Pit Bulls & Babies (LIP)
In response to a post I commented on below about a family getting a pit bull (or American Staffordshire Terrier) for their family, just please be very very careful. This is a subject I'm very passionate about and I feel so strongly that we need to stop breeding these dogs. I know that I'm going to get a million people commenting that they have/had one and they are the most loving dogs in the world, which some of them are, but in all the stories I hear about babies being killed by them, that's always how the family describes their dog before they killed their baby. Fact is, these dogs are bred with those fighting instincts, just like herding dogs and hunting dogs can't just shut off their instinctual desires in their head, neither can these dogs. Sure, any dog can bite or attack a baby, but few dogs can injure or kill with the ferocity of a pit bull. They are gladiator dogs and they are so incredibly strong. You don't hear about many kids being killed by border collies or weenie dogs. I'm not saying that EVERY pit bull is going to kill your baby, but you never know. I work at an equine hospital and a few weeks ago, our clinic kitty who we've had for 12 years was just mauled and killed by our intern's two pit bulls. These dogs had been around him multiple times and showed no aggresssion, but that one day for some reason they just went after him. What if that had been a baby?
Anyway, flame me if you want, but that's just my opinion. That being said, I am a total dog lover and we have 4 dogs which are all rescues. 3 are mutts and 1 is a bassett hound. Even though I have a lot of trust in them, our daughter is NEVER alone with them at all. I dont' think you can 100% trust any dog with a child, but especially dogs with the potential to kill with just one bite. Just my two cents, take it as you will. I put some links below for more information if you're interested.
https://www.news4jax.com/news/25516673/detail.html?source=jax
https://www.theledger.com/article/20100414/news/4145045
https://www.momlogic.com/2009/04/baby_mauled_and_killed_by_pit.php
https://www.lvrj.com/news/28441889.html
Re: Pit Bulls & Babies (LIP)
This kind of post pisses me off. Before Pit Bulls were given a "killer" reputation, they were used as nanny dogs. Of course you never leave a baby with a dog or any animal, but to give a special PSA against this breed is obnoxious.
https://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20110602/od_yblog_upshot/pit-bulls-surprising-past-nanny-dogs
I think the OP acknowledged that all breeds have the potential for violence but it's irresponsible and a tad ignorant not to acknowledge that some breeds are have more of a tendency towards violence than others. In Canada, it costs nearly 5 times as much to register a pit bull and in parts of Canada it's illegal to own one at all. There is a reason for this.
Sure any pet can be, but they don't have the potential to kill like a dog specially bred to do it does. I'm a veterinary technician and I worked in the small animal field for several years before going exclusively to horses and even then I saw so many animal injuries due to pit bulls. I am also a little bitter right now since they killed our beloved cat, TC. Sure, you're golden retriever can crawl into the crib and attack your baby, but you can also pry their jaws off which you can't do with a pit bull. We primarily have herding dogs, and I don't care how hard you try, you cannot take their instincual drive to herd out of them. These dogs were selectively bred over many years to be gladiators and kill. It's not their fault at all. It's our fault for doing that to them. There are several other breeds that I would NEVER have around a small child besides pit bulls, but they still top my list.
Like you said ANY DOG can kill a baby...
The news just likes to emphasize pitbull attack...When a pitbull attacks someone they mention the breed when its not they just say "dog" I would suggest you watch or read the Dog Whisperer, he has many "bully dogs" and they are all around his children
Pitbulls are "bred to be fighters" because they are the most loyal dog and will do whatever it takes to please their owners, whether that is fighting or loving. They can be the most loving dogs as well
Also unfortunatly people who do not take care of their dogs are always attracted to pit bulls
Botton line with ANY ANIMAL...watch your children
Thank you for understanding the point I was trying to make!
I agree. And I wouldn't leave my baby alone with my 2 gentle, wouldn't hurt a fly greyhounds either.
The only thing I got out of this post was the mental image of a killer weiner dog.
Pit bulls killed 22 people last year alone, accounting for 67 percent of all the nation's fatal dog attacks in 2010, even though they account for only a tiny percentage of the nation's dog population
It's all how you raise them! My sister had 2 pits (one passed away) And there are the nicest/sweetest dogs.
Also like pp said don't leave your baby with any animal there was just a post about a ferret eating the fingers off a baby!
How many parents have allowed stupid sh!t to happen to their babies? Such as the family in the midwest who allowed an f'ing ferret to eat their babies fingers to the bone. Should we stop allowing parents in general to be around their babies?
