Saw Something On The News Today That REALLY Surprised Me......?

Question

There was an animal shelter on the news today that said that they don't adopt Pitbulls like they do other dogs. Instead, if they receive a Pitbull into their custody, then they immediately euthanize it because they feel it's safer for families. I was wondering why they would do that. I know Pitbulls have bad reputations, but I also know that 9 times out of 10, their agressiveness and tendency to fight, is due to those responsible for them. In spite of what many people might say, I don't think that any dog is a "born killer" or born agressive....I feel a lot of it has to do with environment. But anyway, what do you think about this policy? What if the reason they're in the shelter is not that they were agressive, but that the owner just couldn't afford to take care of it or didn't want it anymore? Do many shelters have this same policy regarding Pitbulls?

Answer 1

Many shelters do that because they consider it a risk to adopt the dog out, even though I believe that it is more of a risk adopting out a Cocker than a Pit. I think that the policy is not affective, and that they should be behavior tested before they do anything about the dog. If any breed of dog does not pass it should be either rehabilitated or euthanized.

Answer 2

That's horrible. They must be a poorly informed or very biased shelter to off the bat euthanize all pits. Are you sure they don't do temperament testing to see if they would even make good pets?

I agree that no animal is a born killer, and I find it's in genetics and environment. Idiots who breed aggressive dogs with other aggressive dogs will get puppies that have the genetics to be less friendly, but the way they grow up and are trained is a huge factor. I think that's a terrible policy and it's not at all in the best interest of the animals - which is what shelters SHOULD be for. Some of those pits could have made perfect, gentle integrated members of a family, but they'll never be able to see that day because the day they enter those shelter doors, they're killed.

That doesn't make sense at all to me. The Toronto Humane Society, the largest one near me, has a ton of pit bulls and 'bull'-like mixes, none of them euthanized without considering the quality of life for the dog. Because, as crazy as it sounds, they care about the dogs! At the Niagara Falls Humane Society, a smaller but closer shelter to me, when they do have pit bulls, they're at a different price than other dogs and the staff make sure to inform potential owners of the proper laws regarding pit bulls in Ontario (as they've been banned here - which I find ridiculous) and teach the dogs to wear a muzzle as best they can before adoption. Since new puppies are no longer allowed here, any puppies that wind up in Ontario are sent to the US no matter what has to be done - anything to avoid putting them down.

Answer 3

That is true for the most part in my city as well and breed specific legislation is all the rage. It's disgusting imo because the media has gotten on the bandwagon and reported the horror stories sometimes not even sure the dog is a pit bull but maybe it sorta looks like one..
It has caused the breed to be looked at as if it were the canine equivalent of Frankenstein. Some monster breed that can be gentle and then suddenly break people in half.
I own a Pit mix, mostly Pit and she is the sweetest, gentlest and safest dog around kids I have ever seen. She will literally hug people and she is so sweet and intelligent.
This b.s. about bsl is about punishing a breed for a few screwballs that have tendencies to abuse and fight these dogs because they have a powerful bite. So do Chows, Rottweilers, Akita's, Newfoundlands, Saint Bernards, Cattle dogs, and so on and so forth and they aren't banned..yet.
There are more stories about heroic pits than maulers but you won't find those stories in the media at large.
An example of the bad rep. Pit's have gotten, there was an incident in public the other day where a chow mix dog got off it's leash and attacked and mauled a six month old pit bull puppy.
One woman started beating the Pit Bull who was trying to defend itself from the attack and she was saying how these dogs should all be euthanized, they are killer dogs, and blah blah blah, even though the dog was the one that was attacked, mauled AND beaten by HER. I am sure everyone around that didn't see what happened only heard "Pit Bulls are KILLERS! and saw blood and heard the sound of a dog fight without knowning what happened. Then they went home with a fear for the breed. A few people in the know intervened and rescued the dog from her and from the attacking dog and took him to a Vet.
Unfortunately, in my state, you can beat a pit bull to death and make it justifiable just because of people's impressions of the breed.
It's ignorance based.
Miami does not allow it's citizens to own Pit Bull's or any dog that appears to have Pit in it. What Miami needs to do is to penalize the drug dealers and dog fighters that own them and teach them to be fighters and improperly trained guard dogs.
They need to protect the breed instead of punish it because of idiots.
YES. Alot of shelters have this same policy of euthanizing Pit Bulls or even Pit Mixes.
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Answer 4

