Gory, Gory, Gory
 

I took some calves to my vet to be worked yesterday, and while I was there a lady brought in a Lab/German Shepherd cross. It had been attacked in its own yard and badly mangled by 3 pit bulls that terrorize the neighborhood.

That was absolutely the goriest thing I’ve ever seen. One broken leg, head, ears, chest and throat badly chewed; multiple rips and slashes, punctures all over including into the abdomen, so bloody I could hardly tell what color he was. We worked on him for about 2 hours and Doc thinks he has a chance.

This could just as easily have been a person, an elderly individual or a child would have had no chance at all. What in the world is wrong with people allowing vicious animals like this to roam at large, or even owing one?

I know there are staunch defenders of the breed that make all kinds of excuses for them, but it's my opinion, based partly on personal experience, that pit bulls should be exterminated. If not by euthanisia, then by neutering all existing pit bulls and allowing the breed to go extinct.

This will generate lots of discussion; always does. The problem is the owners, of course. But like owning anything else that is potentially dangerous, it's up to the owner to keep it away from innocent people or animals. It's no different than owning a gun, IMHO.

People that own pit bulls, and other dangerous breeds often aren't aware that there pets exhibit different behavior when out of range of their owners, particularly when in a group. When something triggers a pack of dogs, not much will stop them short of killing them. Tests show that some individual dogs will continue to attack even when subjected to stun guns and mace.

Our neighbors in SC have several pit bulls that are pussycats, WHEN the owners are around. I don't like the way the dogs approach me over on our property, though. If I ever do something that sets them off, my only consolation is that I'll get my 15 minutes of fame. I do carry a side arm when working our property, but I doubt I could handle all 3 of them.

Have you talked to the neighbors at all about how their "pussycats" start acting like they are going to go cujo on you when they are not around? They need to be keeping those dogs up if they are not outside with them monitoring the dog directly.

Are the neighbors there when they come after you on your property? If a dog, especially ones such as a pitbull, was menacing me on MY property, well guess what...I think I'd be using that firearm on the dog. Most places, in regards to people (like with large livestock), if the dog is threatening harm or is chasing a person, you can shoot it. You don't have to wait until after it attacks like you do with small livestock such as chickens & ducks.

The problem with Pits are that they have a strong desire to please their owners, have massive strength and breeding over the years has developed a more vicious breed (in many cases). Their power is both a blessing and a curse. Its very sad to see what has happened to this breed. Physically they are absolutely beautiful.

I don't blame the dogs themselves, they are doing what they know and were trained to do. Lack of training (IMO) is also a form of training. Without leadership, a dog will revert to instincts - and breeding.

I feel horrible for animals and people who are on the receiving end of attacks by these dogs. Because of bad breeding and lack of boundaries/training... the resulting attacks... creates a NO WIN for everyone involved. Including the Pits who did the attacking.

Its a real shame and a horrible waste.

Lack of training is a huge problem. While the dogs understand who's pack leader in their own home they don't always have the right education of how to act outside the home. Kind of like children; behaving for their own parents but when out of sight of their parents act like little monsters.

But lack of training affects any animal, dogs specifically since so many people own dogs.

Not to add fuel to a different fire I have to add that guns and dog ownership can't be compared. When you lock up a gun it can't dig it's way out or break it's leash and get into trouble. Dogs have a canny way for escaping even with the best of fences (I have a dog who climbs chain link fencing like a cat). When you put a couple of dogs together they are far more apt to cause trouble than a single dog on his own.

I have been told in SC the owner of the a pit must have a 100 thousand $ homeowner insurance on each dog. if you neighbor comes to know this they may get rid of them.

here here very good post!

I have met some pit bulls that are sweet as can be...I have also met a few that I wouldn't trust even if they were in a steel cage. I think nature is 49% and nurture is 51%. Course there are other breeds out there that I think are also super aggressive and so it's not only pit bulls. I hope the German shepherd pulls through, but keep in mind, there are those who have had bad experiences with German shepherds as well, and would like to see them become extinct as well.

