Why own a Pit Bull - I just don't get it.
 

I've heard the breed is naturally sweet and loving. Yet, whenever you hear of a mauling in the news, a Pit Bull is usually involved. You want a sweet dog? Own a Golden Retriever. You want a sweet yet obedient, intelligent and courageous dog? Own a Boxer. Every time I see an owner walking his Pit Bull, it's usually the dog walking the owner. I've never seen a Pit behave properly on leash. Are these breeds capable of dog obedience training? What freaking good are they besides scaring your neighbors?

Saw an owner walking his two Pits today. The fella was wearing a wife beater shirt, sagging pants and tatoos. Hate to say it, but he looked like the typical Pit owner to me.

Yeah, I know, don't hate. Can't help it though. To me, a Pit Bull is a walking time bomb.

I'd never own one, but can't deny they look badass.

My neighbors had one when I was growing up. What a sweet dog. Very friendly and loving - dogs (and people) behave according to the way they are raised. My current dog is a cross between a Rottweiller and a Husky - she's a very friendly dog, would never hurt anyone. It's funny, we get all sorts of compliments on her, then people ask what kind of dog she is. As soon as I mention the R word, they shy away.

But since Pits were originally bred to fight, won't they still have that dangerous instinct no matter how they are raised?

It can be bred out of them. But genetics and development (How they are raised) always interact - if you breed it 'out' of them and maltreat them ---> you get a fearful 'bad' dog. If you only breed most of 'it' out of them but not all, and rsie them well ---> no problem.

I've known 2 (woman owned) pit bulls - very loving dogs. My problem is that you never know when they are going to flip & attack. Also, they are loving to other pack members, that may not include you.

I agree - why get one. Some cities have banned them. People who get them are either doing a pound rescue, like the pug face, or have some serious psychological issues of their own...

I am a Golden Retriever person...

Oh, oh. I sense an impending debate of genetics vs. environmental influence.

I posted this question on another board. Someone responded with pics of a woman attacked by her own Pit. Warning - graphic, grotesque pics coming.

http://www.ogrish.com/archives/woman_attacked_by_own_pitbull_Sep_30_2005.html

OMG. Are those pictures for real? That looks more like a collision accident rather than a dog attack.

Pit bulls were bred by the British as cattle dogs in slaughter houses. They were selectively bred to be short and stout and with jaws that could grip and control cattle by the snout. A pretty violent and grisly purpose.

I don't care what kind of dog a person has, the owner should be 100% responsible for its actions. If the dog attacks and kills, and I don't care if it's a Pit Bull, Rottweiler, Labradoodle, or Palmeranean, the owner should be charged with murder. If it attacks at all, treat it as if the owner attacked the victim with a weapon.

The Staffordshire can be a loving pet but has been corrupted in many corners by bad "street" breeding and training, which exploits the dog's incredible jaw strength and tenacity of fight. I work with K9s and am especially cautious around the Pits that occasionally train with our shepherds and Malinois. Any Pits I see on the street when I'm walking my shepherd, I avoid. (It's my experience anyway that 90% of people walking big dogs with aggressive potential have no real control over them.) My buddy, an LAPD K9 trainer, was attacked on the street by a pit while walking his Malinois. He managed to kick the dog into submission. It was the only way. You don't want them to get their bite "set." He warned the owner several times to get the dog under control, but the man had no clue.

If someones' Pomeranian attacks you I think he/she should only be held 2% accountable.

This was in yesterday's paper downunder:

"When David Willis heard screams - "like a man howling" - echoing across his property, his instincts pushed him towards a neighbour's backyard to peer over the high metal fence.

Once there, he was faced with the shocking scene of three massive dogs biting into their owner, who lay prone next to an old Hills hoist in the yard of his home at Ellalong, in the Hunter Valley.

"They weren't attacking him, mate - they were eating him," Mr Willis said.

The attack on Tony Spence, 49, by his three pure-bred Johnson American bulldogs on Tuesday night was ferocious and sickening.

The dogs, weighing between 45 and 60 kilograms, ripped off their master's ears and bit him all over his face and body.

