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What would you do if a pitbull while playing with your dog at dogpark, had your dog on the ground by the face and wouldn't let him up after you tried pulling him off your dog. Would you wait for your BC to squeal before doing anything else? Happened today at dog park. Alot more to the story if your interested!

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I never take any of my dogs to dog parks---too many irresponsible idiots out there :rolleyes:

 

But if I did take one of my dogs to a dog park and another dog pinned my dog to the ground, AND if my dog did not appear to be frightened or injured, if I were concerned for my dog's safety I'd approach the other dog's owner and ask him to call his dog. Then I'd put a lead on my dog and leave. If a dogfight started and the other dog's owner refused to intervene, I suppose I might try to slip a lead around the other dog's neck and choke it off.

 

As an aside, pit bull owners should never take their dogs to dog parks. Not because all pit bulls are an inherent risk around other dogs---many individuals among the bull breeds are reliably splendid with other dogs---but because in today's climate if anything happens, no matter who or what is actually responsible, it will always, always, always be the pit bull's fault. Never the owner---always the breed :D

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We had an unpleasant encounter with a Weimaraner/Black Lab pup. Not a mean dog at all, but she was more than twice the size of Allie and probably outweighed her by 30 - 40 lbs. Allie was game to play, but the W/B pup kept tumbling her, clipping her and then pinning her to the ground. The game wasn't really so much fun for poor Allie and she was starting to get battered. The W/B also kept trying to put Allie's whole head in her mouth. I couldn't get the W/B to lay off, so I leashed up Allie (had to keep shoving the other dog off) and found the owner of the W/B. He was apologetic and indicated that his dog was used to roughhousing with a Rodesian Ridgeback pup. He really didn't appear able to control his dog, so we ended up leaving. We have run into them several times since, but the owner now keeps his dog pretty much away from Allie (we still exchange "hellos"). This encounter was the incident that caused Allie to be laid up with a shoulder injury for several weeks and I did mention her injury to the M/B owner.

 

Sounds like your experience was worse. Is Bandit okay? Did you have to use physical force to get the pit off and what was the owner doing at the time? There are some pit bulls that play at the dog parks we frequent, but most of the owners are pretty cautious and often don't allow their dogs to interact with the other dogs much.

 

I do go the dog park sometimes, but I try to schedule it for off hours when not so many dogs are there. I blame the bad behavior of some of the dogs on their owners.

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I don't go to dog parks much either - for the same reason as the others.

 

When I do, I don't do it to let my dogs play with others. I go so we have more room to run/play off leash.

 

If that ever DID happen - I would do everything (within reason) to get that dog off of my dog. I always keep a close eye on my pups whenever they are around any kind of other dog and if it ever got that far I would take instant action (unless the dogs are just playing).

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If you go to my dog's myspace a friend's pitbull is my dog's favorite dog. You can see pictures of them playing and running. She is a great and friendly dog.

 

But I could never own one. I know many people like to go under the theory that dogs are never bad it's the owners. I don't agree. Dogs have instincts. As border collie owners we see our dogs try to herd. A labordor retriever naturally likes to get things. Pit Bulls are bred to kill. It's that simple. If you read a local advertiser where they sell dogs you'll usually see the owner/seller pointing out features of the dog that make it a good fighter. They won't say it directly but you get the point.

 

I don't mind any dog at a dog park. But if one gets aggresive towards my dog I'll have no problem getting aggresive with that dog. Including the owner. I'll protect my dog no matter the extent I have to go.

 

My first time taking my dog to the dog park some womans dog kind of got aggresive with my dog. She's one of those who "Knows" everything there is to know about dog behavior. My dog being overly friendly and just a puppy lays on the ground. The other dog is on top of it. Not being too aggresive but obviously trying to show his power. She said "That's the passive dominence" or some line like that. I looked at her and said "No, that's your dog bullying my dog and you doing nothing about it". Then she grabbed her dog and said "No" to it.

 

You where in the right by getting the other dog off of yours. I rather be wrong and my dog be alive. Then be right and my dog dead.

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Originally posted by Atlanta Smitty:

 

Pit Bulls are bred to kill. It's that simple.

Here ya go, Smitty. Be sure to check out "Monster Myths." And you might want to take a look at this recent New Yorker article: Troublemakers - What pit bulls can teach us about profiling. The author writes:
Behind each generalization is a choice of what factors to leave in and what factors to leave out, and those choices can prove surprisingly complicated.
Why yes, that is a pit bull in my avatar. Best dog ever. Here's her whole muddy self:

 

Roll3DX-14.jpg

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They are called Pit Bull Terriers. They are a Terrier, not an attack dog.

