Pit Bulls: What's the appeal?

http://www.furryfriendsfoundation.com/Truth03/photos/love_monster-T4.jpg

My sister has one. We've had many dogs in our family, and I've never encountered a more well-behaved and loving dog. A long time ago, German Shepherds were the scapegoat - then Dobermans, Rotties and now Pits.

And they're adorable and fun.

These little ones belong to erstwhile Killing Joke bassist, Paul Raven, who raises them.

http://www.netacc.net/~davedz/2001_newsletter/2001_page_06/page_06_r2_c2.jpg

...and then do something like this to ya...

http://www.bigcats.org/abc/images/pitbiteIII.jpg

Some dogs are dog-aggressive and some are people-aggressive. These traits are not limited to one breed by any means. The problem is that when a pit is people-aggressive, it can do a lot of damage, because it is so strong. The important thing is to spend time with the dog before adopting it, and to take obedience classes with it so that it can learn to socialize.

I myself had a chunk taken out of my leg by a Fox Terrier.

At one time, it was the most popular dog in the US. Petey from the Little Rascals was a pit. So was Nipper, the RCA dog. And Sergeant Stubby was a WWI hero. Also, pits worked at the World Trade Center site after 9/11. They're used as police and therapy dogs.

Keep in mind their violent track record is akin to that rash in kidnappings last year that the media created. Any large working dog can be made dangerous by years of neglect and abuse.

Dyson, I hope that eventually the owners were held accountable for their irresponsibility in owning such an aggressive dog. Those sort of dogs (of ANY breed) should be put down, and their owners deserve punishment.

(xp again)

heh. this thread is, of course, "the anecdotal evidence thread."

PIT: Spot of tea, good chap?

GEAR: Thanks, Pitty.

PIT: Anytime.

See?

imo they're not any more aggressive or prone to flip out than most other breeds, but they're very high energy and are insanely strong

it definitely is the dog's fault. pitbulls are genetically predisposed to attack. the breed should be banned.

― heaven parker (anagram), Thursday, June 22, 2017 11:04 AM (one minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

nah, that's not supported by any studies

they're a very popular breed, and very strong, so tend to be the dogs we here about in cases where a great deal of damage is done to the victim. but they're not more likely to attack than other dogs.

i was attacked by one as a teenager. they are loaded guns with legs.
they + their owners should all be shot.
― dyson (dyson), Monday, 26 January 2004 16:47 (thirteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Okay, I'll tell my sister that. I seriously will.
― Kerry (dymaxia), Monday, 26 January 2004 16:48 (thirteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

please. also tell her "eat my assleavings" for me.
― dyson (dyson), Monday, 26 January 2004 16:52 (thirteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Is that a death threat?
― Kerry (dymaxia), Monday, 26 January 2004 16:58 (thirteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

no, my assleaving are non-leathal.
― dyson (dyson), Monday, 26 January 2004 16:58 (thirteen years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Hi quality exchange

http://www.dogsbite.org/img/2016-dog-bite-fatality-chart.gif

(2016 fatal dog attacks by breed)

pit bulls are actually banned in the city where i live. there are definitely still pit bulls around though. there is a huge debate right now bc a vocal contingent of pit bull lovers claim the law is discriminatory and classist.

it might get repealed, idk though

I'm with Jim here, it's the owner's responsibility

http://i.imgur.com/7C2UgON.png

i'm happy they are banned in my city fwiw

Labradors killed two people last year?

those stats don't take into account what a "pit" is or how prevalent ownership of the breed is in comparison to, say, dobermans.
dogs are dogs. some dogs are dangerous. I've known a dachshund who fucked up a friends hand pretty badly. dogs with shitty owners tend to be shitty dogs. pits are by and large lovely mutts. don't leave your child alone with a potentially dangerous dog ever, regardless of breed.
i think i post this once every three months.

pit bulls are more potentially dangerous than other breeds though

there are other equally dangerous breeds, since to be a dangerous breed just requires the dog be large and strong, and there are larger and stronger dogs than pit bulls

Not enough of these type pics on thread
https://theuglytruth.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/pitbull1.jpg

a neighbor's pit bull named Razor charged at me out of nowhere a few years ago, bit the living fuck out of left calf and knee, and i had to go to the hospital.

despite this, i love pit bulls. they're some of the most loving, sweet dogs. they are serious, SERIOUS cuddlers.

an old refrigerator is "more potentially dangerous" to a child than a trained pitbull but y'all are straight up trolling now

imo the names people give to pits should be applied to ridiculous small dogs for fun

"that's my shih tzu in the picture"
"oh, what's his name?"
"razor"

Karl OTM about pit bulls and cuddling. My friends pitbull was very affectionate

looking through the statistics, it seems that pit bulls are, in fact, more likely to attack than other breeds, which makes sense when you consider the fact that many of them were selectively bred to fight.

i also know for a fact that most pit bulls are great dogs with big hearts who are, if anything, more affectionate than average.

