Letters to the Editor
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Good article
Thank you so much for the article. I agree that these laws are ridiculous, especially since they are so ill defined. As you say, what is a pit bull? My boxer certainly wasn't, but she easily matches some of the physical characteristics.
The most aggressive (and dangerous) dogs I've ever known have been Akitas. But as another poster pointed out, they are fuzzy faced, so people aren't afraid of these bear killers.
I found a pit once wondering down the road, I thought it had been attacked by coyotes. He was a sweet, submissive, obedient little guy to me, but NOT to any of the men. I rounded him up and called animal control and the officer (a woman thank goodness, for the dog's sake) showed me that this was an old fighting dog that had obviously been dumped after a loss. Too many scars and healing wounds in addition to the major wounds I saw for this to have been an accident.
This dog was a victim of some asshole that ruined him. It took work to train him to be a constant fighter...while some fighting is natural in the dog world, the type these dogs are trained to do is not. It takes effort and abuse.
These "pit bulls" are being blamed because many assholes that want a dog that looks tough get them. If the breed is banned, another "dangerous" breed will be found to fill the void, like Rotts, Shepards, Akitas, Chows, Dobies, etc. All will need to be trained to be vicious just like the pits.
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Sigh - bred to kill, right
Bred to kill what? Do a little research first before posting.
Bred to kill...other animals that might threaten the owner or owners property. Why? Because of their statue. Big head, big chested, deep voiced.
Terriers - bred to kill. Let's just ban all Terriers. Stupid, stupid, stupid way of thinking.
A few years ago it was the Dobermans that were the dog of choice, before that/after than it was Rotties. I will be the first to admit that one of the reason I have huge German Shepherds is because they "look" intimidating. I'm sure if it came down to it and I was in danger they would come to my defense and aid.
It is how the dog is raised that determines how the dog will be. If a puppy is handled a lot, if it's mother is well socialized, if the dogs are shown love, they will only know that.
My son was bit by an Australian Sheepdog. My German Shepherd, one of them, hasn't bitten anyone, the other one bit someone who came into my house, when I was home, without being invited in, and I'm glad she did. Would I go into a house where I knew German Shepherds or Pit Bulls or Rotties or Dobermans lived without having the door opened for me by the owner???? NO way. Common sense.
It's not the dog, it's the owner.
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You hate pit bulls, I hate Hummers
I am disgusted by people who own Hummers. Why the heck do you need that monster of a vehicle? Is your penis too small, or in case of the ladies, is penis envy making you nuts? Why do you want to own a vehicle designed to protect you, knowing it will likely kill or injure anyone you wreck with in a smaller car? There are lots of other vehicles out there, you don't need that bully car. I think we should ban all Hummers, because while most owners think they can control them, you never know when an owner might get careless and then some innocent car and more importantly innocent people get seriously damaged. Since there is no way to guarantee a Hummer won't fall into irresponsible hands, they all gotta go. Then we'll get to working on the Expeditions...
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OSL
I see the popularity of pit bulls across the city and it's socio-economic board. BSL should be OSL- Owner specific legislation. Anyone seeking to acquire a large breed dog, especially breeds with stigmas/propensities, should be mandated to take primer courses on their breed, it's behavior, and how to begin proper training. After successful completion of the course and the purchase of the animal, owners should then be required further obedience work. Dogs should be properly tagged by the city saying the dog/ owner is trained. The dogs MUST be properly neutered or spayed. Anyone seeking to breed must have very specific permits and a background check. Police should check dogs on leash routinely for these tags. This is not treating the dog as a gun. Any owner who cares passionately about his dog and the safety of it should appreciate this. I have 2 dogs and I wish the cops checked EVERYBODY'S tags to make sure the dogs were even properly vaccinated and registered.
Most of these poor dogs have all become victims of trend, and are often improperly housed and raised according to their needs.
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Staffordshire Terriors are NOT Pit Bulls
Sorry if someone has said this already but I was reading "allie"s letter a way back and she mentioned "Bill Syke's" dog from the movie "Oliver" as a pit. arrgh! Pit bulls were bred from Staffordshires but they are two different dogs!!! Staffordshires have the long face and more squat bodies. Think the dog from "Our Gang" movies out of the thirties with the black circle around it's eye. They were originally bred to herd bulls in the same way as a bull dog (a shout out to the writer who has the bull dog mix - you're wrong about that dog's disposition and that he shouldn't exist). They were bred for the large jaw and muscular build AND also for they calm quiet but forthright disposition which was a must around bulls. They are not fighting dogs nor were they ever! When people got around to breeding pit bulls they used mixes of Staffordshire (for the strong jaw and muscles) and I believe Mastiffs for the aggressiveness (I'm not sure on this one) and then bred the lines for the aggressiveness and stealth. This is why none of the kennel breeding associations recognize them because they're not a real breed.
The thing is, Staffordshires are amazing people dogs. Calm and congenial and just sweet. They look like thugs. I knew some rastafarian drug dealers about 15 years ago who bought some thinking they were pits. These guys ran an afterhours club where friends of mine from college would go and hang out. The first time I saw the dogs on the back porch in the alley, I thought "oh shit" but they were the friendliest dogs. I got to know them over time and they were best dogs I have ever been with. Super intelligent and just loving and extraordinarily charming dogs. The rastafarians were somewhat disappointed in that they weren't the dogs they thought they were but they fell in love with them and hey at least they "look bad, mon". I wanted one so I started to research them and found the difference between them and pit bulls, etc and how they were used to breed pits. Unfortunately, they are expensive dogs and I never got one.
What bothers me is, as is stated in this article, is that people "assume" different dogs are pit bulls that aren't, including Staffordshire. Quite obviously, people also make the assumption that Staffies are bred for fighting, etc. also just because of how they look and their resemblance to pits. So, not only are pit's reputation smeared by bad people use of them but also it stains many otherwise "congenial" dogs that people judge also in their ignorance.
I do think pits have special needs in training and in socialization but this is true many breeds. It's dog owners responsibilities that need to change, not the dog. All owners and their dogs should be required to attend training and socialization classes when the dogs are puppies in order to have them. This should be included in the dog license requirement along with rabies tags. All dogs should be chipped for identification and be required to adhere to basic commands (sit,heel,stay). Owners should be required to proficient in being able to control their dogs and show it in order to keep them. People who give up their dogs to any animal shelter, sell their dogs, let them go stray, or breed their dog should be ready to pay a fee or a fine. Having and caring for a dog should be privilege and an earned responsibility.
When people have to take responsibility for owning dog or face the consequences, the breed of the dog will no longer matter.