OT Another Pit Bull Attack! - Page 2

.... are you saying you think all people are unable to master our dogs?  That's BS. And a slap in the face to any real trainer regardless of breed.

I'd be willing to bet most the cases revolve around Owner responsibility such as dogs allowed to roam loose, chained dogs, dogs and/or children left unsupervised, dogs permitted or encouraged to behave aggressively, animal neglect and/or abuse. Or Reproductive status of dog such as unaltered males dogs, bitches with puppies, children/humans coming between male dog and female dog in estrus.

In my whole life of dogs ... it was a stray sheltie on the street who bite me.

Any dog, regardless of breed, is only as dangerous as his/her owner allows it to be. When are humans gonna take responsibility .... wait ...it's easier to blame and kill the dog for a human death ... looks better in the media.  What E v v v A.

I'd like someone to come here and take my Pit away due to BSL. After they pry the gun from my cold dead body, I tell ya.

Having read the story of the Dachshund mutilating the baby, it appears it was more a matter of the dog eating the faeces in a soiled nappy and injuring the child in the process than actually making an attack.

Margaret N-J

Lo Line Rebel...another fallacy. The bite of a Pit is actually often weaker than a GSD or Rottweiler. Pits are bred to Work a hold, powerful striking is not something they are known for.  And believe me, many Pits have Biting & Striking Issues, it does Not come as naturally as one would think, provided by the sensational media. Pits are very popular at the PSA club Im training at, and I really like them, but they have issues like Every other breed in bite work. Ive seen a number of GSDs that have OUT issues, maybe even more than the Pits.

Responsible ownership is to blame. Let loose a number of backyard bred  GSD, Presas, Dobes & Rott and you will have "terror" as well. Ultimately it comes down to ownership, not the breed.   A fighting bred dog, whether a Pit, Other mastiffs or American Biulldogs,  imo, often have a Lower bite threshold than that of the Working Schutzhund type breeds.

Im actually amazed that there arent more Pit bites, given their poularity and acceptance that most Americans are extrememly stupid, the Hood rats & trailer trash tat tend to keep Pits, even more so.

Uglydog, I live in Florida, middle of a forest. You would be amazed. When you travel into town the more rednecks you see the more pick ups they cant afford and pits you see. some are very nice people, but their love affair with the breed, I dont get

Found this. In recent years, the dogs responsible for the bulk of the homicides are pit bulls and Rottweilers:

"Studies indicate that pit bull-type dogs were involved in approximately a third of human DBRF (i.e., dog bite related fatalities) reported during the 12-year period from 1981 through1992, and Rottweilers were responsible for about half of human DBRF reported during the 4 years from 1993 through 1996....[T]he data indicate that Rottweilers and pit bull-type dogs accounted for 67% of human DBRF in the United States between 1997 and 1998. It is extremely unlikely that they accounted for anywhere near 60% of dogs in the United States during that same period and, thus, there appears to be a breed-specific problem with fatalities." (Sacks JJ, Sinclair L, Gilchrist J, Golab GC, Lockwood R. Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998. JAVMA 2000;217:836-840.) 

The Clifton study of attacks from 1982 through 2006 produced similar results. According to Clifton study, pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes were responsible for 65% of the canine homicides that occurred during a period of 24 years in the USA. (Clifton, Dog attack deaths and maimings, U.S. & Canada, September 1982 to November 13, 2006; click here to read it.)

Other breeds were also responsible for homicides, but to a much lesser extent. A 1997 study of dog bite fatalities in the years 1979 through 1996 revealed that the following breeds had killed one or more persons: pit bulls, Rottweilers, German shepherds, huskies, Alaskan malamutes, Doberman pinschers, chows, Great Danes, St. Bernards and Akitas. (Dog Bite Related Fatalities," Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, May 30, 1997, Vol. 46, No. 21, pp. 463 et. seq.) Since 1975, fatal attacks have been attributed to dogs from at least 30 breeds.

The most horrifying example of the lack of breed predictability is the October 2000 death of a 6-week-old baby, which was killed by her family's Pomeranian dog. The average weight of a Pomeranian is about 4 pounds, and they are not thought of as a dangerous breed. Note, however, that they were bred to be watchdogs! The baby's uncle left the infant and the dog on a bed while the uncle prepared her bottle in the kitchen. Upon his return, the dog was mauling the baby, who died shortly afterwards. ("Baby Girl Killed by Family Dog," Los Angeles Times, Monday, October 9, 2000, Home Edition, Metro Section, Page B-5.)

In Canine homicides and the dog bite epidemic: do not confuse them, it has been pointed out that the dog bite epidemic as a whole involves all dogs and all dog owners, not just the breeds most likely to kill.

In all fairness, therefore, it must be noted that:

• Any dog, treated harshly or trained to attack, may bite a person. Any dog can be turned into a dangerous dog. The owner or handler most often is responsible for making a dog into something dangerous. 

• An irresponsible owner or dog handler might create a situation that places another person in danger by a dog, without the dog itself being dangerous, as in the case of the Pomeranian that killed the infant (see above). 

• Any individual dog may be a good, loving pet, even though its breed is considered to be potentially dangerous. A responsible owner can win the love and respect of a dog, no matter its breed. One cannot look at an individual dog, recognize its breed, and then state whether

Pits & Rotts also are some of the Most Popular breeds in the USA!  It stands to reason they might have the most people bites. When GSDs were extremely popular, they too were villified & led in Bite Stats. You all are on a slippery slope with breed bans. And Id go so far as to say that many that own these breeds have complexes and own them for the wrong reasons, some are poorly bred, and even more are poorly trained, if at all.

Pits tend to be most popular in the South, as they are often used as Catch dogs on Hogs, something they and Bulldogs excel at.  They also are very hardy and easy to keep-healthy, quiet and very docile.  

If kept responsibly, they are marvelous dogs. The Most titled Dog in the world, at this time, is in fact an American Pitbull Terrier.

uglydog in a study sponsored by the US Governement Centers For Disease Control it was reported that 32% of all dog related killings of human beings in the United States are caused by Pit Bulls attacks, yet Pit Bulls constitute only 2% of all dogs. 70% of those mauling deaths were of children.

What does that tell you?  70% involve children!   Doesnt Sound like responsible ownership..

Working dogs, ANY of them should be left unsupervised around children. Id venture that 99% of the 70% were Unsupervised attacks. IMO, the data is skewed and focuses blame on the dogs, rather than the owners. $50-$400 will get anyone a nice working Pit.  Theres easy to come by & popular for a host of reasons.   Whereas, a well bred working GSD goes $600-2000.  In most cases, a different demographic Owns such dog & practices More care & caution.

Before the Pits (and Rotts) Became popular in the 90s, there was no hysteria.  Popularity is the Proverbial Kiss of death.  Drug culture, hood rats, trailer park trash.

All of the above statistics are verifiable and no doubt true. But how many bites are not reported because the bites were not severe or the dog didn't have the power to inflict real damage? I often wonder how these statistics would change if every bite by an ill tempered lap dog were reported, or every neighborhood dog who nips or bites a child and the parents don't report it. There are a LOT of parents out there that are just plain lazy and uncaring.

That's what I don't like about statistics. If you don't have uniform reporting you won't have consistent statistics. JMO.