A Pit came after my dogs today...?

Question

We were at the dog park when we came across a lady with two Pits. At the same time 2 Rotties, a Rhodesian Ridgeback, a Black and Tan Coonhound and a couple mutts caught up with us also. Everything went very well, all the dogs were loose and getting along great (with a growl here and there of course). The two Pits were very friendly and not playing any more aggressively then the Coonhound pup who hadn't learned good manners yet (as her owner stated). Everyone went their separate ways and about an hour later my two were swimming in the river when the one Pit came flying out of the field and plowed into the water going after my Lab mix.

Those of you who know me know that I have nothing against Pits, but I'm wondering where this outburst came from....

My dogs did nothing to provoke her and she completely took them by surprise when she attacked.

Everyone is fine and the Pit gave up quickly and proceeded to swim herself, but I'm wondering what the heck that attack was all about??

I was hoping to hear something other then "Pits are evil", but thanks. I guess maybe I'll ask somewhere that I might get an educated answer.

Liberty....great suggestion, but my Lab mix is not the norm. She doesn't really care to "retrieve" anything. We tried numerous ways to get her interested, but she just doesn't find any fun in the game of fetch. My JRT mix loves fetch, but also gets bored with it very quickly. At the dog park there's no point in even bringing toys. They just want to run, swim and hunt the squirrels!

Answer 1

Pits are not naturaly evil it is the owner and the reason everyone is so afraid of them is because they are so strong and have the capibility of killing you but they won't do it just because they want to. people choose them as fighting dogs because of this. I think it is soooo wrong that people take advantage of this.

Answer 2

It may have been re-directed predation which can happen to any dog (even cats). Here's a possible scenario:

The pit bull was chasing a squirrel and it ran up a tree. That was annoying. Just then the pit bull spotted your dog and, without stopping at the squirrel, continued into the water and gave chase.

Or re-directed aggression - Could go like this:

The pit bull was playing roughly with another dog out of sight and was getting fed up. Just then it spotted your dog and, still in an agitated state, came after your dog.

Unfortunately, you might not know what happened to set off the pit bull. Something may have pushed it beyond its limit out of your sight and control.

Answer 3

Was the pit showing "aggressive" body language, like tail up right, hackles raised, stiff body? A lot of times, loud, "fight like" behavior (minus the above mentined signs) is actually "play behavior." Dog play mimicks fighting a lot of times.

If she "gave up" quickly, and proceeded to swim on her own, than I doubt this was a full fledge figh on her behalf.

However, it's because of owners like this that so many problems for the breed arise. As a pit bull owner myself, I am aware that dog parks are "off limits," (off the books, of course) because you never know what or who will trigger a fight, and then BAM! The pitbull "just snapped," "evil pit bull attacks again."

The truth is, pit bulls, no matter how well trained, do not belong in dog parks. Because most of the other dogs are not well trained, and most owners do not know aggressive/problem dog body language that can help avoid potential problems.

I'm glad that all the dogs are fine, and hope you continue to have wondeful times at the dog park. However, if you come across pitbull owners at a dog park, they are not being responsible owners of the breed. Dog aggression (or animal aggression for that matter) is common in pit bull breeds, and can not be "trained out" of them.

Also, aggression can show at any age, although most likely between 18 months and 2 years, when a pit bull reaches maturity. Even littermates that are raised together can get upset for one reason or another, and then fights occur.

Anyway, good luck on finding educated answers. Most people are out to kill the pitbull, and do not give any rational thought to what may have actually happened.

Off topic, I know...but you mentioned having a lab mix...have you seen the "hyperdog" tennis ball launcher? We take this out to the lake with my dad's lab and my Heinz 57, and they LOVE it!

http://www.libertydogtraining.com

Answer 4

All dogs are the same. pit bulls and many mastiffs are strong and aggressive dogs. not only pit bulls love to fight, but almost all mastiffs. I tried to rescue a 6 month German Sheppard a few months ago and the dog was fine when i first found him for a few hours but when I came home with him and he saw i already owned other dogs he came at me and bit my foot very evil and started to surround me like a wolf!! I get out of this situation and had to bring him to my friends house. All dogs are like this! All animals fight in nature. If your a passive person never get big aggressive dogs. If you walk your dogs keep an open mind and eyes open! If you see a strong big dog of any race just go around the corner. Avoid problem situations! I ow 2 Rhodesian ridge-backs and 1 female boxer. all 3 love to be dominant. And fight whenever they can with strange dogs, i just avoid them to meet other dominant dogs.

