Breed Specific Legislation, Is it Right?

[Ekatski]

Breed Specific Legislation, Is it Right?

I've never really paid attention until my mother brought home a beautiful pit bull-boxer mix puppy

Posting this really came to mind after finding out about "Lennox" Belfast City Council's "Death Row Dog" *google it if you don't know*

And i was wondering what everyone on this site thinks… Is it right?
Would you take away someone's dog, whether or not it was actually vicious and euthanize it just because of its breed? To me, its like being racist. A lot of people (at least around where i live) Say Blacks and Mexicans are "more dangerous" than Whites because you apparently see them more often in gangs? Does that mean we should take them and Euthanize them? Nope because that would be racist, and being racist is horrible and unmoral. But its perfectly fine with animals, right?

So, what do you think? (sorry if you see it as a rant)

For anyone who's curious

Spoiler: Osa

 

[RemOfShadows]

I call complete bullshit, a dogs viciousness does not come from it's breed, it comes from the way it was brought up by it's master... regarding pit bulls, yes they might be a bit more agressive by nature, however that hasn't always been like that, that has only happened because for generations they were brought up as fight dogs.
Also it doesn't mean that you pup will be agressive in any way :/

 

[Ekatski]

I call complete bullshit, a dogs viciousness does not come from it's breed, it comes from the way it was brought up by it's master... regarding pit bulls, yes they might be a bit more agressive by nature, however that hasn't always been like that, that has only happened because for generations they were brought up as fight dogs.
Also it doesn't mean that you pup will be agressive in any way :/

I totally agree. Though, there are a few exceptions on how a dog acts toward people. We *raised, rose?) Osa from a puppy, We did it in the most responsible way we could ( Besides "Grass is icky and wet! i like going to the bathroom on flat, dry places, like the living room floor!"), but she is TERRIFIED of strangers! She barks and growls at them, she would only attack if she were cornered. Her first choice is to run away while yelping like a dying hyena. Be calm and give her two weeks of being near her everyday, then she'll get used to you I have a story about Osa and a stranger, but, my post is a little bit to long anyways >.<

 

[ienjoywaffles]

My brother recently got a pit bull puppy after he got married. She is so sweet and it is really sad to think that many people will be afraid of her just because of her breed.

A dog is only as bad as its owner

 

[StTheo]

Current domestic dogs exist as a result of thousands of years of passive selective breeding for tameness. The success of breeding for tameness (and the correlation between tameness and adorable features) has been (and currently is being) demonstrated with the silver fox breeding experiment. Breeding a tame dog with a wild dog can undo some of this, and therefore different breeds can theoretically be less tame than others. I would stress that this distinction, when applied to specific breeds, should only be made based on a proved distinction made by several professionals, and the judgment of whether each individual of the breed is tame (or can be tamed) should only be made long before euthanasia is ever considered. I think it's more realistic to just base the judgments of tameness and public safety hazards on an individual basis, with no regard to breed.

 

[JerzeyLegend]

I totally agree. Though, there are a few exceptions on how a dog acts toward people. We *raised, rose?) Osa from a puppy, We did it in the most responsible way we could ( Besides "Grass is icky and wet! i like going to the bathroom on flat, dry places, like the living room floor!"), but she is TERRIFIED of strangers! She barks and growls at them, she would only attack if she were cornered. Her first choice is to run away while yelping like a dying hyena. Be calm and give her two weeks of being near her everyday, then she'll get used to you I have a story about Osa and a stranger, but, my post is a little bit to long anyways >.<

I had a hard time reading that.

I'm concerned by this post. If she reacts to strangers like this, she needs to be taken out more. Take her to a dog park as often as possible.

I just finished watching Animal Police on Animal Planet and an elderly lady had her Pitbull "humanely" euthanized because it bit a mail man. The dog was perfectly friendly to her, but anyone else came near and he would charge. They let the lady go off in exchange for surrendering the dog, but she was crying, and she didn't know her dog was causing so much trouble.

IMO, I don't like pitbulls or rotts. They are very aggresive looking dogs, and I am paranoid of them turning. My friend had a pit, who was raised good, one day a young child was playing with the dog (and my have triggered something) when suddenly the dog went crazy and tore him up. Kid lost an eye. I don't want a dog who has a mouth comparable to an alligator.

 

[Clayto1332]

I think it is a little bit of both (nature and nurture). A family friend has a pit and raised it as a puppy. It was never neglected or mistreated and recently someone leaned over it to pet it and it bit the person in the face... A lot of it just depends on the dog though I suppose. There are a lot of small breed dogs that are shitheads like that.

 

[Ekatski]

@Jerzey- My mom took her to work when she was a puppy. Lets say i took her on a walk right now, and someone passed by without giving her any contact or attention, Osa wouldn't mind, but if you walk up to her and try to pet her, thats when she gets scared. To me, it seems ALL dogs are unpredictable, no matter the breed. Except for Chihuahuas. EVERY SINGLE CHIHUAHUA i have ever came across was a little fucking demon...

@clayto.
Did that person just approach the dog and tried to pet it? Or did they let it sniff their hands and stood around for a bit to let the dog know that they weren't a threat?

 

[JerzeyLegend]

fear can be a trigger for aggression.

Why is she so fearful? Where did she come from? Usually dogs who are scared and cower around others were abused. That's not always the case, but just saying.

 

[Ekatski]

fear can be a trigger for aggression.

Why is she so fearful? Where did she come from? Usually dogs who are scared and cower were abused.

