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Jayson

Pit Bulls

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Pit bulls are a part of this macho culture in the USA and probably other countries.  Anyway, among the fans of pit bulls is this admiration and desire to own them above other breeds.   Anyway, though, the disturbing side is the fact that pit bull toughness can turn on children and sometimes adults.  In fact, pit bulls kill and massively injure.

Do you feel that owners of pit bulls are justified in their thinking or are they being tough to the detriment of safety?

Edited by Jayson
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You've just proven that you know absolutely nothing about the breed. Pitbulls are extremely gentle dogs. I know this because I have raised pitbulls and been around them all my life. They want to love on you. Not injure you. They get this bad reputation because they're popular among the sickest criminals on earth. Dog fighters. The reason they're so popular is because they're very stocky and strong. People claim pitbulls were the attacking dog because they don't know what it was and jump on the bandwagon to daemonize pitbulls. Maybe the dog that attacked them had a similar characteristic, such as head shape, but was in fact NOT a pitbull. It used to be dobermans that people hated. It was rottweillers for a while. It was also German shepherds for a while too. Now it's pitbulls. What's next? Yorkies?

 

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Everything @The Blackangel said is true. Pit Bulls are cuddly, affectionate, big babies.  They get their bad rap from the dog fighting community and from the news. The new LOVES to sensationalize bad stories, which include dog bites.  If you look carefully at news articles that talk about someone or someone's pet being attacked you will notice that if the breed of dog is not a Pit Bull then news will NOT mention the dog breed.  If it is was a Pit Bull then the news jumps all over it.  You also have to take in account reports of dog bites.  If you get bit by a small dog and hardly an damage was done which does not require going to the doctor, it will not be reported. If a big dog bites you, you are more likely to see a doctor and it will be reported.  I had a female Chihuahua who loved me and only tolerated other. She has bitten BOTH my mom once and my wife twice. As for my wife's Pit Bull she has NEVER bitten everyone. In fact when my wife's Pit Bull interacts with other people she loves to go up to them to get petted. Also at home we have another Chihuahua (male) who thinks he owns her (he loves her to death) and has on many occasions chased her around. He will also growl at her if he wants her spot, does not want her eating with him at the same time as him, or if he does not want her near him. She always demurs to him. She will just get up and go somewhere else.  If you need one more example we recently got two new puppies, another Chihuahua and an English Bulldog.  Our male chihuahua hates her, the other puppy loves to play with her, and the Pit Bull is not fond of her but tolerates her and occasionally plays with her.  The male chihuahua growls and stands his ground if the Bulldog comes anywhere near him.  If the Bull Dog comes near our Pit and she does not feel like playing she will literally get up and walk away. Many Many times when the Bulldog jumps up on the couch and the Pit is laying on it, the pit will jump down and lay on the floor yielding the couch to the Bulldog. Our Pit is a big pushover. 

Pit Bulls: Why the Bad (and Inaccurate) Reputation? (foundanimals.org)

This article is a good one that debunks the myth of PIt Bulls getting a bad rap.  To point out a few things that they talk about:

1. "Other mischaracterized canines include rescue dogs like St. Bernards and German Shepherds."

2.  Pet experts staunchly opposed to policies that discriminate based on breed. The following groups agree: 

Humane Society of the United States

American Bar Association

American Kennel Club

American Veterinary Medical Association

American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Animal Control Association

National Canine Research Council

US Department of Housing and Urban Development

The Obama Administration

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Why do so many people get pit breeds? I see so many of them in San Francisco, most are owned by the homeless, which I suppose makes sense for them, but why would anyone else pick this breed? I can't believe I've let my little dog play with these ticking time bombs. Never again.

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There's no such a bad breed of dog, only owners who can't or just won't train them properly.

 

Now it is true that Pit Bulls are involved in more violent incidents than any other breed (sorry @The Blackangel, that's an undeniable fact), including 66% of fatal attacks on humans in the US, but this is not the fault of the breed itself.

 

So many people have this dated idea that the more "aggressive" breeds need to be trained with more aggressive means.  Punishing them when get it wrong, using chocke chains and shock collars to keep them in line and keeping them away from other dogs and people.  The truth is the complete opposite.  They need to be trained with positive reinforcement that focuses on rewarding good behaviour, giving them treats and affection and socializing them with people and other dogs as pups.  You treat a dog, ANY dog like it's a threat and that exactly what it's going to end up being.

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10 hours ago, Crazycrab said:

Now it is true that Pit Bulls are involved in more violent incidents than any other breed (sorry @The Blackangel, that's an undeniable fact), including 66% of fatal attacks on humans in the US, but this is not the fault of the breed itself.

It's actually been recently proven (here in the US at least) that the vast majority of the time it's a case of mistaken identity, and pitbulls are just being used as a scapegoat for bigotry by the willfully ignorant. Like I said, the dog may have a similar feature to that of a pitbull, but is in fact NOT a pitbull.

Let me try to find the stats and articles, as they're hard to find due to the negative bias against pitbulls.

Also the article you linked is more than 3 years old.

Edited by The Blackangel
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42 minutes ago, The Blackangel said:

It's actually been recently proven (here in the US at least) that the vast majority of the time it's a case of mistaken identity, and pitbulls are just being used as a scapegoat for bigotry by the willfully ignorant. Like I said, the dog may have a similar feature to that of a pitbull, but is in fact NOT a pitbull.

Let me try to find the stats and articles, as they're hard to find due to the negative bias against pitbulls.

Also the article you linked is more than 3 years old.

 

Yeah I know but it was the best I could under the rush I was in at the time.  I'll try to find something more up to date but I think I'm running into some of the same problems you are.

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I wouldn't have them around any kids honestly.  It may seem wussy to some, but hey, there would be big regrets if something happened.  Anyway, no they shouldn't ban them, but it's very unwise to have them around kids.

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10 hours ago, Jayson said:

I wouldn't have them around any kids honestly.  It may seem wussy to some, but hey, there would be big regrets if something happened.  Anyway, no they shouldn't ban them, but it's very unwise to have them around kids.

The same could be said for any dog, regardless of the breed. One of my chihuahuas bullies my pitbull. He is controlling and possessive as hell of her. He would be the mean one in that relationship.

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On 3/24/2022 at 5:56 AM, Jayson said:

I wouldn't have them around any kids honestly.  It may seem wussy to some, but hey, there would be big regrets if something happened.  Anyway, no they shouldn't ban them, but it's very unwise to have them around kids.

 

Pretty much every breed of dog was originally bred to track and/or hunt.  From Dobermans and Pitbulls to Poodles and Chihuahuas.  The Poodle, for example was originally breed to hunt waterfowl birds like ducks and geese.  So they all have natural aggressive tendencies.

 

I don't completely disagree with you though, I personally wouldn't have ANY breed of dog around young children.  Babies and toddlers might have tendency to aggravate a dog without realising like pulling their pur, mucking around with their food or bothering them when their trying to eat and they may bite back.

Edited by Crazycrab
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Most dogs understand instinctively that the child doesn't understand what they're doing. When I was a toddler, I was mean as hell to our animals. They never attacked me once. One even went out of her way to protect me. The only ones that ever got mean were actually our cats. But cats are the spawn of Satan anyway.

And there may be some wondering about what @Crazycrab said about poodles. That goofy ass haircut that you see poodles with today? That was actually developed by hunters to keep their joints warm and protected, yet keep them light and slick enough to move through water quickly. It wasn't developed by some pompous rich bitch.

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