Posted on 09/02/2007 9:30:42 AM PDT by meandog
In the 27 years that Al Chille has been with the Niagara County SPCA, many dogs have had their day.
Lately, it’s been the pit bull’s turn to be notorious.
Between local incidents like the July 8 attack on a toddler, and national cases like the Michael Vick dogfighting scandal, pit bulls have been in the headlines a lot lately.
“We’re getting all kinds of negative national publicity (for pit bulls),” Chille, SPCA executive director, said.
Chille said he’s very selective about whom he lets adopt pit bulls — though if someone was looking to adopt a pit bull for dogfighting or for breeding, they wouldn’t go to the SPCA, since all dogs leaving the SPCA must be spayed or neutered.
(Excerpt) Read more at niagara-gazette.com ...
Sorry, I meant that for the profile page of “just deserts”.
The biggest danger from Goldens is drowning.
ANY dog that comes into my home gets exactly ONE mulligan. It can growl all it likes to voice displeasure, but if the teeth come out, so does the needle.
No ifs, ands, buts or maybes. No matter WHAT breed, if a dog shows the least bit of human aggression, it should be put down. They are in this home at MY sufferance.
I’ve NEVER had to put a pit down for aggression. I still get a bit teary when I remember having to lend my car so my brother could take Zooterz for her trip to the rainbow bridge, and that was 5 years ago.
I live in Texas, in the Dallas area. They are a popular pet here.
Well, you could also disappear forever in a big yellow dust bunny! ;)
susie
I once had to put a golden to sleep for serious dog aggression. She bit me while I was (stupidly) trying to break up a fight between her and another of my goldens. It broke my heart (she was our first golden and really my son’s dog and a fabulous hunter). However, I became concerned that one of the kids would get in the middle of it, and get bitten and I just could not take that risk.
I agree with you. I will put down any dog, golden or otherwise who actually shows aggression to humans. And I would not breed a golden who showed even dog aggression as it is an incorrect temerment for the breed. The bad thing with a golden who bites or is dog aggressive is that everyone trusts them. People let their little kids come up and jump in my dogs faces. Of course they shouldn’t do that, but they do. And so, my goldens have to be perfect ambassadors.
susie
That's late to be neutered, unfortunately. Not surprising he was unsettled.
The answer for a Staffordshire, or any potentially aggressive dog, is obedience training and responsible ownership.
Dallas! I’m a displaced Texan btw. Lived in DeSoto for a couple of years, and when I was a kid lived in Ft. Worth and Crowley. I have family in the area still (one son in Plano).
I think pits are not very popular here in S. Florida. In E. TX where we lived before this chows were very popular (I never got that, with the heat and the coat care—even tho they are not my favorite dog I felt bad for them as people would have them chained up outside and their coats would be matted). When I lived in Midland there were a number of pits (or pit type dogs) but I never knew any that were biters. Of course, this was in the early 90s, before they became the dog of choice for drug traffickers and gang bangers. FWIW I read a couple of years ago that some gang bangers were breeding pit bulls with mastiffs. That could give you nightmares I suppose...
susie
I haven't met one yet who didn't act like meeting you was seeing a long lost friend and the best thing that ever happened to them. The first thing they do is lick you and then roll over and expose their necks and bellies. Submissive dogs.
I know where you’re coming from on that. The only solace I can accept when I have to put a dog down for aggression(only 2 in 40 years of owning) is that “all dogs go to heaven”.
I know it’s cornball, but I find it helps.
Actually, early neutering (unfortunately) may be related to some health issues. I’m a proponent of spaying/castrating pets, however owners should go into it with all of the information. It appears it’s better to wait. And I used to be a big proponent of doing it early. Not any more.
http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html
susie
Believe me, I’ve seen a few (not mine) that would bite if pushed. And dog aggression is becoming more common, altho still most goldens have very good temperaments.
Heck, the Bible mentions animals in heaven, so I cannot imagine mine won’t be there. I just hope the cow I ate for dinner won’t be there to greet me!
susie
We took one of our pure-bred Cairn Terriers as a rescue at about 18 months of age (he had been abused by his previous owner). He had just been fixed.
Ever since, we have had trouble with occasional housebreaking and “pack leader” issues (he had fathered a litter before being fixed) though thankfully he is not aggressive. In fact, he’s a regular sweetheart and wonderful with kids.
I will check out the link.
Good grief! Get a real mattress!
Exactly. Pit bulls were one of the most popular dogs in the country around WWI. Teddy Roosevelt had pit bulls in the white house; Helen Keller had pit bulls. The dog on Our Gang was a pit bull.
If this breed were inherently bad, why is it that these media reports are a relatively recent phenomenon? I'm old enough to remember that in the 70s, dobermans were the inherently vicious dog -- you never heard about pit bulls back then. After that, it was Akitas, and before that, it was plain old English and American bulldogs. If it were an inherent breed problem, you wouldn't see this fluctuation.
Here's how you would see such fluctuation: if a certain breed becomes popular with thugs and criminals who want mean dogs, you'll see a relatively rapid rise in attacks by that breed. The thug popularity also leads to irresponsible overbreeding, so there will statistically be more unstable dogs out there. In classic "it bleeds, it leads" fashion, the media then reports only the terrible stories -- so those who don't hear about the hundreds of thousands of good, happy family pit bulls out there get a skewed perception of what's actually happening (same phenomenon that we see happening with the reporting on Iraq).
I completely understand why responsible and loving dog owners would have pit bulls -- to fight back against the evil thugs who are trying to ruin what has historically been a fine breed.
If you look at some of them directly in the eye they are ready to go, they challenge you.
I've been around pits for over 20 years and they were as dangerous back then as they are now.
The nice ones are a lot of fun, you can throw a rope over a tree limb and they will bite it and you can pull them up into the air about 20 feet and they will not let go, the jaw muscles are amazing.
Yeah, it’s unfortunate that early neutering appears to be a double edged sword. I require all of my pets to be fixed, and I used to recommend it be done before the first season for females and about 6 months for the males. However, I’ve known too many dogs who have had cruciate ligament surgery in the past several years. On the other hand, I agree that if a male is used for breeding, often neutering will have much less impact on behaviors.
susie
Shark attacks are media fascination, so are bit bulls.
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