs and rescue organizations
- State veterinary medical associations
For information on herding breeds specifically targeted by BSL, see our article on herding breeds and BSL. For resources on herding breed genetics and health, visit The Herding Gene.
You Are Not Alone
Facing BSL is terrifying. The thought of losing your dog to government action based on how it looks rather than how it behaves makes people feel helpless and enraged. Those feelings are valid.
But across the country and around the world, people just like you have fought BSL and won. Over 150 jurisdictions have repealed breed bans since 2012. The tide is turning because ordinary people refused to accept unjust laws.
Your dog is counting on you. Your community's dogs are counting on you. The facts are on your side. The science is on your side. Now it is time to fight.
Take the First Step Today
Start documenting your dog's behavior and training. Research your local laws. Connect with other dog owners. The fight against BSL begins with preparation, and preparation begins now.