Pit Bull Apology

[susiestar]

I know on the scale of gfg problems this may be small to most, but I recently realized I had a real mistake in something I thought.

When I was growing up we had friends with the SWEETEST dogs. All I ever heard them called was bulldogs. I don't even know that I knew that there were other types of bull dogs. When these dogs (named Petulia and Lilac, lol) got older they developed a serious problem. Some type of dementia where one day one of them cornered the Dad and really scared him. One of the kids came by and called the dog and it was like a switch flipped and the dog was happy and tail wagging and just glad Dad was home. They took him to the vet and this is a dangerous thing in this type of dog and he had to be put down. I cried myself to sleep that night and I am sure the entire family did too.

Two years later the Dad was leaving the house and the other dog wouldn't let him. He was leaving to go to work and the dog had gone outside and he opened the door and the dog charged him like he was a stranger. He had to shoot the dog and I know it hurt him very badly.

Until recently I thought this was something that could happen to ANY pit bull. Because I didn't realize that it was a disorder in FRENCH BULLDOGS and that pit bulls are a different breed alltogether. This has made me wary of pitbulls far more than any dog fighting problem, b/c I consider that to be an owner problem and I think the owner should be put down or at least be stuck in a ring with his ready to fight hungry pitbull with nothing but his own 2 hands and his own teeth and the owners should have to work it out that way.

I don't have a clue why I didn't know this, but we don't have a dog and I don't have any close friends wth pit bulls. Hunting dogs are more the thing around here.

Anyway, at least i know now, and to all the pit bulls - I am sorry I maligned you. Go bite the idiot who wants you to fight another dog.

[Dammit Janet]

French bull dogs are totally different than pit bull dogs. Way different. They are little dogs. Actually not a whole lot bigger than a boston. Well...maybe about 20 pounds if that depending on each dog. Nina is a full grown pit and she only weighs about 50.

[skeeter]

And that's the reason we need "vicious dog laws" and not breed specific laws. Susie - not to single you out, but many people don't know what a "pit bull" is (usually they are referring to a Strattfershire terrier) and have no idea that a mutt is just as likely to attack as a specific breed of dog. Ask any mail deliverer what their most feared types of dogs are, and they'll usually say small vs. large.

[Dammit Janet]

Amen I would rather see a pit bull than a bunch of Chihuahuas attempting to come at me.

[PatriotsGirl]

Sorry, I still don't like pit bulls and want nothing to do with them. You can all disagree with me all you want. TOO many maulings around here from "family" pit bull pets. If my little dog wrapped his mouth on me, I could kick him like a football - not scared. If a pit gets their mouth on me, nope, done for. I won't take that chance. Call it what you want, I don't even find them "cute"...

[Dammit Janet]

Pits get a bad rep because of bad breeders and bad owners. We have owned several. One was just bad. Not to humans, she was fine with humans but she couldnt be anywhere near any other dogs because we rescued her from people who had fought her. We had hoped we could save her but we simply couldnt. We kept her on a chain so she couldnt get to any other dogs but one day one of our puppies got too close and she got it. That was the day that pit had to go. I couldnt keep a dog that would kill one of my pups. We tried to give her a chance but it didnt pan out. She had 2 more years than she would have if she had been a fighting dog but that was it. Bless her soul. I still think of her and I hate the people who made her that way. She could have been a good dog if some ugly folks hadnt ruined her.

Cory has a beautiful blue pit who sits on his front steps and is the biggest baby around. Wouldnt hurt a fly but dont tell anyone that. She is trained to never go out of his little yard and its cute as all get out. She climbs up into his lap like she is a lapdog. My dog is just autistic. She has no clue she is a pit. She is ruled by a 5 pound havanese dog. The little dog growls at her and even draws blood when he starts getting feisty with her and she wont fight back. She just sits there and takes it. She runs to me and jumps in my bed and hides.

[InsaneCdn]

I still believe that every dog (and cat and horse and person) is a combination of nature and nurture. Every dog is born with certain instincts - stronger in some areas, weaker in others. Their experiences in life either highlight these natural tendencies, or mute them.

A terrier is born with independence and digging as part of its nature. You don't have to teach those to a terrier. You do have to teach NOT digging, or ONLY digging in a certain place - not in its nature. A lab doesn't have that - lab has fetch instinct. Really hard to teach a lab to dig, but you can (for search-and-rescue, for example)... real easy to teach a lab to fetch - but the terrier takes way more training to even get the concept.

So... when it comes to whether a dog is mean/vicious? Any dog can be turned into that based on how they are treated. But - per our trainer - there are some breeds where it takes more concerted effort to downplay those tendencies. Handled correctly from birth, even a pit bull will not be a problem. But I would never adopt a pit bull (or several other breeds) from a shelter... because there is no way to know the history.

