Any ideas on protecting from pit bull attacks?

Question

My neighbors (whom I get along with- but we aren't close) has two pit bull dogs that literally broke through my privacy fence and KILLED the duck that I bought for my son for Easter. The duck was 3 days old when I got it about 7 days before Easter. So the duck was just over 1 month old and the neighbor's dogs broke through my fence and killed "Ducky". I am now concerned that since the dogs have the taste of blood, and that they ATTACKED, that my son could now be in danger of getting attacked by their dogs. Any ideas on what I could or should do about this? It happened Monday, 5-14, 2007.

Answer 1

You should be worried.

Where I am if you registered the dogs in time (before the ban) it is required that they be in a kennel with a lid inside a fenced in yard or on lead under owner control. Check your laws and make them enforce them!!!

You never know if their prey drive is high enough to go through the fence for the duck they will do it for a squirrel no matter who or what is in your yard.

I love pits but I do feel the laws need to be enforced and I believe the responsible pit owners will follow the rules.

Answer 2

Why do you think that because the dog tasted a ducks blood he's gonna go on a killing spree? If someone eats a rare steak, do you think that will turn them into a murdered? Pit Bull breeds have a high prey drive. What those dogs did was only natural to them. An attack on an animal doesn't mean the dogs will attack a human. I'm sorry about what happened to your son's duck, but it wasn't the dogs fault. It was your neighbors fault for not properly confining or supervising her dogs. I wouldn't worry too much about the dogs harming your son, unless they are actually human agressive, which is unlikely. Just tell your neighbors what happened. Tell them they need to confine or supervise their dogs better from now on. Have the neighbors fix the fence and talk to them about investing in kennels or tie outs (strong chains with thick nylon tie-out collars) for when they cannot watch the dogs. Maybe even ask them to replace "Ducky" when they get the fence fixed and their dogs confined. Good Luck.

Answer 3

This is a very serious matter. Has your neighbor done anything, offer to buy you another duck, apologized, whatever? I think the police should be involved. His pit bulls escaped his control and broke into your yard, and it COULD have been your son that might have been killed. I can't stress how serious this is. I know that sometimes it's a very fine line to try to avoid having unpleasant relations with a neighbor but you not only have a cause of legal action for property damage (your duck) but for severe emotional distress, caused by your neighbor not being able to control or contain his dogs. Either he builds a dog-proof fence and gives you some ironclad guarantee that this will NEVER happen again, or you should call the police and also consult an attorney. It is not the first time a child has been killed by pit bulls and you should be very, very concerned. For the time being, your son should be equipped with mace and shown how to use it. Sorry, maybe I'm over reacting but this is really awful.

Answer 4

This is EXACTLY why pit bulls get a bad rap. They are terriers, thus having a very high prey drive. They also have a genetic disposition for dog aggression, and also small animal aggression.

Nevertheless,to me, this situation seems less of a pit bull problem and more of an irresponsible owner problem. No dog (regardless of breed) should be allowed to roam the neighborhood and harass others and their pets. Please understand that pit bulls are NOT human aggressive, and their attack on your pet was a combination of genetics and poor/irresponsible ownership. This incident should not serve as an indicator that the pit bulls will attack your son next. Most pit bulls have an extreme affection for children.

However, I would caution against allowing your son to be unsupervised outside if there is a possibility of the dogs escaping again, which there probably is, as pit bulls are notorious escape artists. Regardless of breed, any dog that has attacked another animal is obviously poorly socialized, probably not trained, and obviously not under control, and until your neighbor has assured you that he is 100% able to contain and control his dogs, you need to take precautions to ensure the safety of your son and any other pets you may have. It definitetly sucks that your and your family have to rearrange your lives because of the irresponsible owner; however, just to reiterate, pit bulls are NOTORIOUS for escaping out of all different types of enclosures. So if this is a first and isolated incident, perhaps you would be willing to work with your neighbor and reach some sort of agreement about how the dogs will be controlled.

Even still, a call to Animal Control is a must, because these pit bulls should be evaluated to determine if they pose a further threat.

Best of luck, and PLEASE do not let a true misrepresenation of the breed sway your opinion of all pit bulls (and like breeds).

Answer 5

Pit Bulls are normal dogs, they attacked your sons duck because that's what dogs do. Really all you can do it talk to your neighbor. Maybe even agree to build a stronger fence, ya'll could split it. Reporting it isn't really all that important, but it would help if int he future for some reason they attacked you or your son. But the fact that they now have the taste of blood has nothing to do with it. I breed and train Pure breed labs for hunting and they get the taste of blood everyday, and have never attacked. If the two dogs have never done anything to you or your son in the past, then you rhave nothing to worry about. Just go talk to your neighbor, and maybe designate a room in the house for pets like that, or when the pet is outside, make sure you are there with it.

