One of the neighbors behind me now has her son's pit bull. A few weeks ago, the dog broke through a fence and entered the yard of the neighbor beside me while her young children were playing in the yard. The dog did not move, just stood there. No sniffing, no tail wagging nothing. The dog owner's mother said "Just throw her over the fence." Forget it. Let me say I do not think pit bulls are the only breed that is not a good social animal, there are several. I singled them out since there is one near me right now. I will not call out specific breeds but will say it's pretty obvious when some guy/girl is walking a dog that is made to look intimidating with either a spiked collar or some other paraphernalia that shows his/her dog is a compensation for something lacking in the owner's life. Anyway, I keep reading all this CRAP about how some of these breeds are misunderstood. I disagree. I do believe some of these animals are kind and make good pets, but after debating one of their advocates on a message board they are truly blinded by their loyalty and simply like to argue.
I posed a question to a female pit bull owner "Does any dog have any propensity for aggression?" Her answer was "No, all dogs are the same it depends on how you raise them." I then asked "So, a hunting dog has no greater ability to hunt than a working breed?" She said "That's correct." This is obviously crap since a 10 week old weimaraner will instinctively "point" at bird scent or a downed animal whereas a working dog, say a german shepard, will not stop and instead approach whatever makes it curious. Some dogs will solve their issues by running away or compliance, others solve their problem by biting. Now here is the big difference. A Cocker Spaniel, and most herding dogs, is likely to nip to play or resolve issues it's an instinct. The difference is the size of the animal and strength to weight ratio. Also the dog's natural instinct once adrenaline sets in, please observe the following article:
What is gameness?
Gameness in APBT's is a canine virtue that is most akin to the human virtue of unflagging courage. It is determination to master any situation and never back down out of fear. It was developed in pit bulls by many generations of selective breeding. It is what allows a pit bull to keeping fighting non-stop for two or more hours, in spite of broken bones, torn muscles, blood loss, dehydration, and exhaustion. But it is also valued by APBT owners who would never think of fighting their dogs. It is manifested in the can-do attitude of pit bulls toward any type of challenge, whether agility competitions, climbing up trees, or protecting their family against an armed attacker, etc. Generally speaking, a game dog is an emotionally stable, easy-going dog, especially good with kids. Gameness should not be confused with aggressiveness. There are plenty of aggressive dogs that are not game, and there are game pit bulls who are not aggressive toward other types of dogs. Aggressiveness will propel a dog into a fight but will only sustain him for the first few minutes. Gameness on the other hand will not necessarily make a dog fight-happy, but if the dog has no other choice but to fight, a game dog will fight until it wins or dies trying, and will keep going as long as necessary. Gameness is an inner quality of pit bulls. There is no way you can tell by looking at a pit bull whether it is deeply game or not the only test--and for many years the main criterion for selecting a dog for breeding purpose--is actually fighting the dog to see how it stands up to other dogs that have likewise already proven their gameness in the pit. Dogs that are emotionally unstable, or that fear-bite human beings are generally not game. If you want a nice pit, you're generally better off getting one that has been game-bred. These dogs represent the truest exemplars of all the best qualities in the breed.
This was taken from here. Some would argue this is just an irresponsible breeder, I would say at least the person is honest and disclosing some traits of the animal. Back to my statement about the cocker nipping, when a cocker spaniel bites you it doesn't matter. At worst you will get four stitches, if one of these large strong working dogs bites you, you may need a prosthesis. That is of course if you survive at all. One of the sites I came across had a link to dog attacks by non-pit bulls. In the interest of fair reporting click here. The title is little misleading since it says :
The Dog Attacks You Won't Hear About...
Because They Did Not Involve Bulldogs.
She meant Pit Bulls, and you do hear about them as these were all from regular news sources just like they would be if it had been a pit bull. Finally, I would like to end with one more exchange from the Pit Bull owner/defender from earlier.
Captain Dude: "What about the Staffordshire Terrier, is it just as gentle as the pit?"
Ignorant defender:"No, that dog is a bully."
Captain Dude:"Thank you for proving my point that you are blindly loyal without looking at the facts."
These dogs come from the same ancestry and when dog fighting was banned in the United States, the fighting strain was labeled "The American Pit Bull Terrier" while the show strain of the SAME BREED was labeled "The American Staffordshire Terrier."
4 comments:
You have to be careful with dogs when children are present no matter what the breed. I heard a dog breeder/expert on radio say that he didn't allow his children around any dog unless they were double the weight of the dog.
He also said something else interesting whilst having this same conversation about pit bulls. He said, "When a Chihuahua or other small breed attacks and bites we call it a nip. When a Pit or other large breed attacks, we call it a maul."
It's sad because Pits are good looking dogs, but as you said there are certain instincts that come with certain breeds.
The radio host is incorrect a smaller breed does only nip, then you swat it and it runs away. A larger dog bites and rips out a huge chunk of flesh; so one is a nip and one is a maul.
Hiya. Some of your research has merit, but your conclusions show an anti-pit bull bias. None of the independent sources you quote support your thesis that the APBT is "not a good social animal." In fact, your source directly contradicts your conclusion: "Generally speaking, a game dog is an emotionally stable, easy-going dog, especially good with kids." This source, as you note, is not authoritative; although it is, as far as I can tell, solid information, I only quote it to point out your apparent misinterpretation. A more reliable source is the UKC's APBT breed standard. Note that the AKC does not recognize the APBT as a breed, but American Staffordshire Terriers registered with AKC may be cross-registered with the UKC as APBT's, making a strong argument for there not being any real difference between the two breeds (On that note--you mention "Staffordshire Terrier" toward the end of your post here, which is an ambiguous term, since you may be referring to either the AmStaff or the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, which is a much smaller dog).
In any case, from the breed standard: "This breed is eager to please and brimming over with enthusiasm. APBTs make excellent family companions and have always been noted for their love of children." Furthermore: "The APBT is not the best choice for a guard dog since they are extremely friendly, even with strangers. Aggressive behavior toward humans is uncharacteristic of the breed and highly undesirable."
This is not opinion. This is not some misinformed forum poster from some far-fetched corner of the internet. This is not a breeder. This is the breed standard. This is how American Pit Bull Terriers/AmStaffs are defined as a breed. Any animal that does not display these qualities is, simply put, not a pit bull.
I agree, I do not believe they are good pets, and I will never have one. My children will also never be alone with these breeds. Fortunately, I am entitled to that opinion just as you seem to enjoy these animals.
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