Pit Bulls

[miss_thenorth]

Ok, I have to add my 2 cents worth to the mix.

Being an owner of a rottweiler, we get alot of stereotyping, also. Most if this stereotyping is based on ignorance, not facts. And when I say ignorance, I am not saying this rudely, I am saying it in the sense that you don't have all the facts, just the facts that the media puts out there.

We have also had Dobermanns. All these dogs--rotties, pitts, dobes, shepherds, --hollywood loves them and likes to portray them as being the mean ones. And the news has a hayday when one of these attacks. Granted, these dogs all do have the potential to be mean--as do all dogs. But it is true, if these dogs do attack, they will do damage.

I have to agree with the majority, that while certain dogs are known for certain characteristics, it is predominantly the owners responsibility how this dog turns out. It is important that large breed dogs receive obedience training. It is extremely important that the dog be socialized properly-starting while he is young. Socializing is exposure to different ppl, different animals, and all types of situations.

That being said... No young child should ever be left alone with a dog--no matter what type or size of dog. There should always be a healthy respect for the 'potential' any dog has.

I have never owned a pitt. But I love my rottie, who is now 6, and I will definitely get another one. He is the best dog I have ever had(--my big meanie.)

Your neighbours dog has the potential to be the greatest dog ever, or the next killer. How they raise him will determine how he turns out.

Share your concerns with them.

 

[2boxers]

Another .02's worth...

I stopped by the side of the road a few years ago & picked up the most pitiful, scrawny, mangy dog I'd ever seen in my life. I called in sick for work & took the dog straight to my vet, and she pronounced it a pit bull. The dog was about five months old, and the vet said that judging by her wounds, she was a bait-dog.

I took her home, cleaned her up, got her fur to grow back & she was a wonderful family pet. She did have some vicious tendencies: no stuffed animal was safe in her presence. She was a little sweetie and I loved her as much as my boxers. Sadly, she was a car chaser and she caught one.

My daughter was roughly a year old when the dog came to live with us. I never feared for my daughter with this dog. Conversely, boxers have the reputation for being great family dogs and wonderful with children. My female boxer cannot be trusted around my daughter and I am on the verge of sending her to a rescue. Stereotyping doesn't always work. Each dog is an individual, just like humans,

To the OP...go to your neighbor with your concerns.

 

[Crazy4Chicks]

My neighbor has 3 pitt bulls that are very close to my chickens - the only thing between them is a chainlink fence !! now that is close

one of the dogs is a male who is about a year old and the others are 1 female 1 male that are about 2 months old - they are great dogs and the older pup will bark at my chickens from time to time and if any of my birds would end up in thier yard I am sure the dogs would kill them - but I dont think they would do it on purpose.

I own 4 boxers and they are more of a threat to my chickens than the neighbors dogs LOL

 

[purplebaby]

i want to add my 2 cents. i am a teacher at a special ed residential school for emotionally disturbed teens. my husband is a real estate agent, who was a teacher at a drug rehab. we do not drink or do drugs and never have. we have 2 teen daughters. we own our home on 1 acre due to hard work. we have 4 chickens, 5 dogs and now a new bunny. most are rescued/abandoned animals.

three of our dogs are pit bulls, 2 females and a male (spayed/neutered). they are rescued. my male, i drove to virginia to save, for an army person shipped off to iraq. i send her pictures on the internet. another is a pit who was being used for breeding and was starving and freezing outside all winter in NY. we also have a lhasa boston mix (btw the only dog that has bitten any one!) and a deaf abandoned shiba inu. all dogs live together peacefully.

my point is we are not drug dealers. we live in a nice area. we have nice neighbors. we do not allow the dogs out with out supervision, for their own safety.
i work hard every day to promote a more peaceful life for the animals and the children i can help in my little corner of the world. please dont judge me until you get to know me.

mb

ps i also ride a motorcycle but i am not a 1%'er, just love the freedom.

 

[Rhett&SarahsMom]

My MOM, who is 67 owns a pit bull(AmStaff)

While we were walking him we were was attacked by the neighbors GOLDEN RETRIEVER!!
It came running across the street from the neighbors yard and jumped Sam. Sam didnt even defend himself but he made sure that he stayed between us and the freaking golden.

Several years ago a girl in Cape Cod MA was killed by her grandparents Golden Retriever.

