See if you can pick out the Pit Bull in these photos:
http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/findpit.html
I narrowed it to 2, and was right... but it was the second one I clicked on.
My own breed is on that page, and I’ve had people ask me if my breed is “part Pit” — my breed is a HOUND and is nowhere near a TERRIER, which is what Pit Bull TERRIERS are. But people, even DOG PEOPLE like myself, and even Animal Control Officers and Animal Shelter staff, are not good with breed identification. So the “Pit Bull” gets blamed for many things they are not responsible for.
>So the “Pit Bull” gets blamed for many things they are not responsible for.<
Absolutely. I went to a dog show today. There was a large crowd around one ring, watching a little 28 pound dog do her Utility routine:
Each level of AKC obedience competition - novice, open, and utility - requires mastering a specific skill set, which increase in difficulty, before advancing to the next level. In each of the 3 sections, the dog earns a title after receiving a qualifying score under three different judges.
Novice Class demonstrates good canine companion skills such as heeling, both with and without a leash, coming when called, standing for a simple physical examination, and staying in both a sit and a down position with a group of dogs.
Open Class is more challenging as more exercises are done off leash and retrieving and jumping challenges are added.
Utility Class, which includes scent discrimination, directed retrieves, jumping and silent signal exercises, is the most challenging class.
The 28 pound (adult) dog went through the exercises with precision, happily wagging her tail at her owner. The crowd applauded when the little dog and her owner won the class.
The little dog is a purebred Staffordshire Bull Terrier. This is one of the breeds lumped into the classification of “pit bull”.
Keep in mind, this little dog was far smaller than an English Bulldog, or even some cocker spaniels. She greeted her admirers with a happily wagging tail and wiggled her entire body in the process. She paid no attention to the other dogs around her, never showing the slightest interest, much less aggression. She put forth a performance in obedience that would have made a border collie’s owner envious.
Yet, in some sections of our country, this owner dare not take her dog, because if she did so, the little dog could be confiscated and destroyed for no reason other than hysteria. This dog poses no appreciable threat, yet politicians have passed ignorant laws that lump her in with “dangerous dogs”.
On the other hand, somebody’s ill-tempered, untrained poodle can be taken anywhere in the country with out a care in the world and would be far more likely to bite a stranger.
That’s a great quiz. I seriously doubt very many people could identify the pits in those photos—ESPECIALLY Chet99 and his pals. I bet they’d call them ALL pits.