Question about Pit Bulls
 

If the argument is that it's "not the dog, it's the owner" then why don't I hear more stories of poodles attacking/mauling/killing etc?

Just being devil's advocate here. I'd like to hear what people think. I just read this article and it's kinda crazy to think that someone can get charged with murder based on their dog's actions.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/l...,3599527.story

Little dogs do attack. They are not big enough to cause serious damage or they are easily fended off. The larger dogs have much greater force and are very difficult to fend off.

If a Chihuahua and a great Dane both issued five attacks, which one do you think would cause the most damage?

don't really think of danes as attacking people :2 cents:

you're joking right? that shit stain drug dealer had 1/2 a dozen pitbulls and due to his negligience, 4 of them got free and mauled a little old lady to death and went berserk going after a cop or 2.


umm, a murder charge is the least that fucker should get.

That wasn't the point.

A Chihuahua attack will be thwarted or cause minimal damage. A pit bull attack is much more difficult to stop and can cause serious damage.

Is that better?

Standard poodles are insane. my wife was attacked by one. But i must say it was the retarded owner i blame

It ALL has to do with the owner. I have met the most sweetest pit bulls you could imagine - absolute sucks.

All owners have to take responsibility as to how they train/exercise and treat their dogs. If proper time/education/training is not given to the owner and thus to the dog, then the owner does not have control and things happen.

Yes, a bigger dog requires more attention to how it acts/reacts because of its strength is has. Training/exercise/discipline are key - always - and where does the dog get this from....?

because people are scared of the way they look.

Sadly this is only partially true.

I have trained dogs for more than 15 years in basic ob. as well as S and R and attack for protection and for ring competitions.

The only dogs I have ever seen that go nuts and attack with no apparent provocation is Pit Bulls.

My son is constantly around many different breeds of attack dogs and has never been hurt. But I wont let him near a pit as I have seen them attack for nothing at all.

I would think a lot has to do with the dogs DNA/heritage. Water dogs, herding dogs, tracking dogs, guard dogs then attack dogs.

they are the sweetest only until they tear out your jugular

I have pit bull and that is great breed.

"it's the owner" in 100% cases because every pit bull can be like a cat.

You're an idiot.

“Pit bull” is not a breed, but a “type” that encompasses several registered breeds and crossbreeds. Therefore, statistics that claim “Pit bulls” are responsible for some percentage of attacks are lumping many separate breeds of dogs together, then comparing those statistics to other dogs that are counted as individual breeds. There are currently 25 breeds that are commonly considered a “pit bull”.

Myth: Pit Bulls or Pit Bull type dogs are human aggressive by nature.

Fact: Studies by the Center for Disease Control have proven that no one breed of dog is inherently vicious. The CDC supports the position that irresponsible owners, NOT breed, is the number one cause of dog bites.

Myth: Pit Bulls or Pit Bull type dogs are inherently vicious.

Fact: No more vicious than Golden Retrievers, Beagles, or other popular “family” dogs. In a recent testing done by The American Canine Temperament Testing Society (ATT), pit bulls achieved a passing rate of 83.9%, passing 4th from the highest of 122 breeds. That’s better than Beagles, passing at 78.2 and Golden Retrievers passing at 83.2%. The average passing rate for ALL breeds is 77%.

Myth: Pit Bulls or Pit Bull type dogs are responsible for most fatal dog attacks.

Fact: From 1965 – 2001, there have been at least 36 different breeds/types of dog that have been involved in a fatal attack in the United States. (This number rises to at least 52 breeds/types when surveying fatal attacks worldwide).

Read More...


Here's a recent picture of my "vicious Pit Bull" "attacking" a less than 1 month old colt.

http://i.imgur.com/gGZX2WE.jpg

This dog is 4 years old and has been raised properly and in a loving home... He's only ever attacked ANYTHING once, and that was my moms adopted from humane society half Rottweiler half Shepard dog who turned on him and attempted to kill him and another dog. And even then, he only attacked back enough to defend himself, she only had a few cuts on her from him, while he was almost clinging on to life.

My neighbor has some kind of pit bull breed going on... It blows my mind - They've never taken the dog for a walk once, and more or less just lock it up in the side yards. It took a chunk out of their pool guy last summer.

What's the point of having a dog if you never do anything with it?

