Pit Bulls?

[DOLLY<3]

I have a funny feeling that you're on PBF I'm there to, APBT<3er. I guess I don't need to tell you my opinion, but for the others, I LOVEEEE these dogs. They're so misunderstood, its really sad. You cannot judge every single dog based on the actions of a select few. I cannot count the times that I've seen friends post news stories about other breeds that have killed people vs. stories of pit bulls biting people and guess what gets the most coverage? The news reports what sells, and "Pit bull" attacks sell, it doesn't matter that half of the dogs reported as pit bull are complete mutts. Its disgusting really. I'm very happy that I live in a place that is free of BSL and that I adopted my pit from a rescue and shes a completely happy, healthy and balanced dog

 

[chinchillalover0927]

i personally worked at a vet , i never had ANY problems with pits!! they were much sweeter than any of the others....what dogs i hated were the weenie dogs!! you wanna talk about meannnnn...every one that came in there tried to eat us alive.

 

[DOLLY<3]

Thats the problem right there.... Pin pointing a single breed and saying they're all mean... I think most pit bull owners would agree that they'd rather see all of the breed specific generalizations die off instead of having them pushed onto other breeds.

 

[chinchillalover0927]

no its not a problem...im being serious...out of all the dogs in the vet the most aggressive ones were the small breeds....the large ones were fine give or take a few.. dachsunds(sp?) and chihuahas were the most "tempermental" at the vet....im telling you from EXPERIENCE with it....

i trully believe in its how the dog is raised also, but when it comes down to push comes to shove and being scared i have personally witnessed that little dogs , of those breeds, snap faster and freak out more than any of the others...dont get me wrong i love both of those breeds!! my boyfriend personally has 2 weenies and ive always wanted a long haired chi chi i love them to death...but im not going to hide what ive PERSONALLY delt with working at a vet multiple times.im not saying they are ALL mean because they arent...but a majority of the breed of those 2 were horrible to the point where you couldnt even get them out of there kennel without throwing a towel over them to prevent from being bitten.

 

[DOLLY<3]

what dogs i hated were the weenie dogs!! you wanna talk about meannnnn...every one that came in there tried to eat us alive.

You've changed your story from the above quoted lines to saying you don't hate them all, they're not that bad, but for the people who have Pitties in their lives, this is what we deal with on a regular basis, people who generalize about a specific breed based on a few prior experiences. I work in dog rescue, believe me when I say I've seen a lot of different kinds of aggressive dogs, I don't pin it on one specific breed, I don't keep a score I treat each dog as an individual because they all are. We've had two Dachshunds pass through the rescue and both were sweet as pie.

 

[chinchillalover0927]

you had 2 ..... not 30-40 just 2 ! thats my point. and i wont argue with you ok lol. i have been around vets since i was young and many vets will tell you that when it comes to being scared chis and weenies will attack the quickest..A MAJORITY of them since you want to say im changing my story..i just had to be all specific because you freaked out...i meant hate them as in the aggressive manor , not hate the breed because of how they act... I LOVE PITS so please stop repeating yourself about people pinning things on pits..i have no problems with pits and would love to have one!

 

[3CsMommy]

I think part of the problem of "breed" misconceptions is that people forget what dogs of certain types were developed to do. Chihuahuas, for example, were bred out of the messenger dogs of the Aztec army. They had to be gutsy little things to run around a battlefield carrying messages, and while a well-balanced Chihuahua can be very friendly to strangers, that ability to defend itself (or go on the offensive) is still in their genetic makeup. Dachshunds were bred to go after badgers (I think?), which are tough animals when they're *not* cornered with 3 or 4 snarling dogs in their face. I know some lovely Weenies, but again, I also keep in mind that they were bred to hunt. It's not that a specific breed of dog is "Mean" or "aggressive" or "untrustworthy", it's that they used to hunt or herd or fight and have inborn abilities and traits that should not be ignored.