Yesterday the State Government restated its pledge to introduce curbs on American pit bulls and other dog breeds designated as dangerous.

But the changes would not extend to American Johnson bulldogs, which are not on the list of dogs to be banned.

Mr Spence was released from hospital yesterday. He has deep lacerations to his face, arms, legs and stomach. His ears have not been found.

Advertisement
AdvertisementCessnock City Council rangers and police say they have not ruled out action, including criminal charges, against Mr Spence under the legislation relating to the owning of dangerous dogs.

Police shot the dogs on Tuesday when Mr Spence gave permission while he was being stabilised by ambulance officers in his front yard.

Senior Constable John Dawson said it was unclear why the dogs had turned on their owner.

Investigators said that if Mr Willis and another man had not arrived, Mr Spence would almost certainly have been killed.

The rescuers threw bottles, bricks and rocks at the dogs, successfully distracting two of them to run at the fence.

"We were just yelling at him: 'Come on, mate, get to your feet and get out of there.' " Mr Spence got to his feet and, still with one dog attached to his arm, went to the back door.

He was able to wrestle free and get inside to safety, with the dogs "running around mad with all this blood over them".

The dogs had been registered and microchipped.

Standards Australia issued a statement last night saying it would investigate changes to dog-muzzling regulations.

The Minister for Local Government, Kerry Hickey, said the dangerous dog legislation was being finalised.

The restricted breeds will be pit bull terriers, American pit bull terriers, Japanese tosas, Argentinian fighting dogs and Brazilian fighting dogs."


Can't see our Boxer doing this...

Same reason you might own a gun? Its your damn right.

why would you own a crotch rocket? or "why would you own a gun?" how about even why would you drive something as unreliable as that? or why would you pay those outrages maitenance costs? even "why would you sleep with that woman?"

we are people and i believe "we do what we want"

This debat comes up once a month, lol.

The reason Pitbulls have a bad rap is due to the medias portrail of them. You know why you never hear about a Golden Retriever biting someone? Because its not news worthy.

Also a pitbull bite is usually much more violent due to there strength (60lbs w/ 200lbs of muscle).

The reason I bought one was for home protection. More people die from self inflicted gun shot wounds every year than pitbull bites. So which is more "insane" to keep around the house. A gun or a pitbull (I have a gun, but for arguments sake). And I guarantee no one is comming in once they see that white bastard.

You know, our Jack Russell won't fetch worth a darn. Our late golden retriever couldn't STOP fetching.

Don't tell me it's because the jack wasn't raised fetching. The retriever was bred for fetching and doesn't need to be trained to do so.

We have a American Staffordshire Terrier (aka pittbull). Sweetest dog I have ever known. In five years, she has NEVER shown any kind of aggression - NONE. Even when another dog (lab mix) tried to rip her ears off. She loves EVERYONE. Her tail wags constantly. She has never destroyed/chewed anything other than her toys. If you sit down, she sits next to you with her head in your lap.

Don't believe everything you see on the news. Don't judge by the breed by what you local drug pusher has.

I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want a well bread pitt. As far as I'm concerned, best dog you could ever have.

So the pit bull/rottweiler/etc are legal weapons, or is there a "right to bear fighting dogs" amendment I missed?

"My glock is normally sweet and loving, I don't know why it shot the mailman, it must have thought it was trying to protect me."

I never understood it either. *Most* pitbull/rottweiller owners just want to seem badass, in that lameass iron cross-logo'd harley riding way.

LAME.

We own two border collies, now those are great dogs.

I've known a few of those, pit bulls, big guns, big trucks, etc...

I just realized this is a form of racism. Kinda.

African americans commit more crimes in the US, per capita, than any other race. Does that mean every african american is prone to commit a crime? Or is it that the criminals are a product of there environment?

Same applies to pitbulls.

Guns do not run away and bite neighbors by themselves.

