Pit Bulls

[Flysmallie]

huh? Common sense. You and OTF will hopefully figure it out someday. Pit Bulls are at the center of most every "dog attacks person" story.

And maybe someday you will figure out that you are a rude prick

[Hog Wally]

One latched onto my lab in my front yard once! He didn't release until his head was almost completely cut off ! That's ridiculous. I don't think anyone could change my mind after that incident I love dogs especially hunting dogs But...... Most folks out this way kill pits on sight. Period. End of problem.

[Old plug]

Thing that gets me is according to Mitch's post this fool is not co-operating with the police. That electric fence should have stopped that dog. there must have been something wrong in the system. I had a friend once that had the biggest Rottwellers that were the biggest dogs by far that I ever seen. They would not dare go over that shock line. The thing is they get over about 15 ft to the other side some models of collars stop working collar. I have heard of dogs that learned that and would go through very fast to stop the collar.

It is clearly a case I think of some sort of negligence on the part of the owner. He is going to pay and pay more and then he will move hopefully. Because I sure would not want him living there after this is over.

[ness]

Dogs are like people -- there are some bad ones, and how they are raised is only part of the equation. Any dog will bite -- that's what dogs do. But if you've got a problem dog, you gotta take care of the problem. Mitch's neighbor is clearly in the wrong.

Dogs are not like people in that they have been selectively bred to enhance certain characteristics. Pit bulls were bred for bull baiting, bear baiting and dog fighting. That means to attack, bite, and not let go. They have very strong jaws. They are very sweet dogs a lot of the time, but when they go off, the damage can be devastating. So why take a chance? Unless you're trying to look like a bad butt.

[Al Agnew]

Put me down in the same camp. Dog breeds were originally bred for certain purposes, and what pit bulls were bred for is dangerous to anyone and any creature within reach. As has already been said, why get a pit bull when there are other breeds that, because of their breeding, are far less likely to turn dangerous? (Not to mention that I think they are one of the ugliest breeds in existence.) In my opinion, owning a pit bull says a lot about the owner, and not much of it good. Sorry if that offends pit bull owners. Want a dog for protection? Any good sized dog, properly trained, can be a good guard dog, and most are less likely to go nuts. And if you have any other reason to own a dog, the pit bull is probably never your best choice.

And yes, I've heard pit bull owners by the dozens say their dog wouldn't hurt a flea and is just as sweet as can be...but quite a few of them eventually found out otherwise.

[Quillback]

No surprise to me, but the guy next door is not cooperating at all with the police, not good for him.

Sounds like a wonderful neighbor. Did he offer to pay your vet bill? I think I know the answer to that.

[ness]

I have heard that pit bulls actually make poor guard dogs because they are so friendly.

We've had Brittanys for years. Anything you read will say how great they are with people, how they're a wonderful companion dog and function well as a member of the family. They make a great gun dog too. But several years back we had one that we had to put down. He bit our niece on the hand, then a couple years he later bit a friend. We didn't know the circumstances on the first event, but knew the second one was totally unprovoked (from a human viewpoint). We kept a very close eye on him for about two or three more years -- always kenneling him when people came over. Then he bit my daughter pretty badly -- she came up from behind to hug him and he turned his head and bit. It was heartbreaking to the whole family, but we put him down the next day. I've sometimes questioned if we gave him one more chance than we should have. But I'm pretty comfortable with the way it went down. He was a great dog but for about 6 seconds of his 6 years with us. BTW -- these were bites, not maulings.

I think a lot of folks get a dog without considering the responsibility that goes along with it.

[fishinwrench]

Dogs have been the same forever, it's people (and what they consider acceptable behavior) that have changed.....and keep changing.

Just something to consider.

[Mitch f]

Sounds like a wonderful neighbor. Did he offer to pay your vet bill? I think I know the answer to that.

Yes, you DO know that answer

[Old plug]

It sounds to me like he has refused to surrender the dog.

Animals will reflect there owners. Has he threatened you with a baseball bat or anything Mitch. He sounds like a whole neighborhood problem.