I do agree that banning certain breeds does not make the vicious-dog problem go away.

[donna723]

Oooooh, you got me started now!

First, on the French Bulldogs ... they are small dogs, about the size of Bostons, but much chunkier, stockier, and usually with shorter legs. Well-bred Frenchies look like adorable fat little sausages with big ears and very expressive faces. Like any other breed, their personalities can vary but in all my years of being an over-the-top dog lover, I have never ever heard of one being aggressive! The worst you ever hear about them is that they can be stubborn and determined, just like their English Bulldog cousins, but "aggressive" - NO! Like any other breed, there may be some who don't get along with other dogs because of things they have experienced, but that's true of any breed. And I have also never ever heard of any kind of hereditary condition that would cause them to become aggressive when they get older! Dogs can become senile in their old age, just like people. They are subject to the same old age symptoms as humans, all the aches and pains, vision problems, even strokes that can cause unusual behavior,but no more than any other dog breed.
French bulldog - Google Search

Now about the Pit Bulls - The ONLY thing wrong with Pit Bulls is irresponsible owners! Sadly, they have become a symbol of the hoodlum thug culture. And sadly too, the truth is that Pit Bulls are much more likely to be abused by humans than the other way around. Go to Facebook and search for the pages on "Patrick the Miracle Dog" and you'll see exactly what I mean. It's heartbreaking! Or watch the TV show "Pit Boss" about a group that runs a Pit Bull rescue in California. By nature Pit Bulls are loyal, loving, trustworthy family pets and past generations used them as companions to their small children. Check this out ...

FOR OVER ONE HUNDRED YEARS AMERICANS KNEW PIT BULLS FOR WHAT THEY DID BEST. BABYSITTING. | Yonah Ward Grossman

The ONLY thing wrong with Pit Bulls is what we, as human beings, have done to them. I think it's very telling that almost every last one of the Michael Vick dogs that were so horribly abused and used for fighting have now been adopted in to loving family homes. And Breed Specific Legislation is the worst idea yet. In truth, most people cannot even tell a Pit Bull from other similar breeds. I can't find the link now but there is a page that shows a picture of a Pit Bull along with pictures of other similar breeds and almost no one can pick out the Pit Bull from the others!

And for the record, I've had vets and vet techs tell me that the breed they have been bitten by the most is the Poodle. And the nastiest, most vile tempered, most aggressive dog I have ever met was a CHIHUAHUA!

OK, I'm off my soapbox now!

[susiestar]

This is what I mean. I didn't mean to upset people, but I was looking at pictures and realized that what I was TOLD was a "bull dog" was NOT a pit bull. I have ALWAYS said it is the individual dog you should judge the dog on, NOT a breed BUT there are some who at a certain age are susceptible to a disease that makes them go after the owner. I was WRONG and thought it was pit bulls, and it is NOT. From what I learned back when they had to poor dogs autopsied, they saw signs of seizure disorder and when the dogs went after the Dad it was b/c they were having a seizure. I know FOR A FACT that this man did NOT hurt or abuse them. They were his babies and he loved them and he cried and cried over their deaths.

I HATE breed specific laws. THEY ARE STUPID. Vets here have only one breed they refuse to treat and it isn't the pit bull. They won't treat cocker spaniels. I have known the vets in our area for a long time. One neighbor when I was a teen is a vet and she used to have gatherings of all the vets in town (lots b/c we have a vet school) and I used to help her with the food, etc... at them. Around here they dont' mind chihuahuas, but cocker spaniels are not welcome. Cocker spaniels seem to be badly inbred around here and are biters. Some of the vets won't treat them at all, others insist they have a muzzle on before they enter the building. I think it is a local thing b/c for a while we had a couple of awful of backyard breeders who started with very inbred siblings and used them for parents until they got shut down.

Anyway, I didn't mean for this to be a big deal about breed laws. I thought maybe it might interest some of you to learn of my mistake. I grew up with a dog, we had one for a short while until she ran away (she was a rescue that I found out in a field in bad shape, at least she was spayed and clean when she ran from us) and I have been around dogs of many kinds a fair amount. I probably am fairly average on my knowledge of dogs. If I can make this big a mistake, then anyone can. I am sorry if I perpetuated any ideas of pit bulls being nuts or being able to get sick and then attack. IMO they are great dogs like any other - IF they have owners who love them, care for them and train them properly.

Why is it that the biggest problem ANY animal on the planet has is always the same - humans? We are not always responsible in our handling of animals and imo that is sad.

[InsaneCdn]

Why is it that the biggest problem ANY animal on the planet has is always the same - humans? We are not always responsible in our handling of animals and imo that is sad.

Susie... humans are that way with their own offspring. Can we expect any different with animals?

Yes, humans mess things up. Majorly.