Dogs are wild animals and should be treated as such.
You can never be 100% sure that it won't attack someone.

just so people can read this again

we're gonna need a dwb's sure fire method re: how to handle dogs post in here.

The truth is somewhere in the middle.

I owned a pit bull. They are the most loyal, affectionate dogs you can get. With that said, some types simple have a ridiculously high fight drive. You will often hear UFC fighters say how much they love to fight. Most people hate fighting and avoid getting hurt at all cost. Some pit bulls breeds (particularly males) are no different. They love to fight. The drive and joy of fighting is built into them at birth. These type of pitbulls are in the minority, but if not watched carefully, they can go on a rampage.

If you have a pit bull that has these traits it is up to the owner to control them. Unfortunately, a lot of white trash own pit bulls with these traits and they do nothing to train or contain the dogs. And in many cases they abuse the dogs or encourage the behavior (since they see them as good watch dogs).

So it is a mixed bag of the owner and genetics. A bad owner mixed with a pitbull breed that loves to fight can be a disaster.

it's hard to look tough carrying a poodle....just sayin'

Pit hysteria is ridiculous. Dobies used to get the same prejudice in the 70's. Before that, yes, poodles, had a nasty rep too.

I go to the dog park daily with my dogs which are pit mixes, not even full pits, and the over-reaction factor is absurd.

But, the other day I was talking to an old guy and he was saying how his opinion has changed about pits since coming to the park and seeing with his own eyes, far from being killers, pits were the most playful and social dogs in the the park.

My buddies pit bull terrier is the most loyal loving dog I have ever seen.
They are smart and are very trainable.

question about penis pills ?

I do honestly believe that its the owner, opposed to the breed...

I can only speak from experience, and yes, my experience IS limited, but a pal of mine ended up with a pure bred pitbull, as a rescue dog...

Gentlest, most timid, friendly dog I have met n my life...

My Son has a Dachshund. Most aggressive snarly bitey, snappy dog ever ! AND... It 'KNOWS' me lol

You see that's the dangerous part about pitbulls. They are massively energetic and if they can't discharge all that energy into physical activity, they will do it through aggression. Due to their size and power, when it happens, it can turn a situation ugly pretty fast.

This stands true for all dogs.

You can have a pit or chihuahua, as long as it gets enough exercise to calm its mind, it will never attack or act strangely (unless it feels in danger obviously).

The main difference is that pitbulls have been bred for generations to be fighting dogs, mean and viscous where any akc breed has been breeding dogs that fit high temperament standards for that same length of time if not longer. So you can have a good and responsible owner who just happens to own a dog with violent tendencies hard wired and it would be only a matter of time and situation it would be in a dangerous situation, or at least a much higher chance of it.

great danes, wolfhounds, akitas, bull mastiffs.. all GIGANTIC dogs, strong dogs, even fast dogs yet because they have been bred for over 100 years being easy going teddy bears (around people at least) that they are far far less likely to attack like that.

If pitbull owners took some more responsibility and ONLY bred to other dogs that had exceptional temperaments then they would slowly become just as safe to be around, but that has yet to happen, and asshole owners like the one mentioned don't help the cause.

Tigers and house cats are the same too. It is 100% the owner. When a tiger kills someone, its not the tigers fault or anything to do with its big teeth or claws, its 100% the owners fault

i agree with you on your other points but this is not true at all. A test like that can't even be accurate because they don't take into account pedigree in those. mutts don't have temperament testing ever..

the media tells us pitbulls are to be feared.

consequently, many people fear pitbulls when they are around them.

pitbulls sense the fear and can react with fear-based aggression.

I own two, that sentience made me go wtf, but I said, nope, just another moron with no real IQ ;)

pits have more ability to cause yeah, compared to a small dog their stronger, more energy, more size, etc. i've seen some vicious shepherds, labs. kinda like sly said, pits have a terrible rep and it loves to get blown up that way

ghetto people are more inclined to get pits, and do a shitty job of raising them. keeps the cycle going

A friend of mine had a poodle that would have been certified insane if human. Fucking thing was literally mental!

One day it would be fine, the next it would stare at you shaking like it was possesed and stare at you. It used to run into walls and doors when it went mental aswell.

I don't think it ever properly attacked anyone, but it was fucking berserk.

