Chicago Dog Lovers: Time to Step Up
Last week, a pit bull in my neighborhood viciously attacked a small dog, nearly killing it. A neighbor informed me that about a year ago, the same pit bull actually killed another small dog, and that no charges had been pressed because the owners had been friends with one another.
I'm conflicted, because I've always been a dog lover, and have donated monthly to local shelters, the ASPCA, and the Humane Society. I email my state legislators to support bills that prohibit puppy mills and toughen up punishment for animal abusers and crack down on dog fighting. I know many pit bulls and similarly-termed "bully breed" dogs have been mishandled, contributing to their aggressive behavior.
But now, I own my first small-breed dog, a five-month old pug. My puppy thinks the whole world wants to be his friend, and he bounces up to other dogs expecting them to love him as much as he loves them. If it had been he who had been attacked or worse, I'd be heartbroken. I'd be outraged.
The dog who was attacked last week is undergoing extensive medical treatment to hopefully recover from being bitten on the neck. My neighbors who witnessed the attack first hand were both dog owners, and were both sickened by what they saw. Their dogs are larger breeds, yet it's still terrifying for all of us.
Chicago is a dog-friendly city. There are hotlines you can call when you witness abuse of an animal--for instance, if someone locks their dog in their car during a hot day or chains their dog outside in the winter without access to food or water. This is a different matter: how do you handle it when a dog is the one abusing other dogs and people?
The answer, to many people, is simple. If your dog attacks my pet or family, I call the city and have your dog removed. But often, that action is taken too late, after someone has been seriously hurt or killed. Pit bulls and other dogs routinely labeled as aggressive can be sweet-tempered at home, and their owner can have no inkling of any potential danger until an attack occurs.
Some cities ban pit bulls altogether. The entire province of Ontario, Canada, has outlawed bringing pit bulls in, and any pit bulls "grandfathered" in prior to 2005 must be sterilized. Cities throughout the U.S. banning pit bull breeds include Sioux City, Iowa; Miami-Dade County, Florida (unless the dog was registered prior to 1989, which would make the dog upwards of 20-years-old today); and Independence, Missouri. Other cities have registration laws, fines for not leashing or muzzling your pit bull, and restrictions against breeding.
While this ensures a degree of safety in the neighborhoods were bans and restrictions are in place, as NBC Philadelphia's Tamara Vostokhttp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28871123/ points out, "ban one breed and irresponsible owners will move on to another breed to 'toughen up."'Pretty soon, we'd be left to ban Marley [Golden Retriever of "Marley & Me"]--and who would want to do that?" Criminals who breed dogs for fighting will do so with pit bulls, Rotweillers, whatever.
I know there are pit bull owners with big hearts who adopt their dogs from overflowing shelters, where pit bulls are often the most prominent breed. I know that they can give their dogs all the love they have to give, and yet a fluke accident--a child toddling into the yard or an off-leash puppy sprinting down the sidewalk--can lead to the family pet becoming a murderer.
From this day forward, when my puppy is not in his home, he will be on his leash. He will hate that I cross the street when I see a questionable large dog approaching, but to socialize him, we take him to a local doggie day carehttp://www.bowwowlounge.com/, with a special sectioned-off area for small breed dogs to run around together. For small dogs in my neighborhood, certain freedoms simply aren't worth the cost.
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And to continue..
If you look at statistics, most dog bites don't come from pit bulls or Rottweilers--it's just that their bites when they occur cause more damage. The #1 biter is the Labrador Retreiver. Even small dogs can kill--Pomeranians were bred to be watchdogs, and in 2000, a Pomeranian killed a baby. In a recent study, the dog rated most aggressive was the ...Dashchu
Cocker Spaniels, toy poodles, Papillions, Chows and Min-Pins are also known to be very aggressive. Also of note is the fact that aggression towards people is very different from aggression towards other dogs, and that the overwhelming majority of fatalies due to dog attacks occurred within the confines of the owner's property--all the more reason to keep your own dog on a leash.
"If you look at statistics, most dog bites don't come from pit bulls or Rottweilers--it's just that their bites when they occur cause more damage. The #1 biter is the Labrador Retreiver. "
First off, the stat about Labradors is misleading. Labs are the most popular breed so even if only a small percentage of them bit people, they would still be among the highest in total number of bites.
Second, the fact that Pit Bulls are more dangerous suggests that they do require some sort of regulation. More people are probably hit with books than shot with guns, but we want to control who can own a gun because a gun is more dangerous.
I agree that there are many smaller breeds that may be dangerous and are aggressive. I think that they turn out that way for the same reasons pit bulls do: their aggressive behavior is reinforced, albeit in different ways. People often train pit bulls to be aggressive. With smaller dogs, people tend to pet their dogs and give them affection when they're being aggressive, thus reinforcing the behavior. Personally, I think that one should have to pass a licensing test to own any animals to ensure that the owner is at least informed about the care and training of their pets.