I have owned many Rottweilers and hear the same types of complaints against them as a breed. After owning several for a combined 20 years, I have not received one complaint from anyone who lived near me, or encountered the dogs on the street. The only ones who complained were fear mongers who saw my dogs as threats only due to their breed, not due to the individual dogs.
As others have said, I am pro dog and any dog can be vicious. I have friends with Pits and they get along well with my dogs and there are others with Pits that I would not want near either me or my dogs.

Round here I think they give a pit bull out with every new meth recipe.

You never hear: Well I knew the dog would eat my daughters face off if he had a chance, I just thought he couldn't get off the chain, again.

I had a close friend with a Pit Bull he raised his precious daughter with. She has blond hair, blue eyes and an angelic face. The dog and the girl were so very well acquainted, not a single issue with this pure bred Pit Bull. When she was a baby, he was a puppy so they were best friends. One day, the little girl went out to her fenced back yard to play and her dog who was outside, as usual with her. When the attack began, the Dad was looking out the back window (he grabbed his gun, ran out and dragged the dog off of his daughter after he pried open the jaws, her face is permanently scarred by this attack. She did not provoke the dog, the Dad saw the dog run towards her as if to play as usual, but then he leaped onto her and got her head in his powerful jaws. Her Father is a very strong man, it was all he could do to get her free. He had his gun on him, he hid her bloody face into his shoulder with one arm and with a steady hand, he shot that dog who he loved so much. There was no one to help him get his daughter away from the dog, he didn't know what else to do to stop the dog who was attacking him as he had her in his arms. I don't know how he did this but he is such a gentle man who would never hurt an animal ever. The dog was alone, well trained and a beloved family pet who just did this one day, kept in a fenced yard, never tied up and leash trained. He went out on outings with his family and showed no aggressive behavior prior to this. My friend rushed his daughter to the hospital and he told me later, he could not believe how much blood there was. His fear was that she would die in his arms! He had this dog for five years, his daughter was five years old when this happened!

I do not think that you can simply judge this breed by their owner....and if they run in packs that brings out aggression in most breeds. My friend's daughter will forever bear the scars on her face and this really traumatized my friend who felt a great loss over the dog as well are a very sad example. He always supported this breed before this happened to him. There is no happy ending here! I don't feel safe with Pit Bulls after that.

The problem I have is people in the country think it's ok to let their dogs run loose. I have an 80 lb airedale and the only time he is loose is when I am with him and we are on my property, otherwise he is on a leash.

The neighbor on the other hand lets her dogs run loose. One day they came over and growled at my grandsons. They were also trying to get in the chicken coop.

I went over to the neighbor. I kindly explained that I have no desire to kill her daughters dogs, BUT if her dogs growl at my grandsons, I will shoot them. I also told her that under the 1919 Michigan dog law act, if her dogs are wounding, molesting, threatening my livestock or chicken, I can kill them.

Her response "O.K.". Now she lets the dogs run at night.

Plan B: I built a large (dog size) animal trap. Going to set it. When I catch the dogs, I just call animal control and have them come pick the dog up!

Also, for those of you in Michigan, if your livestock is killed by dogs, you can file a claim with the township supervisor. They will investigate and the township will pay for the animals (i'm sure a fraction). If the township determines ownership of the dog, they will fine and recoop the monies paid out.

If people want to exterminate pitbull breeds , the collies and dalmations should be exterminated first as they are more unpredictable and agressive.

All animals have agressive instincts and require training to keep them less agressive than the most unpredictable, most agressive and dangerous animal of all____modern mankind.

All animals should be trained regardless if they are on 4 or 2 legs.

The first training in addition to proper obeidence training and control of pets should be to train idiot humans not to ask the owner of a strange dog "Does it bite? Can we pet it?" and idiot kids old enough to walk on their own not to taunt animals behind a locked restricted access chain link fence.

