Pitbull Terrier

What's your opinion on this marvelous breed of dog? I own four of them. Sasha,Dice,Lykan and Ivan. I have a family of seven and two my siblings are babies. Not only have my dogs never once been agressive with my family, they love them! I wouldn't own any other breed of dog, ever! I do volunteer work at a pitbull rescue www.itsthepits.org. I love the breed! The breed is just surrounded by massive amounts of bad rep and ignorance. It's all about how your raise the animal you have. You can turn any dog into a violent animal, just like human. It's all about the environment you raise them in. One of the reasons pitbulls have a bad image, is because when they do attack, it's very very horrific. They are a very strong breed with a very strong will and determination. When they do attack, it's not going to be a pretty site.

Most of the time, when I walk my dogs people are pretty willing to greet them but, I have actually seen people cross the street, in order to not walk by my dogs. If they only knew they are absolutely loving! I hate when people stereotype the breed and are completely unwilling to give them a chance at all! I get so depressed when I think about all the poor pitbulls being mistreated, due to a bad image and DOGFIGHTING. People who fight any breed of dog, should be taken out back and shot. I can't begin to describe to you the rage I feel when I hear about dogfighting. The images i've seen of this gruesome,cruel "sport" are so heartbreaking. These poor,innocent animals are brought into a world of pure violence and cruelty, when all they want to do is serve a master and be loved. It takes a true monster of a human being to do such things to something so beautiful. People like this, don't even deserve the air that they breathe.

I can't even sleep at night, unless im surrounded by, at least, two of my dogs. I love them so much. As a matter of fact, I would go as far to say that I like my dogs more then most people that I meet. There pure compassion and loyalty is something that I feel alot of humankind has lost. They want nothing more then to make their masters happy, they will never judge you and they would never sell you out for their own gain. A pitbull would give their very own life for you, without even thinking about it. I'm not just a "pitbull guy" I have a very strong bond with dogs and I love them all! My whole life has been surrounded by these beautiful animals! I feel like I have a natural bond with them and I understand them. I have always been able to bond with a dog pretty easily. Pitbulls just happen to be my favorite breed of dog and my favorite animal, I LOVE THEM.




Ivan (white) and Lykan!

reply to post by USMC-oorah


I think Pitbull's are a great breed of dog. I don't have any now, but I did have one about 4 years back, and didn't have one problem with it. I really can not see why people get so afraid or nervous around pitbull's.

I feel dogs are like kids, it's how you raise them. If you abuse or neglect your kids, chances are, they will grow up and abuse and be violent them selfs. The same goes for animals, if you abuse or neglect your dog, chances are they are going to become more aggressive or non-trusting of humans.

I owned a dog of the father breed, an American Bulldog.
Best freakin dog ever..he rarely even barked. Passive, cool, lovable, great temperament. Miss him. He kinda spoiled our family..never be another dog good enough.

Just like any domesticated animal. It's all on how it's cared for. Pit bulls can be wonderful cuddly little scamps if treated right. A friend of mine had one and it would probably lick you to death before biting you.

What i know about PitBulls (also one of my favs dogs) is that they are pretty harmless with people but sometimes you can get big problems with other dogs.
I have a Rotty-dane mix, and he is the best dog i ever had. He always want to fight against pittbulls or stafford-terriers. Not with other breeds of dogs. Only with them. Guess with them he know he would have a good fight (?).
Pitbulls are cute, nice dogs and the best to save your family. But with other dogs? I am not shure, i only know that the most people i know who have pits have problems with other dogs.
Pitbulls save family, but sometimes kill the other dogs

Nia

Your dogs are beautiful, and thank you for standing up for their reputation. As pointed out before, it's the owner that makes the difference, not the breed. I have a German Shepherd, about the biggest you will ever meet at 120lbs, and he's a tiny fluffy kitten inside who wants to cuddle and sit on my lap....seriously! Trouble is, people won't walk past our house cos he tries the same trick with them...he just wants to play! And I used to have a Staffie...what a gentleman he was, but again, people would cross the road rather than walk past him. He was blind from the age of 8 months and lived till 16...I still miss him like you wouldn't believe.

I love the playful nature of dogs like this, and their humaness...their personalities...are just a joy to have around. I don't think the dog fighting issue is as big in the UK as in the States, but it does happen, sadly. Pit bulls as a breed are banned here, but it puts me in a rage that people willl treat other creatures like this just to have a bet. I've often thought I should put my money where my mouth is and get involved with a rescue society, but I don't think I could handle my rage long enough not to get arrested for assault.

Nia...your boy is beautiful! It's an unusual mix, but gorgeous. Shame he can't play with the Staffies...I'm sure they would have fun when they get over the growls.

I'm all for more legislation regarding dog ownership, and registration. It's long overdue, as are education classes...MANDATORY!....for people who want to own any breed of dog, but especially the larger or more difficult breeds. We really do need to stop being to laid back about such an important issue. Allowing people to breed and own what every kind of animal they like results only in millions being destroyed every year for no reason other than our carelessness. Sorry...rant over!


