Rogelio Gasca

RWS 1301

Visual analysis

Banned dog breeds and animal cruelty

In the Unites States we have over 700 cities that fear certain breeds of dogs
enough to ban them, preventing citizens from owning certain breeds of dogs. For
example in Denver, the local government implemented a BSL (Breed Specific
Law) which states that pit-bulls are not allowed to be owned. Of course, these laws
have a purpose and that is to protect people from their own pets. There were a
few incidents where a pit-bull attacked its owners and it caused so much
commotion, the state banned the breed entirely. There are many other states that
have implemented these kind of laws, mostly banning pit-bulls, but also other dogs
that are considered powerful breeds, such as, the Rottweiler, the German shepherd,
the Doberman, and many others. Some dogs are even banned from the Unites
states, such as the Dogo-Argentino which is a breed mainly used near Argentina to
hunt and protect livestock. You can find specific states and BSLs at;
http://www.dogsbite.org/legislating-dangerous-dogs-state-by-state.php
It has been scientifically proven that when a dog is neglected and mistreated,
it has more probabilities of becoming an aggressive dog. Regardless of the breed.
Pet owners around the world have mistreated their dogs and other pets due to
ignorance and cruelty. Everything from dog psychology to physical abuse can
affect and impact the temperament on any dog. According to Joaqun Prez-Guisado, the

Rogelio Gasca

RWS 1301

Visual analysis

main author of the study and a researcher from the UCO (university of cordova), some of the factors that
cause aggressiveness in dogs are: first-time dog ownership; failure to subject the dog to basic obedience
training; spoiling or pampering the dog; not using physical punishment when it is required; buying a dog
as a present, as a guard dog or on impulse; spaying female dogs; leaving the dog with a constant supply
of food, or spending very little time with the dog in general and on its walks.

-Which comes

straight from an article on www.sciencedaily.com

So why are we banning breeds and not correcting pet owners or holding them
accountable? A suitable factor that I believe might help this issue in our country
would be to require pet ownership classes and certifications in order to own a dog
or any pet for that matter.
The purpose of the visual I chose intends for people to become aware of
animal abuse and animal cruelty. The image has a pit-bull behind the focus of a
fence. The puppy is looking out anxiously and in the background you see a faded
towel and water bowl inside an enclosed area, kind of like a prison. It was created
by the humane society organization in the United States to help people realize how
much animal abuse happens and their organization is completely towards this
purpose. It is mostly targeted for animal lovers to help prevent animal cruelty and
for people who are non animal lovers to realize what goes on in their community
regarding pets and animals.
There is so much neglect and abuse toward our pets and animals in

Rogelio Gasca

RWS 1301

Visual analysis

our communities that we really have no idea how much discrimination and neglect
in our own neighborhoods. The main idea for me is to make people
aware of dog breed specific laws, how in some states certain breeds of dogs
are illegal to own, and how people are afraid of certain breeds of dogs, when
in reality, the way people affect the lives of dogs affects directly to the
behavior of the dogs towards humans, no matter what the breed. This
organization does work to prevent and make aware of animal abuse, which
causes things like breed specific laws to happen.
The author represents their message only through an image, without
text, clearly demonstrating how animals suffer, just like human prisoners,
are kept in a cage and confined because of bad ownership. The way they use
ethos is using ethics, it is not right to mistreat a dog or animal, although the
credibility of the picture itself is only given by the dog. Credibility of the image is
given by stating the organization that created the image. The Humane Society is
recognized all over the country, it is as well-known as the ASPCA (American
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). The pathos strategy is well
done, the face of the dog in the cage tells people he is suffering and

Rogelio Gasca

RWS 1301

Visual analysis

emotionally, people feel bad. The image intends to persuade people to help
do something about animal abuse. The logos given by the image is the fact that its
logical that this kind of treatment toward a puppy or animal is wrong.
For me, this image uses pathos more than ethos or logos. The way the
image is focused, the fence and the dog have focus of the lens and the
background is faded out, because you can see the suffering of the puppy, it
makes you emotionally sad and makes you want to do something about it. I
couldnt and wouldnt restructure the image; it implies the message very clear.

References:
For breed specific laws:
https://www.animallaw.info/article/breed-specific-legislation-united-states
http://www.dogsbite.org/legislating-dangerous-dogs-state-by-state.php

Rogelio Gasca

RWS 1301

Animal cruelty prevention organizations:

www.aspca.org
http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/abuse_neglect/
Science and facts dog breeds are irrelevant:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090424114315.htm

Visual analysis