There was some idiot 10 year old in this area a few years back mauled by a fenced in dog and the brat admitted to throwing rocks at the dog and poking a stick through the fence at it for weeks before the dog climbed his fence and addressed the threat the kid posed to it.

The kid survived and the dog was put down and unfortunately the parents didn't neuter there son during the trauma surgery so he will probably carry the families idiot gene to another generation.

What I would like to understand is if aggression is being bred into their genetic code or not?

I know that certain behaviors can be genetic in working dogs but if people are purposely breeding the strongest vicious animals to create a super killer breed that's just not defensible, is it?

growing up I had a friend when she was 13 she was a t a foster home and they had many acres of farm land and she was walking the field one day by herself an a pack of 5 stray dogs attacked her 1 was a pitt 1 was a shepherd 1 was a rott and 2 mix breeds. Theytore her apart and almost killed her. Through many surgeries and skin graphs you wouldnt know unless she raised her hair and u could see the scars from where they tore into her. I always wondered why she wasnt afraid of dogs after that cause I would have been but she always said it wasnt the dogs fault their owners didnt take care of them.

My neighbors have 2 pitt mixes. I have 2 mastiffs and a sain. We put privacy fencing up down the whole yard. My dogs get along great with our other neighbors boxer mix and they play all day, but the pitt mixes as soon as the neighbor lets them out the door they charge at the fence and it gets my dogs into defensive mood then the barking, charging fence and protectiveness of my big dogs kicks in. I asked the dog warden what I could do cause they are pitt mixes ( the lady tells eeryone they are lab mixes but you can see it in their face and how they are built) He said nothing unless they hurt someone. I asked about the insurance they are supposed to carry because of the breed and he said that they couldnt do nothng about it unless the dog was running loose. WHen he went to the neighbors to talk to them he said they had their dogs all put up and he didnt see any dogs. ITs because they are pitt mixes and very aggressive. My dogs are not aggressive towards any other dogs excet the two next door. They get along great with other pitts at the park and when we are taking them for walks.

you cant blame the dog. THe owner has the responsibility to train it to behave and if they cant theyshouldnt own a breed they cant controll.

Ability to kill outweighs inclinations
 

Whether dogs bred for the ability to kill are more likely to attack isn't the issue in my mind. Sure, chihuahuas may be more inclined to bite, but there's really no comparison with bigger stronger dogs bred to bite and hold, or just a lower inhibition to attack for a kill. Even a husky will stalk toddlers; you can find wolf cosses on Craig's list. When grown men and women are mauled to death, certain breeds are always the culprits. People want their own attack dogs, even presa canarios ("dogs of war"), for the same reasons they want assault rifles. Posturing. I'll never forget the young woman taken down in her own apartment building in San Francisco a few years ago, or the Viet Nam vet, a strong fit man, literally taken apart on his own property here in Calaveras last year. Insurance isn't going to give a life back. Is it really worth it to perpetuate these breeds?

The dogs come running over barking, but stop before they get real close. They just stand there and bark. I've always stood my ground (and turned the safety off on my .357). These dogs have always had the run of the area, so they most likely think our undeveloped property is their property. The neighbors are very nice and friendly, and the dogs are very nice when we visit. I'm mostly worried about the possibility of the dogs suddenly getting more aggressive. I was once attacked by a Springer Spaniel that saw me every day, but one day, he just snapped.

^^This^^

I don't care how loving a pit bull is or how many years you've had it and it never acted up...all it takes is just that one time. And I don't want any precious child or beloved pet there at that one moment. Too late for regrets and apologies then.

DH and I were on our way home from turkey hunting Saturday when we rounded a corner on a backwoods road. For a second I thought I'd seen a bear and cub. The "bear" a bolted into the woods. The "cub" ran to the truck. I opened my door and was greeted by a very happy pug. Pick it up? Don't pick it up? I picked her up. She was exhausted, soaking wet and shivering. I'm a softie. I snuggled her against me and got in the truck with her. She had a fresh wound that I cleaned up and an engorged wood tick. She fell asleep wrapped up in an extra shirt DH had with us. We were seven miles out the road in the middle of no where. It took us an hour to find her owners. The "bear" that bolted into the woods was a big black lab cross that beat us home and was sprawled out and panting in the driveway. When the truck got close to the home the dog went nuts. I wouldn't get out of the truck.

