I would like just one honest, reasonable, thoughtful statement as to why anyone wants to own one of these dogs. This is not a rhetorical question, nor am I seeking to be confrontational. I just want to hear why drug-free law-abiding citizens choose to own a pit bull.
I never owned one, but a friend did. The first time I met the dog it literally knocked me over so it could lick my face. It just got friendlier from there. The breed may not be perfect, but it is certainly not the time bomb people make it out to be. It boils down to the responsibility of the owner and treatment of the dog. That is true of all dogs, not just pit bulls.
My son’s wife, and consequently my son owned pit bulls. They were always well behaved when I was around, but I was always nervous for the grandchildren. For a while they lived in a rather dangerous neighborhood for lack of money, and I felt they were safer having the dog(s). One day when the people were away, the dogs got into a dominance battle, and they had a $1,000 vet bill. My son complained that when he took the dog(s) for a walk, always on a leash, there frequently were people whose dogs were unleashed. He always had to warn them to keep their dogs away, as pit bulls were bred to kill other dogs.
Before he was married my son and a friend rented my income apartment. His friend had a 7 month pit bull and a small alligator. They would put the dog in the bathroom when they were at work. It ate the bottom off the door and I had to replace it. When I visited, the dog was very affectionate. He would lie on the couch and put his head in my lap and beam at me with his tail going thump, thump. Later when my son was married, at least one of their dogs would snuggle against me on the couch.
I am not a dog person, although I will be kind and friendly to one if it is around. I prefer the independent cat. This is all I know about pit bulls from personal experience.
We owned a half pit bull and half bull dog. He was a wonderful dog and never showed agression to people. Other dogs...that’s a different story.
“I would like just one honest, reasonable, thoughtful statement as to why anyone wants to own one of these dogs. This is not a rhetorical question, nor am I seeking to be confrontational. I just want to hear why drug-free law-abiding citizens choose to own a pit bull.”
This is just a guess, but I think the answer for some pit bull owners is that they think it’s cool to own something really dangerous. My father-in-law used to keep rattlesnakes in a cage; there is something fascinating about keeping a dangerous animal. His judgment has been waning in recent years, and a couple years ago, he reached in the cage and grabbed one of his rattlers behind the head (luckily without being bitten), and pulled it out of the cage to show it off to one of his grandkids. Upon hearing about this, the next day his son took all of his rattlesnakes to a wilderness area, and set them loose.
Because with proper supervision and adequate care, they are wonderful pets.
They require more, but give back more.
I’m guessing that less than five percent of the people that own pit bulls actually should, which is why we have attacks like this so frequently. People think that pits are no different than a lab, and that’s just dead wrong.
I became a pit owner by accident, and very nearly gave him up right afterwards as I also have five small children. However, with the help of a small group of bully lovers I became more knowledgeable about the breed, and decided it was worth the extra time training, excercising etc.
Swiper has given us nothing but joy since then.
Years ago we had a pit named Kayla. We bought her as a puppy and this was before the internet so we hadn’t heard all the stories one hears today. I had 3 small boys. She was a fine dog. We got her because we liked the way she looked (she did not have cropped ears—wish I had pic of her scanned but I don’t) and the short coat. After we got her we discovered that in addition to those 2 things she was very easy going, could take everything the kids did in stride and was just a wonderful all around dog. Her ONLY drawback was she was very destructive (chewed up lots of stuff).
So, that’s why we had one.
We have a Pit Bull and my daughter has a Pit Bull. Bred properly, trained properly and treated properly, they are wonderful pets full of love and loyality. It’s not a breed for everyone - right now they are the “fad” of the day, which leads to bad breeding, poor or no training, and stupid owners.