Fear of Pitbull

Like I said, the craziest dogs I've known were my parents' Jack Russells, though they weren't aggressive to people.

My cousin was attacked by the family dog (a Siberian husky). My aunt and uncle treated this dog like a baby until they had a real baby. The dog reacted like any jealous sibling with sharp teeth, and had to be put to sleep.

The most dog-aggressive dogs I see on the streets and in the park are German Shepherds and Shepherd mixes.

I've never seen a pit bull behaving badly, so there's my anecdotal evidence.

And getting back to Paris Hilton, I can understand the appeal of someone who is rich, pretty(ish), likes to party, and is seemingly sexually uninhibited. People like that tend to be popular. :roll: But as a celebrity, she's not very interesting at this point. How many times has she been photographed without her underpants? I'm sure even my mom has seen her hairless genitals by now. Who cares anymore?

Precious, I did a bit of research on mastiffs and never heard them described as being agressive. Quite the opposite, I've only heard of them being teritorial and not agressive with indiviudals at all.

The following is a description of the American Mastiff:
"The American Mastiff is a wonderful family pet and a noble watch dog. This breed does not bark senselessly, but if a stranger approaches, the American Mastiff will be there to determine whether he is friend or foe. They are accepting and non-aggressive to visitors. However, the American Mastiff is very positive in his expression of protection, and it is in a stranger's best interest to pay attention to him."

http://www.continentalkennelclub.com/Ads.aspx?BreedNum=18

These should come in handy. At least for some of you.





http://www.cafepress.com/ilovepitbulls

Subject: biting for no reason vs. being startled are different...

kosher dave,

this is the saddest story. the dog was startled. he didn't bite you for 'no reason' whether this was a good one or not - it seems he was startled by not knowing what was happening in the midst of his sleep when you rolled over on to him. i'm sure you and your parents were stunned but i feel sad that the dog was killed. i know you were little so they probably thought they had no choice but wow.

i think the instances that are alarming people are when the dogs out of the blue bite people.

cat.

kosherdave wrote: Any dog can snap, regardless of its perfect (or less than perfect) training. When I was wee, I used to sleep with my family's german shepard. It was an older dog and one night when I was sleeping, I rolled over onto it and it and it woke up, bit my face, and off to the ER I went. I was about 5 maybe? I can't recall. Anyway, the dog was put down.

By my own admission, the dog (Connan) was older, but my point is a seemingly innocent dog, so innocent my parents let me sleep with it, bit me in the middle of the night. .

quijibo wrote: [quote=Precious Williams]These should come in handy. At least for some of you.


http://www.cafepress.com/ilovepitbulls

a pit bull with docked ears is immediately suspect to me
when i see one i ask the owner if their dog came that way or
if they decided on their own to dock their dog's ears


Why is it suspect to you, Quijibo?

FWIW, they are already changing the laws in many european nations outlawing the practice of docking tails and cropping ears. there is a huge push in the veterinary community over there right now, just as there is a smaller one here to get the AKC to change its notions of breed standards. we'll probably see this soon at Krufts (the UK version of Westminster).

Precious Williams wrote: my puppy's ears were already docked when i got her and she was only 8 weeks when I got her

point of clarification. i said "dock". i should have said "cropped"
tails are docked. ears are cropped.
shiskbab was right. as usual :roll:

Subject: pits in the family

Someone asked why anyone would adopt a pit bull with all the baggage they come with, but they can be sweet, affectionate family dogs.

My parents (who are in their 60s and 70s) have two pitbulls (along with a retired racing greyhound, which is the sweetest dog! I recommend them!) and they are very sweet, loving dogs who think they are lap dogs. One of our pitbulls loves to give "hugs". She will climb onto your lap and then when she is there she puts her paws on your shoulders and loves being held. She is also content sitting on a lap, even though she barely fits.

Our other pit bull loves to chase tennis balls and she does "go crazy" - she can go crazy licking your face. If you are say, lying on your bed reading with her and are petting her, she may repay you by climbing up and trying to lick you in a determined fashion.

Both are adorable and sweet - and both are adopted!