Your dog should be on a leash all the time no matter what size or how well trained you think it is. As an above poster mentioned, small dogs can often be very aggressive and provoke an attack, or even attack themselves, although it's always the larger dog who gets the blame, isn't it? I've personally known Jack Russell terriers to be among the most vicious and aggressive dogs I've ever seen--and yet you never hear about them because their small size limits the damage they can do.
To another poster's suggestion that a dog's size should be limited in a city setting, that's absolutely absurd. It's well known that many larger dogs don't have the energy or aggression of smaller dogs, and it's only larger dogs who have been trained or bred to fight that are the danger. Why are golden retrievers and labs the most popular dogs for children, although they are large dogs? Because they are known to be gentle and have good temperaments. Great Danes and Saint Bernards are some of the most calm breeds out there--I could go on and on.
What it comes down to is poor breeding and training, no matter the breed. The French woman who got the world's first face transplant a few years ago--she had to get it because her labrador retriever ate her face off. The inbreeding of dogs formerly known as good dogs for children has led to many accidents in recent years.
This is an everyday fear for me. We have two Westies who have each been on their leash and savaged by a big dog, first a big husky and second just two months ago a big german sheppard. Both of these vicious attacks occurred when the big dogs were off-leash! Plus, our little Westies did nothing to provoke the attacks. On the other hand, everyday on the trail we meet wonderful people with very well-behaved and pleasant big dogs. Here in Canada we do not carry guns in urban areas so I'm constantly worried about how to prepare for another attack. Assuming I've gotten over being paralyzed into inaction because of amazement, what can a person do when such an attack occurs? What I've mentally rehearsed so far is a thundering crash on the head with the handles of my two extendable leashes (no, no! not MY head!). Would that backfire with a vicious german sheppard? Perhaps I should carry a small baseball bat. Does anyone have any other suggestions? This is a daily fear for me and my wife?
There have alwoys been idiots that raise large, agressive dogs. Before pit bull there were rotts, before them dobermans and german shephards. The breed changes, the owner attitude doesn't.
If you want effective control over agressive dogs, don't limit the breeds, limit the size. Frankly, I believe that in a city environment, we should limit owners to dogs less than 30lbs. If you want a rott, or a pit bull, move out to the country where the dog can run and will not be in close proximity to othes.
-*Zortag*-
One last link to my admittedly long posts below (assuming they make it through the HuffPo moderators):
http://www
Sorry, there is no such thing as a "fluke accident" with any dog. If the dog attacks something it is largely because the dog owners were deaf to all the warning signs. This can happen with any kind of dog, including yours. If you think for one moment that your dog won't become aggressive just because it's not a bully breed, I can almost guarantee you aren't a responsible dog owner.
Dogs are dogs. They require calm and steady leadership for their pack leader. They don't understand human social concepts like mom, dad, brother, sister. They only understand where they are in a pack. When a human refuses to provide that dog with proper leadership, they try to assume it themselves, and in a human world more often then not it leads to disaster. To provide proper leadership they require exercise, discipline, and affection IN THAT ORDER. Far too many dog owners treat their dogs like little people, and THEY are almost as much of a problem as the people who breed for fighting. The dogs turn out the same, the only difference is that the dog fighter intentionally brought out the aggressive behaviors in dogs, while the "my dog is a little person" owner was unintentional. Either way, the dog is being abused because both types of owners refuse to provide the proper leadership to their dogs.
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Any breed can become aggressive, and any rescue organization that keeps statistics on aggressive dogs will tell you that small dog breeds are far more aggressive than large dogs are. In fact, pit bulls (when properly identified) are less aggressive percentage wise than the "all American family dog" Labradors. And unfortunately, this post is only furthering the prejudice and sensationalism perpetuated in the media today.
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Due to the massive amount of mis-identification in the media, I would actually like to see a picture of the dog before I can believe it is actually a pit bull.
Sorry if I this post comes off as harsh, but I want to make my point. For the record, I own an American Staffie that can't hurt a fly. She's hyper, but we do what we can to work that energy out of her. The good news is that she's never shown even the slightest hint of aggression and is the sweetest dog I've every owned. Since I've owned her, I've met so many people that have a fear of dogs because I watch then walk another direction or even run when all she wants to do is play. I grew up with a very aggressive Cocker Spaniel that everyone wanted to pet when all he wanted to do was bite. I witness the prejudice everyday.
Please educate yourself:
Google "Most aggressive dogs"
Read or watch anything from Cesar Millan.
Here's Cesar talking about that Canadian Pitbull ban you reference:
http://www
http://dog
http://web
With all due respect, responsible ownership of your particular breed requires you to first admit that in the wrong circumstances, your dog could indeed hurt a fly, or another dog for that matter, .
The my-sweet-w
I don't say this often, but I agree with everything you say. Little dogs that are aggressive are not cute and it irks me when people act as though they are. I regularly take my medium-sized dog to the dog park in my neighborhood. When a small dog comes at her and she barks and walks away, she gets yelled at by the owner of the small dog, not the small dog.
All dogs need to be treated as animals that require rules and discipline, not just for our convenience but to make them happy. My dog very clearly knows what she is and isn't allowed to do and it makes both of our lives better.
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