When I was working for a vet during HS I was attacked by a Black Lab. Still have the scars on my upper arm from that.

Myself. We have a Border Collie that is more aggressive than my moms AmStaff. My next door neighbors have some sort of yippie dog that has bitten my ankle when he was loose. Another neighbor has a mutt that she jsut lets run loose in the neighborhood. That dog scares me because of its entire demeanor. It just STARES at you. When I see it out side I wont let my kid out even on the porch or in the back yard which is fenced in. I figure the dog is as crazy as its owner. And that is that. Dogs are a direct reflection of their owners. Or the people that brought it up through puppy hood. Some are lucky and can be "fixed" others cant.

Mom got Sam from a inner city animal shelter when he was 9 months. He had been in the shelter for 6 of those months after being picked up roaming the streets. No one wanted him. But he is the kindest, most patient dog I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Heck I call him my little brother.

Crucifying an entire breed because of one or two(or more) individuals is like calling all of one religion, race, color or sex crazy or evil because of the actions of a few. It's ignorant and very small minded

 

[EllyMae]

I have a gsd/pit. He is the best dog I have ever owned. When the pit traits started coming out in him as he grew, friends and family would say, You need to get rid of him. This was all based on his looks, he never did anything wrong. Well, today he is 2 1/2 and his only "fault" is being protective of his family. Even then, he has NEVER bitten anyone or tried. Just last weekend he stopped me from stepping right in the middle of a coiled up snake.

 

[Meesh]

My aunt was saved from a rattlesnake by their extremely gentle, dependable AmStaff (the AmStaff died from biting the head off the snake).

I also know someone whose small child was pulled over a 4' fence out of his own yard by a neighbor's AmStaff and the 3 other AmStaffs in the neighbor's enclosure 'played with' the child until he was nearly dead. I have seen people bitten by dogs (Dobe, GSD, etc), and usually it's a single bite or a couple of bites. To me the terrifying thing about the worst of the AmStaff attacks is the duration and severity.

I have a Rhodesian and we are very careful about not allowing her near small children. She growls if you accidently step on her back toes and it is a lifetime responsibility to keep her safe from doing anyone harm. She would probably be fine with kids, but it's a risk I am not willing to take.

If I were you, I am sure my hackles would be up about the dog and that would be true for any dog that didn't behave appropriately around children. Around here, it was the rogue Australian Cattle Dogs and Blue Heelers that terrorized us as kids. I feared and hated those dogs for a long time, and now am owned by an ACD who wouldn't harm a gnat.

Cheers,
Michelle

 

[Moonwalker]

I would be concerned about the neighbors having any meduim to large dog running loose if I had small children and/or free ranging livestock/poultry. Dogs will be dogs and even if they are used to being around THEIR family's other pets and animals, they are likely to chase outside one.
The dogs at the stables go with the horses on the trails and are always catching rabbits, moles and even the occasional turkey. And I have seen them chasing stray cats. But back at the barnyard, they let the chickens walk all around, the cats, geese, even the wild ducks and starlings etc. But anything outside *THEIR* home area is considered fair game. Many dogs and even some cats are like this.

 

[tink]

I just want to say that I am very proud of us Pit owners and how we have presented ourselves. We could have easily gone off in protecting our babies. It looks like we are all very used to this. Keep up the good work in defending this wonderful breed of dog. Thanks
Tink

 

[Velociraptor]

See if your situation will work out like mine, about 8 months ago while sill living up north my 18 year old son wanted a dog so I went on the local shelters website and showed him a couple of nice ones, a red bone coon hound was my choice and a husky was next, needless to say he came home with a year old pit bull.

A few months after moving down here he decided country life wasn't for him and moved back north to his mother, saying the dog was too hard to take care of and left him with me.

The first thing I did was put up an electric fence around the main yard for only when I'm home and can supervise, It's a hot one at 7,000 volts in even the heaviest wet weeds - but any determined animal will run right through an electric fence if provoked, so I also installed a 6 foot stockade fence topped off with 2 feet of electric wire and one strand of electric at the base of the fence because they can dig good too in a 24 square foot area that he can stay in when I'm not home.

It all seemed so unnecessary because he loves everybody all the time, I grew up with great danes and thought they were sweet but this guy takes the cake - even so being a responsible dog owner it is my duty to keep my animals and pets from being at large.