Pit-Bull's...friend or foe?

[tazdev3225]

I'm undecided. I definitely was one of those people who disliked them based on reputation and then my aunt rescued an American Staffordshire Terrier. I had a huge argument with her over it as we always went to her house on New Year's Day and I had small grandchildren. She insisted I needed to get to know Casey. I went to my aunt's house and Casey bit me. My aunt blamed me, I was trying not to bleed all over (it was a small bite wound) and my aunt's partner was yelling at my aunt I did nothing. I became over cautious and we made sure that Casey never had a chance to harm the kids. Today she is the biggest sweetheart. When I go to my aunt's to visit Casey jumps up on my lap and kisses me to death. My aunt spent a lot of time training and socializing the dog. Casey was found tied to a tree, was horribly malnourished and who knows what else happened to her in her first 6 months. With a lot of love she turned into a wonderful dog. Do I trust her? I don't trust any dog.

My daughter rescued a Black Lab mix several years ago. We were told it was a Beagle/Lab mix. The dog has fear aggression. We took her to the vet and found out she is a Lab/Pit mix. I love that dog. She is a sweetheart with us. I do not trust her with strangers because she gets nervous and snaps. We are aware of this and keep her on a tight leash. My daughter's BFF has a Red Nose Pit. She is the biggest wuss with us but again I am cautious with her as I am any dog.

My youngest daughter just got a German Shepherd. He is 16 weeks old and already 55 lbs. He will be HUGE! She has 3 boys and he is a sweetheart. Rough houses with them, follows them around everywhere. She is training him not to have food aggression, something I did with all of my dogs. Right now he is a puppy and hopefully he stays as sweet as he has been. This same daughter has several scars on her face from dog bites. The first bite came from a Husky. The dog was behind a fence and lunged at my daughter and bit her on the eye and in her mouth. Yes she actually had a puncture wound in the roof of her mouth. The owner was standing right there, knew the dog was agitated and did nothing to prevent my daughter from approaching the dog. I never blamed the dog. I blamed the owner and the neighborhood kids who had been teasing the dog. All my daughter wanted to do was show her friends her cast as she had broken her hand over the weekend. This same daughter was bit by a Dachshund the following year. She needed 8 stitches to close several deep wounds in her face. The dog was old and aggressive and for no reason lunged at my daughters face.

My mom has a small Shih Tzu mix. That dog can be vicious. She has a Napoleon complex in my opinion. She has a tendency to nip, especially small children. I don't trust her around kids at all. I have a Pug mix right now who is a sweetheart but even though she has never shown aggression doesn't mean she never will.

All dog breeds can and will bite. They can all cause damage. I try to judge a dog on its actions but I am always aware that a dog can turn.

 

[dlavender]

From the responses in here, many folks would disagree with this perspective. I've always been of similar mind set but a couple of the stories in here has made me think on it a bit more.

Like I stated earlier, prior to our bad experience, I used to argue that any dog if treated correctly could be a great dog. After our experiment, I fully understand that certain breeds have instincts that can’t be controlled.

The Akita rescue folks told us that in their opinion, these dogs should only be in households with no small children and no other dogs. No matter what. I’m sure some out there have been successful despite this, but it’s too much to risk.

 

[ronandannette]

That’s awful!! I feel so bad for your friend! I think it’s awful that they took his kids and I hope his custody is returned.

If I were the mother of those children that simply would not be happening as long as the other pit bull was still in the home. I am appalled at the story of that prolonged attack although admittedly confused. How and why 3 men (well, 2 adults and a teenaged boy) allowed a prolonged attack to continue is unfathomable.

How would that even work - the dog just gnaws on the guy for 20 minutes while a neighbor trains a gun on it? And then to discharge the firearm inside close quarters? Can you imagine the horror of the children witnessing it?

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

I never really thought about it before but when I see any dog, I always ask if it's okay to approach and to pet.

Thank you for this, I wish everyone would do so. More importantly, I wish they'd actually listen when you tell them no. We've had to stop taking our younger dog to the park. He isn't a pit, I suspect he's a border collie and possible a chow mix. He does NOT like people and other dogs he doesn't know. Last time we went I thought I was going to have to physically fight a child (old enough to know better, he gave me a smart mouth answer when I told him the dog doesn't care for strangers). He just kept coming while Oreo was trying to drag me down a hill into a creek to get away from him. Poor dog was terrified. Here I was struggling to stay in between a 40 lb dog and a kid that was almost as big as I am, and the parents just stood there and watched.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I absolutely love dogs and have had them all my life. I've had six German Shepherds over the course of my lifetime, and now have a very well bred Cairn Terrier primarily because of the health issues two of my GSDs have had that completely wore me out/deflated me, but I haven't discounted another in the future. It's been challenging trying to find the right one for our family, from both health and social perspectives, which I won't get into here. Suffice it to say I've seen a lot of problem behavior, some of which was my family's own fault when I was growing up and nobody really took on training and socialization for the dogs (nor did many of that generation; dogs, in fact, were allowed to roam freely on streets and do their own thing!) As an adult owning GSDs, I've done my due diligence, and had good results, albeit not perfect.