We had a family next door to us on Long Island that were breeding Pits for fighting in their basement. This was in the early 80's. The neighborhood changed once they moved in. My little brother was not allowed outside in the fron yard anymore and I had to be VERY careful driving my mini bike or bicycle past their house. Their dogs constantly got out and would attack my Mini Bike or Bike usually while I watched from up in a tree. Fun stuff huh?

Unfortunatly typical pit bull owners want to look bad ass. They are your Rap Star want to be's or Tattoed up biker/punk rocker want to be's accesorizing to make themselves look the part. These people should not raise children let alone dogs.

My Choc. Lab was attacked by a neighborhood Pit, it got loose and went for my Labs juggular the owner ran out and kicked the dog off of mine, my wife was walking it with our little guy in the stroller. Anyone want to imagine how ugly that whole scene could have gotten. The owner is about 5'6" tall weighs about 250 and looks like a steriod king owns a tatoo parlor and has strippers around the house all the time. Great addition to the neighborhood.

I wonder how anyone can defen these dogs they are a total waste and have no place in a neighborhood with families.

Pitbulls per se are not the problem. It is the idiot owners whom do nothing to train or controll them or worse yet WANT the dog to be uncontrolled or attack-happy. Pitbulls can make fine pets but it takes extra dilligence from the owners which in my experience is lacking. In those cases, without question, the dogs should be considered lethal and the owners held liable.

A guy at work was bitten by a pit last week as he walked by the owner whom was walking his pit. The dog lunged and locked on the guys arm.
Was it his fault for not keeping his space while passing the dog/owner or the owners fault for not restraining the dog?
It will be settled in court.

A neighbor had a bull terrier. It was a family pet for several years with 2 kids in the house. Their great neighbors in every respect and the dog was well trained.
They would take it for walks, always on a leash. Well one day for whatever reason it grabbed a neighbors dog on one of these walks and tore in up good. They couldn't get him off until so much damage had been done.
The dog is gone now,I'm not sure what they did with it.

Another time a friend of a friend that raised them had several sibling pit's in their back yard while we were working there.

They got so worked up over our presents that the mother grabbed one of her 1 year old babbies and wouldn't let go. The guys wife tried everything, finally breaking them with one ear about tore off.

This breed of dog doesn't just give a person a bite like most other dogs. They were breed for fighting and having powerful jaws to lock onto a victim. So they are capable of doing a lot of damage.

I like dogs but this is one breed I don't like.

Maybe it's just me, but I think Pits are butt-ugly. I wouldn't want one. You might as well have a hyena as a pet.

I've got a couple of wiener dogs. They wouldn't be much help fighting someone off, but they are great watch dogs and companions. They are very gentle and have never shown any aggression towards a person. Even with that, I am very careful when they are around children.

How do you guys explain my 35 years of positive experience with the breed? As a child, we probably had 100 of them (dad was sort of a de facto rescue). And, I'm hardly a tattooed biker or inner city thug.

I've seen bad labs. My dog has been attached by a bad lab. A friend of mine has a scar on her face from a different lab. None of this means the lab is a bad breed.

Don't believe everything you see on TV.

- Skip

Talk to responsible owners. The most common comment you will hear is "best dog I ever owned."

You mean like this?

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1128615619.jpg

Hey, pretty simple, and not on TV.
Describe the breed and what it was bred for.

Let's hear some jaw pressure stats too while were at it compared to other breeds.

And why are they so stocky ?

And do they have jaws that lock ?

Just curious :)

There is a reason why we chose to own and drive 20 - 30 year old cars. A lot of people laugh at us/ think we drive it for the looks or the reputation/regard our interest as stupid etc.

There is a reason why certain people chose to own a Pit Bull...

Personally I think it mirrors the neurotic style of its owner. Typically a person with low self esteem, a high need for confirmation and sometimes protection from people like him self or just generally need to boost his less than tough exterior.

There is a reason why we drive Porsche... :rolleyes:

They don't. Yet another widely believed falsehood.

- Skip

All dogs are potentially dangerous. Dog owners who say something like "my dog would never hurt anyone" are plain stupid. Sure the dog might have lived its whole life as a saint but you cannot predict how it will react from today forward in every situation. Some dogs have a greater potential for harm than others. The Pitt even more so due to it's fighting background that plays upon it's natural physical assets.

