Posted on 01/27/2008 2:30:32 PM PST by libstripper
(Jan. 27) - His back resting comfortably against her chest, Hector nestles his massive canine head into Leslie Nuccio's shoulder, high-fiving pit bull paws against human hands.
The big dog - 52 pounds - is social, people-focused, happy now, it seems, wearing a rhinestone collar in his new home in sunny California.
But as Hector sits up, deep scars stand out on his chest, and his eyes are imploring.
"I wish he could let us know what happened to him," says Nuccio, the big tan dog's foster mother.
Hector ought to be dead, she knows - killed in one of his staged fights, or executed for not being "game" enough, not winning, or euthanized by those who see pit bulls seized in busts as "kennel trash," unsuited to any kind of normal life.
Instead, Hector is learning how to be a pet.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.aol.com ...
This is an an inspiring story.
Pit bulls who have been tortured, and taught to kill, but we’re putting them up for adoption?
Stick of dynamite, waiting to explode.
I raise and train dogs. I can see the former fighting dog doing well around its adopted owners, but could easily turn violent toward a stranger, especially a child. Kids playing with a dog is a normal thing, and kids tend to tussle at times.
No way I would want anything to do with a former fighting dog, nor do I want one anywhere near my home.
Seems like its playing with fire.
These dogs need loving families-preferable families with small children. They deserve as much, the poor things.
Yes this is a story of hope, of the bond people have towards a lesser creature. These dogs deserve a chance and not all fighting dogs that are rescued become killers. Many go the other way and are afraid of people and other dogs due to the horrific abuse they endured. It’s sad but it warms my heart to know that these dogs are getting a chance to contribute to a loving home.
And for those who didn’t read the whole article - each dog rescued from the killer Vick was evaluated. They did have to euthanize the too-aggressive ones and others are being professionally evaluated extensively to determine if they are fit for adoption.
The combination of breeding and violent training multiplied by the number of dogs here ensures at least one ‘incident’ in my mind. It would be nice to say they could be successfully rehabilitated to live in a human society, but a no kill shelter arrangement is probably in everyone’s best interest.
I thought they were going to be put to death if not adopted within a couple of months of the original arrest...and that was right before the season started, no?
“others are being professionally evaluated extensively to determine if they are fit for adoption.”
Right! A dog shrink is gonna guarantee the behavior of an ex-fighting dog? Yeah. It’s surely unfortunate, but the danger these dogs present is considerable. If someone, or someone’s pet makes any sort of wrong move,,,,,,,
I had a friend who was attacked by his own lovable Staffordshire Terrier while he was talking on the phone. 8o stitches!
Preferably one with small children.
Oh, I don't know about that - I'm thinking they'd make an excellent birthday gift for someone's ex-wife.
Bad idea. The “breed of peace” itself needs to be exterminated, not put into more homes.
I suggested a no kill shelter arrangement. I think housing this many dogs from this type of background is an extremely bad idea.
“his doggie wasn’t trained at Vick’s resort”
Doug’s dog Daisy was well treated all her life. She was friendly with everyone. Soon as you’d walk in, she’d flop on her back wantin’ her tummy rubbed. Doug had her for eight years. He was talkin’ on the phone to one of his friends when Daisy suddenly attacked him. Luckily, his friend called the police when he heard Doug screaming. He lost so much blood, that they told him he would have been dead in another minute or two! Doug had to kill his own pet with an aluminum baseball bat. He’s had no pets since. This happened 30 years ago.
Darwin Award hopefuls. I just hope the dog does not kill an innocent kid or bystander.
Probably have to change the name. Cujo award maybe?
RDO Ping
No, it's politically correct and idiotic.
I was at church this morning. A bunch of small children went to call on a friend, and their dog ran out the door and attacked them. Some of them were bitten quite a bit. The dog was a lab.
You just really have to be careful with any dog when you have small kids, or children who visit. My dogs are a more aggressive breed. But my children are all adults, and the dogs are sweet and well trained.
Thanks for posting this story.
Not so ‘brilliant’ a move. Once a dog gets a taste of blood or raw meat....they don’t turn back to easy going pets.