The woman who came to the door had no idea that her dogs were gone. I pointed out the wound and an engorged wood tick. The woman scolded the dog, put her down and went into the house. The dog followed us down the driveway until DH told it to go back to the house.

People are dogs' biggest problems.

I work in a hospital and I have seen first hand what pit bulls can do to people. It does not matter how the dogs are raised...period! When a dog bites you, they bite you; when a pit bull bites you they are like an alligator and tear you apart. One lady is in her early 30's and will be in a nursing home all her life. I have been around the breed many times and have never personally had any issues at all. They are designed to do what they do, it is in their genetics, and they can go off.

I agree on getting rid of the entire pit breed. I have seen many sweet pits. And dont the owners always say "well it was the sweetest thing and never hurt anything before it ripped this kids face off". It give me a chill down my spine when I see little kids running around in their yard with pitbulls.

And as for the gun comparison, thats just nuts. Ive never seen a gun attack someone all by itself.

Of course a dog is nothing like a gun. What I was (rather poorly) trying to convey is that the owner is responsible for keeping either under their control at all times. You wouldn't leave a gun where a child could reach it; likewise, you shouldn't let a child run unsupervised with a large powerful dog known for violence. Even if I trusted such a dog with my own child, what if a neighbor kid comes over and starts rough-housing with my kid, and the dog misinterprets it?

By keeping a gun properly secured, you are keeping it under control. Same goes for the dog.

Had a neighbor babysit a couple pits and they were very good with the kids. Then they got after some cows and a mule so they were put in their garage. They chewed through the garage door panel and escaped and got a hold of another neighbors cat briefly. The cat managed to get away with minor injuries and the owner came later that day and took them home.
You can call me one of those fear mungers because I'd rather see them all dead.

No chance
 

My sister has two pitbulls and can not understand why I won't let my kids be around them with out me or hubby close by. She tells me over and over, they are friendlier than most dogs but I can not take the chance. We don't stay with her overnight and I will not let her watch my kids without me. I don't trust that my fear and concern is heard or that my requests will be followed.
I grew up with dogs and will probably always have a dog. I have also been bit by a small dog that caused nine stitches on the mouth.

One shows up on my property, it's SSS. :cowboy:

The worst mauling I ever got was from a tiny fuzzball lapdog. He was tearing into my steel toed boot while I was talking to his old lady owner. He was in full attack mode, growling and frothing. Trouble was, he did no damage at all, didn't even get the boot untied. The old lady was hard of hearing and was so embarrassed when she saw what he was doing. I wouldn't have been so lucky with a pitbull.

DS has a friend who has a pitbull. The little boy told DS, stay away from dad's dog, he's mean. We did one better, DS stays away from their house.

Not a pit attack, but sad just the same.

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/ma...d-dog-mauling/

I'll save myself a lot of typing ( and you a lot of reading) and just say this.

Pit bulls are great dogs, until they decide they don't want to great dogs anymore.

Then things turn very ugly, very qucikly.

But yeah, it all about whether they are "purebreds" or not and how well they are trained.

Tick, tick, tick, tick.... :(

Two years ago a pitbull attacked and killed a mini pincher that we had tied outside, I had just gotten out of the shower so i didn't have my carry carry gun on me so all I could do was punch it but by the time it let go our dog was already dead. Went to court and that dog was ruled a dangerouse dog and was not allowed to be outside unless it was muzzled. A couple weeks ago I saw the dog loose a few houses down and befor I could do anything I heard the screaming. It was attacking another small dog that was on a leash, this time I had my carry gun (glock 40 with crimson trace laser grips). It is sad that even when an owner knows their dog is dangerous they still allow it to get loose, people like that should not be allowed to own dogs

Pit's and crosses, about 40%. Add in Rotts and Presa Canarios and crosses, and we are up to 72%.

http://www.dogsbite.org/pdf/dog-atta...ifton-2007.pdf

I hate when I see that people want to exterminate my dogs because they know someone who knows someone who got mauled by a dog that looked like or may have been a pit bull...

