what are peoples opinions on pitbulls?

FestiveBoomBoom

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as above - just out of curiosity really. Also do you think that the law will change to ban cross breeds? Opinions on this too! Just got me thinking following the death of that poor little lad who was mauled yesterday. I know the breed hasn't been released yet but it wouldn't surprise me if it was a pitbull or a cross breed
 
I'll just copy and paste my responses from the Latest News thread because I am lazy.
Back in the 1980s it was my breed that was in the firing line, there are some breeds of dog which would not be my cup of tea but I wouldn't wish the treatment that was meted out to us, on anyone.
Dogs and children can mix - but only in a careful and responsible environment.
ALL dogs have the POTENTIAL to be dangerous.
Banning breeds outright makes them desireable to the wrong type of people.

"I still think there should be something like a written/practical exam for dog ownership, especially of certain breeds, and a moratorium on breeding anything, for a certain time period.

Also restrictions on what type of breed can be kept where. I am so sick and tired of seeing Akitas kept in urban 2-up 2-downs and taken for a little bimble around the block for ten minutes once a day, they seem to be the dog du jour around here...and then people wonder why they are difficult once they get to a certain age.

You should have a license to breed in the first place anyway, IMHO."

AND

"Without wishing to go off on a tangent, no breed or size of dog should be allowed around small children unsupervised.

We let them into our homes, our lives, our family, but they are animals, and prey animals at that, no matter how small or fluffy or wrinkly or friendly we have made them.
The slightest noise, movement or gesture, no matter how small or insignificant, can make something happen in a dog's brain that we cannot know, see or understand, because, like I say, they are animals and have different - highly engrained, despite evolution and breeding - behaviours and thought processes.

While no one knows what happened here, this is why I hate seeing dogs and small children rolling around on the floor together in a heap, no matter how friendly the dog - it only takes a second.

Some of the most vicious dogs I have seen have been small and fluffy. If they were full sized and powerful, they would not be allowed to behave the way they do.

Dogs are dogs. Unwittingly or deliberately, it is human behaviour that has made them the way they are."
 
I think they are good looking dogs, but its not the breed of dog that is the problem. It is the type of owner. ie someone who revs a dog up to be angry and dangerous. You can do that with many breeds. I don't know what the answer to this problem is.
 
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I think they are good looking dogs, but its not the breed of dog that is the problem. It is the type of owner. ie someone who revs a dog up to be angry and dangerous. You can do that with many breeds. I don't know what the answer to this problem is.

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Agree
However, I don't like the pitbull breed, would never have one. I know most dogs, whatever breed are lovely, but me personally? No, not for me thanks. (They do give me the willies, particually if I have the children and ''something resembling' the type came past. Sorry folks - iam a Lab / whippet / collie fan!!!
 
According to the DM it was an American Bull Mastiff.
Dogs are not born bad it is us as owners that make them that way. That said I do think that some breeds are better around children than others. NO dog should ever be left with small chilren unsupervised imo.
 
Im not particularly keen on pitbulls not becuse of their reputation though, just because i dont find them very appealing...im not keen on any of the bull breeds looks wise.
They can be lovely dogs there just not for me

Out of curiousity are Boxers classed as a bull breed?
 
Nice, sounds like a complete chav. What a surprise. So is it a purebreed pitbull that is the banned breed or a pitbull type? If so, then WHY are there so many roaming the streets with their chavtastic owners? I totally agree that it's bad ownership that make bad dogs, I mean look at Cesar Milan, love him or hate him he uses 2 pitbulls Daddy and Junior in a lot of his programmes and they are two of the most well rounded dogs i've ever seen. So it's a shame that a lot of these dogs are euthanized but god surely it's better than killing someone.
 
i have a similar opinion to ruthnmeg, bit nervous of them i dont dislike any dog but they just make me nervous.
 
American Pit Bull Terriers are a banned breed in the UK according to the DDA.

But....the APBT is not a KC registerable or recognised breed in the UK, so no breed standard. BRAVO!