Get real, I think most people with a brain won't allow any animal around their LO without supervision.
The most popular myth involves the pit-bull's "lock-jaw". This is not true. There is no locking mechanism in a pit-bull's jaws. A pit-bull's jaws are no different than other dogs and numerous scientific experiments have proven it.https://www.associatedcontent.com/article/343710/pitbull_myths_cloud_truth_about_breed.html?cat=53
For a Vet tech you are seriously misinformed
OK, where can I order this? :-)
Well said!
Have you ever tried to pry their jaws off something? Because our intern had to pry her dog off of the dead body of our cat and we had to use a metal bar to pry it open. I can open any of my dogs mouths with just a gentle pull from my hands. Have you ever seen a pit bull or even a rottweiler for that matter? Their jowls are huge! There can't be any doubt in your mind that their jaws are going to be harder to get off whatever they are biting on than. If you read the post you will see that I never referenced a "locking mechanism", so it looks as though you are the one who is misinformed.
And I love animals. But I won't hesitate to kill it.
That goes for your "gentle" dogs as well. Playful or not, your dog should be trained to not be that stupid.The dog responsible for the first face transplant was a black lab.
In the80's it was Dobermans getting all the attention. In the 90's it was Rottweilers. All dogs have the potential.
"The kinds of dogs that kill people change over time, because the popularity of certain breeds changes over time. The one thing that doesn't change is the total number of the people killed by dogs."
For a good read on pitt bulls and stereotyping, check out Gladwell's New Yorker piece.
https://www.gladwell.com/2006/2006_02_06_a_pitbull.html
And as a PP said, no baby should ever be left alone with ANY dog no matter the breed.
I am very sorry about your kitty though.
My friendly Havanese attacked my mom's Cairn Terrier out of the blue two years ago, it was very vicious and there was blood involved. They had known each other 5 years at that point and neither dog has ever bit another dog or person. Just shows how quick things can happen and I do agree that babies/children should never be left alone with a pet.
Statistics are retarded?
Yes I have, I worked at a Vet tech school for 6 years....I have had to release a dogs jaw many times by a few breeds including a pitbull and you push down on their toungue, not use a metal bar...all dogs will release their bite including pitbulls
Did your DVM seriously allow you to use a metal bar?!
Your vet should be cited for Abuse
I totally agree! If I'd had a gun when those dogs killed our cat I would have dropped them both dead. I hope I never have to make a choice, but if any of our dogs showed aggressions towards our daughter they will be gone in a heartbeat.
For any dog owner the key is training and supervision. I have three Chihuahua's and you better believe they are not left alone with my son. Posting about the dangers of a specific breed only insults those who have the breed and are doing well. Post about the importance of being a responsible dog owner instead because that is where the true problems lie.
Any dog has the potential to be aggressive, its just that the larger breeds get the bad rep because they can inflict more damage. I use to teach obedience classes and would always stress to the SMALL dog owners to look at their dogs negative behavior as if they were a big dog, would you let your big dog bite people and think its cute? I didn't do that because I hate big dogs, but it was the only way to get it in these people's heads that they shouldn't be letting Tiny bite the neighborhood kids feet or chase away anyone who tries to approach them. I am also a vet tech and I will tell you all the pits I have seen have been nothing but friendly and laid back. I believe it's because most Pit owners (and it goes for any other Bully Breed out there) do their homework and work with their dogs because they know their dog already has a bad rep. It was the smaller dogs that gave me the most trouble and it was because owners didn't feel they had to train their Yorkie because she is "so small and cute, she couldn't hurt you if she tried" Well it doesn't change the fact your dog is obnoxious. Sorry I will end my rant. I just wish people would focus on dog owners instead of the breed...its not the breed's fault they get stuck with ignorant owners who don't know how to handle them or want to spend the time to train them.
Connor - 12/15/10 Abby - EDD 11/29/13
Yah, it would have made the situation a lot better if someone had gotten their hand bit. At least then we could have put them down hopefully. The dog was growling and trying to protect it's kill, so nobody was really overly excited to stick their hand in there.
Besides, this is what everyone should be more concerned about, as I said.
https://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43478578/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts
This sh!t needs to stop, please and thank you.
