Ban Pit Bulls

[Gary Allan]

Well, I picked up a Boston Terrier/? mix stray on the Maryland Turnpike. Sweetest animal as a family pet I could ask for. To a strange dog in a Pizzing contest ...it knew no fear. Had a set of jaws that opened enough to fit your head in and could easily jump to about the 6' level. This was a small dog.

We have a Rot-n-Lab. Not the best combo. Again ..a sweetheart ..but has her instincts to deal with. Very scared of strangers. She quivers/shakes when they're present. This is her only signs of aggression. She's locked in a room if I don't want to hold her by the collar the entire time. She doesn't attack anyone ..but does challenge them with preemptive barking. Rotties, like Dalmations, are not for everyone. They require far more training then most people are prepared for. My brother in-law had three of them ..and got a hefty stud fee for his prize male. He spent a small fortune on training his dogs. He had 5 children (obviously varing slightly in age) during the ownership of these dogs ..and none had any fear of attack.


The problem lies with humans, not the animals. If you're going to foster dogs into aggressive behavior either actively or passively by not giving them the training and containment that they require ..it is not the dogs fault. It is owner incompetence. Dogs are socialized wild animals and are totally dependant upon humans to regulate their lives.

Heck, you want a viscous breed ..try Lasoapso (spl?). My mother in-laws dog (Mop-it) attacked the meter man almost every time he came ..and dominated the two full sized GS's in the house.

 

[Winston]

quote:

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Winston: Should we shoot a dog that shows aggression toward a (sub)human who is raping the dogs master?

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The only reason I suggested shooting Pits that show aggression to humans is because you said that was what they did when they were initially breeding them. It was your idea, not mine.

Different dogs of the same breed can behave very differently. These stories have shown there are crazy dogs from different breeds. I also truly believe that the pit that was mentioned was a very good dog that was generally safe to be around.

 

[XS650]

quote:

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Originally posted by Gary Allan:

The problem lies with humans, not the animals. If you're going to foster dogs into aggressive behavior either actively or passively by not giving them the training and containment that they require ..it is not the dogs fault. It is owner incompetence. Dogs are socialized wild animals and are totally dependant upon humans to regulate their lives.

Heck, you want a viscous breed ..try Lasoapso (spl?). My mother in-laws dog (Mop-it) attacked the meter man almost every time he came ..and dominated the two full sized GS's in the house.

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The solution is simple. Try the owner for the dogs crimes as though the owner had personally commited them.

 

[andrew_j]

I hear the same things about guns

in reference to owners.

 

[XS650]

quote:

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Originally posted by andrew_j:
I hear the same things about guns

in reference to owners.

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Guns are different. They don't kill anyone without a human operating them, except for the rare case where someone's hunting dog steps on the trigger.

A gun owner should be liable for damage done with his gun by children if it wasn't secured properly. I believe they already are some places.

If the damage with a gun is done by an adult other than the owner, then the adult using the gun is at fault. Laws governing gun owner responsibility are tighter than those governing dog owners.

 

[Winston]

Anyone know what the penalty is if your dog gets out and kills or mauls someone?

 

[Winston]

A couple interesting facts from the link posted above.

-In the United States, pit bulls make up one to three per cent of the overall dog population and cause more than 50 per cent of serious attacks.

-From 1979 to 1998, at least 25 breeds of dogs have been involved in bite related deaths. Pit Bulls and Rottweilers were involved in more than 50 percent of these incidences.

 

[moribundman]

Beware of 2000 year old dogs named Harvey. They might tell you to kill people. ;-)

 

[pbm]

quote:

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Originally posted by Bobert:
http://www.bulliray.com/Breed_of_the_month_July_2003/breed_of_the_month_july_2003.htm

"Many employees have had negative experiences with this breed. The Dalmatian can be deaf, blind or Epileptic. These health conditions can cause problems for the employee. Employees know how aggressive this breed can be. The owners of these dogs tend not to think their dogs are aggressive. Since this dog is considered a carriage dog and not a guard dog people don't see the need to keep them away from the employee. The movie 101 Dalmatians has not helped the breed. Prior to the movie coming out in 1994 the German Shepherd was the #1 biting dog in America. After the release of the movie, the Dalmatian became the #1 biting dog in America. Disney in their wisdom took a breed of dog that was never meant to be around children and turned this breed into a child magnet. Many children would be attacked by these dogs. One of the most incredible attacks I ever heard of was a three year old boy who was attacked by a Dalmatian. The boy had to have 2000 stitches to his head. No, this was not a Pit Bull attack."

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Maybe we should ban DISNEY!

You make my point about breed specific banning being wrong. The problem is when a breed becomes popular many people acquire one of that breed. Most of these people shouldn't own a dog of any breed.