So while I think it's unfair to say "Most [insert small breed here] are dangerous/mean/snappish", it's also kind of short sighted to ignore the fact that, 10 pounds or not, the dog on that table/leash/lap is from just as tough a background as commonly acknowledged 'tough job' dogs like Pibbles, Rotts, Dobies, etc. "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog" as the saying goes. Some little dogs were bred with more fight than others.

 

[DOLLY<3]

Some little dogs were bred with more fight than others.

Well said! There are a lot of small dogs that were bred for some pretty daunting work. I don't know of any that were bred to be human aggressive though.

Be it 2, or 30 - 40 dogs doesn't mean that they're all one way or another, thats my point. I don't care if its a Dachshund or a dobie, any dog in a stressful situation can bite. I'm not trying to attack you or your point of view, I just don't believe in generalizing an entire breed based on a select few. It is because of this that BSL has been instated in so many places and I think it would be naieve the think that it will be limited solely to Pit Bulls. There are places where Welsch Corgies and Collies are banned. Pit Bulls are only the start, it will eventually leak out to other breeds if its not nipped in the bud.

 

[Megan]

This is a breed I will defend until the day I die but your comment "Please don't own the breed if you aren't willing to "deal" with what comes with this breed" I take great offense to.
Kizzy came to us with a lot of issues, we spent 2 years working with trainers. So we did "deal" with it and it finally came down to we had to do what was best for Kizzy and our household.

This statement you wrote is ludicrious
"I can't see putting a dog to sleep for being what it's supposed to be. It would be like me putting my greyhound down for running too fast/killing rabbits. A herding dog for herding animals, etc"

we are talking totally different traits and their end results.
You are entitled to your opinion and what YOU would do but until you walk in my shoes please do not judge me for the choice I make.

My personal dog is dog aggressive. He likes only certain dogs, hates the neighbors dogs. Doesn't matter that THEY charge the fence at him, he is still looked upon as the "nasty dog". So yes, I do know what it's like to own a dog that is dog aggressive. I knew this was a breed trait when I adopted him, and would never put him down for not liking other dogs. Now if he went after a person? That would be a different story. A dog attacking a human is totally different, a dog going after a another dog isn't.

I made life style changes. He is leashed walked in the yard 95% of the time, and 100% of the time if the neighbors dogs are out. He has went through obedience training, when in public we stay away from other people with their dogs. . We don't do "dog parks" or let him loose with strange dogs. He is allowed supervised interaction with other dogs that he knows, and likes. He is kept separated from our personal dogs whenever we are not home.

Many people who are in the bull breeds have to do similar things with their dogs. Maybe I haven't "walked in your shoes" and wasn't in the "same situation" however I live with a dog aggressive dog on a daily basis, and I can't fault him for being what he is. I knew this when I got into the breed. I never expected him to like every dog he see's on the street, and won't fault him for not liking them. We deal with it.


Perhaps it was the way you stated your post. You made it out to be that the dog was put down, because of the neighbors "yappy dogs".

 

[CTChin]

chinchillalover, I worked in two vets offices for a combined 10 years. I saw aggression in all breeds including medium and large breeds and a lot of mutts. After working in an animal hospital I am embarrassed to say there is a breed I am somewhat afraid of and that is rottweilers. They just don't like the vets lol. I'm sure at home they are fine but when you have a 120 lb. dog come after you it IS a lot different than having a 10 lb. dog come after you.

Regardless, I am with Dolly. All breeds (and mutts too!) need to be treated equal.

 

[Megan]

I agree, I am personally not fond of small dogs HOWEVER it is purely personal preference. I would never wish harm on them, nor do I think they are "worse" then larger breeds. I just don't like yappy, or a dog that I am constantly tripping over. Most small dogs DO bark quite a bit, and I'm forever tripping over our chihuahua/Pomeranian mix. Doesn't matter that we've had her 9 years now, I still fall over her!

All breeds have their pro's and cons. Sadly, most breeds have been over bred and ruined by the back yard breeders. I know tend to be thrown around as being aggressive- but I have yet to meet a mean cocker. They've all been friendly, loving, and wiggle-butts.


