Pitbull PSA

[elionwyr]

This is from the kick-ass group Pinups for Pitbulls, and is REALLY worth watching and sharing.

When I was a kid, the breed to fear was the doberman. Now it's the pitbull.

The deal is this: If you're going to get a pet - ANY pet - do your research.

Don't have a place for a dog to run? Don't get a greyhound.

Don't want your dog herding your kids? Don't get a border collie. (Really. They need a job or they'll go find one.)

Want an easily controlled dog? Don't get a rottweiler. ESPECIALLY not a female. (Smart dogs, those. You dang well better be alpha.)

Aren't gonna be home much? Don't get a dog.

Dog bite studies show that dog bites happen every day. Most of those are NOT from pit bulls. Those are just the bites you hear about because they're admittedly the Big Bad Scary Bites. Where ya get into trouble is that a nippy cocker spaniel is most likely not going to kill you. A bite from a large powerful dog just might.

(I've yet to encounter an aggressive pit bull, myself.)

My point is this - educate yourself. If you're wanting a dog that is people-friendly - yes, this means pits are NOT good guardians because they do love people! - intelligent, a good family member - then don't discount bringing a pit bull into your life.

BUT. Don't do it without doing your research.

Because all pets deserve a forever-home and what we're finding is that there's just no room at the inns shelters for a lot of critters, and the bad reputation of pit bulls means that they're likely to be put down simply because of their breed.

(I'm gonna be posting a fair bit about responsible pet ownership this week. Consider yourselves warned.)

Comments

[adelheid-p.livejournal.com]

I hear that they are extremely trainable and want to please their humans.

[damiana-swan.livejournal.com]

I've got a big scar on my right leg and some nerve damage due to a pitbull. His owners hadn't trained him, hadn't trained *themselves*, and tended to deal with him growling at guests by telling him in a fond voice "oh now stop that".

The poor dog was only 2 years old, not even fully adult yet, and his humans weren't being alphas so he knew he had to be... and I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, doing something he interpreted as invading his pack's territory, territory HE was responsible for keeping safe.

The dog paid for his owner's good-natured negligence with his life. I've got a big scar on my leg, right below my knee, where the doctor put in 17 stitches.

The thing is, his owners were truly good-hearted human beings, people I like and trusted implicitly with my daughter. I still like them. But I don't blame the dog, I blame them--if they'd taken him to training, been willing to get trained themselves, he'd still be alive.

[elionwyr.livejournal.com]

Gack..I'm so sorry to hear that, beautiful.

My dog bites have all been due to humans screwing up and not bad dogs. :/

[freyas-fire.livejournal.com]

Actually, greyhounds tend to be couch potatoes. My aunt rescued a few down in Florida and they spend most of the day lounging around.
I am checking out that website, though - I can't own a dog, but always felt that pits get a bad rap way too much. Terriers are nastier than pits, and people buy them every single day.

[freyas-fire.livejournal.com]

And Gawd I would love to submit pics for the calender, but there's no way I'd make the deadline with going to Pennsic. Maybe next year. :/