It is very irresponsible to leave any dog alone with a baby or small child. That’s very basic common sense stuff.
It is also not good to get a dog before learning all one can about that breed. For the owner’s sake as well as the dog’s well being.
We have been secondarily involved with rescues (as foster dogs) for years. Usually pittys or pit mixes, though not all.
With *any* dog, the key is a thorough knowledge of the canine species and the breed. Dog owners who follow that rule appear to be the exception. Pretty much typical of people.
Most here are so primed for conflict when dogs are part of the mix that they completely missed the point of this thread. Frustrating. The focus here is what limits if any should be placed on LEO in using deadly force on a living creature. And how do we arrive at those limits? The reality is that it is a very small step from shooting dogs to shooting people. We are already seeing plenty of that with tactical assault teams executing no knock invasions on non violent suspects.
You are so right.
When my son was a toddler we had a black lab and a Chow Chow mix. The first one was named Claudius, the second, Merlin.
Claudius (Claudy) was great around our son. But Merlin (,Merly Moo), a Chow Chow mix, had been dominant and aggressive from day one. He was an 8 week old puppy and proceeded to attack our one-year lab when we brought him home. He later attacked a st. Bernard, at least five times his size.
We brought him to three different veterinarians who all told me to put him down.
I tried many things including doggy antidepressants.
Then one day Merlin snapped at my son who was about 18 months old, when he was playing with his tail.
Shortly after, my mother passed away and I had to fly to Chicago. I had to get their shots in order to board them. I gave Claudius his vaccinations.
And then it was like my mother was speaking to me and she said, don’t put your son in danger. And I realized I would never forgive myself if my son was disfigured or worse. So I gave him a different shot.
I held Merly Moo while he died.
He was just a very protective dog. But when we brought our son home, I guess he thought he had to protect us from him.
The whole time driving back from the veterinarian, I kept thinking life is a tapestry of Joy and Pain.