Honestly I've been bitten by two breeds. My sisters extremely house protective weimer-- my bad I knew how he acts, and simply forgot and got myself bit in the breast. He's a sweetheart once he knows you are "ok". Her other 2 weims are GREAT.

The other breed was a GSD. I was younger and with a friend. They had an adult, un-neutered male GSD. We were playing in the yard like normal and don't know why, but he grabbed a hold of me on the side. He was fine before that, and fine with me after that. Don't know what happened--but I'm sure I made a wrong move somewhere.

 

[CTChin]

I agree, I am personally not fond of small dogs HOWEVER it is purely personal preference. I would never wish harm on them, nor do I think they are "worse" then larger breeds. I just don't like yappy, or a dog that I am constantly tripping over. Most small dogs DO bark quite a bit, and I'm forever tripping over our chihuahua/Pomeranian mix. Doesn't matter that we've had her 9 years now, I still fall over her!

.

Tripping over a small breed is still better to me than having my 90 lb. doberman burn out on my bare foot LMAO!

I've met plenty of large breeds that bark a lot but I think it is the pitch of the small breeds bark that can be more annoying. I think that is why people notice it more.

 

[RDZCRanch]

you had 2 ..... not 30-40 just 2 ! thats my point. and i wont argue with you ok lol.

I've been around close to 20 Dachshunds and own a mix myself. I've never been bitten by one and I only met one that was slightly aggressive. Small dogs in general have a tendency to snap before giving warnings. Honestly...if you were that small and saw something as big as a person coming at you and you didn't know them, would you protect yourself first or give a warning? The dogs that knew us gave us warnings...if they didn't know we'd get snapped at.

It all depends on the dog and its owner. The biggest rule I've always gone by is "if it has teeth, it can bite". Though I did meet a toothless chihuahua that gummed me for about ten minutes...

More people are afraid of big dogs, not because they're more likely to bite but because they can inflict more damage when they do bite. Little dogs can do more damage because they are ferocious little things, but if a big dog does the same attack as a small dog, it will do more damage.

We had a lab that the owner warned us could bite. The vet was terrified of him and wouldn't go near him until he was restrained. Since the dog was licking on my hand I decided to be the evil restrainer. He didn't fight me one bit and really just ended up licking my chin while I was holding him. He was very sweet, but VERY protective of his owner and as most people know...vets are not trustworthy to pets.

 

[CTChin]

Honestly...if you were that small and saw something as big as a person coming at you and you didn't know them, would you protect yourself first or give a warning? The dogs that knew us gave us warnings...if they didn't know we'd get snapped at.

I

Yes.. EXACTLY. That's what I say about little dogs all the time. They are so little...we are so big and sometimes clumsy. Can we blame them for snapping sometimes?

 

[Dolyphinm]

I have been volunteering around pits and all the other bulls for the past 2 years. I now finally have a mix of my own at home. I see such an immense drive to please in my girl in just being home a week. She came in to the shelter I volunteer at afraid of people and with puppies. She still doesn't like strangers, but my god does this girl live to please.

Pits are terriers which many a dog people say it should have been terrors(coming even from a westie breeder). They are a strong headed group and are very athletic (terriers in general). As long as the dog knows its role in family/pack it does what it's supposed to do. Completely the opposite of say a husky(which I hope to own one day for their crazy antics). A husky isn't really going to do squat to please you. A terrier that knows you in control is going to do whatever it is you want. So if you let a dog carry on crazily barking at people its going to. Or if its going to be mean to people its because you want it to. Terriers are known across the board to having problems with others dogs, not just those of the bull varieties. I have seen Airedales freak out about another dog near by during agility classes with my cattle dog mix. A husky was bred to not always listen to a musher when pulling a sled as its going to do what's best for the husky. A husky isn't going over thin ice just because a human said so. A pit just might, but then chances are it might also attempt to pull you out if need be.

