I HATE pit-bulls!

[telewinz]

My sister's daughter moved in with my sister a few weeks ago and with her came a pit-bull.  I have always had doubts about pit-bulls...are they suitable pets?  I have enjoyed all kinds of dogs my entire life so I went to my sister's house for Christmas and spent a great deal of time petting "her" pit bull.  The dog certainly was friendly enough but the muscular body and large head still made me a little cautious.  Tonight at home on the 6'Oclock news there is a story where a pit-bull attacked a young boy who was sled riding (his own property).  The boy's grandfather fought the unknown dog off his son (appeared to be dead) and when the dog sought to attack both of them AGAIN, a neighbor shot and killed the pit-bull.  I'm not much of a fan of regulating people but when a strange, hostile dog attacks for no apparent reason, well....maybe pit-bulls should be banned.  I'll be emailing this news story to my sister and lend her a gun and ammo.

[telewinz]

I'm not much of a fan of regulating people, but when high capacity assault weapons are so tempting to criminals, well.... maybe they should be banned.

http://www.wikd.org/pitbull/pitflash.swf

Pit-bulls and people kill people...assault weapons have NEVER been proven to have attacked without EXTREME provocation!

[telewinz]

Dog Attacks Child
This is a Christmas one Hancock County family won't soon forget. The Elo's, who live outside of Weirton off Lyons Road, say they grateful their family survived a dog attack. Patricia Elo cannot get the images out of her head, Saturday afternoon, while her grandson was sled-riding a dog attacked. That is when officers say a pit bull came out of no where and attacked Nathanial, Patricia and Dave's 8 year old grandson. Dave Elo says he fought to free his grandson, "He had him by the neck when I went out and just kept clamping and wouldn't let go. I was beating him on the head, screaming." Dave managed to free his grandson and says he carried the limp child inside, "I thought my grandson was dead he wasn't moving, he wasn't breathing at the time, I was just petrified." Patricia says emergency crews rushed both grandson and grandfather, who was having chess pains, to the hospital, "I was going from one area of the hospital to the other checking on both of them." Both the little boy and grandfather are doing okay. As for what happened to the dog the Elo's say after they got the dog off the boy, the dog tried to attack again and that's when a neighbor shot and killed it.

[Brad Johnson]

Pits bulls are, by nature, very smart, loyal, and territorial animals. Their intelligence makes them highly trainable and they can be easily socialized. Unfortunately, it also allows the dogs to "learn" self-serving aggressive behaviors that are very influenced by poor human v animal interaction. Left unchecked, this can easily transform into the situations you see on the news every night. Their loyalty and territoriality also make them very protective of either their chosen human companion or their 'turf'. Those that have learned (or been taught) poor social skills are very apt to be aggresive in the extreme when in protection mode.

They can make good pets IF they are highly trained and kept socialized. However, there are dogs much more naturally suited for interaction with children.

Brad

[telewinz]

No matter how many attacks, maulings, limb amputations and/or deaths there are attributed to Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes, there will always the "Pits are great dogs" camp that swear Pits are no more likely to attack a person than a Dachshund.  Pit bulls have been bred for tenacity, powerful jaws and tolerance for pain. No training or loving care will ever change the fact that once a pit bull attacks, results are usually catastrophic.

The owner of a pit bull has authorized its euthanization after the dog attacked two people on Allens Creek Road Monday morning.  The pit bulls owner later went to the animal shelter and signed over the dog to be destroyed after it is held in quarantine for the required 10 days

 Three year old Champagne Jackson is in Cook Childrens Hospital in Fort Worth after she was attacked by a pit bull Tuesday night. The dog ripped the muscle on her left arm and broke it in three places.

A San Jose woman was recovering from bites to her hands and arms after her 8-month-old pit bull mix attacked her in her home Sunday, police said.

No one is quite sure why the pit bull -- who witnesses say often roams the neighborhood -- snapped and attacked five people, including children.

Oakland police said the woman was out walking her Chihuahua near the intersection of Daisy Street and Fair Avenue at 1:30 p.m. when the pit bull charged at her dog. After biting her dog, the pit bull attacked the woman, who fell to the ground.

An Auburn Street woman is being fined after her unmuzzled pit bull attacked police Officer Lawrence R. Newman, who was patrolling the Acre neighborhood by mountain bike, the animal control officer said.

The woman was walking on Ruby Circle, near Stonegate and Riverstone drives, when the pit bull attacked and knocked her to the ground about 6:30 a.m., according to city officials. A witness who saw the attack called 911.