 

I've had a few dogs get a bit rough and pin my BC pup - but not in an aggressive way, just dominant. So I shoo away the dog and go somewhere else in the park.

 

I give it a second as my pup is pretty good at defending herself, she will snap if the other dog is too obnoxious (I think she will be fairly dominant when she's done being a pup) But if it looks like my pup is too pinned and can't right herself, I will go intervene. I don't wait until she cries - afterall, she looks to me for protection. I just make sure I'm protecting her, and not preventing her from having confidence to be with other dogs, ie. not promoting shyness.

 

I too go to the park to have some off leash time. My dogs pretty much only say hi to other dogs as we walk along (our park is 8 shaply acres). And I think I live in a pretty high dog population area - and people around generally have nice dogs. Or maybe just around there most people don't bring their unfriendly ones to the park. Guess I'm lucky.

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Pit bulls, Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy. :rolleyes:

 

They are no longer (in most places) being bred to kill.

 

They are VERY sweet and great pets if socialized, but people don't do that because they think that their pup is "mean".

Sad. Very Sad.

 

BTW, very cute pit bull! Love to see that big doggie grin! :D

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Pitbull owners in my country are very similar to the example in the article, but the solution is neither. Even if the guy gets nozzles, nobody guarantees they are used everyday. Restriction of ownership is necessary and huge fines must be applied to the owner of such kind of agressive dog. Not only for one breed.

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I think there are two separate issues here.

One, is the Pitbull dangerous? Anwer? which one?

Any dog can be dangerous.

Two, what would you do if a dog put your dog down and held it there?

I would get the dog off, and leave the area- if my dog looked like she was getting wallopped, or was scared. Many dogs who get bullied, generally try to worm up, and go to their owners- a sign that your dog is looking for protection from the owner. A sign to intervene. I don't like dog parks.

 

As for pitbulls being bred to fight- yes, they still are in large numbers by dirt bag loser, criminals who enjoy seeing man's best friend ripped apart and killed. It is disgusting. We have a ring in the city near me, and the cops do nothing.

 

Julie

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The other day I was looking through the "Atlanta Advertiser". They sell everything in there from Ferraris to used panties. They also sell dogs. Atlanta has a facination with Pit Bulls. In the Advertiser Pit Bulls are probably the most advertised dogs. Even over Labs.

 

They had Pitbull terriers in there but from what my friend who has a vast knowledge of pitbulls said is that Pitbull terriers are nothing like the "Stereotyped" pitbulls we see on the news daily. I know there are acceptions to the "Myth" but when you see a young kid killed by a dog in the news chances are it is by a pitbull. Not a Chihuaha or a Poodle.

 

I know everyone thinks their dog is the greatest dog in the world. Just the same as everyone thinks their baby is the cutest baby in the world. But I'm the one who dares to call the baby Ugly.

 

Dogs are bred for reasons. No one buys a Border Collie saying "This will make a good dog for fetching dead ducks". Or this Chihuahha will be great for tracking down escaped cons. And people aren't going to buy a cocker spaniel (Which actually has more bites than Pits) to fight in dog fights.

 

Duck hunters are going to buy Labs. Prisons are going to get Bloodhounds for tracking fugitives. And dog fighters are going to get Pit Bulls for fighting.

 

But to add. I do not want the government regulating what kind of dog we can/can't own. If your pitbull/chihaha/border collie kills/attacks someone. You are responsible for it since your dog is your property.

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I'd do as Black Watch said - if the situation is relatively ok to begin with, best to try to get the aggressor's owner to intervene to avoid escalation. If the owner is unwilling and/or your dog is in jeopardy, depriving the aggressor of its air supply is the most reliable method and safest for both dogs - you will need to continue to "choke", remember, until the aggressor begins to lose consciousness. It's not a pleasant situation to be in at all. :rolleyes:

 

I thought the article Black Watch posted was fascinating, BTW, especially the part noting that while the number of fatal dog attacks/year remains relatively constant, the breeds involved represent whatever is currently the fashionable "bad dog." In the seventies, it was Dobermans, today it's pit bulls. :D

 

It's just that a certain percentage of human headcases get a charge out of owning dangerous dogs. Why, I can't imagine. I've owned two in my lifetime, both because they were going to be destroyed otherwise, and kept each for over a decade. Never, ever again will I do it - both dog and owner wind up missing out on so much, just because of what might happen should the owner let her/his guard down at the wrong moment.