We lost a pit bull when a pack of labs attacked him through our fence... plain ol' black labs that someone let roam because 'lab are friendly' started fighting through the fence and before my fiancee could call our dogs back in the house, our adult male lost his face and our young male suffered a severe mauling to the rear end.

I was severely mauled by a GSD, as an adult! I was attacked by a chow as a child... everyone knows some one who got bit by something. If you dig a little deeper you'll find there is no number one biting breed.

Dogs are dogs, they do all sorts of wonderful and terrible things. With all the soft hearts and politically correct rescues, we have way too many dogs running around that we ought to just shoot... that's not exclusive to any breed or group or area, it's a general rule.

I see this in a rather simple way. The dog owner is 100% responsible. Do I want a Pit Bull? Absolutely not and I have been around some really sweet ones. I don't consider them predictable. Unfortunately, this breed is often lethal when it attacks. Once that jaw is set... It takes INCREDIBLE FORCE to spread apart their jaws, hence often termed "lock-jaw."

For those bent on having Pit Bulls for protection? A criminal won't mess around.... Bullets are fatal to all dogs.

Their jaws don't lock... no breed locks its jaws. Anatomically they are the same as a dalmatian or weimeraner or any similarly shaped dog. They are stubborn as can be, and they will hang on to something for a very long time, which is pretty much what they were bred to do.

Edited.

Thank you for editing your post to be more accurate. I disagree about the fatality statistic, but that's a difficult one as no one really records those, (bites versus deaths by breed and year).

People who know pit bulls would know that they aren't really good for protection. There are much better choices out there for that.

What are they good for? I can't think of a single reason why I would want one. Everyone I know who has Pit Bulls has told me they are great "guard dogs," so that infers they want them for protection. Others told me they thought it was cool that people were scared of their dogs. I recently met yet another young man with a Pit Bull, who confirmed he was getting 2 more, to deter would be criminals from trespassing on his property (higher crime area). There are other breeds I find far more appealing.

We adopted a Lab/Chesapeake mix, who was abused, and 6 years young. That dog was transformed with love, patience, and training. He was raised with children, but not with cats or other animals. We worked with him a year, then got chickens, trained him to be around them, got rabbits, trained him to be around them, and then we adopted two female spayed adult cats (5 yrs and 3 yrs young, also). I call them all young due to their incredible high activity & energy levels. Sam, our dog, still thinks he is a puppy! The cats totally think they are kittens. Sam plays with the cats, when they are game, but has an understanding with them. They can go in his dogloo during the day, but they can't sleep with him or eat his dog food. We can put Sam in the chicken pasture and he will guard them, never harm them (2nd year in). He will help me corner my rabbits when they get out, but won't harm them (this has happened a number of times). He is smart enough to know the difference between my domestic rabbits and the wild ones (which he is encouraged to run off). Sam is now 70#s, 8 yrs old, but was 60#s when we got him (too thin). I have seen him flip a 105# dog flat on its back, force it to submit, then run it off our property. We can take our Sam in public, on a leash of course, and no one is frightened of him. Now, harm his "critters" or harm his "people?" That sweet looking affectionate dog turns absolutely vicious. As well as he gets along with kids, I would never leave him unsupervised with them. The reason? If one of them struck him, he would react. I know this, as it already happened. A boy hit him on the nose, so he grabbed the boys arm in his jaw, and held it firmly, growled, and then let go, without sinking his teeth in. This was a warning. So, we are taking responsibility for our dog by supervising him around children.

