Today I watched a documentary called Beyond The Myth and it triggered me to finally update my blog (it's been a looooong time). This movie deals with how difficult breed specific legislation is on a certain breed (in this case Pit Bulls) and I have to admit it really got me thinking about my block on the breed.
When I was in my late teens and early 20s I was obsessed with Pit Bulls/ American Staffordshire Terriers and Chihuahuas. I thought Pits were the most beautiful dogs, with their sleek muscular bodies and their huge smiling jaws. In fact, I ended up with a Pit mix without even realizing it, until she gave me that smile as an adult. She was the most loving, sweet, gentle dog I have ever owned, yet after I had to give her up and I began living in the world without her face to remind me how wonderful these dogs can be I began to pay more attention to the news and less attention to the breed itself.
I have never been against Pit Bulls at all, but I do believe they can be extremely dangerous when owned by the wrong people. What I tend to forget is that ANY breed can be dangerous when living with a careless or uneducated human. My other breed obsession, as I stated earlier, was the Chihuahua, which is actually known to be a very aggressive breed. Somehow we all forget this because they are so tiny, but imagine a small child being attacked by a small dog...not so easy to forget now, is it? Breed is important in choosing a dog for your family, but the way you raise a dog is so much MORE important.
Irresponsible dog owners seem to be the reason why we see these news stories about children, adults and other dogs being attacked and killed by Pit Bulls. So often I see that in a Pit Bull attack the dog was not altered (fixed) or a child was left unattended with a dog who was known to be aggressive (seriously, WTF is wrong with people in that situation????). As this documentary points out there are many other news stories that don't even mention the dog breed in the headline if there has been a dog attack when the attacker was not a Pit Bull. The breed is really singled out, which is not fair.
Over the past few years, especially the past year and a half, I have really had to struggle with the side of me that wants to rescue dogs. When I walk through a shelter and see all of the pit bulls I see beautiful dogs, but my brain suddenly starts saying: nope, nope, nope as we pass by. I now have a child at home and I don't think I'll bring an adult of any breed into the picture until my child is grown. Now if I saw a Pit Bull puppy up for adoption and the temperament was right, I have to say it would be hard to resist. I would definitely have that dog altered and I would be first in line for training classes (as with any breed of puppy I bring home), but I think if i really did my research on the breed and I had the mindset to raise a terrier, this breed seems amazing.
One of the most poignant discussions in Beyond The Myth was regarding irresponsible owners. This is where lawmakers need to focus their attention. If your dog is caught wandering, no matter WHAT breed, there should be a steep penalty. If you do not spay or neuter your dog and you don't have a breeder's license (again, no matter what breed), there should be an even steeper penalty. Backyard breeding is the reason why so many Pit Bulls end up in the shelters each year. These people need to be stopped. I'm sure the enforcement won't be easy, but there should be a task force or something in each county to stop these "breeders" from existing. All dogs should be licensed. If you can't afford the fee, don't get a dog (it's less than $20 where I live). Any dog attack should be reported to animal control, no matter what the person whose dog attacked says ("My dog's never done that before", "You provoked him", "Please don't make this a big deal - this is the first time he/she has ever done something like this"). That person needs to be held responsible for the attack happening, because it is the human's fault. If you own a dog it should always be in your control and you should not leave it unattended with children, no matter the breed.
Unfortunately I think the Pit Bull will always have a bad reputation because many bad people own them as status symbols. You don't see many happy stories about the service dogs or the dogs who visit sick children to comfort them, but the Pit Bull is actually very well suited for these types of jobs. I hope people will watch this documentary and come away with the knowledge that any dog is capable of hurting someone, it's all in how we treat the animals. Breeds should not be singled out, even if they seem to be a good target (those jaws sure do look powerful, but watch the movie and you'll see studies have been done showing their jaws are not as strong as some other breeds). As with any documentary I do have to remind myself that these people are passionate about the breed, so some favoritism is going to be apparent, but why would they be so passionate unless they have had good experiences with the breed?
I don't recommend you walk up to the next pit you see and give it a hug (unless it's your dog) - in fact don't do this with any strange dog - just keep in mind that the bad reputation doesn't mean the breed is all bad. Oh, and just because a breed has a great reputation doesn't mean it can't go the other way. Do your research and never get a dog you aren't going to be comfortable with. And watch this movie. It is very informative.
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