Sad Society

[BeardownAZ]

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/20140311pit-bull-mauling-phopenix-boy-debate-over-fate.html

 

I am not trying to start a debate about Pitbulls and banning them and such as I have heard people talk about. But this article hit a nerve with me. Why, regardless of breed, are people always so determined to keep or side with an animal after it does such horrific damage? Yes I know that animals are not like people in regard as that they act on instict and not evil motivatation. However, in this case, this dog has shown severe aggression twice. Which most places there is law against having an animal that is known to be aggresive. Our sick society has even gone so far to support this dog and its owner that it now has an attorney of its own yet the mother of this child that was mauled is struggling to make it due to caring for her son. I just dont get it. I would never own a Pitbull myself, I just dont trust there instincts, especially around young kids. I do NOT believe though that Pitbulls are evil, like some people do. But I do think they require different handling than an average dog based on what they were breed for, like alot of other breeds. Just like a hound, its not going to howl or bark quieter based on how good you treat it. It may not have as much to howl at in a quiet neighborhood, but the volume is still there and always will be. Just my rant. I cant imagine what a parent of child like this must be going through.

[ctafoya]

If it was my dog I would have shot it on site. Once an animal hurts someone like that it's game over. Pit bull or any kind of dog. I have had a pit and she was the best dog I ever had. While I do think that a dog will be a product of its environment, they still are just animals and have instincts. Plus, some of the "breeders" do not care about the quality of the animal they are breeding. I currently have a pug and he is the stupidest dog I've ever had. I think he is inbread. An inbred pug is manageble. An inbred 90 pound pit bull is not. People need to start paying attention on where they get thier dogs from. Banning a breed is not the solution. Banning irresposible breeders is a good starting point.

[mr.smith]

That pitbulls are more aggressive than other breeds is a complete myth. Pitbulls used to be the "Nanny" dog. The little rascals dog was a pit. They were the choice dog for guarding your kids. Thugs and wannabe gangsters who wanted a tough looking aggressive dog ruined it for them. By breeding them to fight and nurturing aggression they created a media sensation. Chihuahuas and Labs bite more people every year than Pits. You don't hear about those because they don't get reported and if they do the Lab is usually mislabelled as a Pit. Most of the bites you do hear about are not unprovoked. The dog was in his yard and suddenly there is a stranger in his yard. Isn't that one of the reasons people have dogs in their yard is to keep strangers out? Breed discrimination is absolutely no different than racism. "This group is more prone to do bad stuff." Easily applied to human groups and often is. The problem isn't the dog. It is the owner. If you raise your dog to behave badly or neglect to nurture your dog it is not going to know how to behave. A lot like kids these days.

 

Here is an article for your edification: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/truth-about-pit-bulls

[ylclaret]

/>That pitbulls are more aggressive than other breeds is a complete myth. Pitbulls used to be the "Nanny" dog. The little rascals dog was a pit. They were the choice dog for guarding your kids. Thugs and wannabe gangsters who wanted a tough looking aggressive dog ruined it for them. By breeding them to fight and nurturing aggression they created a media sensation. Chihuahuas and Labs bite more people every year than Pits. You don't hear about those because they don't get reported and if they do the Lab is usually mislabelled as a Pit. Most of the bites you do hear about are not unprovoked. The dog was in his yard and suddenly there is a stranger in his yard. Isn't that one of the reasons people have dogs in their yard is to keep strangers out? Breed discrimination is absolutely no different than racism. "This group is more prone to do bad stuff." Easily applied to human groups and often is. The problem isn't the dog. It is the owner. If you raise your dog to behave badly or neglect to nurture your dog it is not going to know how to behave. A lot like kids these days.

 

Here is an article for your edification: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/truth-about-pit-bulls

I believe this is spot on. I was raised with pit bulls. I can't remember ever not having one. Pits are one of the least likely breeds to bite a person, I believe the people's is people that want their dog to be human aggressive, the medias unexplainable hard on against pit bulls and the fact that if a pit does bite someone it is more capable of inflicting damage than most other breeds.

[BeardownAZ]

I think the issue with Pits is that they are breed like little tanks. So when they bite they tend to maul. Theres a difference between a bite of a chihuahua and a larger more physically built animal. Like was said, Thugs have ruined the breed and thus permamently tarnished the breeds rep and blood line in some ways. I have personally known people who like pits just out of the macho factor. For some reason it makes them tough to own a dog like that. Again, irresponsible people creating problems that would not otherwise exist.

[ylclaret]

/>If it was my dog I would have shot it on site. Once an animal hurts someone like that it's game over. Pit bull or any kind of dog. I have had a pit and she was the best dog I ever had. While I do think that a dog will be a product of its environment, they still are just animals and have instincts. Plus, some of the "breeders" do not care about the quality of the animal they are breeding. I currently have a pug and he is the stupidest dog I've ever had. I think he is inbread. An inbred pug is manageble. An inbred 90 pound pit bull is not. People need to start paying attention on where they get thier dogs from. Banning a breed is not the solution. Banning irresposible breeders is a good starting point.

