“According to the Clifton study, pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes are responsible for 74% of attacks that were included in the study, 68% of the attacks upon child”ren, 82% of the attacks upon adults, 65% of the deaths, and 68% of the maimings.”
You, who have ordered us to “stay on topic” just careened over the cliff[ton].
The subject is _pit bulls_; *not* “pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes”.
[whatever “mixes” means because most people don’t bother to tote around DNA swabs]
Posting this makes your argument ‘against us’ actually work in favor of what we keep trying to tell people.
Those “statistics” include 2 other, completely different breeds *and* “their mixes”.
No statistical conclusion about pit bulls can be fairly drawn whilst also including a hodge-podge of unknown inaccurate breed variables.
Few law authorities would have the breed knowledge to accurately identify a “pit mix” without performing DNA tests.
*Any* mixed breed dog with a “wide head” would be considered a “pit mix” by the ignorati.
A Lab mix might look like a pit mix.
*Any* Mastiff or Boxer in the woodpile, so to speak, would give a dog “that general look”.
I have dealt with the misidentification of breed mixes for years because I am involved with Ibizan rescue.
When “Bunny” got to the BOS ring at Westminster, suddenly our rescue was inundated by “Ibizan mixes” on PetFinder simply because of the “desirably exotic” factor.
Any dog with prick ears/long legs/long tail/red & white/yellow & white/pink nose/amber eyes [etc etc etc] was an “Ibizan mix”.
For years now, we have tried to educate shelter personnel on the sheer unlikelihood of having an “Ibizan mix” due to the fact of the small number of purebreds in the US, the disdain for mating “outside their own kind” and the simple fact that those who own purebreds are not inclined to allow their dogs to be mated, accidentally or otherwise to anything else but another Ibizan Hound.
Despite our efforts to educate, they still mislabel mixes.
Here are the latest batch:
Few, if any of those dogs truly resemble an Ibizan, as seen here:
http://file.walagata.com/w/the-salamander/jinn1.jpg
[we do have a few *real* Ibizans, namely Shay and Chevy available for adoption to responsible, vigilant, serious, sight hound knowledgeable people with securely FENCED YARDS, if anyone’s interested]
I’m also involved in Portuguese Podengos.
The bizarre things that show up as PPs on PetFinder rivals insanity.
Bottom line is, you cannot quote breed statistics -without- true and accurate identification of said breed.... for *any* breed.
Sweet, my dog qualifies as an Ibizan hound!
Now I don't have to worry about him being outlawed by some yellow-bellied busy-body with nothing better to do! *snerk*
