No kidding- these dogs should be outlawed. The only real purpose to have one is as a guard dog, and I'm not talking about a family pet that looks scary, I'm talking about junkyard dog guard dog. Not only are they vicious, they pounds are full of them, and they eventually get put down.
Poor dogs have been around forever and were thought of so highly back in the days. So vicious it was a lead character in the Little Rascals. As a responsible pit bull owner I'd like to thank all the rappers, ghetto ass people and the media for completely ruining a breed. It sucks but it's the truth. But before you form an opinion on these dogs, watch the Dog Whisperer or actually study/read something, do your research - stop watching the Local News Sweeps to base your opinion on something.
My best friend has two pitbulls, a rottweiler and a chihuahua. Guess which dog has attacked and bitten people who come to their house? I'll give you a hint: it's the chihuahua. There are plenty of docile, well-adjusted, friendly pitbulls and rottweilers in the world. Simply fact is, pitbulls, rottweilers, etc. are not any more vicious than any other breed. The difference is: a chihuahua attacks, you bleed a little and nobody hears about it. A pitbull attacks, you die and it makes the news. It's owner responsability that is to blame when pets attack, regardless of the size of the animal.
That may be so. I definitely blame the owners. But for the same reason people shouldn't have pet tigers and other large, possibly vicious animals I don't think people should have pit bulls. That's just a personal opinion and don't think I'd want to make that into law. I don't think that's something we should legislate. I don't think, however, you can overlook the size difference. It does make difference as you noted yourself.
couldnt agree with you more. i was in a close call a couple of years in my neighborhood as well... coming home at night i get out of my car and hear a slight growling. so i look back and see 3 big dogs just sitting on the lawn across my house. they were all like adult lab sized dogs. so i think nothing of it and just start walking toward my house. i take a couple of steps and hear barking so i turn around and see all 3 dogs just charging me full speed. i was holding a bag of coffee mugs that had been accumulating in my car so i did the only thing i could and threw the mugs at the dogs. i guess i got at least one of them pretty good because they got to within 2 feet of me and yelped and turned around after i threw the mugs at them. turns out i broke the mugs over the dogs' heads. if i wasnt holding anything im pretty sure id be disfigured or dead. because of that incident i lost all sympathy for stray dogs and really wouldnt feel that bad running over one or hurting one if i was threatened in any way.
Sorry, if you never had a Pit Bull yourself, you can't speak on their "purpose". I hate how Pit Bulls catch a bad reputation because of their owners. They are amazing dogs. It all depends how to train your dog to be. My family has a pitbull as a family pet and he's the nicest dog you'll ever meat. Doesn't chew off your head when you look at it or nothing. He is 6 years old and is still as playful as he was when he was a puppy. Never had any problems interacting with friends, family or little kids. It's not like Pit Bulls are born killer and attack just because they are Pit Bulls. It all goes back to the owner and how they treat them. Take any dog, treat it just like how bad owners treat their Pit Bulls, and those dogs will be just as vicious. Give the Pit Bull loving care and treat it like a family dog, and thats what a Pit Bull will be.
Pitbulls are great. My friend has a 6 month one, I've never seen a living thing so happy about nothing. She really cheers everyone up when she's around.
When I read about pit bull attacks, it makes me so mad I want to choke the owner. Any time a dangerous breed attacks and seriously injures another person, the owner should be severely punished with jail time (2-3 months) and a huge fine. This way, the responsible dog owners of pit bulls, etc, can keep their dogs and the bad owners will be punished accordingly. In Europe, drunk drivers are punished severely to the extent that it happens a lot less than in America. We should punish dog injuries the same way and in a few years, this problem would nearly disappear. The accountability would dissuade many people from owning dangerous dogs.
Yup it's all on the owner and not the dog breed. I have been around Pitt Bulls who have responsibile owners and they are sweet playful dogs.
i don't think pitbulls should be outlawed. it's about the owners. it's more a case of "small penis syndrome" with a lot of the owners. the old neighborhood i lived in was full of these idiots. it was the IN thing to have. but there are plenty of responsible owners also. and the poster who cited teh chihuaha (sp?) is spot on. those little motherfkers are vicious.
Maybe it's owner responsibility, but whatever the case, pitbulls DO have a bad rap for a reason. I admit, I've played with pit bulls and they can be perfectly sweet, fun companions. But that doesn't change my perception of them. I've always been around large breed dogs, but I wouldn't have a pit bull around my 1-year-old son. I looked for some solid evidence one way or the other, but I can't find any unbiased information on pit bulls on the internet. Everything I find is opinionated rhetoric for one side or the other. As far as small breed dogs go, many of them are much more vicious than pit bulls. But then again, if one bites me, I can just punt it down the street.
One thing that is being overlooked is breeding. While I agree that pit bulls can be good dogs, most pit's are breed poorly and pass on bad genes to thier offspring. Bad breeding is where this dog has got its problems. Proper training is important, but most people who have these dogs don't do that well either. These animals are instictual and can turn on you in a second. I don't think that the breed should be outlawed, but thier should be harsher laws an on the owners and requirements by the state (proper training, always on a leash, registered breeder, etc...)
btw, i had a neighbor who has 3 pitbulls but all they do is have them chained up in the back yard. it's quite sad actually. i've felt like calling spca a few times.
While I generally agree with you, the Pit Bull breed was developed for dog-fighting. So, they've been selectively bred over many generations for strength and aggression. It is the owner's fault for training up a violent dog, but the Pit Bull, more than most other breeds, has all the right genetic tools for maximizing the danger.