Pit Bull Attacks Boy, 5

A Doberman suffered serious injuries yesterday morning when a pit bull jumped a fence and attacked the dog in a field near Eglinton and Victoria Park Aves.

A five-year-old neutered pit bull, known to have previously attacked other dogs, leaped from the window of a motor home in Rohnert Park Monday night and "viciously" attacked two boxer dogs, police report.

Johnson, 73, of Fredericksburg was walking along Railroad Avenue when a pit bull ran out of a yard and bit him on the right leg, city police spokesman Jim Shelhorse said.

In the last 18 months, 12 of the 18 confirmed dog-related fatalities in the U.S. -- or 67% -- have been caused by the pit bull terrier, a breed that accounts for only 1% of the U.S. dog population!

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

My neighbor next door has an American Staffordshire Terrier.  She's a big puppy,  just under a year old. She's incredibly inquisitive, and loves playiing chase with my dogs both when they can and can't get together, depending on whether or not the fence is 'open'.  She loves for me to reach over the fence from my side of the yard and scratch her on the ears and under the chin.

A few days ago I saw her watching me from her back yard(chain link fence) while I was in my front yard. I walked over, calling her name and acting all friendly-like, but she wouldn't have any of it. She didn't know me from the front yard, only the back. Once I went through the gate into my back yard, she changed her tone diametrically.  

My point- she didn't understand the situation.

Her owner is a kind, gentle guy. Never raises his voice, never known him to be mean to her or his other dog, a heeler.  The dog didn't have a situational reference to where I was or who I was. To her, I was someone outside her fence, and her instinct- any dog's instint- was to guard her territory.  

That said, some of the best dogs I ever knew were 'scary' breeds. In counterpoint my cute little fluffy white Spitzes were hideously ill-behaved in public. Folks thought they were the most adorable, cute little fluffballs. That doggie smile was to suck them in before they tried to eat your face.

Regards,
Rabbit.

[Ron]

The breed may be ruined.

They originally were much smaller and agression toward humans was actualy bred out of the fighting dogs.

In a true "pit" fight between pitbulls there would be a ref and both owners in the ring with the dogs.

If a dog turned showing no desire to fight the fight was broken up.

Any dog that showed aggression toward humans was unsuitable for fighting due to being in the ring with three humans during combat.

They were frequently both pets and working dogs when not fighting.

The breed has been bred to be bigger and agressive toward humans by the lower elements in society. Aggression wasn't what the old time fighters were looking for they were looking for "gameness". A dog that wouldn't give up even when losing.

[Morgan]

Pit bulls, as has been stated, have certain qualities that can make them very dangerous.

Pits can also be extremely charming, loving, and loyal.

Pits need constant supervision around other dogs, children, and strangers.  No matter their normal disposition, a Pit cannot be trusted to not fight, often for reasons undivined.

[Brad Johnson]

Folks thought they were the most adorable, cute little fluffballs. That doggie smile was to suck them in before they tried to eat your face.

Sounds like the Chipoodle (an accidental chihuahua poodle mix) that some neighbors used to have. An irritating, ill-mannered, yappy little waste of fur that only lived to make noise and pee on the floor. Why they had the thing I'll never know. I guess the kids liked it just because it was so wierd. It finally got out one night and dissappeared. Supposedly the thing just got out somehow but if I were a betting man I'd put good money on the wife having 'accidently' left the gate open a tad.

Brad

[mtnbkr]

The difference between stopping an attacking Pomeranian and attacking Pit is that I can crush a Pomeranian's skull with my hand.  I'll need a bat or a gun to stop a Pit.  I don't trust any dog around small children.  I still keep an eagle out out for our dog when she's playing with my daughter.

The Pits I've been around have all been big puppies in disposition, but I still don't trust them.  Then again, I don't trust many large working dogs like GSD, Dobbies, Pits, etc.  Comes from being attacked by a supposedly friendly Boxer/Pit mix when I was a kid I guess (24 years later, I still have visible scars all over my head).

Comparing animals that have control over their actions and ability to carry out their agression to mechanical devices with no ability to act on their own is the height of stupidity.

Chris

[LawDog]

I've never had a pitbull.  I have, however, been the owner of a bullmastiff.

Bullmastiffs, as a breed, are known --famous-- for their docility.

The breed was designed and engineered to pin and hold poachers without mauling them, and to be a loyal protector of a gameskeepers' family.  They are calm and dependable dogs.  They do best as indoor dogs, with their families.

I have lost count of the number of people who just off-paw decided that my bullmastiff was a pitbull, and who decided to freak out about it.