 

Anyway, unless I knew both the owner and the dog, I probably would leash my dog and leave the area at the sight of a pit bull. While there are obviously great pit bulls and responsible pit owners out there, the breed is so popular with irresponsible idiots that I wouldn't take the chance with one I didn't know. The possible consequences are just too dire. :D

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Dogs will be dogs. You take that risk even at trials or other competitions because there's always a loose dog somewhere at some point during the event. That's why everyone should always have their dog on leash in public.

 

You could always try to keep a squirt bottle of water with you to diffuse such an attack in the future.

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Luisa - ya gotta love a face like that!

 

I've seen some regional diff's in "problem" breeds - in northern CO, it tended to be Chows. In central CA it was Rottweilers. In Denver they had a problem with pitbulls for a while - not sure on that now - but I strongly suspect that was related to bad breeding practices and people who were doing dogfighting, which was a problem for a while in CO. For a while Denver considered an ordinance banning pitbulls, but I believe it failed (however, that was right when I was leaving the state, so perhaps I mis-remember).

 

Up here, I probably see more "problem" Rotties (although we do see a number of excellent, good-tempered ones as well) than most other large breed dogs (but we see plenty of small-breed land-sharks too! :rolleyes: ). However, more deaths and maimings are attributed to huskies than any other breed up here. That's most probably as a result of human error - people letting children wander unattended and unsupervised into dog lots. We did have a Rottweiler incedent locally a few years ago (unfortunately the owner was a client of ours who did not listen to us when we told them that agression was a problem in this particular dog - with tragic results.)

 

I rarely see a pitbull who is bad with people since I moved up here. Maybe three or four in the last 10 years. Some of them are a little more dog-aggressive than other breeds, though most of them are the sweetest things you can imagine and very dog AND people-friendly. But you can have scary-bad dogs in any breed, and to be honest the single scariest dog I've even personally seen was a bad Labrador. That dog was just not wired right. There was something about him that made you wary on sight - maybe his posture, maybe his expression - hard to define, but it was the first time that a dog ever actually made the hair on my neck stand up. Actually, the last time, as well - not that I haven't met other dogs that I knew I should be careful of, but that none before or since has emanated quite that sense of vicious, smouldering menace.

 

Part of the reason that pits and rotts etc get the rap for danger is becuase they have tremendous bite strength and a lot of tenacity. If you look at the proportions of the head, you can see that they have a heavy jaw and a lot of masseter muscle compared to certain other breeds. That means that if they DO bite, it does more damage and does it a lot faster. I've had a few small-breed patients who've tried to bite me WAY more times than some of the bigger ones, but they way less bite strength - and some of them have no teeth, so it does no damage (I'm thinking of one memorable Yorkie in particular; the number of times that dog tried ferociously to gum me into submission...!) Those dogs probably attempt and complete more bites than most big dogs ever get a chance at (because we muzzle them if there's an issue), but since no skin is ever broken, no one gets too concerned about it (although if it was MY dog and it was acting like that, we'd be doing some counselling, teeth or no!)

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AK Dog Doc,

 

Funny, the worst dog that came to the clinic where I used to work was a lab. He was scary as all get out. Crazy aggressive with us as well as his owner. The owner couldn't even get close enough to get a muzzle on him. It was quite the circus to do his yearly.

 

As for pits, I've seen some good ones and some bad ones. Personally I tend to leave off leash areas if I see one coming. Not because I think all of them are bad but because it seems that some idiot owners have them and if a pit decides to do some damage they can do much more than an uppity chihiawah (sorry about the spelling). I do the same if I see a big rottie marching over with his head high and hair up. I just don't want to take the chance with my dog's lives. There is a little pit mix at the park who approaches other dogs in a very appropriate manner and I have no problem with her playing with my guys.

 

Olivia

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It's funny about the bad Labs, isn't it? I think the deal is that to have that kind of aggression in a Lab (or a Golden, also kind of scary when seen) there's got to be something SERIOUSLY wrong with them. If I see that kind of aggression in, say, a poorly-bred Rottie, it's not so far off the beaten track; hence, they don't have to be so completely WRONG in their wiring, and their aggression is more "normal". By which I mean, not normal to the breed, per se, but more in line with normal brain function.

