ive owned three rottweilers in my life, never had an incident with any of them, my daughter's chihuahua on the other hand, that thing has bitten everyone in the house multiple times
Fixed. I'm not saying all pitbulls are killers and they should be rounded up and put down, but I don't buy that this is all just media hype and the dogs aren't any more dangerous than a weenie dog. They are dangerous because when they do attack, they maim and kill. Dachshund, chihuahua and Jack Russell terrier attacks don't usually end up with a dead child. If someone I love is attacked and killed by a pitbull, I really not going to give a crap that it was only because the dog was abused or malnourished. Or that the breed overall usually has an even temperament. They are more capable of killing than any other dog. Capable is the key word.
My pit mix is great, and I have no worries at all with her and our household which includes a 2.5 year old and 6 month old, and cats. She is incredibly strong - well, she used to be, now kind of lazy and also hampered by the fact that she has had to have both of her back legs operated on do to torn ligaments and had to have spine surgery to do a slipped disk (as a result of which now she gets a little wobbly on slick surfaces), but back in the day if you played tug of war with her, you could certainly understand why pits can be, but only in select circumstances dangerous dogs. They unequivocally are pound for pound quite strong dogs. But even with that, any amount of decent attention love and slight training and you are good. We aren't dog whisperer's or anything, but I certainly had it to the point where even if her mouth (no teeth, just her mouth area) accidentally touched my hand while playing tug of war, for example, she would immediately cease playing, drop the toy and wait for my cue that it was ok. Breed specific laws don't make sense, aren't as effective as some think and don't address the real problem - irresponsible owners, breeders and a lack of proper spay and neutering. If you click on the link, watch the video and read some of the comments, the picture formed is quite clear. Irresponsible owners. Multiple dogs, multiple dogs with bad temperaments, dogs that had a proclivity to attack in the past, dogs that were likely malnourished and dogs that were likely not properly neutered. That was the real culprit here. Bad ownership. Many of Vick's dogs were rehabilitated. Not all, but more than enough to prove that it is (1) not an inherent breed issue, but instead (2) an ownership issue. EDIT: from this article - http://arkansasmatters.com/fulltext?nxd_id=584292 Here's a summary, albeit potentially from what some would consider a biased source that talks about breed specific legislation. You can alternatively find links to articles that claim it does work to a degree. Who knows? What clearly needs to happen is owners need to be held more/fully accountable by law for the action of their dogs. http://www.defendingdog.com/id39.html
I love dogs, and even I think pit bulls should be illegal. However, I know that there are always going to be people who scream and yell about their rights and how these animals are misunderstood and mistreated. And I get that. Not every pit bull is going to hurt someone. But too many do. So, instead of banning them or making them illegal, I think it should be mandatory for them to be licensed, with a severe penalty for having an unlicensed one, and the annual license fee should be $10,000. That would go a long way toward stopping these attacks.
No it wouldn't because what you suggest isn't enforceable. You do realize that shelters are overflowing with pit bulls because of irresponsible owners/breeders. Like I said before, pits are put down right away when they get into any kill shelter in Texas. Too many moron and irresponsible owners who don't spay/neuter their dogs. Please take the time to just read this. A prime example of somebody who abused the trust of pit bull owners for the $$$: http://www.houstonpress.com/2012-08-16/news/spindletop-dog-refuge/ If you really loved dogs, you would appreciate how intelligent and loyal the breed is. I would suggest you spend 1 day in a rescue/rehab shelter for pit bulls, because they are 100% misunderstood. Unless you've been exposed to the breed and it's problem, your opinion means jack. This is coming from somebody that has worked with both boxers and pits and owns an american staffordshire terrier.
You can say anything you want. How many children need to be maimed and killed, how many people need to be attacked out of the blue, how many of these wonderful loyal 'pets' need to turn on their owners and maul someone before we all just say 'enough is enough'. And of course it's enforceable. You can't own a tiger as a pet, either, and that's enforceable. They need to be classified as dangerous animals, and a special permit be required to own one, including owner training certificates, shot and health records, and a zero-tolerance policy for attacks. And while you mention other dogs which may also generally have bad temperaments, such as Dalmations, which I agree with, pretty unpleasant testy dogs, but the problem is, they were not BRED to be dangerous killers. If a Dalmation attacks you or bites you, yeah, you may need to get shots, it may hurt, and worst case maybe you get a broken finger or something. Pit bulls are killers, I mean, you have to seriously fear for your life, even as a full grown adult, around those animals. They need to just go away.
