-
A rerun, for all of the "Pollyanna" Bully breed owners...
- Oct 17, 2009 at 1:39 AM
- By
- Comments (14) Total Views (343) Everyone can see this journal post.
I originally posted this journal almost a year ago, but in lieu of some recent moronic journal posts (okay it was only one moronic post, but obviously there are others who could benefit from the education...) I'm posting it again. Read it. Love it, embrace it. Stop being a dipshit. This post also applies to ALL BULLY BREEDS!
I'll preface this by saying I have been seeing a lot of positive pit bull posts around the Cafe lately. Which is AWESOME! But there's also something that comes along with it that has really been disturbing me. On every single one of these posts I end up seeing about a bazillion comments of "Pit bulls are just like any other dog! It's all in how you raise them!"
This, my friends, is a giant myth. It just isn't true. I'm not saying this to be mean, or put pits down (they're my passion, after all)....rather to spread knowledge and make more effort to protect them. Ignorance can hurt our breed just as much as cruelty. Well meaning pit bull owners whose dog ends up attacking another mutt at the dog park unintentionally contribute to their bad reputation just as much as those who fight these dogs and treat them with cruelty.
So let me break it down for ya. Pit bulls are NOT big headed labs. The rule of "raise them right and they'll behave right" is another one you can toss right out the window. If this was true I wouldn't have a rescue full of pit bulls who are loving breed ambassadors despite the fact that many of them have previously been fought and abused beyond belief. American Pit Bull Terriers are inherently dog aggressive. Deny it all you want; it's the truth. The APBT has been "selectively" bred for hundreds of years to fight other dogs. This unfortunately is the sad work that these dogs were created for. In the same way that Labradors were bred to retrieve birds, APBTs were bred to face other dogs in mortal combat. Even in dogs that are not recently bred from fighting lines, the urge to fight can arise at any time. Not to strongly emphasize this fact would be negligent.
Pit bulls should never be taken to dog parks and they should also never be left unsupervised with other animals, I don't care how well they appear to get along. We have a basic rule in the pit bull world and that is simply "Never trust your pit not to fight". Unfortunately people have a hard time accepting this truth about pit bulls and also seem to have a particularly hard time disassociating dog aggression from human aggression. They're NOT the same thing. If a pit bull attacks another dog, it's a normal breed trait and it's YOUR responsibility as an owner to take the proper steps to prevent it from happening. They're doing what they were genetically made to do for years and years--it doesn't mean they are aggressive and need to be put to sleep or that they're coming after you next.
If anyone is curious or wants more information I'd be happy to provide it to you. But seriously ---If you REALLY love your pit, please educate yourself on the breed. Animal aggression may not always be the easiest thing in the world to deal with but we make do because we love our breed. Denying the genetics and history of these dogs is doing them a great disservice and inadvertently adding to their already tarnished reputation.
That's my PSA for today, I'm out. :)
Comments:
You have NO IDEA how much more I love you after reading this. Seriously. The idea that someone could believe that labs are good family dogs, chihuahuas are yappy, little terriers can be crazy... but pitbulls are NEVER mean and don't you dare say that and it's your fault as their owner! has never sat right with me.
My best friend is in school to be a vet, has a rottie and had two pits. She fully believed the "there's no bad dogs - just bad owners" stuff... until one day, out of the blue, her pit attacked their new pit puppy, and even her husband kicking the dog's head, trying to make him let go of the puppy's neck didn't work. She was in shock, and realized that breed traits exist, no matter how good or attentive the owner.
I appreciate this post so much and hope people actually learn from it, rather than just defending their dogs.
Interesting post. I learned something.
I think I'm in love with you! I'm voting this popular 110%!!!
I was raised to believe that pitt bulls are evil and never go near them. This is coming from a girl who was raised to love animals and I was always bringing something home that was four legged. My mom was never attacked my a pit but she had heard the horror stories. Over the years I have rescued countless dogs, cats, squirrels, opossums, and birds but never a pit due ti this fear she instilled in me. Then my BIL got married to a girl who had a pit, she was a big love muffin and I fell for her head over heels. I'd get on the floor and play with her. My poor BIL, we'd go over their to visit and I think I spent more time with the dog then talking to them LOL! Then came my kids. My mother would freak when I'd bring my little one to their house. Daisy (the pit's name) would like Asher all over form head to two and wag so hard her whole butt would wiggle. When Asher started walking I'd keep a eye on him. Daisy was older and was sore. Asher got a running start and jumped on her back squealing Yeehaw doggy. I had a heart attack, i couldn't get to him in time. What did daisy do? She yelped because it hurt her, she slowly stood up so he'd slide off then she licked him all over to see if he was ok!!! Big mean vicious dog. The last couple years I've done alot of online research on pitts and I have discovered that not all evil. Yes, they are more aggressive and you need to train them correctly, be careful and educate yourself. I don't think pitt should all be killed but I think that before you adopt one you should have to complete a course about them. Sorta like before you a child form foster care you have to take classes and be approved, same thing with pitts then. Someone should come see your house and check to see that you have good living conditions as well. IMO I think I know who you're referring to, I saw the post the other day too. Don't you just love people who can shout their opinions and but listen to yours when you very nicely say it?!!!? Thank you for all you do to educate people and rescue furry babies.