You speak of inbreeding as if it is a terrible thing. Inbreeding gets a bad rap, just like pit bulls. Any "pure bred" animal is the result of inbreeding. All in breeding does is magnify characteristics by limiting the genetic pool. Inbreeding, in and of itself is not a bad thing. However it does require careful management, selection, and culling of undesirable specimens and traits.

[mattys281]

/>

If it was my dog I would have shot it on site. Once an animal hurts someone like that it's game over. Pit bull or any kind of dog. I have had a pit and she was the best dog I ever had. While I do think that a dog will be a product of its environment, they still are just animals and have instincts. Plus, some of the "breeders" do not care about the quality of the animal they are breeding. I currently have a pug and he is the stupidest dog I've ever had. I think he is inbread. An inbred pug is manageble. An inbred 90 pound pit bull is not. People need to start paying attention on where they get thier dogs from. Banning a breed is not the solution. Banning irresposible breeders is a good starting point.

You speak of inbreeding as if it is a terrible thing. Inbreeding gets a bad rap, just like pit bulls. Any "pure bred" animal is the result of inbreeding. All in breeding does is magnify characteristics by limiting the genetic pool. Inbreeding, in and of itself is not a bad thing. However it does require careful management, selection, and culling of undesirable specimens and traits.

 

I believe what you are referring to is called line breeding. A bit different from inbreeding which will net bad results in any species. I have a good friend that used to breed gsp's and german shepherds and that's what they did, the line breeding thing.

[ylclaret]

Line breeding is a type of inbreeding. Same principals apply. Any time individuals that are related are mated together you are inbreeding.

[Antmo23]

I've never heard of a pack of labs attacking, and killing anyone. ever. Dog attacks and deaths from maulings keep happening, and pits have a very high likeyhood of being the culprit time and time again. i dont like them one bit, too unpredictable.

[PRDATR]

I like dogs as much as the next but they are just dogs and we can give them all the human qualities we want. I would have put it down myself that day or had it put down.

[ctafoya]

And who is to say that the all bite or maulings are from aggression? My stupid dog jumps at my face and chews on my arm and he is playing. If he was a pit or any other large breed dog I'd be torn up..

[BeardownAZ]

I think the most important thing here is the fact that people are more concerned about a dam dog over a human being mauled to near death. It just once again shows where out societies priorites are. Truly is discouraging, but not suprising.

[ylclaret]

/>

I've never heard of a pack of labs attacking, and killing anyone. ever. Dog attacks and deaths from maulings keep happening, and pits have a very high likeyhood of being the culprit time and time again. i dont like them one bit, too unpredictable.

How many pits have you been around? I have had pits around me my entire life, and I disagree with your statement entirely

[ylclaret]

Just for the record, I agree, that this dog should be put down. Wouldn't have lasted ten minutes past the incident if it had been my dog, but this probably wouldn't have happened if it had been my dog.

[mattys281]

/>

I've never heard of a pack of labs attacking, and killing anyone. ever. Dog attacks and deaths from maulings keep happening, and pits have a very high likeyhood of being the culprit time and time again. i dont like them one bit, too unpredictable.

How many pits have you been around? I have had pits around me my entire life, and I disagree with your statement entirely

 

I've been around many pits myself, none of which were aggressive. IN fact, they were all the sweetest, most loving things you could ever hope to encounter. But.... they have the strongest jaw of any dog & have been bred to fight. Even though they'd likely never turn on you, if they're raised well, if for some unforeseen reason they did, the damage they will inflict is much more severe than with a weaker breed like a lab or almost anything else. That alone takes them off my list as a potential pet, but that's just my .02.

 

As for other people's pets, you always have to consider the human factor which is this: people are jackasses. Period. Almost all of them are. More so than the animals they ruin. Just as most people are not responsible with their money, their vehicles, their drinking habits, how they raise their kids, etc., they are also not responsible dog owners. And a pitbull in the hands of an irresponsible dog owner is a ticking time bomb.

 

We have a lot of pits out in my neighborhood (Avondale, go figure!), so much so that it's a joke & we act astonished whenever we see someone walking a dog that isn't a pit. I carry my pistol or bear spray whenever I take my baby to the park because of them. In the last year and a half, there's been two instances where a pit ran after my lab. Instance one, the owner was able to restrain the beast before it reached my dog, but barely made it in time. Instance 2, the dog got my lab, but thank god it was one of the good pits (or at least a young one that hasn't been ruined yet) that just wanted to play. Irresponsible people not controlling their animals, so now I have to be armed to feel safe when walking around my neighborhood.