you're right, all white males should be gotten rid of too, there are far too many of them who are pedophiles
Here are some more facts for people. Dog bite fatalities other than Pit Bulls: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_dog_attacks_in_the_United_States#Fatalities_reported_in_2012 2012: Jan 30 - German Shepherd Feb 16: Husky March 9 Rottweiler April 20: Golden retreiver-Lab mix April 27: Mastiff-Rhodesian ridgeback mix May 27: Lab-Shepherd mix June 13: Mutt 2011: Feb 17: Rottweiler May 27: Cane Corso Sept 4: Lab mix Sept 16: Doberman Pinscher 2010: Feb 18: Husky Feb 20: Bulldog March 1: Rottweiler March 8: Rottweiler May 20: Sled dog July 12: Wolf-dog hybrid July 31: German Shepherd dog-mix August 26: Boxer November 15: German Shepherd Dec 19: Rottweiler 2009: Jan 11: Rottweiler Jan 15: Rottweiler Jan 19: Siberian Husky Jan 19: Rottweiler Mix March 4: Chow-Golden Retreiver mix March 16: Bull-Mastiff mix March 22: Husky April 10: Boxer April 13: Blue Heeler-Australian Shepherd mix June 27: Mutt Aug 14: Mutt Nov 24: Bulldog Dec 12: Rottweiler mix Dec 12: Alaskan Malamute Dec 22: Weimaraner 2008 Jan 4: Doberman Pinscher Jan 17: Jack Russell Terrier April 28: Husky June 28: Golden Retriever & Australian Shepherd July 25: Old English Sheepdog July 28: Labrador Retriever Sep 9: Husky That's as far as ill go back. Yes, the large majority of fatalities have involved Pit Bulls, but with the widespread mistreatment of the breed it comes as no surprise. With that being said, the other fatalities involving other breeds are left out of the media spotlight.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_bull The American Pit Bull Terrier is the product of interbreeding between Old English Terrier and English Bulldogs to produce a dog that combined the gameness of the terrier with the strength and athleticism of the bulldog. These dogs were initially bred in England and arrived in the United States with the founders. In the United States, these dogs were used as catch dogs for semi-wild cattle and hogs, to hunt, to drive livestock, and as family companions. Some have been selectively bred for their fighting prowess.The United Kennel Club (UKC) was the first registry to recognize the American Pit Bull Terrier. UKC founder C. Z. Bennett assigned UKC registration number 1 to his own dog, "Bennett's Ring", as an American Pit Bull Terrier in 1898. American Pit Bull Terriers successfully fill the role of companion dog, police dog and therapy dog. American Pit Bull Terriers constitute the majority of dogs used for illegal dog fighting in the United States. In addition, law enforcement organizations report these dogs are used for other nefarious purposes, such as guarding illegal narcotics operations, use against the police, and as attack dogs. Personality traits of owners Several studies have determined that pit bull owners and owners of other "vicious" or "high risk" breeds (most commonly identified as Akita, Chow Chow, Doberman Pinscher, Pit Bull, Rottweiler, and Wolf-mix) are more likely to have criminal convictions and are more likely to display antisocial behaviors. A 2006 study comparing owner's of "vicious" dogs to owners of "low risk" dogs determined that the former group had nearly 10 times as many criminal convictions. A 2009 and a followup 2012 study generally supported these conclusions. --------------------------- I know you'll never admit it... but it's the people, not the breed.
Useless breed that should be illegal... <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/AGajvqmxVRA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xo68MQwKiJg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/q29tNvzkOEg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Actually, I agree with you. The question is, then, why is this the preferred breed of the criminal? Because they are inherently more dangerous and deadly than... come on, a Jack Russel Terrier?? SMH I am not blaming the dogs. The dogs are innocent. They can't help what they do - what they do is what they were designed and bred to do. The law demands certain things from the general population because society has determined and accepted over the years that certain things are inherently dangerous, and need therefore to be heavily legislated-against or outright criminalized. You can't get drunk and then get behind the wheel of a car and drive. If you do, you will hopefully go to jail. You can't do that because IT IS DANGEROUS. You can't walk around firing a gun off into the air, because IT IS DANGEROUS. You are required to wear a seat belt while in a moving car, because not doing so is proven to be dangerous. The list of things society has deemed dangerous enough to legislate or criminalize is very very long. And yet, for some strange reason, according to some people it is perfectly ok to keep a completely unregulated dangerous animal [as you yourself admit - "Yes, the large majority of fatalities have involved Pit Bulls,"] in close proximity to other people, even including children (this is what breaks my heart). Why? And I'm sorry, there is no such thing as moral equivalence on this issue. One person says 'Pitbulls are dangerous. Look, in the news, yet another child has been killed by one.' Second person says 'Other breeds attack people too!' It makes no sense. I adamantly believe that they should be either made outright illegal, or so heavily regulated and enforced that the criminal element will have to move on to something else, maybe something a bit less dangerous.