One evening Khan was in the front yard, being dressed up and gnawed on by numerous nieces and nephews, which was pretty much what he lives for, when the next door ex-Californite neighbor decided to lecture me about the dangers of pitbulls.  Despite being repeatedly informed that Khan was, as a matter-of-fact a bullmastiff not a pitbull, he insisted on winding up his lecture with the famous:  "Mark my words, one of these days he'll just snap, and you're going to be sorry!"

I'm tired of that speech, and I particularly hate it when delivered by way of a trembling forefinger.

It is always followed by:  "And if he even so much as looks cross-eyed at my kids, so help me God, I'll kill him!"

Don't do this, folks.  It's daft, and it causes me to have to Mexican carry a .45 every time my aging, arthritic BULLMASTIFF wants to go out front, and that tends to irritate me.

LawDog

[P95Carry]

10:4 Chris - I had one less than pleasant experience with a Rotty - from thenceforth trust has been gone - and it was as they say, ''a perfect wonderful dog''!!

I will retain my suspicion and keep my distance when possible.

[telewinz]

Between 1979 and 1996 their were 199 documented fatalities due to dog attacks in the US

Pit bulls and Rottweilers accounted for 89 ( +13 deaths due to pit bull/rottweiler crossbreeds)  ALL other breeds (and crossbreeds)account for less than half of the 199 DEATHS!  Nice doggy

[matis]

I'm a nut case when it comes to dogs.  I ADORE my Alaskan Malamute ('course I've adored every dog I ever had).

In the early 90's, my GF acquired a male pit-bull.  He had been semi-abandoned when his owner moved out of a trailer park her family owned.

He was chained all day and night to a 7 foot tall doghouse and watered & fed sporadically, whenever the other tenants felt like it.

So she decided she would take him home.  Since I had the pickup and the trailer, I was elected.


At first I couldn't even approach him 'cause he was filled with rage, lunged against his chain and spit hate at me.

So I had the neighbors unchain him and put him into the back of my pickup (w/topper).

Once in the pickup his demeanor changed from night to day.  He was almost docile, let me pet him, didn't bark.

In her yard he was once again chained to the dog-house, but fed and watered properly and visited on and off all day.

I'd sit in a chair within chain-length, he'd stand on his hind legs, put his forelegs in my lap and almost swoon when I petted him.  I'd pet his head, he'd close his eyes, push his head closer and -- I could swear -- he sighed.

I soon talked her into unchaining him.  He ended up sleeping in bed with her.

One of the sweetest dogs I've ever known.  I loved him.


On the other hand, didn't take him long to kill her chow, just 2 tries.

She sold him one day (without telling me!) 'cause he kept escaping the yard and wandering the neighborhood.


I think pit-bulls can be lovely dogs.  OTOH, they are extremely powerful and were bred to fight.  They were bred to fight other dogs, not people 'cause, as mentioned above, their handlers didn't want to be attacked.  But with their great power, their breeding and their unpredictability, I think that there are other more suitable breeds for a pet.

Much as I like them, I wouldn't keep a pit-bull.  Just too much risk.  And I'm not even mentioning the home-owners insurance company or the liability, which is considerable.  I didn't struggle to build some assets just to lose them in a personal injury dog-mauling law-suit.

But more even important than legal liability is the risk is to life and limb.


As I mentioned, I adore my dog. But if I was convinced he was a true danger to my kid or to anyone elses kid, or to anyone else, I'd have him put down and cry later.

Dogs contribute great a joy to my life -- I can make a good case that dogs can help to keep one healthy and that they enhance longevity -- they're absolutely wonderful.  But if humans don't come first to you, you may need to take a good long look in the mirror.


matis

[Stand_watie]

The problem with pit bulls is exactly the same problem that we had with German Shepherds, Doberman Pinchers and Rottweillers in decades past.

The media demonized them and every scumsucking drug dealer and his brother ran out and bought one, chained it to a tree and beat it.

I predict in twenty years it will be some other breed that every one is foaming at the mouth about and pit bulls will be looked at as we look at Pinchers or Rottweilers today.

[LawDog]

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/statistics.html

Statistics on fatal dog attacks are found here:
http://www.dogbitelaw.com/breeds-causing-DBRFs.pdf

Note that while fatal attacks by police dogs, military dogs and other "official" guard dogs are not included in these statistics, fatal attacks by non-"official" dogs guarding their families are included as dog attack fatalities.

In other words, if Rin-Tin-Tin the K9 uber-hund severs the femoral artery on a felon, it will not be counted in the Dog Attack Fatality statistics -- however -- if Fluffy the Family Pet does the same thing to the same felon when he crawls in your window at 0400 hours carrying a roll of duct tape and a butcher knife, then it will be included in the Dog Attack Fatality stats.