 

[XS650]

quote:

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Originally posted by Winston:
A couple interesting facts from the link posted above.

-In the United States, pit bulls make up one to three per cent of the overall dog population and cause more than 50 per cent of serious attacks.

-From 1979 to 1998, at least 25 breeds of dogs have been involved in bite related deaths. Pit Bulls and Rottweilers were involved in more than 50 percent of these incidences.

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Since there are no bad dogs, just bad owners, Pit Bulls and Rottweilers owners must be 17 times as bad as the average dog owner.

 

[Rob Taggs]

I have owned pitbulls. It is all in how you raise them. When it comes to the behavior problem that is due to too much inbreeding. One I had was sweet as could be but, his father was raised to fight other dogs and did so successfully. Just goes to show it is all how you raise them.

By the way, I don't fight dogs. The man who sold me the pup was the owner of the fighter.

 

[Winston]

quote:

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It is all in how you raise them.

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How you raise them is ONE factor. How they are bred is another important factor. Black Labs are good hunting dogs. Some are better than others. Some Pit Bulls are more vicious than others.

 

[labman]

Banning Pit Bulls or other dangerous breeds would be like banning any car with less than 20 pounds to the horsepower because some people misuse powerful cars.

It makes a good rant, but the facts do not support it. Ban Pit Bulls, and Rottweilers and Dobermans will become more of a problem. Ban them and something else will become a problem. I hear there is a vicious strain of Springer Spaniels. The idiots that want a vicious dog, will find the worse ones available and train them to be mean.

I favor strict leash laws and holding owners libel for anything their dog does. If your dog gets loose and injures or kills somebody, you are financially ruined and maybe see jail time. On the other hand, if you invade private property tough luck about any mishaps including lead poisoning.

 

[Larry the Cable Guy]

quote:

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Originally posted by Rob Taggs:
...It is all in how you raise them. When it comes to the behavior problem that is due to too much inbreeding.

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You are confusing me. Are you saying that canine agression is a product of how they are raised or how they are bred?

I wouldn't support a dog fighter by purchasing his puppies.

"Inbreeding" itself does not create agression but agression CAN be bred...

Many breeds are known primarily for their temperament. It didn't happen by accident. It is done by design - selective breeding over time.

I raise Golden Retrievers who's purpose is to be a useful gun dog. Temperament is of the utmost importance in this breed. One of my bitches is absolutely drop-dead gorgeous. She has an awesome coat, great structure and moves nicely. She has one terrible flaw: she is easily frightened. Some days she scares herself! I cannot breed her because of that. I refuse to breed a dog that does not have the potential to improve the breed.

Steve

 

[Rob Taggs]

I need to chime in again. Pitbulls account for 21% of dog attacks, not 50% plus as some are saying. But, I do admit that is very bad statistics for that particular breed. Inbreeding and Dog fighting scum crowd are the cause. All my dogs came for fighting fathers. All my dogs were your typical family dogs. None ever attacked anyone and were great around kids that were pulling their ears and tail.

Ignorance is at play here. I speak from experience with the breed. I have owned a Chow and German Sherpards that were far more aggressive than any of my Pitbulls. The German Shepard bit a boy on the leg and the Chow bit my own brother. Its the nature of the beast to protect it's territory.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

The only reason a person would need a pit bull or Rottweiler is to protect a meth lab.

 

[Rob Taggs]

Rhymingmechanic,

I sure don't have a meth lab. How would you know that drug dealers have Rotts and Pitbulls??? But, anyway that was a really stupid thing to say. Grow up.

 

[Winston]

quote:

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How would you know that drug dealers have Rotts and Pitbulls???

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I have read about raids of Meth Labs that had pit bulls. They have them because they are good dogs at protecting property. If I had a meth lab I would have Pit Bulls to protect it. Not a laso opso. Although laso opso's are very good at biting.

 

[Larry the Cable Guy]

quote:

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Originally posted by Rob Taggs:
How would you know that drug dealers have Rotts and Pitbulls???

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Yeah, that was supposed to be a secret!

 

[Dan4510]

Wow there is way too much lack of solid informtion and unsupported opinion here.

I would think if one realized that there is no breed offically recognized by the AKC as "pitt bull" it might be a starting point. Pitt Bull is a catch all phrase for any breed someone assumes is dangerous without supporting evidence.

Any dog can bite anyone at any time with enough provocation. First it was dobermans, then german shepards, then chows, now "pitt bulls" that no one can define.

Furthermore, if one cannot define the differences between an American Pitt Bull Terrier, bull terrier, staffordshire bull terrier or bull mastiff, the better part of valor might just be bowing out of the debate before a startling lack of discernment becomes evident to one and all.

There is one breed that far outpaces any other for biting people...the Chihuahua. Since they bite so many people, they should be banned--Tacos and all.

Dan