Dealing with a reactive dog is a lifetime commitment and one that is also draining and potentially dangerous. There are a LOT of reactive dogs out there, and not just GSDs. I see and meet them all the time, and many people don't know how to deal with them safely and correctly. Why are they reactive? Good question. IMO and Experience it is a combination of genes and environment, since it is known to be fear based, which could mean a lot of things.

The one thing that really makes me crazy is hearing people say, "They let the kids tease them!" WHY????? Why on earth would someone allow their dog to be teased, knowing a bite could be moments away that could change the course of the life for both the child/person and the pet? People think it's funny. IT'S NOT! It's dangerous! And mean, tbh. Because the dog will lose, in many cases it's life. I have had people come up to my GSD and grab it's snout, or bark and growl in its face. Again, WHY? And then we wonder why we have so many bad dogs and so many bite incidents. People think this is ok, or to let the kids "ride" the dog or pull its tail, etc. How is a dog supposed to defend itself? It has just one way. Some will say bites are "unprovoked", but if a dog has been taught to mistrust people or situations, then it could react to a situation it thinks is about to happen. Dogs often give off subtle signs it is about to bite, but many people don't see the signs. Dogs and children ALWAYS have to be supervised for this reason (and some adults), even if the dog has been ok before. You never know what has happened in a dog's past unless you've been with it forever. You might be doing everyone a favor just putting the dog in a safe space when people are over if you know your dog has a shady past or it reacts nervously to children or loud noises, etc.

Anyway, my thoughts about pit bulls. It sickens me what is done to them in many cases. I follow a lot of rescue sites and am horrified almost daily in what I see happening, and not just with pit bulls. I see some who seem like really nice dogs, and even follow some on social media who have their own pages or whatever.

People need to spay and neuter their dogs so we don't have so many dogs around. It is a national disgrace how many pets we euthanize every year, or how many are abandoned and mistreated, etc.

But my opinion. Years ago I rescued a dog who was running around in traffic. It was apparently living under a dumpster. It was small, estimated to be about five months old, and I later learned it was a pit bull. I couldn't take the dog on because we already had two dogs at home and were trying to have a baby, but I paid for its care at the shelter. Long story short, the shelter thought it was mine and I wound up having to take it home or they were going to euthanize it. At first, it was great in the house with DH and I, and our two GSDs, but the next day when DH came home from work, the dog wouldn't let him come into our house; going nuts at the door. We thought it was strange, but figured it had something to do with it living under a dumpster (allegedly with homeless people). I took the dog out to our front yard and began working on training with it. Our neighbor saw we had a new dog and came over with her young son to see it. What happened next was something I'd never experienced before. The dog attempted to attack our neighbors with a ferocity I'd never seen, so much so that I could barely hold it back on the leash (and thankfully it was on a leash or we would've had a tragedy on our hands, for sure). It really scared the bejesses out of me. (And I'd witnessed other things growing up with GSDs such as cat killing and bites.) This was not a bite, it was an attack, and I have absolutely no doubt these two neighbors would've been seriously hurt (and probably myself trying to stop it). The dog went back to the shelter with full disclosure. And I will never, ever, own a dog like that again, given that experience.

 

[ThistleMae]

Thank you for this, I wish everyone would do so. More importantly, I wish they'd actually listen when you tell them no. We've had to stop taking our younger dog to the park. He isn't a pit, I suspect he's a border collie and possible a chow mix. He does NOT like people and other dogs he doesn't know. Last time we went I thought I was going to have to physically fight a child (old enough to know better, he gave me a smart mouth answer when I told him the dog doesn't care for strangers). He just kept coming while Oreo was trying to drag me down a hill into a creek to get away from him. Poor dog was terrified. Here I was struggling to stay in between a 40 lb dog and a kid that was almost as big as I am, and the parents just stood there and watched.

