Pit Bulls

Ayla · 09-12-2005, 02:12 AM

I have 2 full blooded Pit Bulls (APBR's) and they are the biggest babies. They won't hurt a fly. All they want to do is play and sleep on my bed. Everyone someone hears I've got them they say..."Oh no, aren't you afraid they'll turn on you?" I get so tired of it and of having to always defend my choice and my dogs. When I see someone with a Chiuwawa (or how the heck ever you spell it) I don't go up to them and say, "Oh no, aren't you afraid they'll knaw your ankles off?" !!!!

Merika · 09-12-2005, 05:39 AM

I've had friends with pitties too and they are very sweet dogs. It just depends on how they are raised and how much socialization they've gotten as puppies. I think because they are used as fighting dogs....everyone assumes all of them are dangerous.

Vautrin · 09-12-2005, 05:48 AM

Merika is right. I am not fond of big dogs, that can be (and often are) used as fighting dogs. I have issues with dogs biting.

At least the worst that can happen if a small Pekinese bites me, is that I will live on, with procreation impairments. I am not too certain of that with the bigger dogs.

I admit that it is somewhat irrational; but on the other hand fighting dogs have been bred for hundreds of years for that purpose, so there is probably a genetic predisposition for fighting behavior. So when I am around dogs, I try to be around the owner of the dog, so that both the dog and I are comforted around each other first.

Luba · 09-12-2005, 08:39 AM

I agree; I think it's in how they are raised and they have been given such a bad reputation by Media reporting

Ayla · 09-12-2005, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vautrin

I admit that it is somewhat irrational; but on the other hand fighting dogs have been bred for hundreds of years for that purpose, so there is probably a genetic predisposition for fighting behavior.

Yes, they have been bred for years for fighting. HOWEVER, they were bred to be aggressive to other dogs or livestock...like bulls for example. Even people who fought these dogs don't put up with people aggression. They worked in close contact with these dogs constantly and had to be able to break up the dog fight without getting bitten. Pit's make some of the best family pets. They're smart and perpetual puppies and have a high tolerence to pain so when little kids pull on their ears it doesn't bother them.

Dogs you hear about in the media usually aren't even Pits. They're muts that are getting called Pits. These type of dogs NEVER just go nuts and turn on someone. There are signs that the owners choose to ignore the progress of, or the owner has been mean to the puppy and it either fear bits or gets tired of putting up with a mean owner. Any books you read on these dogs give you signs to look for that are caused by mental instability and they reccoment that once you see these signs you have the dogs put down while still young. If people who have these dogs choose to allow mentally instable dogs live then they may have to pay the price down the road. Along with those who continue to fight them and continue to MAKE them mean because they are wanna be gangsters. Unfortuanately the rest of us with these dogs have to pay for their choice.

Duke · 09-12-2005, 01:52 PM

I base my opinions on pitbulls on the one that I had the bad luck of being around back in my "criminal element" days. This dog was a pure-bred (or so I was told) and he wouldn't let you move unless his master (a drug dealer) said it was OK. This dog was extremely frightning, big, strong, etc.

I know pitbulls get a bum rap in the media and it's usually due to the owners being complete knuckleheads. Purebread or not, many of them allow you to enter the property but won't let you out. I don't know if this is a bred trait or if it's instinct, all I know is I'm not taking any chances personally. I've seen one of these badboys up close and don't wish to see another one up close anytime soon.

Ayla · 09-15-2005, 02:54 PM

All my pits will do is lick you and try to get you to play fetch. These dogs are people pleasers so anything you train them to do...they do...