 

We've certainly seen our share of "circus" dogs and cats. :rolleyes: Once one of my bosses went out to try to rabies vaccinate a really bad GSD in the parking lot (since the dog was so bad it was unsafe to bring it in to the clinic). :eek: The owner had the leash and opened the car door. The dog came barrelling out, snarling and snapping, and lunged at Dr. M, who sidestepped and managed to shut the car door on the dog's head, trapping it (and thinking, Well, this'll be the last time this client ever wants to see US for medical care). Leaning against the door to keep the dog corralled, he made a quick stab with the needle and got the vaccine on board. The owner wrestled the dog back into the vehicle, slammed the door and looked at Dr. M with admiration. "That's the best that's ever gone!" he exclaimed. "I'm ALWAYS coming to you from now on!" (Oh, joy.) :D

 

I have a pretty good story about a 4-pack of Rotties I saw one year, but I'm not sure if there's a way to post text from my home computer to the boards.... (computer illiteracy strikes again! And today's migraine REALLY isn't helping!)

 

At any rate, the best dog in the world with a foolish owner might be a right pain in the hiney at a dog park. Glad no one got hurt, anyway.

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Odds are if a ?pit bull? is at a dog park, it?s not in fact an APBT, but a useless shell of a bulldog. Unlike most other breeds of canines that are easily verifiable by simple looks, the APBT isn?t, and is often mistaken for mutts, Am Staff?s, Staffordshire Bullterriers, Dogo?s, Presa?s, etc. I?d even go as far as to say 85% of the individuals claiming to have an APBT-don?t! The nice looking dog posted by Black Watch, seems to have more than typical white for the breed-yet highly resembles it?would be interested in seeing the dogs pedigree.

Dog parks aren?t a place for any dogs and should be avoided like the plaque. Even more so if one has a breed that is known for being dominate. Better alternatives and solutions to exercise ones dog/s than dog parks.

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Welcome to the boards, Tex!

 

Tex wrote

Unlike most other breeds of canines that are easily verifiable by simple looks, the APBT isn?t, and is often mistaken for mutts, Am Staff?s, Staffordshire Bullterriers, Dogo?s, Presa?s, etc. I?d even go as far as to say 85% of the individuals claiming to have an APBT-don?t!
How true, how true :D The authentic ones don't have huge heads, and they often look kind of like smallish blackmouth cur/hound mixes. Great-looking athletes, and you don't see them every time you turn around.

 

Here's Bounce, clean:

BouncePortrait2.jpg

And in context:

BounceTwigGray22.jpg

 

Bounce weighs around 37 lb, and people are always telling me she's too dinky to be a real pit bull :D So I hop on my soapbox and explain that an authentic bulldog generally weighs between 35 - 55 lb, with some of the most famous ones matched at weights under 40 lb---and then, with a dramatic flourish, I pull out Bounce's pedigree and say, "Look at Crenshaw's Jeep, here. He was matched at 42 lb, and he looks just like Bounce!"

 

Oh, who am I kidding :D

I found Bounce at the city shelter back in 1998, when she was a year or so old, and I don't have a clue what's behind her. Wish I knew. I'm very much inclined to think pit bull rather than Staffy bull, but that's just me. (She does look like that photo of Jeep, though.)

 

My Sneak (55lb) is also from the local shelter. A few people have told me that he's very Colby-looking, but once again, who knows :rolleyes:

Sneakie2.jpg

 

It's surreal to see what BYBers have done to the American Pit Bull Terrier [sigh].

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The owner wrestled the dog back into the vehicle, slammed the door and looked at Dr. M with admiration. "That's the best that's ever gone!" he exclaimed. "I'm ALWAYS coming to you from now on!"
Dog doc, that is hysterical. [Luisa runs off to share story with everyone she knows...]
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For Olvia and Luisa (and whoever else is interested, of course) my story about the 4-pack of biting Rotties/dog circus..... (excerpted from something else I wrote, ©2003 - not that anyone would WANT to copy it, but since there are rights reserved, I think I'm supposed to say that....)

 

... so about 10:00 I was in a pretty good mood. Which is when Jennifer comes back and tells me there's someone outside wanting 4 rabies vaccines, to be given in the car. Two Rotts and two Rott mixes. And 2 of the 4 are caution dogs. Oh Joy. Jennifer tells me the owner assures us that she will hold the dogs. Dr. M's eyebrows are practically airborne with skepticism. Fortunately the owner has brought her husband as well, so we have backup.

 

I start drawing up vaccine while Dr. M (who is prepping for surgery and therefore exempt from Rottweiller duty) tells me I should inform the owners that we have a sniper on the roof and if I get bitten, the sniper will shoot - the owners. I snerk a bit about that, gather my vaccines and mentally gird up my loins for another round in the Vet-vs-Vicious-Dog Smackdown Championships.