Your welcome! I've learned much about dogs from my camping experience, as many campers bring their dogs to camp. I ask lots of questions and have seen multiple ways folks are trying to stop their dogs from barking at passerby's. Biggest issue. One time there was a bus tour stopped in my town at the Brick Store. There was a dog there, on a leash, a fairly big dog and it was shaking badly. It looked petrified or sick or something, I don't know what was wrong. But the owner was paying no attention to the dog, which was in obvious distress. Kind of scary...especially with all those people around.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My youngest daughter just got a German Shepherd. He is 16 weeks old and already 55 lbs. He will be HUGE! She has 3 boys and he is a sweetheart. Rough houses with them, follows them around everywhere. She is training him not to have food aggression, something I did with all of my dogs. Right now he is a puppy and hopefully he stays as sweet as he has been. This same daughter has several scars on her face from dog bites. The first bite came from a Husky. The dog was behind a fence and lunged at my daughter and bit her on the eye and in her mouth. Yes she actually had a puncture wound in the roof of her mouth. The owner was standing right there, knew the dog was agitated and did nothing to prevent my daughter from approaching the dog. I never blamed the dog. I blamed the owner and the neighborhood kids who had been teasing the dog. All my daughter wanted to do was show her friends her cast as she had broken her hand over the weekend. This same daughter was bit by a Dachshund the following year. She needed 8 stitches to close several deep wounds in her face. The dog was old and aggressive and for no reason lunged at my daughters face.

I hope you don't mind if I offer some unsolicited advice that maybe you can share with your daughter. If you want to keep him sweet and reliable with children, stop the roughhousing. It pits dog against human and that's not something you want to teach that dog. There are tons of fun games the children can do with the dog, such as teaching it to fetch, play frisbee, hide and seek, etc. Learning to mouth and bite kids is not a good thing, take my word for it. When we got GSD puppies when my kids were little, our vet sat down with us and the kids and said absolutely no roughhousing. I knew it anyway, but it was good to hear. GSDs are herders, and naturally herd children like they would sheep by biting ankles. (My ankles were always bloody as a kid!) This will easily in today's world be taken for a bite, so it's not something you want the dog to do to children visiting their home. We taught our dogs to carry a soccer ball around at all times. The dogs would satisfy their herding instinct by bumping kids with the ball, but we never had any bites. We also live by the golden rule that there should NEVER be dog teeth on human skin, EVER, from the time the dog first walks into our home, which is known as bite inhitibition. Good luck with the dog, they are wonderful when properly taught and socialized.

 

[luvsJack]

Pit bulls are listed as the most frequent dog to be involved in a biting incident. And they generate the most homeowners insurance claims. But maybe if someone is bitten by a pit bull they are more likely to report it or file a claim?
They are also the majority of the dogs up for adoption at our SPCA, and breed most likely to be returned because an adoption didn't work out.

Mostly it’s becaise any dog with a certain “look” is classified as a pit bull. Which is why the CDC stopped trying. Too many breeds have some of the same physical characteristics.

 

[ThistleMae]

Mostly it’s becaise any dog with a certain “look” is classified as a pit bull. Which is why the CDC stopped trying. Too many breeds have some of the same physical characteristics.

This is what I read as well. In that case, any dog with a somewhat squared head may be identified as Pit Bull. And there could be a mix of many different breeds in their DNA. My neice had their rescue genetically tested, not because of any of this, they were just curious. It is very high energy and is very tall. It has a high pitched bark, actually hurts your ears, and has the bad habit of jumping up on people and it reaches up to your face. They are inexperienced with training, so it's not going so great in regards to the jumping. They need to do some research for techniques.

 

[tazdev3225]

I hope you don't mind if I offer some unsolicited advice that maybe you can share with your daughter. If you want to keep him sweet and reliable with children, stop the roughhousing. It pits dog against human and that's not something you want to teach that dog. There are tons of fun games the children can do with the dog, such as teaching it to fetch, play frisbee, hide and seek, etc. Learning to mouth and bite kids is not a good thing, take my word for it. When we got GSD puppies when my kids were little, our vet sat down with us and the kids and said absolutely no roughhousing. I knew it anyway, but it was good to hear. GSDs are herders, and naturally herd children like they would sheep by biting ankles. (My ankles were always bloody as a kid!) This will easily in today's world be taken for a bite, so it's not something you want the dog to do to children visiting their home. We taught our dogs to carry a soccer ball around at all times. The dogs would satisfy their herding instinct by bumping kids with the ball, but we never had any bites. We also live by the golden rule that there should NEVER be dog teeth on human skin, EVER, from the time the dog first walks into our home, which is known as bite inhitibition. Good luck with the dog, they are wonderful when properly taught and socialized.

