I try very hard to avoid bashing the work that other rescue groups are doing. I know that I don’t want to be hung out to dry for my opinions about things, and the way we run Mended Hearts. There’s usually a lot more to the story than what appears on the surface, so some of our decisions may not make sense to the casual observer.
However, there’s one area where I and other Pit Bull rescuers cannot keep silent. It’s absolutely CRUCIAL given the recent damage to this breed’s reputation by careless owners that rescuers understand the correct temperament of a Pit Bull type dog. There are rescuers out there who are doing more harm than good by allowing Pit Bull type dogs with behaviors that belie an incorrect temperament to be placed for adoption.
Now, I realize that we can’t be certain of the breed of a rescue dog. There are breed standards that most Pit Bull rescuers are familiar with, but frankly, many breeds begin to look suspiciously like Pit Bulls as they continue to produce mixed breed offspring. However, would the average person say the dog is a Pit Bull – then it will probably be labeled as one. Annoying, but what do you do?
A correctly temperamented Pit Bull is very human friendly. As I like to tell people, there are no strangers to my dog Joe. Everyone is his best buddy upon introduction. Doubt me? I invite you over. He may pee on your shoes he’ll be so excited to meet you. He may lunge at you in his overzealous effort to rub himself against your legs, but he will never lunge at you in an aggressive manner.
A correctly temperamented Pit Bull has a high bite inhibition. I hardly ever see Pit Bull type dogs fail a ressource guarding assessment. Most are so eager to please ANY human, they will give up the resource with very little stimulation. I’ve had my hands on hundreds of Pit Bull type dogs in the last few years – poking them with needles and microchip implanters, clipping their nails, jamming dewormer down their throats – and I’ve never been bitten by one (I have been nailed by a chihuahua and a doxie).
Pit Bull advocates who have worked tirelessly to change the public perception of these amazing dogs are having their work undermined by well-meaning rescuers who just don’t get it. These “Pit Bull advocates” are further DAMAGING the breed’s reputation by putting incorrectly temperamented dogs up for adoption. Worse – they are putting people at risk of being hurt.
I know they love this breed. I do too. It absolutely kills me when I have to euthanize a Pit Bull because it shows a low bite inhibition or isn’t well socialized towards humans. Yes, it’s the fault of HUMANS that these dogs are incorrectly temperamented and display inappropriate behavior (come back tomorrow for a post about the difference). Humans failed them by breeding them poorly, and socializing them poorly, and now these dogs have to pay the ultimate price. Placing them on the adoption floor isn’t helping them. It’s creating a dangerous situation which can further damage the breed as a whole.
One Crazy Lady 