This topic pisses me off. All dogs have the instinct to protect against anyone/anything. Any dog can bite and do damage. It's a maatter of having the knowledge to train a dog correctly. Not everyone should be pet owners, especially when it comes to breeds like this. Doing away with a certain breed will not stop dog fighting or people being stupid and raising dogs the wrong way. I have two Alaskan Malamutes who are also very strong dogs, and are considered a dangerous breed. I have every bit of faith in my dogs that they will not hurt my child. I'm also smart enough not to leave my child alone with them. I would not adopt an adult pit with kids in the house, but I see nothing wrong with raising a pit from a puppy. It's hard work to train an animal, but totally worth it. I trust my dogs completely around kids. They have never been aggressive to a human being. One of them has never been aggressive to another dog. I normally don't let things on this site bother me, but this pisses me off. One experience with a certain breed shouldn't change your opinion about all of them. Shame on you for thinking so. A friend of mine's maltese got attacked by a lab, and he's still buddies with her brother's lab. Accidents happen.
I was attacked by a pit bull when I was 7 and they still scare me. I know it could have been any dog and if not for my English Mastiff knocking me of the way and keeping the dog off of me who knows. The dog kept trying to go for me and my mastiff pushed him off and kept him away. It makes me tear up remembering that dogs hot breath on me and my dogs warm body against me and hearing the growls and snapping.
The pit bull ripped up my jeans and pulled my shoes off. He grabbed at my dogs neck but my mastiffs neck was 36 inches so he wasn't getting anywhere there.
I can't say how I would feel about pit bulls if that had never happened to me. There are a lot of pitts in my area and they are always the dogs at the park starting fights and being asked to leave or who have to have cops called because they got too rough or drew blood. It may just be the owners down here.
I do not leave my baby alone with my Schnuazer though either. Anything can happen it's an animal.
ETA: I want to say this was an unprovoked attack I learned at an early age to respect animals, this dog came out of the woods running at me. If my dog hadn't pushed me to the ground and stood over me....I may have died.
It's really insulting to people who own this specific breed, or any other bully breed to see people say things OP has said. I don't own a pit, but I do own dogs that look very much like wolves. One is asked every time if he is a hybrid. It was very upsetting when I was pregnant and people would ask, "You're getting rid of them right?" or "Just be extra careful, they look dangerous." I know that people are irresponsible dog owners and parents, but it's generally insulting.
THANK YOU FOR SEEING MY POINT!!!!
I know this is a touchy subject, but it's one that I feel strongly about. I know people who've had them for years and years with no issue and that's great. But you are silly to deny the danger there. The thing that always freaks me out is that a lot of these attacks are from the family dog, that they raised since it was a puppy, and then one day they just snapped for seemingly no reason. That's just something hardwired in their brain that is causing that. As I've said before, it's just like the instincts that are hardwired into a herding or hunting dog. No matter what you do, you can't change what we have selectively bred for.
A good example is the two dogs who killed our cat. Our intern raised them from puppies. They had been around cats all their lives with no issue. So what caused them to snap so suddenly and kill TC? It's just so scary that it can happen so fast, and yes, I realize that a black lab could have killed him or any breed for that matter, but it wasn't, it was a pit bull.
I have been around plenty of other dogs that I wouldn't trust around kids either. I was bitten by a previous intern's husky mix as I tried to stop it from killing on of my dogs. (Don't even get me started on all the issues we've had with interns and their dogs). My best friend has a blue heeler that I wouldn't trust around my baby even if I was holding her. I realize that it's not just pit bulls.
So scary! Glad you made it out ok.
I'm sorry but you are an idiot. I have been around various dogs and have 2 dogs which are considered on Dangerous breeds lists. In fact we were denied homeowner's insurance due to my Malamute. If you came within 5' of myGSD mix pictured in my siggy she'd probably show you her nice set of teeth and would let you know to stay away. However if my son tries to touch her toy she will lay down until he's done with it.
Dogs need to be trained and more care needs to be taken when a baby is involved. Would I ever trust my dogs around my son alone? no that would be stupid since anything can happen. I've worked in an ER and I can tell you about the number of dog attacks that were not the dogs fault. 1 dog kept in a cage all his life until a child wanted to play with her doggy, another had a crayon shoved into it's ear, yet another a pencil. My own attack was because my abusive biological father use to kick my mother's dog until one day it attacked me.
the reason why you do not hear about small dog attacks is because they are not as sensational as larger breed attacks. nobody will scream in outrage because a maltese nipped a child but heaven forbid the blood thirsy pitt, or german shepherd, or rott does it and OMG ban/kill them all.
Grow up and blame the idiots interbreeding/mass breeding and poorly training the dogs, do not blame the dogs.
Here's my "dangerous" breed with my son. Can't you just see the blood lust, she's just waiting to attack.