Thank you. She does try and keep the boys from rough housing but they are 4 and 5 and don't always understand. The puppy is given toys and told NO! if he nips or jumps. He is in that stage of development. Actually I think he listens better than the boys do at times. They do play fetch and the pup will play that for hours. I will suggest to her that she keep a ball or Kong for him to use as a deterrent to biting. I can see the herding instinct though. I love him but boy did he lose his puppy look fast.

 

[ThistleMae]

Thank you. She does try and keep the boys from rough housing but they are 4 and 5 and don't always understand. The puppy is given toys and told NO! if he nips or jumps. He is in that stage of development. Actually I think he listens better than the boys do at times. They do play fetch and the pup will play that for hours. I will suggest to her that she keep a ball or Kong for him to use as a deterrent to biting. I can see the herding instinct though. I love him but boy did he lose his puppy look fast.

I have to say I really respected your positive response to the suggestion made by the previous poster. Sometimes, suggestions or comments can be taken defensively, rather than someone passing on what they've learned. It was refreshing to read.

 

[ThistleMae]

Thank you to everyone here for respectfully posting opposing opinions! Especially with such a controversial topic. I'd like to see more of this when it comes to other sensitive topics.

 

[PAsFab5]

Being in rescue I have seen the horrific abuse and neglect this breed suffers at the hands of humans and it is heartbreaking. I have sat many nights and held dogs while I cried over their condition. Starved almost to death, burnt with cigarettes, used as a bait dog and ate almost alive...what humans do to this breed is horrific. They are the most abused breed by humans, period.

But you know what...They forgive and forget and all they want is love. All my fosters and personal pitties have went on to live great lives without issues. They are thankful for everyday and greatful to be alive.

If you really are interested in familiarizing yourself with the breed go volunteer!!! Your local shelter would love to have you and it will open your eyes on not just pitties but all types of dogs!!!!

 

[ThistleMae]

Being in rescue I have seen the horrific abuse and neglect this breed suffers at the hands of humans and it is heartbreaking. I have sat many nights and held dogs while I cried over their condition. Starved almost to death, burnt with cigarettes, used as a bait dog and ate almost alive...what humans do to this breed is horrific. They are the most abused breed by humans, period.

But you know what...They forgive and forget and all they want is love. All my fosters and personal pitties have went on to live great lives without issues. They are thankful for everyday and greatful to be alive.

If you really are interested in familiarizing yourself with the breed go volunteer!!! Your local shelter would love to have you and it will open your eyes on not just pitties but all types of dogs!!!!

 

[LSUmiss]

I'm undecided. I definitely was one of those people who disliked them based on reputation and then my aunt rescued an American Staffordshire Terrier. I had a huge argument with her over it as we always went to her house on New Year's Day and I had small grandchildren. She insisted I needed to get to know Casey. I went to my aunt's house and Casey bit me. My aunt blamed me, I was trying not to bleed all over (it was a small bite wound) and my aunt's partner was yelling at my aunt I did nothing. I became over cautious and we made sure that Casey never had a chance to harm the kids. Today she is the biggest sweetheart. When I go to my aunt's to visit Casey jumps up on my lap and kisses me to death. My aunt spent a lot of time training and socializing the dog. Casey was found tied to a tree, was horribly malnourished and who knows what else happened to her in her first 6 months. With a lot of love she turned into a wonderful dog. Do I trust her? I don't trust any dog.

My daughter rescued a Black Lab mix several years ago. We were told it was a Beagle/Lab mix. The dog has fear aggression. We took her to the vet and found out she is a Lab/Pit mix. I love that dog. She is a sweetheart with us. I do not trust her with strangers because she gets nervous and snaps. We are aware of this and keep her on a tight leash. My daughter's BFF has a Red Nose Pit. She is the biggest wuss with us but again I am cautious with her as I am any dog.

My youngest daughter just got a German Shepherd. He is 16 weeks old and already 55 lbs. He will be HUGE! She has 3 boys and he is a sweetheart. Rough houses with them, follows them around everywhere. She is training him not to have food aggression, something I did with all of my dogs. Right now he is a puppy and hopefully he stays as sweet as he has been. This same daughter has several scars on her face from dog bites. The first bite came from a Husky. The dog was behind a fence and lunged at my daughter and bit her on the eye and in her mouth. Yes she actually had a puncture wound in the roof of her mouth. The owner was standing right there, knew the dog was agitated and did nothing to prevent my daughter from approaching the dog. I never blamed the dog. I blamed the owner and the neighborhood kids who had been teasing the dog. All my daughter wanted to do was show her friends her cast as she had broken her hand over the weekend. This same daughter was bit by a Dachshund the following year. She needed 8 stitches to close several deep wounds in her face. The dog was old and aggressive and for no reason lunged at my daughters face.