As a point, I notice that bullmastiffs, and cross-bred bullmastiffs, were responsible for two (2) dog-attack-fatalities between 1979 and 1998.

I tend to believe that one or both of those fatalities were probably intruders.

LawDog

[Stand_watie]

...As a point, I notice that bullmastiffs, and cross-bred bullmastiffs, were responsible for two (2) dog-attack-fatalities between 1979 and 1998.

I tend to believe that one or both of those fatalities were probably intruders.

LawDog

Despite the fact that bullmastiffs are far better equipped for killing adult human beings than pit-bulls. Which says more to me about bull mastiff owners than it does about bull mastiffs. I guarantee you if we could get a media campaign going to demonize bull mastiffs we could see those numbers spike exponentially over a few years. Just a few hundred articles by media whores hyperventilating over the bull mastiff devil incarnate would have the blood running in the street from bull mastiff attacks.

[jefnvk]

Whenever I hear pit-bull mentioned on the news, I just wonder if that dog was really a pit-bull, or something that resembled one.

Honestly, though, to me, there is a difference in legislating against guns and dogs.  Dogs have a mind of their own.  And they are still animals.  Despite what people want to believe, animals are animals.  They are not people, they will not always react as we think they should.

Nonetheless, I still don't support legislating against them.  Just hold the owner responsible for their actions.  If they run off and kill a kid, the owner probably should face at least manslaughter charges.

[Stand_watie]

...
Honestly, though, to me, there is a difference in legislating against guns and dogs.  Dogs have a mind of their own.  And they are still animals.  Despite what people want to believe, animals are animals.  They are not people, they will not always react as we think they should...

I will trust a dog to better respond to his enviromental conditioning than a human every day of the week.

[LawDog]

They're larger than a pit-bull, but bullies were bred to knock people down, rather than bite them.

I sincerely hope that my beloved bullmastiffs never become the 'it' dog.  Backyard breeding and macho jackasses who need a big, mean dog to make up for anatomical/pyschological shortcomings have already screwed up the pit-bulls and the rotties, I don't want them buggering around with bullies.

LawDog

[Strings]

Want a nice guard dog? Get a basenji. Maybe a foot and a half tall, can't bark, and (to those who don't know), a cute lil' thing. However, should an intruder climb through the window, the dog will rip his leg off and beat him to death with it. Treated decently, they're fine with family, or people brought in by family. However, to strangers (or anyone trying to hurt a member of the family), their temperment ranges from kinda untrusting to downright psychotic...

 get a Basenji... trust me...

[Antibubba]

I've known some of the sweetest pits in the world.  The word that describes them best is intense.  It's almost as dangerous to be greeted by a pit who has missed you as to attacked!!  A happy pit could smother you!

[telewinz]

"dog-related fatalities in the U.S. -- or 67% -- have been caused by the pit bull terrier, a breed that accounts for only 1% of the U.S. dog population!"
"No matter how many attacks, maulings, limb amputations and/or deaths there are attributed to Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes, there will always the "Pits are great dogs" camp that swear Pits are no more likely to attack a person than a Dachshund."

[pauli]

when considering a potential pet, i have a mental checklist. one of the boxes says "capable of eating my face at will." a check in that box is generally a disqualification for pet duty.

nothing about pitbulls and rottweilers of any sort makes them in any way superior pets to any number of dogs that are not capable of eating my face unassisted. it's nice to have the leeway of knowing that even if a pet dog growls and bites you, it's not suddenly a matter of life and death.

actively setting out to bring a pitbull or whathaveyou into one's home in this day and age is, to my mind, a failure to follow best practices.

[Guest]

All terrier breeds were originally bred to kill.  I recommend finding some of D. Brian Plummer's books on terriers if you're interested in terriers as a whole, or Richard Stratton's books on pits in particular.  Saying pit bulls are scum is no different than saying black people are scum.  Both are quasi-statisically provable.  Are there a lot of people that own pits/guns/4wd trucks that shouldn't?  Sure.  They can all get you in trouble if you don't know what you're doing.  Are there a lot of people with drivers' licenses that can't merge into traffic?  Absolutely.  I've almost met my maker quite a few times courtesy of some geezer in a Buick.  Are there people that own pits that shouldn't be trusted with safety scissors?  Yup.  Point being, there are no bad dogs, only bad owners.  I believe that deep down into my soul.  If you get a dog that's capable of serious damage, chain it up in the backyard and don't properly socialize it, then you have no business getting such an animal.  And that's just how it is.


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