Posted on 05/15/2008 6:04:35 AM PDT by tuffydoodle
FORT WORTH -- A 3-year-old girl was in critical condition at Cook Children's Medical Center after being attacked by two pit bull terriers Wednesday night.
Police responded to the call shortly before 8 p.m. at a mobile home park in the 5000 block of N. DeSoto Court, Lt. Jimmy McCarthy said. The child's aunt, who was also injured, was taken to Harris Methodist Fort Worth Hospital, McCarthy said. Police declined to identify the woman.
The girl does not live where the attack took place, but was in the care of her aunt at the time, said Lynn Alexander, a neighbor at the Redwood Estates Mobile Home Park in southeast Fort Worth.
"This is unbelievable," said Leslie Cranston, a neighbor who lives across the street. "I walk my dog every day and never knew they even had dogs in that house."
The mobile home park manager said residents are required to sign a contract when they move in, and the rules are clear.
"They state, 'No pit bulls, Rottweilers, Dobermans, chows or other dangerous breeds,'" said Walter Winters, manager. "If we would have known, I would have given them a notice to get rid of the dogs or vacate the property."
The dogs were seized by the city's animal control department.
The Fort Worth Crimes Against Children Unit is investigating the incident.
Are pit bulls inevitably and irredeemably aggressive toward all small animals (nature)...OR ... do they become aggressive toward smaller animals only as a consequence of being deliberately trained to attack them (nurture)?
I use “inevitably and irredeemably” deliberately because even relatively placid dog and other animal species can have the odd member whose mainspring is wound just a little too tightly. But, if taken as a whole, the species is always aggressive towards small animals, children, etc., then it would be fair to characterize them as a dangerous animal and exclude them from contact (except under extremely controlled conditions) with human society. If the later is the case, that they must be trained to regard the small and helpless as objects to be attacked, then it is criminal behavior on the part of their human owners to trained them (or have them trained) to be this aggressive.
Over the past years, I've seen postings here on FR that seem to fall on one side or the other but this fundamental question gets clouded over in these discussions because of the understandable emotion evoked by these horrific attacks.
Being quite familiar with Goldens this SHOCKS me (that one once bit a kid): ) Mine will let the other dogs, kids, strangers...whomever...climb, smack, chomp etc...her and if you just pet her once she forgives all!!! (Precious is what she is!!!!)
“A new neighbor just moved in to the house next door. They have a pit bull. “
My neighbors have pit bulls too.
I NEVER go outside without my cannister of pepper spray. Once one of the dogs got into my yard and came after me. I hit him right in the face with the spray. He turned and left immediately.
Got it from
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/
Buy a can of self defense aerosol spray. When the wind is blowing towards the dog, give him a good sniff. Get him to associate you,m barking and the burning nose sensation together. No need to actually spray it in his eyes because his nose is sensitive enough to get the message. It should only take a few sniffs for him to understand.
Fatal pit bull attack on a toddler at Camp Lejeune (on-base) yesterday as well:
http://www.jdnews.com/news/attack_56604___article.html/dog_boy.html
LOL I should have read all the comments first.
Likely I would kill the dog and the owner at the first opportunity I had.
Unless they are CLEARLY well trained and socialized, I would poison some bacon and throw it over the fence.
I think they belong to the aunt.
Ammonia in a squirt bottle works best. Make sure it isn’t ordinary househoold ammonia but the stronger stuff. I used to work as a land surveyor and dogs were sometimes a problem. I adapted a nasal spray bottle to work as a squirt bottle and filled it with VERY strong ammonia. The next dog that tried to get a piece of me got a faceful of that instead and simply fell to the ground and eventually crawled away, whimpering. The next day he didn’t want anything to do with me.
It may not be strictly legal, but I would have no moral qualms at all about tossing a "special meatball" over that fence.
Pit Bulls mirror their owners (or vice-versa). I’d be more afraid of them than the dogs.
Not because my dog is fierce but because if something happens it is too late. Jaws like this are unforgiving.
That and be prepared to face serious consequences if it accidentally ‘goes off’ on someone.
I love dogs, some breeds more than others. Every vet I’ve talked to about pit bulls says this breed needs to be fixed to greatly reduce the inherent tendencies of this breed to unexpectedly snap and do something like this. After sexual maturity, there is something in this breed’s wiring that makes them more prone to unexpectedly turn violent, nad you cannot foresee what will trigger it. It appears to be a hormonal thing, and spay/neuter can reduce it significantly.
Of course, this is also assuming they haven’t been bred to be violent and mean on purpose by the owner.
That last pic: (knock-knock) Land Shark.
I hope you are armed when you go in the back yard. I had this problem years ago. Finally I just shot them one night and the problem ended. No one could prove I did it.
That’s the way my dad used to cure this problem in the country.
That “final solution” has not come to that point .......yet......
That's what my new neighbor's dog looks like, just inches from me on the other side of my chain link fence (5 ft) as I work in my yard and garden...........
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