Want to criticize pitbulls? Do it here!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

I think it's a circular issue. We wound up with a ton of pit bulls in shelters because a lot of unscrupulous pit owners intentionally do not get them fixed (because they wanted these dogs specifically for their aggression and they believed getting them fixed would undermine that aggression). Once there were tons of pits and pit mixes in shelters, people who are animal lovers and passionate about "adopt don't shop" wind up adopting pits and pit mixes. And at that point they feel they HAVE to defend the dogs. Because they are opposed to euthanizing dogs in general and because they are often owners of pits. They ignore the danger these animals pose or the fact that the very reason shelters are full of pits is because of the way this breed has been bred and handled for a long time and focus instead on their relationship with their specific dog and on a general opposition towards euthanasia.

And the thing is, some of these pit owners STILL won't get those dogs fixed and continue to contribute to the problem. Pits remain a breed of choice for "security dogs" as well as people who fight dogs. So the problem just perpetuates. And you can't have a rational conversation about it. It's very frustrating.

This. The utter delusion of these people is insane. Every single one of these morons insists pits are ‘sweet’ and it’s just irresponsible dog owners. They ignore the fact that these dogs can and do damage that other breeds simply do not. Every dog and every pet owner will eventually make a mistake. The difference is that with a pit or a powerful breed like that, the mistake can be deadly. No dog is worth risking human life, and people who defend pit bulls are selfish idiots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

Have you ever known a pittie? They are incredibly loyal, gentle, goofy dogs. That a few of them are bred and trained to violence doesn't negate the fact that the overwhelming majority of them make great pets. Like any breed, ANY BREED, they must be properly trained and socialized. I'm sick of people acting like they don't have to train their dogs, taking them everywhere like fscking accessories, and then blaming the breed when there are problems. There are no bad dogs. There are irresponsible owners (ignorantly or intentionally).

Another point: for those who are new to dogs, the "scary dogs" right now are "pit bulls" (which are not a breed; it's an umbrella label applied to 5 distinct breeds, and knowing the difference explains a lot about why shelters adopt out "pit bulls", most of which are staffies or apbts, and not XL bully type dogs like the ones usually found in hysteria clickbait not-news). A decade or so ago, it was Rottweilers, which are capable of just as much damage as pit bulls, especially when similarly trained for violence and poorly handled. Before that, Dobermans. Before that, GSDs. Probably something else before that; I'm not old enough to remember. The hysteria comes in waves, and when you recognize that pattern, you become better at sorting the stupidity from any actual facts.

There are too many dogs in general, but most importantly: there are too many stupid people irresponsibly owning and breeding dogs. There's the risk: humans. Smarter people can be educated. Stupid people make threads like this one, dumping their blanket judgments and regurgitated fearmongering out into the world, helping no one (and looking idiotic in the process).

I’ve known plenty of pit bulls. No way should anyone have these dogs as pets

[Anonymous]

I like that people make an effort to adopt them and alleviate the problem at the shelter, and i like their playful energy with other dogs at the dog park, but I don't like the fur; I like a furry dog that you can rub both directions. I just don't like the fur on gray hounds, pit bulls, other terriers with that really short hair like bulldogs, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on a beach in Delaware once and saw a pit bull grab another dog (sitting on a towel with its owner) by the neck and kill it. Just walking by and casually killed it nbd. Owner of the dead dog was traumatized, police were called, etc. My kid was a tween and was upset by it all.

Same thing happened just outside my neighborhood. Neighbor with the most adorable small dog that we all loved was walking it on a leash and a guy who let his pit off leash saw the dog and killed in so fast there was barely time to react.

The guy saw the small dog and let his "pit" off leash to kill it? And the pit just swooped in silently and killed, no bark, no time to react?

Didn't happen, but what a story!

You can deny it all you want, and even embellish someone else’s story with details they didn’t give, but these things do happen, all too frequently.

Someone's off-leash small dog killed a cat right in front of me. JRT. They're known for it.

Do you see the commonality here? It's not the breed, it's the lack of leash.

Stupidly claiming that it's "pit bulls" only emboldens owners of other breeds to do the exact same dangerous clownshoe behavior that's at the root of the actual problem: unleashed, untrained, unmanaged dogs allowed to run loose.