Star · 09-15-2005, 04:06 PM

i am terrified of those dogs i would never go near one. sorry. i don't allow my kids near them either. there have been so many attacks with pitts here that the government had to place restrictions. pitts have be walked muzzled and leashed at all times. they also have to be fixed so they can't breed.

pitbulls, rottweillers and dobermans i don't go anywhere near. terrified of them.

darkangelism · 09-15-2005, 04:10 PM

its all in the trainig, but enough people train their dogs to be vicious that it is a problem. I think the way to solve theproblem is that owners should be held responsible for the actions of the dog as if they commited the crime...if the dog kills somebody the owner should be put on trial for murder. Once a few people get life in prison or the death penalty for their dogs actions more people will be responsible

Star · 09-15-2005, 05:13 PM

people are being charged for their dogs attacking people or killing them. the owners are criminally charged and the dogs get put down. it's been like that here anyways for years and years.

Merika · 09-15-2005, 08:51 PM

Well Star...the point is that MOST people who raise Pitties in a suburban atmosphere are exactly raising them for fighting purposes. Not because they are inherently aggressive....but because they are stong, muscular and have a good jaw bite due to the way the nose is shaped. People who raise them in a loving pet atmosphere find them to be a very loving gentle dogs.

The problem is people who DO raise a dog to be aggressive and live within neighborhoods. That's just wrong and they shouldn't be there.

As I've said....when Chloe was six...she was attacked by a Chinese Akita. It took one of her actions wrong at one of her friend's house...and chewed the crap out of her arm. She could've died it that dog got to her neck.

However, the same could be true of our dog who is a boxer. He's a baby here.....but let someone seem to be attacking one of the kids...and that dog could easily mame or kill them. He seems friendly with all the kids....but you never know.

So...it's a hard call. Maybe in a real suburban area... it's better to go with a smaller dog. If I had to make the choice over again...that's what I would've done. As it is...I pad lock the yard gate when we are gone to make sure NO ONE goes in my yard when we are away....just in case he would attack them. We keep up a sign and everything. He's may be our puppy...but he's still a dog with instincts.

But for the sake of the thread....pitties aren't any more prone to attack a child than any other dog. However, if they did....it would be of worse consequence than a weiner dog. LOL!

Duke · 09-15-2005, 11:54 PM

You may think you have the most docile pet in the world, but you have no idea how it's going to react once it gets a little taste of blood on it's tongue.

Some dogs go against the grain and don't act as their breed typically does as all animals do. Hell my daughters cat thinks he's a dog because he's a social butterfly, will play fetch and can't stand to be alone ever.

Pitbulls, German Shepards, and I think dobermans are great family dogs, however, that is little comfort to anyone outside of the family. Out of all of the above, German Shepards go nuts if they perceive a threat to the family and no one really knows what may constitute a threat in a dogs mind.

Regardless of breed, you should always be leary around dogs, the bigger and more powerful, the more cautious you should be. Almost any dog from ankle biter to horse can be set off and sometimes the trigger isn't always that obvious.

Em · 02-19-2006, 04:34 PM

I have a pit and a pit rott mix. BEST DOGS EVAR. <3

My dogs are the biggest babies too. I play rough with them all the time, and they could kill me if they wanted to. I have NO fear what so ever that they would ever even think about harming me. They've both shown me that they can control themselves, even when they are wound up from playing.

I love my dogs, and it hurts me so much when people act scard of them. It also annoys the heck out of me. >.<

Duke · 02-19-2006, 05:19 PM

I can understand why that would bother you as an owner of a feared dog. My main issue is I once saw a doberman rip apart a small dog near out school bus stop when I was a little boy. Of course it was the middle of winter so all the surrounding snow was covered in blood and black fur.

Us kids were pretty terrified that the dog may turn on us. When I was in my very late teens, I knew a drug dealer who had a pit bull for a pet, if you can call it that. This dog was utterly terrifying, you simply couldn't move unless the owner told the dog you were going to. If you moved and the dog didn't know it was coming, he was liable to rip your throat out.

This dog was trained to cover this guys dope prior to it being moved/sold so it was ALWAYS on high alert. To be honest, there is no animal that I've ever encountered that terrifies me half as much as that dog did.