Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Pit Bulls - they need love, too!

Pit bulls are like any other breed of dog -- their behavior is partially based on genetics but mainly results from how they are treated by their human companions.  Our Pack, Inc. is a rescue group in California that focuses on working with pit bulls.  They have successfully rehabilitated many of the dogs rescued from Michael Vick.  Please check out their website.  Below is some information they published that clears up some myths about pits:

The Truth About Pit Bulls

Pit Bulls Don’t Feel Head or Neck Pain: This is not true. Pit Bulls feel pain like other breeds do. Being tenacious, they will carry on a task until it's completed and push through the pain but they still experience pain just like other breeds of dogs.

Pit Bulls Are Human Attack Dogs: A Pit Bull with a correct temperament is very human friendly and seeks human affection. Pit Bulls love to be touched and handled by humans. As Pit Bulls are terriers they can be dog intolerant. This can vary as much within the breed as it does among all breeds and is very manageable. Note: Dog intolerance is a very different behavior from human aggression. They are not interchangeable.

Pit Bulls Have Locking Jaws:
The jaws of a Pit Bull work in the same way as other canines. A Pit Bull is tenacious and willful and he may hold on as a result of his willfulness and tenacity but not because his jaws are physically “designed” to lock. Other breeds may also be very likely to bite and hold on but there is no evidence that any breed has locking jaws.

Pit Bulls Are Not Safe Around Children: The only thing to be concerned about with a temperamentally correct, well-socialized Pit Bull is that he may become very excited around children and knock them over trying to lick them! This is also very easily resolved through training. Pit Bulls generally love attention from children. Even poking, ear pulling type attention will make most Pit Bulls very happy. Of course, one should never leave their child unattended with any dog of any breed, ever. Also, children should be taught how to properly treat pets in the home. Any dog of any breed should be continually socialized to children, adults, and animals throughout his life, including the Pit Bull.

Pit Bulls Are Taught To Be Dog Aggressive:
All canines can become defensive if they feel threatened. This is how dogs have survived for eons. They can also lack confidence in social skills with other dogs when not well-socialized and become defensive and fight. Therefore, they don't need training to fight. They can just be set up to fight in certain environments and then reinforced for it. Additionally, Pit Bulls are Terrier dogs. All Terrier dogs tend be less willing to tolerate another dog's rude gestures. This is a very easily managed trait. We have found that our fight bust dogs are our best dogs ever! All dogs of all breeds must be well-socialized with other dogs from an early age, including Pit Bulls.

Pit Bulls Make Good Guard Dogs: False! Better get a guard dog for your Pit Bull!

Pit Bulls that have scars on the head or leg area have been fought: Not necessarily. Maybe he got into it with a coyote or got caught in a chain link fence. There are many reasons why a Pit Bull or any breed of dog could have scars.

No comments:

Post a Comment