A pit in our neighborhood snapped the neck of a stray cat while ON a leash right in front of our house. It happened so fast I almost couldn't believe what I was seeing.

The commonality here is an animal who is bred for a certain physicality and disposition, including a violently strong jaw and killer instincts, and then being treated like a normal pet.

Most dogs don't have the strength to harm anyone in the same way. They aren't built for it. Pit bulls are. They are built for it and they have been bred for aggression and violence for a long time.

Good. Stray/outdoor/wandering cats are horrid, kill wild birds, spread diseases, and should be eliminated entirely.

Or, at least, it would be good. If it happened. Which it didn't.

PP here. Two things:

(1) It happened. I know because I had been in the process of getting that specific stray cat collected by animal control so that we could adopt her (once she'd been to the vet and declared safe to come into our home where we have children and other pets). I was the one who then had to call 311 to have her dead body removed from the side walk. I agree stray cats are an issue which is why I was interested in this cat and working to get her off the street. I should also note here that her ear had been clipped so she'd been spayed. The dog who killed her was not fixed.

(2) At the time I had a 1 year old. One of the reasons I was so shaken by seeing this happen is that I immediately thought how easy it would have been for that dog to do the exact same thing to my daughter, with whom I often walked down that same sidewalk.

Do you think that dog killed the cat because it was trying to protect wildlife in the area? You think he would refrain from snapping my baby daughter's neck because he knows the difference?

If you own an animal who is capable of killing a cat in a few seconds and with no warning on a city sidewalk, then you also own an animal who can kill a small child. And you should not own that animal and he has no business on a city sidewalk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

Have you ever known a pittie? They are incredibly loyal, gentle, goofy dogs. That a few of them are bred and trained to violence doesn't negate the fact that the overwhelming majority of them make great pets. Like any breed, ANY BREED, they must be properly trained and socialized. I'm sick of people acting like they don't have to train their dogs, taking them everywhere like fscking accessories, and then blaming the breed when there are problems. There are no bad dogs. There are irresponsible owners (ignorantly or intentionally).

Another point: for those who are new to dogs, the "scary dogs" right now are "pit bulls" (which are not a breed; it's an umbrella label applied to 5 distinct breeds, and knowing the difference explains a lot about why shelters adopt out "pit bulls", most of which are staffies or apbts, and not XL bully type dogs like the ones usually found in hysteria clickbait not-news). A decade or so ago, it was Rottweilers, which are capable of just as much damage as pit bulls, especially when similarly trained for violence and poorly handled. Before that, Dobermans. Before that, GSDs. Probably something else before that; I'm not old enough to remember. The hysteria comes in waves, and when you recognize that pattern, you become better at sorting the stupidity from any actual facts.

There are too many dogs in general, but most importantly: there are too many stupid people irresponsibly owning and breeding dogs. There's the risk: humans. Smarter people can be educated. Stupid people make threads like this one, dumping their blanket judgments and regurgitated fearmongering out into the world, helping no one (and looking idiotic in the process).

I don't actually agree with the rest of your post because you are ignoring how prevalent pits and pit mixes are in shelters, specifically because pits have been the dog of choice for people who breed "security" dogs or run dog fighting rings -- they don't get the dogs fixed and there is a lot of "backyard breeding" of these dogs as a result. People who adopt other less aggressive breeds get them fixed because they are adopting dogs for companionship. People who adopt pits on purpose don't get them fixed because the aggression is the point and failing to get them fixed will enhance the aggression. So the reason there is a prejudice against pits is the same reason as why there are so many pits in shelters -- pits are aggressive dogs, they have been adopted for their aggression, and they have been left un-altered to enhance their aggression, thus resulting in more pits and pit mixes in the dog population.

But I also strongly agree with your last paragraph. There are a ton of terrible dog owners out there that don't train their dogs and blame problematic behavior on breed or general disposition. And there are too many dogs in general, resulting in too many dogs in shelters and without homes, or in bad homes, because too few owners get their dogs fixed and do their part to prevent overpopulation (see my last paragraph as to how this interacts with the problem with pit bulls).