Answer 5

Ok I am trying to think of why this happened as well, do you think that the pit was just showing possession over the water? Like this is my swimming hole and don't you forget it? I am like you I have nothing against pits and don't necessary think it is because she is a pit that this happened. There was some kind of dogie message she was sending here you said she proceeded to swim which makes me wonder if she was just telling your dogs that they were on her turf. I just hope it don't happen again! Did the pet owner see what happened? I am assuming that he or she did You got me on this one sorry!

Answer 6

I would not ask the question "why" with seriousness when it comes to dog aggression. Isn't this kind of incident what we label as unpredictable? Many responsible pitbull owners understand that dog aggression is part of that breed's temperament, as is being loving and soft with humans.

Here's my guess. Some dogs instinctively prey on weaker animals and weaker dogs (easy prey). Maybe your dogs appeared vulnerable when they were in the water. They may have been fast in the dogpark, but swimming made them appear slow-moving. That triggered the pitbull's instinct to go after easy prey. Then the pitbull got in the water, attacked, and soon realized she herself was just as slow (if not slower) in the water and that's when she gave up.

Answer 7

Sounds like an isolated incident. If you frequent public dog runs, you'll find that there will always be good days (when you and your dog have a great time) and bad days (where you and your dog have a lousy time).
We stopped going to the public dog runs in our area because it was evident that there were folks who didn't responsibly tend to their dog's behavior. There were people who enjoyed seeing their dog try to hump other dogs (I guess they enjoyed seeing their dog appear to be dominant). Then there were folks who just wouldn't clean up after their dog. I wonder if they ever had their dog innoculated.
I hope the public dog runs in your area are nicer, and the visitors act better than than those in my area.

Answer 8

The explanation is simple, the dog is dominance aggressive and wanted to re-establish her rank with your dogs. You said she gave up quickly and everything was fine, thats dominance aggression.... your dog/s must have submitted and so she broke off her attack. The reason she probably came running and went after your dogs is because earlier when there was alot of dogs around she didnt have the chance to focus her efforts on just one dog and didnt get to satisfactorily establish her rank with your dogs specifically, so when she smelled them or saw them again she immediately wanted to resolve her dominance over them. I struggle with the same problem with my dog, not because of his breed since he is a mutt (with maybe GSD, Husky etc who knows what else) but because of his personality, he is a natural born leader dog, an Alpha... he starts fights with almost every dog he meets with no provocation, he simply approaches them all with dominance aggression if they submit all is fine, if they dont submit and retaliate a real dog fight ensues because both are striving for the top social rank. He does it all the time, even just like you described, he will meet a dog and be ok and then the next time he sees it he has to act like a jerk and reienforce his dominance usually by running at them full tilt and whooping their buts a little to remind them whos boss... he does it all the time with my sisters female dog who he gets along with great and plays with, but when he first sees her again he has to dominate her aggressively every time before he will relax and play again. Its just the way Alpha dogs are, its their nature to constantly remind their subjects of their place. It becomes dangerous when one Alpha meets another, you should warn that dog owner of possible dominance aggression in her dog and tell her to be careful that she doesnt meet another alpha because they will really fight.

Answer 9

UGH! I hate loose dogs!!!

Fenced dog parks are ok if someone wants to do that. Not MY dogs though.

Its a bit scary to have dogs charge you, isn't it? Doesn't matter the breed, I don't like a Chi charging either.

Answer 10

Oh my, that must have been frightful for you and your dog. That is my nightmare, when I take my dogs out of a walk, to come across a Pit bull. I love dogs and it is hard for me to say this, but I think those dogs should be banned. The ones alive let them live out their lives, but they must be muzzled and on a leash. The city I live in has banned them.