Answer 6

First, let's seperate the issue here.

The problem you are having is NOT a 'pitbull' problem. It's a large dog problem. Large dogs killing small animals is a very common issue. Dogs are animals. It is in there nature to chase things, and kill them. Cats do it to mice and birds, dogs do it to squirrels and, unfortunately, ducks....

Also, dogs do not get a 'taste' for blood, and suddenly attack things. That is a misconception. You should not be any more scared for your or your sons wellbeing now than you were before.

If I were in your scenerio, I would follow the following course of action.

First, politely let your neighbors know what happened, if they don't already. Have the fence secured, either at their cost, or yours, depending on whether or not the dogs caused any damage. Remember - This problem is their fault for letting the dogs loose, but in your case, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of reaction. Securing your fence so no dog can get in will stop ANY dog from entering your yard.

I would also ask to meet the dogs, and I would spend a little time with them, allowing you, your son, and the dogs to get acquainted. This should help calm your fear of the dogs being blood hungry.

I am willing to guess that these two dogs were just being dogs. I lived on a farm growing up with Labs, and there were many times where they would come back with dead chickens, squirrels, or yes, even ducks. But they never once went after a person.

I now live in a neighborhood, and own a pitbull. I have seen her go after squirrels and birds in the yard, but she is also best friends with the children in the neighborhood, and no one is afraid of her attacking someone.

Let me know if you have any other questions...

- Jared

Answer 7

Report this to the police and Animal Control. This is serious. Any dog that attacks someone's pet while it's in its own yard is dangerous. I don't care if it's a golden retriever or a poodle. It's dangerous and needs to be reported.

I own a pit bull (rescued) who is very sweet - but then I socialize him, train him and insist on good behavior at all times. We just got a flock of baby chicks for the farm and while he'll sniff one if I hold it for him to sniff - he generally ignores them and leaves them alone.

Ok that said, Let's talk about attacking. What the dogs did was to hunt prey (baby duck) they don't know the difference between a wild animal and your pet duck - they all behave the same so they're all prey.

Same with children. Children act like prey - run around, stop, run some more, change direction etc. To these particular dogs, they are seeing prey - not a human child.

Aside: My husband and I visited a wolf park when our son was a small child. We were told to keep our hand on him at all times because children act like prey and the park managers didn't want the wolves to start to stalk/track children. Remember dogs and wolves are so closely related that they have fertile offspring. So this applies to dogs too - children act like prey.

So take it from me, a devoted pit bull lover/owner etc.: Forget talking to neighbor about Ducky and your concerns. He's a boor and an ogre. No matter what he says, Report this to Animal Control as well as the police. This can be more serious than you realize.

Do not let your son in the backyard unsupervised until neighbor does something about his dangerous dogs.

Keep calling the authorities until neighbor is FORCED to do something about his dogs.

What burns me is that this is just one more example of people not socializing and training their dogs to be friendly and nice. Sadly, it's the dogs themselves who will pay the price of their owner not being responsible. Poor doggies.

Answer 8

There is no protection from a "red zone" pit bull attack, truly. I doubt the dogs have the taste for blood now. Have you ever read Cesar's Way by Cesar Millan (a.k.a. The Dog Whisperer)? Try writing/emailing him with your concerns. Unless these dogs are real killers who have killed many animals or people, there could still be hope. Talk to your neighbors about your concerns as well. They might listen to you.

Answer 9

I am so sorry your son;s duck was killed. What a terrible way to die.

ANY pit bull attacks need to be reported, to the police AND Animal Control..

Your son can be in danger.

YOU can be in danger.

ANd frankly, the attacks need to be reported -- from a legal point of view -- so if (G-d Forbid) something ELSE happens, you can say - "I had already reported these pit bulls before!" and your report WILL already be on record.

Another thing you can do right now - get a sturdy TALL chain link fence that they CANNOT jump over OR climb -- with a gate that closes securely.

Answer 10

Dogs don't attack more or get more vicious because they taste blood.. Dogs used to eat raw meat in the wild.. If it made them more aggressive, they would never have become domesticated..

The fact that they came over and killed the duck tho suggests that they are allowed to chase small animals..
I am not going to say because they are pitbulls that you have to worry, but dogs generally that like to kill small animals, are allowed to or encouraged to... Will chase things that run. You need to teach your son what to do around those dogs.. Not to run etc..

BUT ur neighbour has a responsibility to keep his dogs in his own yard and not allow them to kill Ducky... I would be concerned about getting the neighbour to control his dogs... If he isn't going to, then you have to call someone.. Unless your kid likes to sit in the house all day ... And doesn't ride his bike, or run and play...