You have no idea how much I wish people had to take a class before owning one. Because this information in the journal is something that I did not know when I owned my first pit bull. I took him to the dog park and everywhere else and had no clue what I was doing. Thankfully soon after that I started doing rescue and learned so much information about my breed.
So I have nothing against people who just don't know this stuff. But to become educated and then deny it....well that's just sad. Then the dogs suffer. Thanks for the comments ladies!
Thank you! I grew up with an Airedale out in the middle of nowhere. They are the greatest dogs ever (I am a little biased), but they have a mean streak. While the dog would have protected me with his life, he would fight to the death with another dog if it felt threatened or any member of its pack was in danger. So, long as the dog was part of his pack, everything was fine, but otherwise we knew to not let him out when there were other dogs around.
Knowing what I know about Airedales, I would never have one living in town. I love the breed, but I know the "dangers" of owning one.
People should know the instinctual make-up of any dog they own. Every dog breed was created with a certain purpose. You should never assume a dog will go against its natural instinct, no matter how well trained they are. We have a rat terrier. To believe that she can be a calm, even tempered lap-dog would be foolhardy. She is a dog who was bred to ferret out rats. She is quick and muscular and very high energy.
People should fully research all aspects of any dogs characteristics BEFORE they bring a dog into their home. This goes for all dog breeds, but especially the APBT you are talking about here. Great post as usual.
I love you, Katie. I really do. And this was great information for me to learn. I do take my dog to the dog park and from now on, if I see a pit bull there, even if it's a very sweet dog, I'm leaving. My dog is small and timid, and a pit bull who decides that she's a target is not something I'm prepared to deal with.
Incidentally, I also think it's ridiculously stupid to ignore breed traits. My dog is a herding dog. She is also an incredibly loyal dog who always stays by my side and always comes when I call. But I also know that if I take her to the park and let her off the leash, and she happens to see a squirrel or a flock of geese, her herding insticts will take over and she'll disappear, no matter what I do. I'm not stupid.
I'm sorry that so many dog owners are. It's sad, especially for the poor dogs who suffer because of it.
It is the dogs that suffer. It's a big horrible cycle.
Pit bull owner ignores breed education because they think they can either train or love genetics out of their dog and that they are Cesar Milan. They take said dog to the dog park and everything is fine for a while. One day out of nowhere their pit kills or seriously hurts another dog. The news media shows up like crazy and reports "EVIL PIT BULL ATTACK!" to the general public who mostly does not understand that animal aggression is NORMAL from pit bulls and does in no way equate to human aggression.
Now that same well meaning yet dumbass pitbull owner has now most likely gotten a death sentence for their own dog AND has helped to contribute to the undeserved reputation of these great dogs. I've seen it happen first hand over and over; we even had a volunteer who this happened to because he decided not to listen.
We learned this the hard way. My ex-husband and I had a beautiful pit bull named Luna. She was so pretty and sweet. We bought her to Maine with us and she lived with two cocker spaniels, both female. As she got older, Luna began attacking the other dogs and it was so stressful and upsetting. If we had only had Luna, it would have been fine, but the other two dogs were there first. :(
Already a member? Click here to log in
Check out these Tasty Treats from The Stir's partners:
Thank you! My in laws just rescued a pit that literally wandered off the street and found my father in law! I am glad they decided to give him a home, but they are more intrested in telling everyone that little Toby is a Stafordshire Terrier than realizing that he is a pit bull breed and that they already have 3 other dogs whom do not get along very well. They treat him just the same as the other three and look at me sideways when I say I am not comfortable with my kids being around him. It's not that I hate the breed or think that he is inately evil, I don't. I just wish they would recognize that he does require SOME special treatment. Until then, I am afraid that I will remain uncomfortable with him around my kids, especailly with the fact that some of their other dogs can be snippy around the kids too ... I don;t like the thought of that agression being in the room with them at all. IDK ... I'm sure something I've said could be twisted to sound like I don;t like the dog just because he's a pit. That's not what I mean ... and I think this post did a great job of illustrating my point.
- unsuspected
Message Friend Invite