Interesting replies.
I tend to think that it's a blend of breeding and ownership, with more on the ownership. No matter what breed you own, you have to be responsible enough to train your dog properly.

An old friend of our family had a pure Staffordshire Bull Terrier named Cleo. She looked like she could rip your throat out, but was the most loyal and obediant dog as she had been well-trained.

I agree, but part of the reason that these dogs get bad raps, is two fold. The first is the breeders. Not everyone should breed dogs, since they aren't looking at temperament and other factors that could come into play later in the dog's life. Dobermans and German Shepherds have gone through those phases, and mostly in times when they were over-bred, by backyard breeders.

Secondly it's the owner. A great many of these dogs are adopted by the types of people that should not own a dog like this or any other dog for that matter. We've all seem them, they bought the dog to make themselves look tough or emulate thug life. These jackasses shouldn't own dog's period, much less a dog the the physical attributes of a Pit-bull.

As far as all dogs are concerned, doesn't matter how many times that someone tells me that their dog wouldn't hurt a fly, loves kids, and is the sweetest natured beast out there. Dogs are to be respected as something that could bite. That goes for the 3lb Pomeranian as well as the 140lb Mastiff and everything in-between.

It is the owner's fault. But Pits are a breed that need a good owner. Just like a Rotweiller or German Shepherd also.

Not to generalize, but the breed attracts many of the type of people who shouldn't be trying to raise a dog. Lots of macho douche types who need their dog to make their own balls look bigger.

My Lab plays with a Pit Bull that is a sweetheart, but so is the owner. That dog gets the wrong owner and you have a dangerous weapon.

Pit Bulls were bred to take down and kill wild Boars, that's why they're so powerful.

you are funny

:2 cents: id say poodles are more dangerous as well

You're 10xs more likely to get bit by a poodle or chihuahua but if a pit attacks you, you're done.

That's why I wouldn't own one. Plus I have assets, unlike most of the scumbags that own them

If you had a choice to be locked up in a room with a rabid pitbull or rabid poodle which would you choose?

I highly doubt it would be the pitbull

That is a popular but inaccurate stereotype. Mastiffs were used for that. Pits are classically a working breed and were mostly used to pull fruit carts and had to be extremely friendly because the last thing a guy selling apples off a truck wants is for a customer to get bit. (Also why the staff terrier was used for the RCA logo, and for "Our Gang" comedies, because it was revered as THE family dog the way Goldens are nowadays)

However, I do know a guy that hunts feral pigs in, get this, Orange County Los Angeles, and he trains dogs to bring them down. One dog is trained to chase and corner until the other dog arrives that will bite the face, ears, lips, etc. and hang on for dear life until the guy can catch up and finish off the pig. Those beasts get huge, hairy, and develop tusks and it is not unusual for him to lose dogs. He says it all comes down to the dog, not the breed, about which dogs work better for which usage.

i actually saved a pitbulls life last summer. I was at a show in cleveland and there was a beach close by so we stopped by after to take ours out to run in the water. This guy was throwing a ball out with his pitbull but wasn't really paying attention to it, he was busy fighting with his gf or whatever.. his dog was in WAY over his head and those dogs are terrible swimmers generally.. i kept my eye on him the whole time and saw him go under. I was a bit nervous because it was a strange dog no less a pitbull in distress but I grabbed him and brought him into shallow water anyway. No issues, no attacks.. but a perfect example of a careless owner though.. I go to a lot of beaches where dogs are welcome and never seen someone that reckless.

shit the guy didn't even thank me.. hehe

this sucks monkey balls...:321GFY

all dogs (including pit bulls yes) are good in my book

Standard Poodles back in the 50s were overbred and developed a nasty reputation as kid killers. Moreover, they were one of the breeds selected for use in the military. Just like any dog, a bite can be devastating.

how much time have you spent with either animal?

I have one and she is a good dog. I had a dog trainer train both of them, I have a boxer mix allso.

I watched a jackrussel knock over and bite the mailman. Not a thing was done about it.

define pit bull. I see quite a few breeds lumped in with the pit bull name

This is the only question that need be asked. "if a sheep dog that was bred to herd animals can run around instinctively trying to herd things, though never trained to do so or having been exposed to similar dogs... why can't a dog that was bred to fight, instinctively want to fight?