I want to try to counter the hysterical and inaccurate propaganda that is going around about Pitbulls, but it is an uphill struggle because people want to believe the worse. Maybe it brings a little excitement into their otherwise mundane lives.
I know that happy stories and educational articles like the one attached are not going to convince everybody that Pitbulls are not natural born killers. As my vet said, you have to own one to truly believe that they are really very lovable. But I hope that people will get to understand that the dog is an extension of its owner and the treatment and experiences that have been given to him. In other words, it is not the breed, it is how the breed is treated and trained.
I have been bitten once and been nearly bitten once by dogs. I was bitten by a pothound, and nearly bitten by a Cocker Spaniel. The bite was because I was too close to a yard that the dog had been told to guard. The near-bite was because I passed my hand over the top of the Cocker's head and that startled him. Does this mean that the police or the TTSPCA should kill all pothounds and Cocker Spaniels?
I am not saying Pitbulls don't bite. Yes they do - and when they bite they can inflict a lot of pain and damage, even death. I am not even saying that we always know why they attack. But I am saying that in all the cases I have heard about, it has been either due to bad breeding, bad training (including lack of socialization), ill health or fear. Most, if not all, of these causes were put in place by humans. As humans, we recognize that abuse in childhood can lead to anti-social behaviour in adulthood. What makes us think that animals are any different? Neglecting a dog's physical and emotional needs is abuse. Subjecting a dog to rape and beatings is abuse. Not providing proper nutrition, exercise and health care to a dog is abuse. It seems to me to be against the laws of logic, sanity and fairness to punish an animal for reacting inappropriately if he has been programmed to react that way by human neglect or abuse.
The Pitbull is the Dog of the Month right now. They are being bred in extraordinary numbers. Statistically, it is therefore logical that more bites will come from Pitbulls. Some Pitbulls are also being deliberately bred for dominance and aggression. In almost every other breed, the dogs are bred for obedience, sociability, intelligence – the Pitts are bred to be big and bad. Then they are often given steroids to make them even bigger. If that was not enough, they are systematically trained to be the baddest dog on the block. Quite often they are owned by people who also see themselves as the baddest thing on the block. In a study, it was found that of 20 Pitbull attacks, 11 of the owners had criminal records and of them 7 had records for violence. Eleven of the dogs showed signs of physical abuse.
There are those who would say, well that is all very sad, but the fact is that the Pitbull is a savage dog, regardless of what the reason is, and we must kill them all. Not only kill them, we must commit canine genocide and kill out the breed. We humans have a history of trying to kill out whole races of people, so this is not an altogether alien concept. This will solve the problem. But will it? All of the factors that went to making an aggressive Pitbull can be replicated in another dog – the German Sheppard is supposedly the most intelligent dog in the world, and has the most powerful bite of any breed. Don’t you think a German Sheppard can be bred for dominance and aggression? Can be pumped up on steroids and trained to attack and kill? Can be owned by people who either enjoying using them as a power tool, or are too careless about keeping them safely secured?
Animals can not speak for themselves. They need humans to speak for them. They need humans to say that this earth was not meant to be inhabited only by humans. That humans domesticated the wolf, and made him into a helper and companion, then called it the dog. That it is up to humans to use their supposedly superior brains and find ways to allow all creatures, great and small, to healthfully and happily co-exist.
My message is: Don't own any animal unless you are ready to commit totally to its care and upkeep. Get educated about what needs to be done to keep that animal safe and healthy. Respect the rights of animals not to be used for your own self aggrandizement and money making schemes. And to all you people who don't like or want to own animals, keep an open mind and remember that there are two sides, sometimes more, to every story. Take a look at this story, for example:
http://www.ywgrossman.com/photoblog/?p=676
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