Such a heartwarming story. I wonder where the press will be when one of these evaluated non-violent former fighting pit bulls rip a toddler’s intestines out and/or rip off his/her face? Then there will be the trial and lawsuit against those that evaluated the dogs and knowingly placed them into a vulnerable home. Don’t you love these heartwarming John Edwards lawyer type of stories?
They’re supposedly rehabilitating Vick. I give the dogs a better chance.
Ignorance, such as yours, needs to be exterminated.
I would not trade this breed for any other.
Why muddle things with facts? It’s much more fun to make broad assumptions!
susie
If I didn’t have children, I would to this in a heartbeat.
Springer spaniels sometimes exhibit that sort of behavior. It’s called rage syndrome. The dog goes into a rage, attacks, and later acts as if nothing had happened. If a dog had never shown any propensity to bite and then attacked for no reason, I would suspect some sort of physical reason. A brain tumor, or something like rage syndrome (which may be a form of epilepsy). For the record, I too would dispatch a dog if it were attacking me and I could not get it under control. However, to say it was because the dog was an Am Staff is foolish. Did he have a necropsy done?
susie
No one can guarantee the behavior of any dog, surely you know that. What they can do is evaluate food aggression, aggression towards other dogs and behavior towards outsiders. You want more than that? Go light some candles at Mass. They're animals.
ROFLMAO!
Once a dog gets a taste of raw meat? You win the award for the silliest post among stiff competition. I fed my golden retrievers and spinoni a raw diet for years. They were all easy going house pets. In addition they were hunting dogs, so they tasted fresh blood on occasion. Where did you get your information?
susie
I had (for 14 years) a part Springer/part Lab (only part of him that looked Lab were his webbed paws)and he was the most gentle creature that ever walked the earth.
I understand but I thought you were saying it was more prevalent in that breed. Did I misunderstand you?
Started when Dad started feeding him raw meat. Given away to a ranger on a military reservation. He fought other males a lot when we had him to keep them away off the property.
An uncle's boxer had to be put down because he fed his male raw meat on occasion. The boxer started killing neighbors cats, then other dogs and chickens for no apparent reason.
No, you didn’t. It is most commonly found in springers, however most springers do not have it. If you do a search on google you will find people who discount it entirely and people who tell horrible stories about dogs who go crazy and attack, and everything in between (including what sounds like garden variety poor temperament or training). It is also seen in other breeds. I think it’s a genetic disease, probably a form of epilepsy, and probably was seen in certain lines of springers due to careless breeding. I’ve never met a springer with it, and in fact like the breed a lot.
FWIW I had a golden who had a delightful temperament until she turned about 6, then she suddenly started attacking another bitch I had who she had grown up with. This went on for a year, and I had to keep them completely separated at all times. Then, I had the golden’s thyroid tested, and it was low. I put her on thyroid meds and within a week, those two could be together all the time, and were again the best of friends. My point is simply that some temperament issues are health issues that can be resolved with proper medication.
susie
Actually, killing small game is quite normal for dogs. As for wolf mixes, they have a stronger prey drive than your average dog, and I would not trust them NOT to kill sheep or goats if they had the opportunity, well fed or otherwise.
Even my goldens would kill a rabbit if they got the chance, and that was before I ever started feeding them raw foods.
susie
btt
Gaming (training) dogs to kill one another makes them 99% unrecoverable for their dispositions....it makes them wild again in reality. Add the taste of blood....99% lost cause on the pit bulls. They cannot be trusted around humans unless keenly supervised.
I would agree that they should be supervised, and a dog who has been trained to fight (or as a guard dog) should never be trusted around small children. However, there is a hysteria about the pit type breeds that is unfounded. And I disagree about the taste of blood thing. I don’t think there is any basis for it.
susie
We'll just have to agree to disagree about the blood issue....didn't want to sound totally inclusive about my blood comment for all dogs....but seems to have been a trigger of some sorts in the 2 serious cases I know of. That same shepherd / wolf mix came through a solid core door to pull my dad off his bed when it was on fire (smoldering heavily) --- Dad had fell asleep with a lit cigarette after a long day and a few drinks.
You’re being sarcastic, right?
Moi?
Yeah, I do suspect wolf hybrids are very loyal to their packs. And it’s ok, we can disagree. I don’t know everything... ;)
susie
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