This week's Pit Bull fatalities:

True. Probably more people than dogs.

 

Along with Dobermans the target dog of the 70 and 80's, then the Rottweilers of the 80 and 90's and the current embodiment of satan on 4 legs for the last 2 decades the pitbull. The single most often incorrectly identified dog on the planet.

What do you hear on the news when the "always polite and quiet" next door neighbor turns up with a pile of bodies in the basement. "Well he never did anything like this before."

 

I get what was said earlier about douchbag tough guys keeping these dogs to portray some sort of image that their own internal masculinity is incapable of doing. But what I don't understand is why your typical run of the mill household would keep these kinds of dogs and risk their small children's well-being by putting them in close proximity to them. It's just stupid the level of cognitive dissonance that they must dealing with internally.

I liken it to these SJW retards that try to extoll the benefits of mass uncontrolled immigration, all the while it serves no benefit and is in fact a detriment to their homeland. Of what benefit does keeping a breed of dog with a LONG history of known violent behavior over much more well tempered breed have.....again, for the typical suburban family who isn't trying to overcompensate for their lack of toughness with a friggin four-legged fashion statement???

 

^^^
We can close the thread now.

 

Sorry - I don't believe that. Dogs don't just "turn". These dogs had to have displayed dominance in some form or another and the cues were missed. Growling and guarding are usually the last behaviors that are noticed, especially if they are never challenged in the home.
Does your dog insist on going through a doorway first? Dominance trait.
Does your dog demand to be on top - laying on you in bed or sitting in your lap? Dominance.
Does your dog refuse known commands - dominance trait.
Does your dog refuse a lead. Again, Dominance.

The list is long and all of these things need to be curbed to make a good pet out of a stubborn, "Dominant" dog. And - if you insist on keeping a dominant dog as a pet - you should know that these behaviors can lead up to a confrontation. You should also never leave them alone with your kids, kids challenge the pack order.

 

If you knew ten people who let their kids sleep with a mountain lion with no ill effect, would you bring one into your home? Why take the chance?
Disclaimer: My nephew had his neck ripped open by his loving family pit bull.

 

And a dog doesn't have to "turn" on its owner to be problematic. A dog can very easily misinterpret another person as a threat to their owner (or themselves) and attack. Which I suppose isn't an issue if you keep the dog shut in all the time with no exposure to the outside world/people, but that in and of itself is not good for a dog's social development either.

That's kind of my point....short of feeling like its enhancing your street-cred, of what benefit to you or your family is there to keeping a "dominant" dog as a pet?

 

I wouldn't leave a child unattended with the 4 wrinkle bottom, soft natured Shar-Pei's I have. It shouldn't be any different with any breed. If one of them decided to put teeth to flesh for any number of possible reasons the others may choose to join in as they are a pack animal. Doesn't matter that the biggest one is only 40 pounds the 4 of them together could overwhelm most kids. None of them have ever bitten anyone and do their best to move away from strangers but if a kid decided to pursue one into a corner I can't say they wouldn't bite out of discomfort with the interaction. I don't worry about them chasing a kid down as a pack and mauling them but I do worry about one of them being cornered in a kids attempt to pet the cute puppy dog.

 

Let me ask this question....

Do you feel the same way about German Shepherds, Labradors, Mastiffs, English Bulldogs, or any of the other various breeds of size sufficient to inflict harm or even death? How about Standard Poodles? All are capable of the exact same behaviors.

 

IIRC, the number one bite dog in America is the Chihuahua followed by the Beagle.

I have three Beagles. Never been bit.

This adds nothing to the discussion. I'm just bored.

 

I wouldn't leave a baby/toddler truly alone with most any breeds. Pits are typically the sweetest little face lickers - but I won't own one due to their (in)ability to be truly socialized (and trusted) around unknown dogs. Have seen too many personal experiences of this for me to feel comfortable with it.

We had a 10yo pit on my block last summer that got loose (****ing meter reader left a gate open and owners let dog out in evening as normal) and immediately mauled a tiny little thing a woman was walking on a retractable leash. Killed the dog and only let it go when a neighbor ran out with a screw driver he used to torque the collar and choke the dog out. This was a very well behaved dog that lived in a house with 2 children. I hate yippie little dogs too, but eating them is a no no.