 

Outside I find that the owners have brought two vehicles with two dogs in each of them. This is a dang good idea, as all four dogs are enormous. We start with the Rotts, both large, robust and seriously overweight bitches. They get the first one out, who begins growling at me the minute her feet hit the pavement. The two onwers manage to twist and shove until I am presented with a large expanse of black hide as my target. I get the vaccine on board and they wrestle the dog back into the car, and it's on to round two. The second bitch is wagging her tail happily as the owners squeeze her into position, but the minute I approach, needle drawn and at the ready, she gives a twist of astonishing agility (in view of her impressive girth) and lunges, snapping, at my face. I - no fool - have positioned myself so that a quick skip back is right in my repertoire, and I dodge neatly out of the way while the owners smack the dog and yell at her. She shows every evidence of contrition until I make my second pass, when she lunges up in their restraining grip like a breaching whale, whipping her head from side to side and gnashing her teeth like a shark in a feeding frenzy. Spit is flying from her jaws and her formidable teeth are snicking shut with loud sinister clicks.

 

"Maybe we should get a muzzle; you're going to get bitten," I say to the owners, backing off.

 

"No, we won't; just do it," grunts the husband, corralling the dog again and hauling her head into his grip. His wife holds the collar in a death grip. I make a third pass and the bitch gives a mighty heave and a twist, fast and lethal as a hunting crocodile, and there is a sudden flurry and scuffle.

 

"What the f*** is wrong with you?!?" the owner yells, clouting the dog across the head (now I know he's mad - he said f*** in front of a doctor.) Suddenly there is human blood on the scene, and guess what? - it isn't mine. Well, I did warn them, so my liability is covered. It only took 2 seconds, but the bitch's razoring teeth have nicked both owners. Now the man is mad. He sits on the SUV's tailgate, hauls the dog's front end into his lap and gets a headlock on her. The wife grabs the rolls of fat in what is normally the scruff, and I make a quick squat-and-stab move, getting the vaccine on board and popping up like a Jack-in-the-box to get out of the way as the dog makes another nearly-successful gator-lunge at me - this time avoiding further bloodshed, fortunately. Ironically, this dog does NOT have a caution written on her chart. And this is the very worst kind of Rottie, the kind that wags happily and smiles at you, but will lunge at you in deadly earnest at the slightest provocation - without even the warning of a lifted lip or a growl, and will keep at it over and over again, despite the owner's correction. There's something creepily reptilian about this, despite the fact that the dog physically resembles a small, fat and extremely ill-tempered black bear.

 

After that, the other two dogs - one of which was another caution dog - are sweetness and light. Both are males, both are mixes, both are trim, and both are vaccinated in a matter of seconds. I go inside with A Look on my face.

 

"Uh-oh... what happened?" asks Jennifer.

"Well, two people got bit, but neither of them was me," I tell her. "You might want to put a caution on Maggie's chart. She's the one who did the biting."

 

I stroll on back to Treatment to dispose of my syringes. "How'd it go?" asks Dr. M.

"Could've used that sniper," I say. He bursts out laughing, but as I am not covered in blood, he goes off chuckling into surgery.

 

Y'know, when I went to vet school, they didn't say anything about wanting us to have skills that would make us elligible for guest spots on "The Crocodile Hunter." But maybe they should have.

 

 

[aaaand now back to your regularly scheduled programming.]

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Well, there ARE days when I think I should get hazardous duty pay, but most of the patients are NOT like that. Most of the clients are great, too.

 

BTW, I wasn't the world's biggest fan of high school chem either - it was okay, but kinda boring (except for that thing when my lab partner and I set our experiment on fire that one time!) :rolleyes: For me, chem didn't get to be really fun til I hit organic. THAT was a kick in the pants.

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Originally posted by RaisingRiver:

They are called Pit Bull Terriers. They are a Terrier, not an attack dog.

 

I've had a few dogs get a bit rough and pin my BC pup - but not in an aggressive way, just dominant. So I shoo away the dog and go somewhere else in the park.

 

I give it a second as my pup is pretty good at defending herself, she will snap if the other dog is too obnoxious (I think she will be fairly dominant when she's done being a pup) But if it looks like my pup is too pinned and can't right herself, I will go intervene. I don't wait until she cries - afterall, she looks to me for protection.

Exactly ,today I took Tex to a dog park in pearland and right when we walked into the park a chow and his pals started pinning him down and I got tex away and went to the other corner then the other dog started to be nice.He was the fastest dog there even faster than the other border collie who was a year older and tex is only 6 months!!
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