Another pitbull question?

Question

OK i am an american pitbull owner and I take him every where! I think its good experiance for him to get out and meet new people,also for us to bond. The other day I taken him to the laundry mat with me I usually have him outside we play frizbie or ball. To kill time while wash is washing. It was too hot so i took him inside. People were afriad of him as usual so i took him back outside.This lady comes up to me and says you are just waiting for a law suit. you dont know what he is thinking he could bite anyone. my dog is around alot of people and dogs he will not bite anyone. plus Im there. Why do people have such a attitude when it come to the pitbulls. Like its every single pitbull thats mean. It makes me so mad!

Answer 1

Because people are ignorant and don't bother to understand the whole story before forming prejudices, that is why so many of us are deal with the issue of breed specific legislation and why it is such a bad thing. IT just re-enforces the idea that it is the dog that is bad and not the owners. I deal with the same thing because my girl is 28" tall(at her shoulder) and 100lbs. I constantly have people steer their children away from her or grasp their purses closer when they walk by us (like my dog is really going to mug them). They are afraid of what they don't fully understand. Also, some people just don't like dogs or have had bad experiences with dogs. You just educate those that you can and ignore those you can't. However, you should be aware that most places in the states have laws against taking your pet into public buildings...check your local laws.

Answer 2

People who haven't ever been exposed to pitbulls have a very SMALL mind. We have a pitbull puppy and my parents have a pitbull and we have never had any issues nor have the dogs ever been aggressive. Heck we have a cat too and our puppy loves to play with the cat. But Im sure as he gets older he'll eat the cat too *insert sarcasm* Pitbulls just get a bad wrap from media and now the whole Vick thing with the fighting. Also many of the news peeps are not the smartest when it comes to dogs and automatically assume that if a dog bites someone its a pitbull. They need to take a class and perhaps learn all the different breeds of dogs before they go labeling everything in site a pit. lol I think you should continue taking your dog everywhere you go. It obviously sounds like a friendly dog. Who gives a flip if some woman is afraid - people are just always out to sue others. Jeez.

Answer 3

I hear you! I don't own pitbulls but I have 2 Dobermans. I also have a Boxer and a Ridgeback and out of all 4, the most aggressive one is the sweet looking Boxer!!
My Dobies are the sweetest dogs in the world but people cross the street to get away from them.
I think that pitbulls are judged as bad because of a few bad apples. As a whole, the breed is awesome, but because a few are mishandled and bite, they are all labled as killers.
Also, I think the news adds to this. Anytime a dog bites, they say it's a pitbull. I saw one news story about a dog bite and the dog was clearly a Rottweiler mix, but they said it was a pitbull!! 90% of people can't even correctly identify a pitbull yet they think they know all about them. I have had people ask me if my Ridgeback is a pitbull, and she is clearly not.
I feel your pain, but just be patient with these poor souls and try to educate them. Hopefully the good ones like yours will help to teach people that just because it;s a pitbull does not mean it's going to bite.
I was walking my dogs on the beach the other day and this pitbull came running at us. All he did was sniff us and then sit down by me to be petted! What a KILLER!!

Answer 4

I know exactly how you feel. I mean I have three pitbulls and the guy me and my husband rent our house from said we could have outside dogs. Well our next door neighbor is never home, he only comes home every other week or month, because it's his lake house. Well one week the guy let his daughter from up north stay in his lake house. She had a child and the child was playing outside. Our dogs, which we've let roam around the neighborhood and have never had a problem with because everyone else in the neighborhood lets their dogs roam around, saw her child. One of the dogs barked and the child took off running and screaming. That is one thing you never do around a dog, especially one which is already curious about who you are. When someone runs and screams from a dog it's gonna get excited and chase you. Well next thing I know that lady went to another neighbor's house(who happened to be the Aunt of the guy we're renting from) and told her that our dogs were pitbulls and the most vicious type of dog ever. Of course that lady then got upset and called our landlord. So then he said that we had to pin our dogs up at all times. What upset me is that the Aunt has a huge doberman that comes into our yard all the time and plays with our dogs. When he's not in our yard, our dogs were over there playing. Well the woman had never said anything about our dogs playing with each other until that woman told her a story about how a pit killed her dog from up north where she lives. After that the Aunt accused our dogs of coming over there and attacking her dog. Now her dog comes into our yard and our dogs are in kennels most of the day because me and my husband work. It's not fair and it really upsets me how people can be so cruel and closed minded. How people can hear about what other dogs have done and put that same rap on my dogs. It breaks my heart, but I will never give up my dogs. They are the sweetest most playful babies I have ever had, no matter what they may say!