My good friend's blue pit that is the sweetest blockhead has 2 strikes against him for biting other dogs at the park. One was legit the other was an owner who just freaked out because dogs were being dogs and one was a pit. My shepherd hated that dog though and most pits and boxers in general. Too bouncy and informal for his tastes

 

I think it depends on the breed again. I don't liken everything solely to their physical attributes or upbringing. My uncle used to have an English Mastiff, it was the size of a small horse and from what I remember reading about the breed, due to their size they can generate a biting force of about 550 (200 psi MORE than a typical American Pitbull). But historically they have a demeanor of being far more reserved and even tempered than a typical Pitbull. My uncle was far from the sharpest of dog raisers and this giant never gnashed its teeth at anyone, it just romped around clumsily and playfully because it wasn't aware of its own size.

But as you said, it doesn't matter what the breed of dog or who raised it, you wouldn't leave a child near one.....which I think is what everyone knows but some just fail to want to admit to themselves.

 

My in-laws have rescued a ton of OE Mastiff's and I have been bitten by several while we were assessing their temperament. In some cases they were previously abused and poorly cared for but the worst bite I got was from a family dog that was relinquished during a divorce. There are almost always circumstances surrounding a bite but mot of the time it is either a human making a mistake in reading the dogs warnings or simply not paying attention to them.

 

We adopted a Lab/Pit mix last winter from the spca, he'd had a rough life. He was left at a house when the owner moved, running loose for a while, dog catcher maced him to get ahold of him. He had scars all over his head from fighting with something. Took the spca people a while to get him socialized enough to trust some people as you'd imagine. The whole trip home he was trying to get in the front seat, crawling all over my wife, just wanting attention, so loving like he knew he had found a home.

We kept him a week. He'd flip like a switch without warning, twice my friend Mike was petting him and all of a sudden he's snarling and showing his teeth. A few nights later he did the same to my wife when she reached over to get something on the couch, scared the shit out of her. Did the same thing to me a few minutes later when I tried to pick up the laptop. I said alright buddy, you just bought yourself a trip back to the pound. No way I'll have a dog I can't trust. We felt bad having to do that to him and I don't blame him. The poor guy'd had a hard life.

 

None of those breeds generate near the number of grievous injuries and deaths as do dogs that share a given set of characteristics commonly associated with pit bulls. The "not a real pit" defense is both vacuous and disingenuous, so please don't subject us to it. When you take the actual percentage of overall canine population into account, the discrepancy is even more marked.

 

Another interesting dog story I recall that I think speaks to these animals' DNA and shit you can't train into or out of them. So one weekend we were over my friend's house and he had a very burly GSD that was trained as a police attack dog so it naturally had some very alpha tendencies. My other friend brought his run of the mill Rottweiler over with him. His Rottie was quite docile and seemed to get along with everyone just fine. The GSD was a dick and needed to be kept in its kennel.

For whatever reason they decided to go take the both of them for a walk. Well, the GSD immediately tried asserting its dominance, barking and posturing and making motions towards the Rottie. Initially it seemed he couldn't be bothered and just wanted to be left alone, but after enough prodding he had enough and the GSD kind of leapt at him, the Rottie sidestepped, bit into the meat on the back of his neck (not enough to really cause much damage) and just shoved his face into the dirt and held him there until it shut up. The GSD quickly learned its lesson and left him alone, lol.

But yeah, I found that to be rather amusing.

 

As is the disproportionate number of dip shit owners. So don't insult me with the "its the breed" bullshit.

 

The owners don't do the actual mauling. If every dip shit in America replaced their pit bull with a mutt from the pound, the number of serious canine attacks would decline. That is indisputable.

 

If every nip from some little purse riding over sized rat were reported the numbers would look very different. News flash...Mutts from the pound bite just as often. I'll be the first to tell you not everyone is fit to own a large breed dog. Hell...most aren't fit to own and care for a small breed dog. Most aren't even aware of the increased responsibility that comes with a large breed dog. But in the end it's not the breed that is specifically a problem.

 

I found Beagles to not be a very good pet unless you are using it for hunting. They live by their nose and when they are on a scent all other senses, especially hearing, seem to shut down. They also will eat themselves to death. A family friendly dog but there's better choices out there.