Please read this response by our wonderful dog behaviorist, Rebecca Lawson. Very true and very informative regarding pitbulls. After digesting this article, I realized that one of the things I admired was the authors honesty about his struggles with his own pit bull. Too often I feel people are on either end of the spectrum of the pit bull debate----either all pit bulls are bad or theyre victims that can do no wrong. The truth is theyre dogs, and like all dogs---even the most trusted family pet----they can act aggressively or bite under the right circumstances. A dog that bites is not necessarily aggressive or a bad dog. Dogs have limited means of communicating, especially with humans, and dog owners have a responsibility to learn about canine body language, care, and training (as the author does), in order to help their dogs avoid situations where they feel aggression is the appropriate response. Sadly, this article appeared on FB in conjunction with another article about a pit bull that attacked three family members. Many people were outraged by the misinformation and negative portrayal of pit bulls in that article. Yet, what interested me was that some of the people who posted most vociferously about that article I know to own unneutered male pit bulls, which makes them hippocritical and part of the problem, in my opinion. One of the most important ways people can help pit bulls---and rescue dogs in general---is by reducing overpopulation through spaying and neutering. The argument that someone is a responsible dog owner and wont allow their dog to reproduce is merely self-serving since, a) no one can control their dog 100% of the time, and b) every time someone appears in public with and unneutered dog, willingly or unwillingly, they communicate to other dog owners, many of whom are not responsible, that its okay not to neuter your pet. Surely these people know that if everyone acted as they do, the overpopulation of dogs would be far worse. If people are truly outraged by the unjust treatment of pit bulls, they should set an example by not only spaying and neutering their pets, but training them to be good canine citizens. Im frequently out in public these days training my recently adopted pit bull, Gremlin, and Im surprised by how many people ask me what kind of dog he is, or if hes a lab mix---I guess because hes black. Theres nothing else remotely lab-looking about him. I can only assume that people dont readily identify him as a pit bull because he is calm and well-behaved, and this thwarts their expectations of that breed. Its sad and frustrating, but with every person who meets Gremlin and sees what calm, obedient pets pit bulls can be, I feel I do a little bit to reverse the negative stereotypes---certainly more than I would by just ranting about them on FB.
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 20:46:25 +0000
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