I live in Michigan in the U.S. and most shelters around here LOVE pit bulls, and try hard to place them into the right family. But Animal Control does NOT adopt pit bulls out. If a pit bull is picked up, if it is not claimed within 3 days it is euthanized. I think this is insane. I agree with you that a dogs behavior has to do with it's environment, and how it is raised. Every dog (who has been temperment tested, and Not aggressive) should get an equal opportunity to be adopted. A few of my co-workers have faked ownership of a few pit bulls on there last day at Animal Control. We had to give the wonderful dogs a chance to be adopted. And the few that we've saved now have loving homes.

Skyhoss had a good point. They might put down pit bulls so they don't end up back in the fighting ring. But most rescues around my area try to prevent this by putting the adopter through a more strict adoption process when it comes to pit bulls. They require past information from vet clinics, home visits, things like that. The adopter also has to agree that the rescue group is able to come and check on the dog in the furture, to make sure it is not being subjected to any kind of abuse.

Answer 5

Alot of shelters have this policy but you need to understand that it's not just the breed but the people who may adopt these dogs that created the policy.
People cannot be trusted to give these dogs loving homes.Instead they use them as bait for the ones they already have in training to fight.Or they abuse and neglect them by leaving them in the yard on a chain 24/7.It's better the dog is put down than be forced to live it's life in misery don't you agree?
If people would stop breeding pits and flooding the market with pups then there would'nt be so many put down.

Answer 6

I used to work in a shelter and I learned a very important thing on Pits Rotts and other "fighting" dogs. All dogs are a mixture of nature AND nurture. You can take a dog that has been treated wonderfully its whole life and it can just have aggressive genes, and it will be dangourous. You can take a dog with great genes treat it horribly and it will still be good. There is a mixture. You have problems with puppy mills. That is where dangourous dogs come from. Someone breeds a pitt to fight, then sells one of the puppies into a home. Those people breed that dog too and then sell those puppies, thus you have a line of dogs with aggresive genes in homes and then dangourous dogs. You can temperment test a dog and see if it is aggressive or not. Unfortunatly a lot of shelters dont want to risk it and that is why they put them down. It is a mixed deal. You need to protect the public, but you dont want to just put them down for the heck of it. it mostly depends on the area you live in if they just put them down or not. I think lower income areas tend to have more fighting dogs and less tolerance. There is alwyas a chance to change it if yo dont like it. Step up and take some actions! See what you can do to change it in your area.

Answer 7

I don't agree with destroying a dog just because it is a certain breed. It is fact though some dogs are naturally more aggressive. I have an Akita and he does fine with most dogs but any Dog that Does not except him as the leader of the so called pack might be in for a scrape. He has had many such problems with Pitbulls at the park. I do not raise him that way it is Genetic.

Answer 8

I think that some animal shelters, they test the aggressiveness of the dog....any dog. I don't like the idea of put any animal to sleep but if they fail the test, the animal shouldn't be given for adoption. And I agree with you that NO dog is born to be a killer, is the person that have them who turns them that way. I personally wouldn't adopt a pit bull ever, or any other aggressive breed of dog by nature, just because any dog can snap any time, and having four kids...will not take the risk.

Answer 9

on my local news in Toledo, OH there was a story this week about a couple month old pitbull who chewed off a 4 year old boy's foot. The boy was paralized from the waist down with spina bitfua? and did not know what was going on. They just arrested the mom because they said that it would have taken forever for the dog to chew off the leg and obviously the child was not being paid attention to. But they euthanized the puppy anyways even though i do not think it would have been that bad had the child's mother been paying attention. Sad

Answer 10

I think it is so sad for the dogs. I can see the shelters side of it. Which doesn't mean I agree with it. Stupid people ruin it for everyone. It's strange, Boston Terrier where originally breed for fighting. They were double their size that they are now. So does that mean they are bad too? My boston has the mouth of a pit, only smaller. You can see the bite pattern are the same. I just wanted to prove the point that it is ridiculous to have that stereotype of pits. If I had bigger house with a fenced back yard I woud not hestitate on adopting a pit. I am glad our shelter doesn't kill immediately.