Posted on 06/04/2005 8:54:05 PM PDT by churchillbuff
Pit bull terriers may be one of the most controversial breeds around, but they are also one of the most misunderstood by the public, dog experts said Friday in the wake of the fatal mauling of a 12-year-old boy in San Francisco.
If bred and trained properly, pit bulls can be wonderful pets, experts said. If there is a lack of stability, though, they have the proclivity and ability to inflict serious damage.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
And hand grenades make excellent paperweights
A dog that refuses to marry Goldie hawn yet jumps into bed with her.
Nah, just the owners. Maybe before the fact, is a good idea?
When used in the mainstream media, the term "pit bull" has about as much meaning as the term "assault weapon."
Fewer people are killed by pet alligators, per capita, than pit bulls.
"The whole show dogs thing is weird to me - many of the AKC dog breeds seem to have all function breed out of them"
Worse. They favor looks over function which results in breeding problem traits associated with looks they want - breathing problems, genetic diseases, poor health, etc.
I helped train a couple of Akitas, and they can be pretty nasty, but are able to be handled....I just wouldn't want them around kids, so that kind of limits them as a family dog. Chows are kind of strange in that I've known some that are big loveable furrballs, and others that have the personality of a ill-tempered psychotic....again, not necessarily good around kids. Rotties, though, are a different story. The biggest share of those that I've been around and have gotten to know are 150-plus pound drool factories with sweet dispositions that occasionally tend toward cowardliness.
There was a guy who lived across the street from me a while back, and he would take his Rottie out running with him. Not too long after I got my late Yorkie, I was in the backyard with the Yorkie and my Lhasa (okay, I like fuzzy dogs and terriers, so sue me!). He comes by with his Rottie, and stops to shoot the breeze with me. The Rottie and my Lhasa are sniffing at each other through the fence, tails wagging, dog grins on their faces.....and the Yorkie realizes he's being left out. He comes toodling up in that little puppy manner, and starts sniffing through the fence, too. He starts wagging his little stump, and then gives a puppy yap, and that 150 pound Rottie jumped back like he was going to get killed! He hid behind his owner and cowered for the best part of five minutes! Every time he would be walked or run past my backyard when the Yorkie was out, that Rottie acted like he was saying "Get it away! He'll kill me!"
That Rottie was actually a good watch dog, and the mailmen were afraid of him because he was territorial. He never attacked anyone, but he'd sure make you think he was capable of it. That territoriality and fierce loyalty to a master is what can make a Rottie potentially dangerous.
I've known of people who breed Rotties for bad temperament, and other who will mistreat the pups hoping to make them fierce. A very good friend of mine had a Rottie as an assistance dog who had been so mistreated when he was a puppy that he was paranoid to the point where it was pathetic. The dog's saving grace was that he was sweet natured and very loveable. He did have that Rottie loyalty, and when she brought her dog with her to a Civil War reenactment she was participating in, he showed that loyalty one night. She was asleep in her tent over in the civilian reenactor's area, and someone started snooping around outside her tent. Her dog heard it and began barking in a vicious way neither of us had ever heard before. The guys in my unit and myself heard the barking and ran over from the Federal Infantry camp to see what was wrong, and her dog had scared off some local POS who was thinking he could burglarize (or worse) some of the reenactors. Cowardly though her dog was, he overcame that to protect his mistress.
The Rottie is a working breed, as is the Akita. The Chow was a fighting breed. They all have a potential to be aggressive, but Rotties are generally the more family friendly breed. Akitas really call for dedication on the part of the owner, but a great deal of caution is required with them. Chows....well, with Chows unless you're sure that both the dam and the sire are friendly, I'd not get one, just to be safe. With Rotties, you need to be sure that the animal wasn't bred by someone wanting a big, aggressive dog, but rather, a loyal family member who will guard his humans with his life.
Better still, just get a Yorkie. They're smart, cute, they have a big dog ego in a small dog body, and will do things that are absolutely annoying but you'll love to the bottom of your heart. That, and they'll keep your yard free of squirrels.......
Same...re good day.
No it can't. My automobile cannot of its own volition decide to kill someone. How many times will I hear this canard on this thread?
One more point before I sign off.