However the problem you are identifying (bad dog owners who don't train their dogs) and the problem I am identifying (overpopulation of pits and pit mixes which have historically been bred for aggressive behavior) is a problem. Because if someone fails to properly train their schnauzer (a la my MIL) it's annoying but not scary. My MIL's dog is loud and obnoxious and also miserable because she has not been properly trained in a way that would reduce her anxiety. But she's not going to kill anyone -- she weighs 6 lbs and while she bare her teeth constantly, she's never bit anyone and even if she did, she couldn't do much harm.

But if someone fails to properly train a pit they've adopted from a shelter not understanding the history of this breed and not knowing if this particular dog may be the offspring of a security dog or fighting dog who was bred specifically for extreme aggression, it's a threat to every person that dog interacts with. EVEN IF that dog is trained, it can snap and do damage. But it's worse if the dog is untrained, and even worse if the owner is one of these jacka**es who takes their untrained dog to the grocery store or lets them off leash at playgrounds, which has become more and more common in recent years.

Are pits the whole problem? No. Are they part of the problem? Absolutely 100% yes. It is irresponsible to say otherwise.

Oh and I don't want my neighbors getting Dobermans or Rotts either! Aggressive dogs do not belong in residential settings or around children. They can be working dogs and used in security but they are not family dogs.

[Anonymous]

Why is the entire shelter full of pit bulls?

[Anonymous]

My friend was almost killed by two pit bulls his neighbor owned. He had known the dogs for years, and one day when their gate was left open they came into my friend’s shed where he was working and just started lunging at him. He beat them back with a garden rake and locked himself in the shed and called the police because the “sweet little pitties” who had “never done anything like this!” would try to kill him if he tried to leave his shed.

There is something wrong with the DNA of that breed. They can’t be trusted. They can be fine for a decade and then suddenly they snap. It’s like a chip in their brain has been activated or something. Awful creatures.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is the entire shelter full of pit bulls?

Because a lot of people who prefer pit breeds refuse to get them fixed, because they are selecting the breeds specifically for their aggression and getting dogs fixed can diminish aggression. Also pits are common breeds in illegal dog fighting and those dogs are often bred on purpose for cash by unscrupulous people (again, specifically for their aggressive behavior) and then the off spring can wind up discarded or seized when dog fighting rings are shut down.

The sorts of people who get pit bulls for status reasons also tend to be crap dog owners and are more likely to abandon them or have them taken away.

It's not the fault of pit bulls themselves but it is an extension of the breed's physicality and aggression. Pits wouldn't be so popular among owners who refuse to spay and neuter, who get dogs for "security" purposes, and who participate in illegal dog fighting behavior if the breed was not already bread for aggression and lethality. Some people get large dog breeds for security reasons even when those dogs aren't particularly aggressive, because they are physically imposing -- having a Great Dane or a black lab can make you feel safer and might serve as a deterrent by someone trying to break in or attack you but not wanting to deal with 80-100 lbs of dog. But you don't see a million Great Danes or black labs in shelters because the people who get these dogs for protection are not actually choosing a dog for aggression, just for size (as well as qualities like loyalty and pleasant disposition that you often find in labs in particular). Whereas pits are selected FOR their aggression and refusing to fix them feeds directly into the preference for an aggressive dog.

A lot of first time dog owners also don't recognize the sign of pits in pit mixes, will adopt a dog, then discover they are part pit and give them back. Good shelters will disclose this info up front specifically to avoid this outcome. Bad shelters will blame these owners for the surplus of pits on their hands, ignore the perfectly reasonable preference that for instance people with kids have for a dog without the potential aggression (and jaw strength) of a pit. I have met pits I really liked with great dispositions but I would NEVER adopt a pit bull or pit mix into a house with children no matter how great because all it takes is that dog being startled or alerted one time and responding with an inbred response to attack a vulnerable point and not let go.

People are so so stupid about pit bulls. It makes me tired.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend was almost killed by two pit bulls his neighbor owned. He had known the dogs for years, and one day when their gate was left open they came into my friend’s shed where he was working and just started lunging at him. He beat them back with a garden rake and locked himself in the shed and called the police because the “sweet little pitties” who had “never done anything like this!” would try to kill him if he tried to leave his shed.