I like a lot of the Pitbulls in my neighbourhood, there was one really nasty fucker but it is now gone - with it's shitty owner. It is irresponsible owners with big fucking Akitas that are the current menace around here now. There is a guy who lives around the corner with a sibling duo of Pitbulls named Buddy and Holly, they are so affectionate and cute I even bought christmas presents for them last year. My labrador gets totally jel when I always make a big fuss of them if they are in the garden while we pass. They definitely have not got a bite in them.

Oh we're doing this again.

The statistics are that there are a higher number of pitties around than most other dogs, so it's not at all surprising that they'd lead in number of breed-identified attacks.

They are not a more dangerous dog than x or y. They are just mercilessly overbred (visit a shelter sometime).

Why are they breeding so many?

They're concentrated in large part in poorer neighborhoods where people don't have the money to get them fixed and/or don't give a shit. This has been changing over time as the breed (which isn't really a breed, but a loose grouping of genetic characteristics) has found more acceptance in communities outside the hood or biker gangs or whereever else "tough" dogs are prized. But there are still far too many that wind of being destroyed at shelters because they shouldn't have been born in the first place.

Breed bans are fucking awful, though, and anybody who supports one is also fucking awful.

First they came for the pit bulls . . .

this thread has been going in pointless circles for 13 years. anti pit bull zealots of ilx: do you really want to fight alex in nyc's war for him in 2017?

https://www.yahoo.com/gma/teen-killed-bullet-la-county-deputies-fired-pit-031905070--abc-news-topstories.html

great now pitbulls have guns - thanks america

To Adam's point, even I don't give a damn anymore. Enjoy your dogs. Clean up their poop. End of story.

Hey dude!

Yeah, hey!

http://i.imgur.com/w1nKh6u.gifv

oh well
http://i.imgur.com/w1nKh6u.gifv

I have thoughts about pit bulls but fuck if I'm going to put them in the ZM thread.

Pit bulls and similar breeds can absolutely be cuddlebugs if trained not to be aggressive, and can absolutely be killers if trained to be aggressive. My feeling is that absent any focused and intentional training one way or the other, dogs will default to behaviors that have been cultivated over decades and centuries. Diggers gonna dig, herders gonna herd, lapdogs gonna...whatever they do.

If I see a pit bull or similar, I treat it like I would if I saw a handgun; it's a potential deadly weapon until I know for sure it's not loaded/has the safety on/has been trained to be a sweetie/isn't owned by an aggressive asshole. I can't tell, on first glance, how dangerous it is. I am always watchful, always wary until I'm more sure of the dog (any dog).

Maybe TMI but many pitties I have known have taken particular interest in my crotch. However, I am way less nervous around pits I don’t know than human men I don’t know

Hmmm. Trying to come up with a mental list of animals scarier than men and it’s pretty short.

when i meet friendly pit bulls i always think more highly of their owners as a result

there’s a lovely pit a few blocks up from me - her name is Money. she used to bark when i first was walking by but now she leaps (launches, lol) off the top porch step onto the ground and quietly comes up to the fence wagging her tail <3

I’d be terrified of a tiger or a bear. New poll idea, “Men: Can you scare off a tiger or a bear?”

Everybody knows that bears are scared to death of walking sticks with bells attached.

^^ No such luck at the gay bar last week.

Ha!

“Men: Can you scare off a tiger or a bear?”

I have personally scared off several adult black bears whilst hiking. I didn't have to do much except stand there and watch them run off as fast as they could. It was a cutie of a bear cub the size of a chihuahua that scared the shit out of me. I had no idea where the mom was and didn't want to find out.

Tigers otoh are terrifying.

there’s a lovely pit a few blocks up from me - her name is Money. she used to bark when i first was walking by but now she leaps (launches, lol) off the top porch step onto the ground and quietly comes up to the fence wagging her tail <3

I don't meet many large bull breeds out and about, and never off the lead anymore, but when I do, this is the bit that gives me pause. Not that they'll attack me or anything, but that they'll jump on me and clonk me with their massive hard skulls or swipe the legs out from under me. I'm the same with overly friendly golden retrievers, which are an extremely large dog that I sometimes think people forget are an extremely large dog, and when those bastards hurl themselves at you, it bloody well hurts.

I do miss a good staffie. You never see them anymore round here, and I miss their big heart-shaped heads and smiley faces. But I'm not a pit bull/XL bull person and I am happy enough not to have to deal with them, even if they're not vicious.

we have a staffie in our neighbourhood, lovely funny little thing and cannot imagine it being considered dangerous, the big shaggy German shepherd that we see every day is much more intimidating

Not sure this is the right thread for this discussion.

German Shepherds are bad too

You're bad