I do believe that a dog can posses bad genes resulting in violent behavior which cannot be corrected. I am of the opinion that if any owner should acquire such a dog, the pet should be put down(culled) so as not to pass on the gene, and to prevent any possible incident of attack.
Thank you for your time.
We have raised three chows. The mother preferred to be on her own and would only reluctantly socialize with our family. The father was an extremely clever and dangerous animal, who eventually had to be put down. The pup from their litter that we kept, was a ginger/red chow and gorgeous also a big goof. Until someone threatened one of us, then you could see some of her father come out. They are beautiful animals, but would not have them around my children now. But, that's just me. Others may feel differently
Sound idea, to me. Any dog can become annoyed if children become too physical to the dog....the kids just have to be controlled by the parent, because unless the dog is known to have a bad temper, it's not the dog's fault.
You know exactly what I mean, my use of the wrong homonym notwithstanding. The argument you use is the same argument gun grabbers use to make their case. First they ban pit bulls (50 cal) then they go down the line and next thing you know, no dogs for anyone except for Diane Feinstein.
I don't know if was you or someone else that said if it was **shole owners making these dogs violent we would see this with other breeds. The problem is that most of these types of idiot owners pick pitbulls because:
a) Status symbol.
b) Potential for violence due to their strength.
Now, do you see gangbangers picking a poodle to own? Do white supremacists like the two whackjobs in San Francisco pick poodles, no! They want a strong dog for their perverted reasons even though the two from SF used another breed which I can't remember its name which has an equally bad reputation.
What are you saying here? Is this code for something you can't just come out and say? You are aware that this is a conservative website?
I'm saying if you're scared of a certain dog, maybe you should avoid them and get something more your speed. That doesn't give you the right to tell me what type of dog I can own.
Don't get me wrong, I feel for the family that lost its son due to a senseless dog attack. At the same time, we don't know the circumstances surrounding the death. Some people train the dogs for fighting and so on although I'm not saying that's the case here.
I have experience with these types of dogs and everyone of them was the coolest, sweetest dog you could imagine. This is because they were owned as a pet, not a status symbol or a fighter or to protect their drug dealing. They are extremely smart animals and should not be banned because losers mistreat them. Ban losers from owning them.
Do you know how those dogs were raised? Were they abused? One thing I've noticed is that when they get in packs, they get more dangerous. This applies to all breeds but a pack of Chihuahuas is probably nor going to be dragging you down the street. Unless you live in the country, I fail to see the reason for having 5 dogs although I won't deny you the right to own them. Those two in S.F. that had the violent dogs, they kept them in an apartment?? Isn't there something wrong with that?
The breed is, as one animal control officer put it, "A lawsuit waiting to happen."
I think insurance companies think the same way. Tell your insurance company you've got a pit and see how quick they drop you.
I'd love to get a Pit or a Rott but since my wife and I rescue cats and dogs, we've got our legal limit so there isn't room for more dogs unless we place the ones we got and we made the mistake of falling in love with them so they're here for life. But I will get one sooner or later.
Not "those." "It". One dog worked itself into a lather by just smelling my dogs (it was behind a wooden fence), and figured out a way to jump seven feet. Had my wife not grabbed it around the collar, the damned thing would have killed all three of my dogs.
The woman who owned him was terrified, as she said "He's three, and he's never done anything like that before."
Needless to say, she got a visit from animal control, and the dog was gone the next week. I heard she gave it to her son in Houston.
It's the dog, not the "way it was raised." These dogs were bred to kill other dogs, and the instinct is still there.
Had my wife not grabbed it around the collar, the damned thing would have killed all three of my dogs.
What exactly happened? If the dog was truly violent, your wife would have been bitten or worse. I'm glad to hear that your wife was able to stop the attack. I know I wouldn't want to be between 4 dogs fighting.
If the dog was truly that violent, much as I hate the idea, it should have been put down. The problem was just transfered to another city. If the dog, no matter what breed, is a viscious dog, it shouldn't be allowed to live to attack again.
As a side note, I looked up your breed and one site called them, the Yuppie Puppie, too funny.
I don't define myself by the type of dog I have, as some of these short-tooled macho-types do who own Pits.
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