Dog Days Welcomes Pups to Padres' Petco Park ... But Only Certain Breeds

Padres discriminating against breeds of dogs at Petco Park? What would St. Francis say? Every year, the San Diego Padres welcome dogs to Petco Park for the Dog Days of Summer ... but only some dogs; a dozen breeds aren't invited to the event.

In the spirit of St. Francis, many baseball-loving dog owners are rightly outraged, according to a report on San Diego 6. Kristin Porter stated, "any kind of breed restrictions, in my head, is in a way like people being racist." Agreed. And, let's face it, baseball has certainly been blemished by racism in the past.

Evidently, the Padres aren't proud of their canine-profiling policy and failed to mention it on any advertisements. They won't even admit which breeds of dogs are banned. But judging by the advertisements for the events, if you are a golden retriever, you're in. Maybe the Padres don't know that on the last American Temperament Testing Society test, American Pit Bull Terriers scored better than goldens. Hey, why do research?

And how ironic that the Padres play at Petco Park. Petco released a statement stating, "PETCO is a sponsor of The Dog Days of Summer event and the ball park, but we do not own the park or oversee its policies. As a sponsor, we are required to abide by the policies set forth by the Padres. PETCO welcomes all breeds of dogs and species of animals into our stores every day and only require that pets be leashed while on our premises." To its credit, Petco as a company has no issues with allowing all breeds of dogs to participate in its events.

Petco does not plan to let sleeping dogs lie. According to the company's statement, it intends to discuss ways Petco can address some of the Padres' safety concerns  and provide them with additional animal control resources and information to ensure the safety and comfort of their patrons and animals.

Maybe Petco should consider sponsoring the Chicago White Sox instead. Not only do the White Sox not discriminate against breeds during their dog days of summer, they have pit bulls on the field. Their innovative Sox for Strays program welcomes adoptable dogs on the diamond, including victims of cruelty such as the Chicago Animal Care and Control court-case dogs. The vast majority of these dogs are American Pit Bull Terriers. The White Sox even let one of their star pitchers handle the dogs.

I can see why President Obama loves the White Sox. The Padres, on the other hand, are the only major league club that discriminates against dogs. Let's send a message to Petco Park and Major League Baseball and ask them to stop canine profiling.

Photo Credit: Best Friends Animal Society