Cait xx

Originally posted by NW111
What i know about PitBulls (also one of my favs dogs) is that they are pretty harmless with people but sometimes you can get big problems with other dogs.
I have a Rotty-dane mix, and he is the best dog i ever had. He always want to fight against pittbulls or stafford-terriers. Not with other breeds of dogs. Only with them. Guess with them he know he would have a good fight (?).
Pitbulls are cute, nice dogs and the best to save your family. But with other dogs? I am not shure, i only know that the most people i know who have pits have problems with other dogs.
Pitbulls save family, but sometimes kill the other dogs

Nia

It is very true that pitbulls are, in fact, usually dog agressive. My pitbulls wont try to outright kill other dogs but, they do get into fights with them. They are naturally a dog agressive breed so, if your going to own one, you better expect these things! The only time I have seen one of my dogs get into full on kill mode is when a dog tried to attack me. It is not a pretty site when this happens. It took three people to get my dog off of the agressor dog. All my pup was trying to do was defend it's master though. And that they will.

I have children,babies and seniors running around my house lol. It's amazing to watch my dogs go from juggernaut wrestling machines, to gently licking my baby brothers face and following him around. It's so funny watching them be very careful with the child. My baby brother will give them treats, which the will, very gently, take out of his hand. It's so funny!

reply to post by caitlinfae


As soon as irresponsible dog ownership is slowed down, dog attacks,cruelty and abandonment will drop drastically. People will often get dogs thinking it will be nothing but fun and games. Alot of people don't realize just how much time,effort,responsibilty and patience it takes to raise these animals. Especially all the "bully" breeds that really do require a little more attention to detail. It's just like having another child in the family. This is why you'll find poor dogs abandoned or, hurt. Irresponsible people, that shouldn't of ever owned a animal in the first place are the ones that create a bad images to good breeds.

The rescue that I do volunteer work for requires a home inspection of every applicant that fills out a adoption application. Which I think is a very good idea for the well being of the puppies. Owning a dog should never be a spontanious decision!

We take in rescue dogs but only the big breeds, at present we have a long haired German shepherd, ridgeback and a bullmastiff, normally the dogs we get have been mistreated and are known biters ect, we strongly believe that you do not get a bad dog only a bad owner and with lots of tlc and time spent caring for these dogs they become happy content and very loving pets or in our house family members with no aggression. You do not get bad breeds only bad owners.

That is so hard for me to believe. The only contact I have had with pit bulls is (1) when a friend brought his dog down to our house and the pit attacked our dog (2) I went to a friends house and their pit bull met me and was so ferocious I was afraid to walk backwards
About being a bad owner, I had a Doberman at one time, we never treated him bad-he was a devoted dog until suddenly he started attacking the other dogs that he had been brought up with. From that point on, I had to keep the dogs separated.
I have read too many instances where pit bulls try to kill little kids, or women or other peoples dogs and I have never known about another breed being so renowned in that respect.
I hope your pits never decide to start attacking your family members, even though you have treated them nicely, they are bloody animals--don't forget it.

Pitbulls are very dog agressive, they are still animals. My pitbulls don't like alot of other dogs as well. That's part of the breed, they DO NOT go well with foreign dogs. I don't classify dogs as "good," or "bad" on their abilities to sit well with dogs they don't know. I don't expect any dog to just greet other dogs with a happy face. I would prefer mine to be a little hostile towards unknown animals. I don't want them to just greet any rabid thing that comes up to it.

The first contact you had with a pitbull was obvious. The dog was brought into a foreign househould, only to meet a animal it has never met. Without even mentioning that pitbulls are naturally dog aggressive, the dog was probably very out of it's zone. And the second, sounds like a case of a dog protecting it's home. He probably didn't know you from the sounds of it. (I doubt you would be willing to meet a mean pitbull, in it's home, more then once.) The two times you happen to have met pitbulls sound pretty much the norm to me. Maybe they were a little on the extreme side but, doesn't sound to abnormal to me.

Yes, pitbulls can be very agressive animals. They are naturally protective and generally take a little while to warm up to new people. My dogs take hours before they will let people do more then pet their heads. That's just how they happen to be. I never said that owning a pitbull was like buying a labrador from down the street. They take alot of time and responsibility to mold into a good dog. If you give them a inch, they will take a mile. It's in their breed to establish alpha and be the boss. And this is where responsible ownership comes into play! Pitbulls aren't for everyone but, that doesn't mean they are monsters. I know my dogs will never "go crazy" like people think they do. Just one day outta nowhere they lose their minds, not gonna happen. I've seen pretty much every breed of dog act out.




[edit on 9-7-2009 by USMC-oorah]

ive always been a pitbull man.

i love dogs but always liked pits especially.

they seem very smart and almost human.