It's just sad that pits impressed bad people so much. People who want a dog soley for protection or a status. A status dog usually ends up being a bad dog whether it's a purse pooch chiweeniepompom or a gsd or a pit. They usually end up being a menace to the area as they aren't given the kind of stable environment a dog needs or regular exercise.

It's a been witnessed in the media several times. If it bleeds it leads is the saying in the news industry and when it comes to dogs it changes to if its not a pit then pull the the story out. 4 dog attacks over the course of 4 days. 2 were unidentifiable mixed dogs, 1 was a lab mix and 1 was a pit. 1 mixed breed attack was fatal one of the other attacks had a child lose their ear. The pit bull attack hospitalized someone, but not major appendages loss. The first 3 attacks reported only once or twice in a local paper. The pit, over 250 times on national and international news.

As it's been said, anything with teeth can bite. The key to preventing dog bites is educating children and educating dog owners. I have a fearful pit. I am not going to go bring her to a school yard and say hey everyone come pet my dog! I am slowly introducing her to new people, but take every chance I can get to let her meet a new dog as she loves other dogs. I want to keep up with that social side of her with dogs. My boyfriend knows she gets skittish still time to time of him depending on how he might even be walking so he gets down on the floor just starts acting like a silly kid and she runs up and gives him kisses.

If only there were more responsible owners of all animals across the board.

 

[DOLLY<3]

If only there were more responsible owners of all animals across the board.

Amen to that! And your entire post honestly.

Kudos to you for rescuing, I rescued Dolly 2 years ago and haven't looked back since, shes a great dog.

I often hear the misconception that you need to get a pit as a puppy because if you rescue it, you don't know its background and I wanted to point out that it's complete bull. Pit Bulls in general are so forgiving, and so eager to please that they live more in the now than in the past. Sometimes you may have to rehab them, but they generally take to it pretty well.

They were bred for dog fighting, not human aggression, in fact the human aggressive pits were culled because a handler had to reach in amidst the fight if they felt they had to pull their dog. If the dog bite the man while he was grabbing it, it was killed. Its only been as of late that people take their drive to please and turn it into something negative. Its sad.

 

[Sandi]

In this Sunday's paper was an article on Vick's pit bulls and the rehab they all are going through and thought it was such a great story.

http://www.parade.com/news/2010/08/15-can-you-teach-a-bad-dog-new-tricks.html

I also made a thread on it because I found one of the cutest pics of one of the pits who is now a therapy dog and a boy cuddling and reading.

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17986

 

[Milo10]

Just wanted to add in. That while pits where bred to be dog aggressive way back then. They are not dog aggressive now. How do you think we get pits into the show ring without them attacking other dogs? If they haven't had any other dogs around them of course their gonna be dog aggressive. Its all about socializing them. Start when their young. All my pits have been around little dogs and other dogs and they are not dog aggressive! How do you think we have all them in the same house playing with each other? I've had them all my life. And I've been studying them for 10 years now. Actually I'm in the middle of putting together a pit bull awareness walk with a group for pits.

 

[Megan]

Milo,

I'm sorry but the "pit bull" is still very much dog aggressive. Yes, even today in the "show world". Actually, the UKC was founded for the american pit bull terrier to be registered. They were still "dog fighting" around that time. Many dogs that are highly dog aggressive are in the ring showing. Just because a dog is dog aggressive doesn't mean it can't be handled around other dogs.

For someone who has been in the breed "all your life" i think you need to do some more research on this breed. Especially if you are showing. Do you have American Bullies by chance which many people call "pit bulls" but are bred away from the "pit bull" standard, and people are attempting to make them non-dog aggressive?

 

[Milo10]

FYI- We own american pit bull terriers and American bullys and we know the difference between the two. And regardless of what you say not all pit bulls are dog aggressive! Would you like to come take a trip to mi? You can even bring your dog with. We've had our dogs around my grandmas yorkie and they were trying to play with him. They thought he was their baby! UKC doesn't allow dog aggression, they get disqualified for it. Unless you have actually been in the show rings you wouldn't know that. ABKC doesn't either and they are a new group for pit show only.