Answer 5

I have 2 pits & a ger shep mix. We take the pit we've had longer out to festivals, etc. He's a sweetheart. I have a bad leg, so if I have to handle him, I put a halter on him. People think it's a muzzle, even though his mouth is wide open! One of the people who answered before was right. It's the media who are reinforcing the predjudice against pits. They only report attacks, not a friendly pit at a park. That's not news! The last time we were at the park, a toddler came up to pet him. His mother asked if it was OK. He had a bit of sandwich in his hand, so I told her I couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't take the food, but he wouldn't hurt him. He did neither one. He licked the child's face & he laughed. Later on when he was tired (the child) he started to fuss & my pit came over & licked him again to try to comfort him & he laughed again. I contacted the Humane Society about the new pit, because she's not getting along with the others. They gave me some folks to contact about socializing pits & adoption. She's sweet with people, but not other dogs. I'm working with her. She's separated from the others for now. We need some GOOD press! You'd think the Humane Society would help get the word out.

Answer 6

The general public responds to Pit Bulls and similar type breeds based on a variety of reasons.

They have been conditioned to think that all Bully-type breeds are dangerous.

They have seen the media hyping the dangers of these dogs and the damage they can cause.

Depending where you live, there may be a large number of ill mannered and untrained dogs.

Irresponsible owners create bad public image for dogs, and especially Bully breeds.

People are making sweeping judgments about a breed or type of dog rather than the individual dog.

We compete with our dogs in UKC and see Pit Bulls all the time that are fantastic working dogs. I think they are the #2 registered breed in UKC.

Here are some links for more information about Pit Bulls:

http://www.pitbullsoforegon.com/faqs.html

http://ukcdogs.com/RegistrationBreeds.htm

http://ukcdogs.com/RegistrationBreeders.htm This page has links to breeders by State for more interesting web pages.

Keep training and socializing and acting as an ambassador of the breed.

Good Luck!

Answer 7

Ok this is a tricky one to discuss without upsetting anyone. I used to be a vet nurse and I can see why people have reason to be scared of these dogs. Pit Bulls were for a long time, primarily used for the kill - hunting them and in recent times, fighting. Many PitBulls are still illegally bred for this cruel purpose. It is highly illegal to breed them, or walk them without a leash as a result. I have siberian huskies and so i too keep mine on a leash - i think the same is said for any dog. Even the tamest dog can turn and bite. For me, besides the fact that sibes can tend to run off when let off the leash, i like to be in full control of my dogs - even though they are very obedient and well trained.

i dont think you should be breaking the law by having your dog off the lead, and i hope he is castrated (so he cant breed and to calm him as with any dog -not to mention that it will keep him safe from prostate cancer) he shoulod also be tattooed or microchipped - AS THIS IS THE LAW!! In fact if your dog ever did run off or get lost if he is not chipped or tattooed and castrated they WILL put him down - it is procedure!!

The lady had no place to say what she said but you need to respect the fear that people immediately feel when nr yr dog and keep him on a leash - an extendable one is fine!!

Hope this helps you understand the matter and deal with it as a responsible dog owner.

Answer 8

I think you should consider the possibility that it wasn't because your dog is a pitbull. This could have happened at the laundramat with any other large breed with an imposing look. Some people are afraid of dogs. Some people think dogs are very dirty and would go crazy if a dog hair landed on their freshly laundered underpants. If a person is afraid of my Bichon Frise, I would not start calling him ignorant. Don't be mad and defensive. Seems like your dog is not the mad and defensive type, and no pitbull victim complex. Just be like him and let it go.

Answer 9

There are a lot of people who know nothing and prove it by opening their mouths. You are doing the correct thing by taking him with you every where. Pitts are a nice, very friendly dog that has to be trained to fight or bite. Watch Animal Police Detroit on animal planet. this is the place that the dogs were first bred for fighting. These animal police run into Pitts every day and they rescue them from idiots that stage dog fights. They euthanize the fighters but they also adopt out lots of Pitts that are great dogs. I feel bad for the good dogs that are gentle and play well with kids, other dogs, and would never think of attacking anything but food dropped on the floor. Have him sit and wait with you inside at the laundry mat, you have a dog that will not hurt anyone and it's too hot for him to be left outside.

Answer 10

Well you just need to watch the news with all the dog bites , the dog fighting and only the pit bulls are mentioned . That's why people are afraid if that breed , my believe is that it's not the dog but the owner who turns a dog into a killing machine and that's why the dog bites little kids or attack other dogs . And it's sad that people heave given the dog a bad reputation and not the the dog himself , a dog is a dog it's just how you raise him/her that's a different story .