So basically, anything that looks like one (which can include lab x boxer, staff x greyhound) is a target.

There are dedicated people (one is a friend of mine) who go and 'assess' seized dogs - they measure them, weigh them and test how game and driven they are, to determine if they are APBT 'type'.
 
Fine in the right hands but have the utter misfortune of appealing to what is best described as Pond Scum, as do to a lesser extent Staffies, who appear to be a must have fasion accessory to societies worst.

Once again the breed and those who would posses them ligitimately are being punished for the sake of the minority of f**kwits, who if they cannot get pitbulls will breed something else to shove in a pit a fight to the death, or protect their stash from the wicked police long enough to flush it down the nearest toilet, some motive for dog ownership eh!!!
 
I don't like the breeds looks and would never have one but feel sorry for them as they have become this so called status symbol and are consequently owned by people that shouldn't be allowed to have dogs, or children for that matter. WTF were they thinking having a dog like that anywhere near a small child?

Don't ban the breed, although in the case of pitbulls I can't quite see the point of them, ban the halfwits that own them
mad.gif
 
QR I think part of the problem with banning breeds is that the majority of banned dogs are therefore owned by people who don't care about the law and don't want them as family pets. They want them as status symbols, or even as weapons. Therefore when they breed they are surely looking to use the fiercest, biggest, most aggressive dogs to get a more aggressive puppy, and so it goes on and the breeds develop even stronger tendancies towards fighting.

If they were licensed, not banned, then work could have been done on breeding these tendancies out of them, just as the working instinct has been greatly reduced in the show strains of many other dogs.
 
As many of you know, I live in America. Here in NYC, the Pit Bull or Pit mix is one of the most common dogs you'll see out and about. Recently city authorities banned the ownership of Pit Bulls in NYC public housing, and while it's unfortunate that decent owners will be affected, I do believe the city has been left with little choice, in light of the breed's propensity to be used as a macho status symbol or fighting dog.

Of those owned by responsibe people, I have *never* come across an aggressive Pit Bull. Stella mingles with them at the dog park every day, and I have walked plenty, when I used to volunteer at a city shelter. One, Pebbles, was kept in a basement for the first two years of her life; another, Sandy, was a bait dog. Neither have ever given me pause for concern. In fact, it's the evil Cairn twins that cause all the mayhem at the park.

But back to Pits. Yes, they can be a handful, they can be too exuberant for their own good, some are not good around other dogs, but the vast majority, like most bull breeds, gravitate toward people, are smart, and tend to enjoy curling up into a ball on your knee.

Which is not to say that all is rosy here in New York. One look at the CACC website shows that Pits far outrank any other breed in rescue, they're often found as strays in parks or on the roads, and fighting rings are a huge problem in certain parts of the Bronx.
 
Blame the deed not the breed....simple.

I may be wrong but I thought it was Labs who statistically bite more than any other breed? But they don't make the news because they're not a 'scary' breed. I've only even been bitten my little dogs who aren't taught manners or treated like real dogs.

However, they're not a dog for the inexperienced or the stupid. But then I think most people who have status dogs should be culled anyway!

Look at the amount who have them in the US with no problems....I'm in love with CM's pitbulls....especially Daddy!
 
I don't think I've met any so no real opinon.

Banning breeds is a load of bollocks though. I've seen a Labrador rip half of someone's face off, and been bitten by numerous terriers but they are deemed safe.

Deed not Breed, yada yada yada.

Still, as long as we have Sky News, The Sun and The Daily Mail sane people's opinions are meaningless.
 
Lovely breed but would like to see them remain banned with a few other breeds, I have my reasons and keep repeating them, but I would rather not see them here than see the majority suffer they way they do, as the majority of human dick head are not fit to keep a hamster let a lone a potential lethal killing machine, any my opinion still stick the damage these breed types can inflict are not comparitable with others mentioned.
I hate how they can be inprisoned and abused inc staffs and all manor of crosses, it's really not fair and selfish to keep them here unless the law can be changed.
 
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