There is something wrong with the DNA of that breed. They can’t be trusted. They can be fine for a decade and then suddenly they snap. It’s like a chip in their brain has been activated or something. Awful creatures.

Apparently humans are like this, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

People are so so stupid about pit bulls. It makes me tired.

Bahleeting the rest of your blathering so I can concur.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

Have you ever known a pittie? They are incredibly loyal, gentle, goofy dogs. That a few of them are bred and trained to violence doesn't negate the fact that the overwhelming majority of them make great pets. Like any breed, ANY BREED, they must be properly trained and socialized. I'm sick of people acting like they don't have to train their dogs, taking them everywhere like fscking accessories, and then blaming the breed when there are problems. There are no bad dogs. There are irresponsible owners (ignorantly or intentionally).

Another point: for those who are new to dogs, the "scary dogs" right now are "pit bulls" (which are not a breed; it's an umbrella label applied to 5 distinct breeds, and knowing the difference explains a lot about why shelters adopt out "pit bulls", most of which are staffies or apbts, and not XL bully type dogs like the ones usually found in hysteria clickbait not-news). A decade or so ago, it was Rottweilers, which are capable of just as much damage as pit bulls, especially when similarly trained for violence and poorly handled. Before that, Dobermans. Before that, GSDs. Probably something else before that; I'm not old enough to remember. The hysteria comes in waves, and when you recognize that pattern, you become better at sorting the stupidity from any actual facts.

There are too many dogs in general, but most importantly: there are too many stupid people irresponsibly owning and breeding dogs. There's the risk: humans. Smarter people can be educated. Stupid people make threads like this one, dumping their blanket judgments and regurgitated fearmongering out into the world, helping no one (and looking idiotic in the process).

Yes, I have known "Pitties", and they are a dangerous breed that for some reason has a whole lobby out there trying to convince first time dog owners that they make a perfect family pet. My neighbors golden retriever was attacked completely unprovoked while in a nearby park by two "Potties" and nearly lost his life. Look at all the other stories in the news. Most dog attacks (not all, but a disproportionate amount of them) involve a pit or pit mix. This is factual, not fear mongering. Go ahead and own your precious angel "Pittie", but you dog will always present a greater risk to yourself and other than countless other breeds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I like that people make an effort to adopt them and alleviate the problem at the shelter, and i like their playful energy with other dogs at the dog park, but I don't like the fur; I like a furry dog that you can rub both directions. I just don't like the fur on gray hounds, pit bulls, other terriers with that really short hair like bulldogs, etc.

I don’t know what you mean about rubbing a dog in both directions, but some of the dogs you list have coarse fur and some have soft fur. Dogs with short fur don’t all feel the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

Have you ever known a pittie? They are incredibly loyal, gentle, goofy dogs. That a few of them are bred and trained to violence doesn't negate the fact that the overwhelming majority of them make great pets. Like any breed, ANY BREED, they must be properly trained and socialized. I'm sick of people acting like they don't have to train their dogs, taking them everywhere like fscking accessories, and then blaming the breed when there are problems. There are no bad dogs. There are irresponsible owners (ignorantly or intentionally).

Another point: for those who are new to dogs, the "scary dogs" right now are "pit bulls" (which are not a breed; it's an umbrella label applied to 5 distinct breeds, and knowing the difference explains a lot about why shelters adopt out "pit bulls", most of which are staffies or apbts, and not XL bully type dogs like the ones usually found in hysteria clickbait not-news). A decade or so ago, it was Rottweilers, which are capable of just as much damage as pit bulls, especially when similarly trained for violence and poorly handled. Before that, Dobermans. Before that, GSDs. Probably something else before that; I'm not old enough to remember. The hysteria comes in waves, and when you recognize that pattern, you become better at sorting the stupidity from any actual facts.

There are too many dogs in general, but most importantly: there are too many stupid people irresponsibly owning and breeding dogs. There's the risk: humans. Smarter people can be educated. Stupid people make threads like this one, dumping their blanket judgments and regurgitated fearmongering out into the world, helping no one (and looking idiotic in the process).