We got her as a puppy from one of my mom's coworkers, She didn't seem abused, but, i wonder if its when my mom brought her home. An Oversized smooth collie and a yappy pug running up to sniff and check her out. While my sister was squealing. I was shocked and didn't know what to think because it was so unexpecting. So i cried

 

[JerzeyLegend]

If you JUST got her, I guess these behaviors can be expected. Just be good to her, and let her interact with other people. Make her feel comfortable when other people are around. If she's a pup, then separation from her family is traumatic enough.

Hopefully you won't have any problems.

 

[SteveTheSheep]

I'm pro breading!

 

[Ekatski]

If you JUST got her, I guess these behaviors can be expected. Just be good to her, and let her interact with other people. Make her feel comfortable when other people are around. If she's a pup, then separation from her family is traumatic enough.

Hopefully you won't have any problems.

We've had her for a couple of years, She adores us....but she also has separation anxiety

 

[Clayto1332]

Did that person just approach the dog and tried to pet it? Or did they let it sniff their hands and stood around for a bit to let the dog know that they weren't a threat?

It was a friend of theirs that had been to their house before. He knew the dog so he didn't stand there and let it smell him first.

 

[JerzeyLegend]

We've had her for a couple of years, She adores us....but she also has separation anxiety

That's most likely why.

Does she bite your things?

 

[Audi]

To be completely honest, I seriously don't like Pitbulls.
Or Boxers.
Or Staffys.
Or Rottweilers.
Or Dobermanns.
The exception to my rule of "despise vicious dogs" is German Shepherds, because they are the best.

But in all seriousness, I think it's a two-way street.
It cannot be denied that dogs like pit-bulls are naturally vicious. I have no real stats to offer, but it can be safe to say they are responsible for a great portion of all dog attacks. Other dogs are similarly vicious. I mean, if you look in Australian pounds, 99% of all the dogs there are Staffys, fox terriers, or a mix of the two.
Why?
Because they're demonic little shits.

That being said, if you train a dog properly (doesn't matter what type of dog), you can nip that sorta behaviour in the bud.
And if you train a dog badly, they can turn out bad, too.

But in my honest opinion? I kinda agree with their sentiments.

I'm just lucky that the most vicious thing my dog does is steal my warmed spot on the sofa when I get up to kill some KGB hookerspies.

 

[FaerieInCombatBoots]

Any dog of any breed can go bad. I've had more problems with small dogs like chihuahuas and beagles being vicious, than I have with pitbulls. When I was a child, some friends of the family had a beagle that would try and attack me every time I went near it. And instead of training their dog, they just made excuses for it.
I have only had one problem with a pitbull or some kind of pitbull mix. It was a dog, who tried to bit me when I went to pet it. I approached it wrong. But, as soon as she snapped at me, her owner stuck the dog in the head. Struck the dog in the head and claimed the dog normally didn't act like that. That bothered me more than the dog snapping. I have a feeling the dogs violent reaction is related to her owner's behaviors. I probably approached the dog with my hand in the wrong position, a position similar to one she would associate with being hit. If that was the case, I do not blame her for her reactions.
I do know a pitbull now. He is very gentle, but cannot be around cats due to an accident where one cat did not come out for the better. I had some initial discomfort around him, but am getting used to him and am quite fond of Murphy.
Most times a dog's behavior depends on how it is trained. I don't know much about dogs but I know that much. Pitbulls and other types of so called 'violent dogs' would not be a problem if they are well trained. And if assholes would stop using them as fighting dogs. That's the worst. People who use these guys for their own personal gain.
A dog should not be judged by their breed, but by their owner.

 

[ienjoywaffles]

I should add that the really sweet pit bull that my brother got was the daughter of a fighting dog that was famous in that area for having over a 100 wins before he was taken by police.

 

[Ekatski]

@Faerie: I remember once, we were walking our Large smooth collie, and some guy had his 2 rat terriers out. 1 of them ran up to Clancy, and they started sniffing each other. They guy screamed at his dog to come back. The dog ran to his with his ears down, head hanging, and tail behind his legs. As soon as the dog came to him, he KICKED it! I was younger, so i didn't have the guts to tell that guy he was a fucking piece of trash, but i DID give him a nasty look.

@ienjoywaffles: I hate it when people make animals fight. Its sad when they have to put the dog down because hatred is all it knows and its behavior won't change.

@jerzey: She only bites her dog toys. Hell, we can't even play tug of war with her. If she's holding something and we also grab it, she just drops it. With her separation anxiety, she whines until you come back, and tries to find a way to get to you. My mom was talking to a church lady in the alley once, Osa tried to jump the fence to get to my mom. But she didn't make it. Her paw got stuck between the spaces in the fence, and was hanging there by her paw, yelping in pain....i don't like talking about it DX
She also used to be good friends with our Smooth Collie, Clancy. But when we were on vacation, we left her with my moms boss (their house is right next to the office, *nursery and orchard* with the work's dog, Sally. But, left Our pug and Clancy at the house. We got a phone call from a friend who was taking care of the pets, and Clancy died from a heart murmur (he also had one when he was a puppy) T^T. So Clancy was gone when Osa came back and she didn't know where he went. We once to a dog event, and a lot of dogs came, she was fine with all the dogs, except for a snappy Husky. She even ran up to another smooth collie thinking it was clancy

 

[JerzeyLegend]

LOL. Holy shit that was hard to read.

Please, do not start sentences with "But".

I know, I'm nitpicking, but just do that for me.