My mom has a small Shih Tzu mix. That dog can be vicious. She has a Napoleon complex in my opinion. She has a tendency to nip, especially small children. I don't trust her around kids at all. I have a Pug mix right now who is a sweetheart but even though she has never shown aggression doesn't mean she never will.

All dog breeds can and will bite. They can all cause damage. I try to judge a dog on its actions but I am always aware that a dog can turn.

...MIGHT not will bite. None of the 8 dogs I’ve owned in my lifetime have ever bitten me or anyone else. My old 16 year old doxie could be snippy especially as he got older, but he never actually bit anyone. He was blind & missing teeth by that time so it really didn’t count. None of the dogs that any of my family members have ever had ever bit anyone either.

 

[mrodgers]

Foe. Sure, there are good ones, and even most are good. It only takes a few because they're so strong. Would not want kids or other pets around one.

Wait, they are a strong breed of dog?

Here's my Pittbull story. It's not negative, the dog was a very nice dog. I have a spot out at the boat launch on the lake I like to ride the bicycle there for dinner after work. I was out there in a little viewing platform with some trees blocking the roadway. I heard a commotion out there so looked out to investigate. I see a guy on the ground tangled up in a bicycle holding onto a leashed Pitt. I went out to help and he let go of the leash and the dog came to me. Friendly as anything. So I'm stooped down holding onto his collar and an older couple had just hurriedly put their dog in their van and the woman was standing outside watching.

Well, the Pitt saw her, wanted to go say hi to her and there was nothing I could do to prevent it. I'm 235 lb and the dog drug me to the ground and drug me 20 feet across the asphalt to the woman. As I said, nothing negative, it was very friendly. I just couldn't believe how easily it pulled me down and drug me across the lot.

Yeah, they are amazing how much strength they have.

 

[mousefan73]

Foe. I say this as besides training a dog's personality is also based on breeding and genetics. Just read an interesting article from a dog expert. topic was how many believe you can completely train a dog from pup to fit your standards; or use behavior training to change a dog. This is not true in most cases. You have dogs who are simply more active, have a strong hunting trait etc... you cannot completely train this out or adjust physcial traints ( pit bulls case) . Article focused on getting the right dog based on genetic traits. Some traits are also territorial.

A friend has very well trained pit mixes. BUT I still would have not slept comfortably at his place or leave his dog with kids alone. All animals (and humans) can snap. the issue with pit bulls and similar dogs.. physcially their jaws are simply strong and deadly and lock up. you have no chance with them.

 

[Jennasis]

The only biting/mauling incidents I have dealt with (in my immediate family/friend circle) are from:

Akita (dude is lucky to be alive)
German Shepherd (individual required major cosmetic surgery to repair damage)
Dalmatian (minor surgery required)
Chihuahua (stitches needed)
German Shepherd (mauled our cairn terrier who required 50+ stitches to close neck wound)

None of these were reported to "the authorities" or news outlets. I tend to think Pit attacks are the ones that are reported. Have also had "aggressive" dogs lunge or snap at me (Great Dane, German Shepherd, Chihuahua).

 

[ThistleMae]

The only biting/mauling incidents I have dealt with (in my immediate family/friend circle) are from:

Akita (dude is lucky to be alive)
German Shepherd (individual required major cosmetic surgery to repair damage)
Dalmatian (minor surgery required)
Chihuahua (stitches needed)
German Shepherd (mauled our cairn terrier who required 50+ stitches to close neck wound)

None of these were reported to "the authorities" or news outlets. I tend to think Pit attacks are the ones that are reported. Have also had "aggressive" dogs lunge or snap at me (Great Dane, German Shepherd, Chihuahua).

Very good points. I don't know that dog bites get reported in the same way in every state. And...I'm sure not all are reported. So to actually get the real picture, might not be entirely possible. But all this information is very helpful...IMO.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

Very good points. I don't know that dog bites get reported in the same way in every state. And...I'm sure not all are reported. So to actually get the real picture, might not be entirely possible. But all this information is very helpful...IMO.

I haven't had to deal with this in a long time, but I know 15 years ago I was bitten by a dog (not a pit, some type of shepherd mix). The doctor wouldn't even step into the exam room without reporting the dog to the health department. He said it was a state requirement that any dog bit that required medical attention be reported. Literally, my choices were report the dog or leave without treatment.