Now this is a dog we can take out in public, everyone in our neighborhood loves him (complimenting us on him), we can take him hiking, fishing, and camping with us. At campsites, it is common for other campers to feel comfortable enough to come over and speak with us. Often people will walk right up to Sam and pet him. He has NEVER growled or acted aggressively when petted, but he has a "wary" look in his eyes. Sam is highly intelligent.

I cannot imagine having a dog who scared people, one I couldn't take out in public without being embarrassed (the way people react to them), and having everyone scared of him. I already wrote I do NOT trust this breed, either. The potential for an attack to be serious, potentially lethal, when a Pit Bull attacks, is high. They are incredibly muscular powerful dogs!

Lock jaw....mmmmm ever been bit by one? Let's see....... I THINK I SHOULD CLARIFY SOMETHING...I WAS! But he was just a pup....which is why I have all my fingers! It was not my friend's pit bull, he was gone years before this happened.... My daughter brought home a brindled purebred perfect Pit Bull specimen pup. She was overjoyed by his amazing coat and personality. She asked me to watch her pup as her landlord would not let her have him. She promised she could come get him once she moved and could. He was a little young, 6 weeks old. Very sweet and I was so very nice to him. I had already been told about my friend's dog, seen his precious daughter's face permanently scarred and I knew the risks. I tried to discuss this with my daughter, she was a renter, who would rent to a pit owner? Most of them won't in our state, they are not insured for that type of dog. Our homeowner's policy specifically asked us about dogs, what type we had and told me why. If you have a pit it would go up in price and they mentioned other types of dogs. Now I was trying to be the good Mom and help her out but I was apprehensive. He was small enough and I am good with animals so I took care of him for a month while I tried to convince her to rehome him.... One day he began tearing at the edge of my pants to play...they were tearing so I put my hand down to shoo him away. I had done this before earlier and he moved back as this was playful. This time he caught two of my fingers in his mouth by accident. He bit down and then he began shaking, his entire body was and he was scared, total panic shown in his eyes...he didn't seem to be able to let go...I could not get my fingers out of his mouth at first...I felt my heart beating faster, hubby was not home to help. Yes, it hurt but I picked him up with my other hand, sat down in pain and it took both of my hands to pry open that unbelievably strong jaw! That was really hard since my fingers were in there and I used that hand to leverage the pull of the other...yes I cried too. Ok I understand and so did my fingers that their jaws snap down as they bite, I thanked God that he was small. I think that is what is being referred to as lock jaw. This puppy was only playing with a pant leg...he shook so hard while I was getting my fingers out of his mouth. He cowered afterward, licking my hand in total submission and apology. This was an accidental bite. Can you imagine an intentional bite from any adult dog? I don't even want to! From my friend's story and my own lucky experience..I already know! I found a dog trainer who owns pits, had safety fencing with electrical back up on five acres out of town. He was happy to get this sweet puppy and I know he got the best home. My daughter, when she saw my hand and knew what happened..didn't mind at all! So when someone says lock jaw..they are referring to the strength of the bite and due to the great strength most of us don't have to open the jaws of a dog who has that strength in their jaws of this breed once they are snapped close...it is really hard to open them....! I think if you work at a Vet's office as the person who posted appears to...you would know the difference in the type of injuries different breeds cause when they attack as they have said...key here is that the dogs were loose and in a pack! Owners need to be more responsible with every breed than that!

Interesting that they chose to add Presa Canarios(bull mastiff) and crosses in with the Rotts and Pits, considering that there were twice as many bites from shepheard and their cosses as Presa Canarios.

It would also be interesting to look up the number of dogs for each breed, to put the number of bites in perspective.

German Shepherd Dogs are fear biters. Meaning they bite out of reaction of being afraid. You'll get more bites out of that kind of dog when people who don't understand dogs (like kids) approach them in the wrong way. Dog becomes afraid, dog bites. Other kinds of biters, like the Pit Bull type of personality, bite not because they are afraid, but because biting seems like the correct behavior to them in that situation. It's just two ways of looking at the world from a dog's perspective. Doesn't make either one better or worse than the other.

Jennifer

This was an interesting read.