Posted on 01/26/2006 12:00:29 PM PST by iPod Shuffle
I'll say it again: % is more important than absolute #. The only reason Labs might be more scary than "pits" is the SHEER # of them walking around your 'hood.
However, the % of pits doing bites - much less MAULINGS - and I mean really incessantly, pitilessly continuing the fight - must be much greater than Labs.
Hence, when you meet that 1 pit in your 'hood - there's a high chance he's a bad seed. Compared to Labs. You'd probably have to meet 100 Labs to find 1 to bite you, much less really attack you and keep going for the throat.
Years ago I saw a particular newspaper cartoon from a cartoonist known for his puns:
One guy is telling the other about his dog, "He's half shepherd and half lab."
The dog is with them. It wears a shepherd's headgear and holds a shepherd's staff. Its back is a long flat board on which rests a retort, Bunsen Burner, and test tubes. ;)
"Why are some dog breeds inclined to herd sheep? Why do the police use certain dogs to sniff out drugs. If all dog breeds are the same, then why don't poodles serve as guide dogs for the blind?
"Anyone who says that all dog breeds are the same is in denial. There are traits and characterists that certain breeds were selectively bred for."
Thank you.
I'll never understand why people (of ALL stripes) deny that genetics - breeding - breed CHARACTERISTICS - has anything to do w/the nature (ha - that word!) of the dog.
Lots of good sites with lots of stats, just google 'dog bite stats'.
Dear Laualee,
I never said all dog BREEDS are same. I said that all DOGs have certain traits and instincts (like the pack mentallity) that are constant.
You can trust a poodle more than a pitt, but both dogs will bite under similar circumstances.
You ignore that truth at your own peril.
The only people who do try to doubletalk about breed characteristics are pit bull people. ALL other breeders and fanciers speak frequently (and warn) about the very intentionally bred traits of their breed, and whether those traits make them a good pet for you. Except pit bull people.
I count 24 deaths to pitts, 16 to rotties and 10 to sheperds,
Out of 109, who did the rest? Mini Pins?
See post 68.
Cesar Millan has been called a Dr. Phil for dogs, and for good reason. Cesar’s amazing rehabilitations of aggressive, scared, lazy, compulsive, and jealous dogs captured the national spotlight when his National Geographic Channel (NGC) series Dog Whisperer premiered last year. Regular viewers soon came to realize it wasn’t the dogs – but the quirky owners - who needed Cesar’s help the most. On Friday, January 6, 2006 at 8 p.m. ET/PT Dog Whisperer returns for a primetime second season with expanded hour-long episodes.
I think the term you're looking for is "molly coddle". :)
They aren't good for those kinds of jobs, because they weren't bred for the kinds of traits that do those jobs. Pit bulls attack other dogs (and people) out of dominance and aggression. German Shepherds chase and bite specific targets because of a carefully honed prey drive that has been refined in herding breeds. They are different instincts altogether. The ability to fight to the death alone is much different than the cognitive ability and stability to perform a complex search and capture job without losing control or doing unintended harm.
But how do you differentiate the ones who are from the ones who aren't? Should we wipe out an entire breed?
They aren't natural species that should be protected for some intrinsic value. Every breed of dog was created by us for our purposes. The real question should be, in civilized society, is there a reason to continue to breed dogs that were created for the uncivilized sport of dog fighting? Is there anything valuable about a pit fighter that we want to save to keep in our homes? Are they better at some job than other breeds for any job we still want them to do? We have dogs bred to be pets. Pit bulls aren't the best at that job either for good reason.
I would have run in my house only to get my gun so as to kill the pit bull if it had killed my dog. Or if it jumped a fence into my yard for that matter.
I'm no expert; after all, you're the dog person.
Then my question is, what should we do with pit bulls? I don't think exterminating them all is a reasonable option. And even that comes to the question of mixed breeds.
Just forget I said anything; I don't know what I"m talking about.
And I believe dogs are more intelligent than you or the molly-coddlers really believe. (NO, I did not call YOU a molly-coddler, I was referring to the cutsie Petsmart-training rose-colored-glasses types. It just happens that sometimes the most different types of people seem to share the same views on specific things.)
And it's MOLLY-, not MODDLE-. ;-) It's a nonsense word - or phrase; I'm sure you've heard of it.
Anyway, I don't care if the dog had thoughts or not - bottom line is, some are just BAD. You're thinking along the lines of killers who are "crazy" vs. those who are just plain...killers. My feeling is the result is the same - so execute them all. I don't care if the person or dog had a mind to use and really knew he was "killing". Just put them out of our misery.
And for the record, I am AGAINST breed legislation. It's like that Priest w/the Nazi thing for me. I love German Shepherds, yet talk about a breed that's been saddled w/a bad rep for ages. Your Dobes and pits may have been fads, but GS have been nursing the "vicious dog" rap for some 40 years continuously.
Hell, even if I didn't love GS or other dog of "bad rep", I'd be against it. I just don't think it's right to tell people what they can and can't have, unless the specific thing is indicated to be dangerous. Not all "pits" are bad. I'd just be wary of them when I see them. And maybe report 1 that seemed a bit too....ardent.
The other reason I'm against it is because a) not all dogs are registered b) not all registered dogs are really what their papers say they are c) people - even shelter and cops - don't know squat when talking of "breeds". They know the 10 most popular breeds in the world from over 50 years. So it's pointless to count on idiots who know nothing to pull away a "dangerous" breed. They'll take Pugs and Affenspincshers and Chinese Shar-Pei because they think they're "pits". Now they're infringing on non-pit peoples' rights. And how many mutts look like pits? And like other breeds? When do you declare a mutt "close enough" to pure "pit"?
No, I'm against breed legislation.
Good observation and point! A great number of dog owners have no business owning dogs.
"If pit bulls are bred to attack, use them as police dogs or put them in the military.
They aren't good for those kinds of jobs, because they weren't bred for the kinds of traits that do those jobs. Pit bulls attack other dogs (and people) out of dominance and aggression. German Shepherds chase and bite specific targets because of a carefully honed prey drive that has been refined in herding breeds. They are different instincts altogether. The ability to fight to the death alone is much different than the cognitive ability and stability to perform a complex search and capture job without losing control or doing unintended harm."
Thank you Hair. That's what I forgot to reply to as well - as a GSD lover, I can't let the "attacking" = "police" fly by.
GSD are NOT fighting dogs - they are herders. Their (extra) developed sense for being very assertive and willing to use their "weapons" is very different from just-plain-attacking because they like to kill.
You have to be able to control a police/military-attack dog. They must release when you tell them, and only attack when you tell them. You cannot at all control a truly "aggressive" dog who has bad temperament. Police/Mil will discard dogs who are aggressive as opposed to assertive.
IOW, don't ever put my GS in the category of "vicious fighting breed". ;-)
THese dogs are not any more evil than firearms. I have two and they are the best dogs God has ever blessed us with.
You are going to heck for that.
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