Why is my dog so hated?

BSL against the Pit Bull Terrier

Published on October 24, 2004 By TasT In Dogs

Cute isn't she?
Her name is Mercedes, I adopted her from a local no kill shelter. She had spent the first 3 months of her life in a kennel where she was mistreated and was probably being raised to be a fighting dog. I brought her home and finished nursing her back to health.

Soon after I got her the nearest city to me passed Breed specific legislation (BSL) against "Pit Bull" type dogs. They Claim that it is the dog that 's dangerous! My question is where is the owners responsibility? I have had Mercedes for about a year now and she is the most loving dog that I have ever had, I could not imagine her ever trying to hurt a human. This is not to say that she is not protective because she is. She will let kids even babies literally beat the crap out of her and not complain at all but, if an adult gets stern with a kid in her presence she does get a little upset. However she has never bit anyone. She always has to be in your presence, I swear that she gets separation anxiety. She will whine at the door if I go out to the garage for 5 minutes or get in the shower. She always has to be touching someone.

My beef is that these BSL's are aimed directly at pit bulls, Dobermans, and rottweilers. The dogs, not the crappy owners who either allow their dogs to be mean or train them that way. If my city council passes a version of this BSL, which they probably will do as they tend to follow everything that the bigger city does, I'll have to spend $50 a year to register my dog with the city and also carry "Dog Insurance".

All because people can't handle their dogs.
Shouldn't we persecute the owners of proven vicious dogs, not the dogs of a specific breed?

Here is a link where you can check to see if there is BSL in your area Link

Comments

dharmagrl

on Oct 24, 2004

Our dog prior to the dachshund we have now was an AmStaff/Pit mix, and she was the gentlest, dopiest dog we'd ever owned. We gave her away because we thought we were going overseas and couldn't take her...then we get shipped to Illinois and find out that the base that we live on has a 'no pitbull or AmStaff' rule, or we'd have got another one.

I think that the breed has been somewhat unfairly demonized, and I'm in agreement that we should prosecute the owners of vicious dogs, not the entire breed.

Tangled Wishes

on Oct 24, 2004

My sister has a pit bull puppy. She is not mean at all, a little hyperactive, but nice, and ridiculously dumb. Of course, dogs have personalities, too, so it's different with every single dog, right?

~Anne

TasT

on Oct 25, 2004

Of course, dogs have personalities, too, so it's different with every single dog, right?

Yes you are right. I also have a english fox hound that is by breed supposed to be a great family dog. He does not have the personality for it though. He has never hurt anyone, he just goes to the back of the house and lays around when any kids are around. If they do mess with hin he takes it but escapes as soon as possible.

Pit bulls like many other dog breeds do have a history of being aggressive towards other animals. Mercedes has attacked a pom that was being aggressive towards my daughter. Funny thing though she didn't bite the dog she just laid down on it! Hows that for a scary and mean dog?
Mercedes is also timid around new people, though I think that is a result of the first few months of her life being in that kennel that was mistreating her and her siblings.

dopiest dog we'd ever owned.

From the reading I have done and watching my dog dopiness or being a clown seems to be the norm for pits.

Myrrander

on Oct 25, 2004

My Daphne is a pit bull mix that we got from our local Humane Society shelter about 3 years ago. We've always been sure to play with her a lot to relieve those hyperactive moods she gets in. I think the best thing we did for her though was raising her with a mini rat terrier -- training her to be careful of the much smaller dog did wonders for her disposition. We also worked really hard on leash training. Pits and pit mixes can be very loving dogs, there are just so many asshats out there who train their aggressive natures instead of their loving qualities.

My favorite example of Daphne's disposition is this: One time, we had the vet out to take care of one of our horses. We knew the vet quite well, my wife worked for him as a veterinary technician at the time. It was a weekend call, so he had his wife and two small kids with him. To occupy the kids while dad was at work, I got Daphne out on her leash. The kids played with her for awhile, and one of them started picking clover blossoms and feeding them to Daphne. Not being one to turn down a gift, Daphne happily ate them. The little boy's mother saw what he was doing and told him to stop -- at which point, he dropped the last clover blossom he had been holding. Daphne, being polite, reached down, picked the clover blossom up off the ground, and ate it anyway. That sums her up, eager to please and friendly.

Good luck with your puppy, she looks beautiful!

Myrrander

on Oct 25, 2004

P.S. I think there's some hope that your puppy wasn't being raised as a fighting dog. Usually, fight dog breeders will cut the ears of small puppies into tiny triangle shapes and dock their tails -- and that pup's ears and tails are intact. She's GORGEOUS (I love pits).

dharmagrl

on Oct 25, 2004

She is gorgeous....I love brindle pits!

TasT

on Oct 25, 2004

thanks everyone for the kind comments about Mercedes.

She is a great dog, my family and I really enjoy her loving disposition and goofyness. Her "Pit Fits" are even humorus. She will chase Lucky, our cat, around the house. When she corners the cat, the chase reverses and Lucky chases her!

island_gurl12

on Oct 25, 2004

Awww, i think your puppy is really beautiful. It is indeed a shame that dogs are hated only because of their breed. And i think owners are the #1 factor of their pet's attitude. But i'm sure you're doing a great job with Mercedes. Good on you!

SSG Geezer

on Oct 27, 2004

Owners and allowing pack behavior to manifest when there are multiple dogs in the house. The fact that Mercedes tolerates and plays with your cat says a great deal about her overall disposition.

My Chow mix is great with kids, cats and not so good with men in uniform (Other than me), or loonies/Dope smokers. The fact she was abandoned on Ft Campbell, and
suffered the separation anxiety means all trips are by car so she can come with. I think they beat her and dumped her for being smarter than they were.

KarmaGirl

on Oct 27, 2004

My parents had a Staffordshire (white and black) with a docked tail and ears. My sister and I rode her around like a horse. She was never aggressive (except toward the chickens) and was a great dog. However, we had a Springer Spaniel that went nuts and tried to rip my Dad's hand off. So, I don't think you can really blame a breed.

However, some dogs are just mental. If it would have been the Staff that attacked my Dad like that then he wouldn't have a hand right now. So, I think that there is a shred of reason for the laws, but I also think that they should be making laws to punish people who mistreat the animals or don't protect people from aggressive animals versus trying to make certain breeds somewhat illegal. All dogs have the potential to do harm.

TasT

on Oct 27, 2004

suffered the separation anxiety means all trips are by car so she can come with

I respect a man that is that dedicated to his dog!

Mercedes loves to ride also though I haven't taken her into town since they passed the BSL, I need to read the entire law and find out if I can....

All dogs have the potential to do harm.

You are definatly right. A woman who used to live next to me had a Chiwawa and that thing bit me on the calf one night and drew blood!

Another strange trait of the pit bull is how "soft mouthed" they are. I can be rough housing with her and she will put ther teeth on my arm. If I even fake whine or scream she'll let go and look at me with an "Are you alrignt, Dad, I'm sorry look".

Hand feeding here is also a little wierd, unlike my hound that just grabs and go's. she reaches to a persons had very gently as if to make sure that she doesn't hurt the person. It's kinda like she know' that she has those strong jaws and sharp teeth and is try to prove that she's really nice desipte them...