Yes, I have known "Pitties", and they are a dangerous breed that for some reason has a whole lobby out there trying to convince first time dog owners that they make a perfect family pet. My neighbors golden retriever was attacked completely unprovoked while in a nearby park by two "Potties" and nearly lost his life. Look at all the other stories in the news. Most dog attacks (not all, but a disproportionate amount of them) involve a pit or pit mix. This is factual, not fear mongering. Go ahead and own your precious angel "Pittie", but you dog will always present a greater risk to yourself and other than countless other breeds.

It's not actually factual at all, or you'd have facts to cite, and you don't. It's hyperbole and not-news nonsense you bought into and are now regurgitating. Nobody on this whole thread has brought facts to support this goofy-ass theory; you're all drinking the kool-aid.

I've been bitten by several breeds in my decades of dog training. Not once by any of the 5 breeds that get lumped under "pit bull".

But you have "facts" somewhere, yeah? Let's see them. (preparing for onslaught of clickbait nonsense, ignoring all the articles about other breeds biting because those don't support this tired narrative).

People who hate an entire breed (5 breeds) of dogs are biased. People who justify their hatred with clickbait and propaganda are biased idiots

At least you're usually easy to spot...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can someone explain to me why there seems to be a lobby behind this breed to encourage people to give them a chance and adopt them from shelters? Is it the shelters wanting to home dogs regardless of whether they're appropriate for the people or not? I'm so sick of people acting like there's no risk associated with owning this breed.

Have you ever known a pittie? They are incredibly loyal, gentle, goofy dogs. That a few of them are bred and trained to violence doesn't negate the fact that the overwhelming majority of them make great pets. Like any breed, ANY BREED, they must be properly trained and socialized. I'm sick of people acting like they don't have to train their dogs, taking them everywhere like fscking accessories, and then blaming the breed when there are problems. There are no bad dogs. There are irresponsible owners (ignorantly or intentionally).

Another point: for those who are new to dogs, the "scary dogs" right now are "pit bulls" (which are not a breed; it's an umbrella label applied to 5 distinct breeds, and knowing the difference explains a lot about why shelters adopt out "pit bulls", most of which are staffies or apbts, and not XL bully type dogs like the ones usually found in hysteria clickbait not-news). A decade or so ago, it was Rottweilers, which are capable of just as much damage as pit bulls, especially when similarly trained for violence and poorly handled. Before that, Dobermans. Before that, GSDs. Probably something else before that; I'm not old enough to remember. The hysteria comes in waves, and when you recognize that pattern, you become better at sorting the stupidity from any actual facts.

There are too many dogs in general, but most importantly: there are too many stupid people irresponsibly owning and breeding dogs. There's the risk: humans. Smarter people can be educated. Stupid people make threads like this one, dumping their blanket judgments and regurgitated fearmongering out into the world, helping no one (and looking idiotic in the process).

Yes, I have known "Pitties", and they are a dangerous breed that for some reason has a whole lobby out there trying to convince first time dog owners that they make a perfect family pet. My neighbors golden retriever was attacked completely unprovoked while in a nearby park by two "Potties" and nearly lost his life. Look at all the other stories in the news. Most dog attacks (not all, but a disproportionate amount of them) involve a pit or pit mix. This is factual, not fear mongering. Go ahead and own your precious angel "Pittie", but you dog will always present a greater risk to yourself and other than countless other breeds.

It's not actually factual at all, or you'd have facts to cite, and you don't. It's hyperbole and not-news nonsense you bought into and are now regurgitating. Nobody on this whole thread has brought facts to support this goofy-ass theory; you're all drinking the kool-aid.

I've been bitten by several breeds in my decades of dog training. Not once by any of the 5 breeds that get lumped under "pit bull".

But you have "facts" somewhere, yeah? Let's see them. (preparing for onslaught of clickbait nonsense, ignoring all the articles about other breeds biting because those don't support this tired narrative).

People who hate an entire breed (5 breeds) of dogs are biased. People who justify their hatred with clickbait and propaganda are biased idiots

At least you're usually easy to spot...

Says the poster sharing their own anecdata.

[Anonymous]

https://www.peta.org/features/video-soccer-champ-alex-morgan-says-dogs-family-members/

Praises pits and convinces others to get them while paying hush money when her pit attacks other dogs...