What also irritates me are the parents that let their little kids run up to strange dogs sticking their hands and faces into the dog's grill. They are just asking for something bad to happen. Keep your little ones away from strange dogs people!

And it's got nothing to do with status, money, penis, or any of that other stuff. I drove a 911 because of the experience. I drove a 911 because it allows me to be safer on the road/more in control. I drove a 911 because it was well built, well designed and reliable. I drove a 911 not because it was a good investment, but because it wasn't as bad an investment as most cars.

Mostly I drove a 911 because it made me smile. I could give a hoot less whether anyone else knows, cares or envies it.

I think many (but not all) of the people here are the same. I know that a bunch may share the above as well as enjoying the status that comes along with it.

If I was worried about status I wouldn't have gotten a miata when I got rid of the 911. I got a miata because it provided more of what the 911 had than anything else that I could get for the money.

Ahh, that last sentence of mine was a joke, Steve.

I believe your motivations for owning a Porsche are shared by most of us here on the "old cars" forum.

My personal biggest thrill besides driving my car is an exploding interest to learn how the little car works - hence the long list of DIY projects I have started with (very easy stuff so far) - even though neither of them really are necessary. When I picked up my car a year ago I had no experience what so ever with wrenching. No I can´t get enough of the oil, grease, metal parts and trying to find out how it all works. Huge pleasure and satisfaction !

And frankly, I thing a lot of people regard my buying a 20 years old Porsche at the age of 40 is a bit embarrassing , so I don´t expect to pic up any status points on this one. And I couldn´t care less.

And as you say - I think that goes for the absolute majority of us.

OK, phew!

Yep, I had a fair amount of wrenching experience, but learning about my 911 was fun to me as well.

It is irresponsible to say my dog wouldn't bite anyone. A dog is an animal and has animal instincts, which can surface at anytime under the right circumstances. Any dog is capable of biting and harming someone, some do more harm than others.

I think I agree with this.

But, I also believe that dogs will show an aggressive behavior, if they are aggressive. If you have to hold your dog back on a leash to keep him from going after a person or another dog, chances are your dog would bite that person or dog, give the chance.

I've mentioned before, I have a lifetime of experience with the breed in question. I've never seen one "snap". Meaning, go from a happy friendly pooch to a baby eating, person aggressive monster.

I have no doubt that people will use the excuse that "it was a good dog", after it attacked someone. But I believe it's just that, an excuse. I tend to believe the signs were probably obvious, just ignored.

But, all I have is personal experience. Has anyone ever personally had a dog and go nuts go nuts and start trying to attack people, without showing any prior aggressive traits? Brain tumor or other medical condition excluded?

- Skip

the problem as I understand it is that pit bull and some other breeds do not have a visible escalation of agression. Many breeds show very visible signs of their escalating frustration and agression, Pit bulls do not, so people do not realize that the agression is there until the dog has crosssed the line.

This coupled with the already observed issues, like their size and genetic build for attack, lead to bad things happening.

this is my wife's business, dog agression, so I am probably close to correct but still wrong :)

check out

http://www.k9partnership.com/
http://www.k9aggression.com/Aggression/aggression_main.html

the second link has some serious reading material if you are really interested


Jim

This was something I was going to say but didn't.

This past summer, I saw a guy strutting down the street, he was covered in tattoos, had a really big python draped over his shoulders, and had a pitbull on a leash. My bets are that that dog is no where near as friendly as the dog my neighbors had when I was a kid.

I think you should have to have a license to have kids - this way those who can't properly support children or give them the nurturing environment they need could be screened out - maybe dog ownership should be the same way - this way the scum bags who turn dogs into weapons wouldn't tarnish a breed for the rest of us responsible dog owners.

I used to deliver papers when I was a kid, the dogs that bit mew were collies (more than one and drew blood), poodles, and even a chocolate lab (drew blood). I was never bitten by a german sheppard, a rottweiller, doberman, pit bull or any of the other supposed dangerous dogs.