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> her beloved pit bull, Forty-Cal, had been missing for 11 years. > He's super docile and friendly. Always has been. Are pit bulls known for being docile?
by thelastgallon 7mo ago
> her beloved pit bull, Forty-Cal, had been missing for 11 years.
> He's super docile and friendly. Always has been.
Are pit bulls known for being docile?
- thewoodsman 7mo agoHonestly, all the ones I've known have been super sweet dogs. I can never quite bring myself to fully trust them, but frankly I never fully trust any dog.
- sloped 7mo agoThis is the way.
- xoxxala 7mo ago“It’s not the dog, it’s the owner.” There is a self-selecting bias with pit bulls. People who buy and raise pit bulls often want a “mean” “tough” dog, so that’s what they get. You get a loving sweet pit bull if you raise them in a loving sweet way. Dogs are like children; they are very observant and pick up on even the tiniest of cues. Although, like people, some dogs (of all different breeds) are born more aggressive. That can usually be corrected with training. It’s mostly nurture, and part nature.
- tom_ 7mo agoNot typically - but when it's called Forty Cal, maybe? That's what, one bell pepper?
- doodlebugging 7mo agoOr maybe it's short for Forty Caliber. Pretty big difference.
- tom_ 7mo agoHm, that's a good point. I totally did not think of that as a possibility. But what are the chances? I mean, it's just a cute little pit bull we're talking about here! It's not as if it's even a big dog, like a golden retriever, or a nice friendly alsatian.
- zer00eyz 7mo ago> Animal Care and Control Team (ACCT) Philly sent her some pics of the pooch in question. 100 percent this dog is named after a bullet. Because thats how Philly rolls. In case you dont know: HitchBOT got murdered in Philly https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HitchBOT https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HitchBOT Bill Burr's Philly set: https://www.reddit.com/r/cowboys/comments/1il5msw/in_honor_of_the_superbowl_tomorrow_and_because/ https://www.reddit.com/r/cowboys/comments/1il5msw/in_honor_o... Don't get me wrong Philly is great, but Philly is... something.
- markdown 7mo agoWhat if it's called Mr. Worldwide?
- zoklet-enjoyer 7mo agoI used to have a pitbull/boxer mix and she was the sweetest dog. She had the longest tongue and would do big yawns and I'd just stick my hand in her mouth and grab her tongue and she'd shake her head and look confused. It was pretty funny. Most dogs are nice if they live in good homes.
- albatross79 7mo agoThat's just what the owners tend to say after the dog has ripped some child apart. It's the "I didn't know it was loaded" defense.
- hinkley 7mo agoThe dumbest thing I’ve done in the last ten years was stick my hands in the mouth of a “docile and friendly” pitty to extract a screaming puppy. Only afterward did I realized I almost destroyed my livelihood. My partner Google stalked the owner and discovered that he’d been force to surrender another pit bull two years earlier.
- grantith 7mo agoThe lucky ones learn about the finger in the butt and hind leg wheel barrow maneuvers before they have to use them.
- thatcat 7mo agoYou might need something like rebar to stick in the back of the mouth and pull back when that doesn't work
- markdown 7mo agoI've seen the video where all these methods were tried to no avail, so I don't have much faith in them. The safest solution is to put the animal down, but of course you have to have something on hand to do that. A 4x2 to the temple should do it. That'll end the aggressor and save the victim.
- macintux 7mo agoI took a few pit mixes out of the local humane society last summer for "Doggy Day Out", basically an opportunity for dogs who need new homes to get exposure to the community and get away from the kennel for a few hours, and they were universally friendly, sweet dogs. There's some selection bias, obviously, but their reputation is definitely overblown.
- dmix 7mo agoThey are banned in Ontario, Canada for a good reason and banned in UK for the same reasons. The only time my dog was ever randomly attacked was a pitbull and you quickly learn talking to other dog owners how common this is. Nothing clears out a dog park like a pit bull showing up.
- macintux 7mo agoI suspect the reasons are (generously) keeping them out of the hands of people who would treat them poorly and perpetuate the stereotypes, or (less generously) ignorance and fear.
- crooked-v 7mo agoThere are plenty of statistical studies out there that pit bulls specifically cause both a significant plurality of dog bites and significantly worse injuries than other dog breeds. For example: https://blog.dogsbite.org/2016/10/table-retrospective-level-1-trauma-dog-bite-studies-2009-2016.html https://blog.dogsbite.org/2016/10/table-retrospective-level-... https://www.dogsbite.org/dog-bite-statistics-studies-level-1-trauma-table-2011-present.php https://www.dogsbite.org/dog-bite-statistics-studies-level-1...
- 47282847 7mo agoCorrelation/causation
- imtringued 7mo ago
- vjvjvjvjghv 7mo agoThey are actually super sweet dogs in most cases. But once they get going, they are super strong and don’t give up. With most dogs you can separate them when they bite but a pit bull won’t let go. Years ago we fostered a lot of different dogs and the pit bulls were some of the nicest. But you have to pay attention to their strength. For example playing tug-o-war may end up in a shoulder injury because the pit bull will pull really hard. Another problem is that a lot of idiots like pit bulls and make them aggressive.
- IAmBroom 7mo ago100% this. The breed is great. They're just dogs; far less bitey statistically than many other breeds. The owners it attracts are the worst. And the breed is super strong. When encouraged to be hyper-territorial and aggressive, the results are super-bad. A chihuahua bite should be followed with a doctor's visit; a pitty bite generally requires stitches.
- Rendello 7mo agoWhich dog bite statistics are you referring to? I would be interested to see data that contradicts these findings: --- Characteristics of 1616 Consecutive Dog Bite Injuries at a Single Institution > Pit bull bites were implicated in half of all surgeries performed and over 2.5 times as likely to bite in multiple anatomic locations as compared to other breeds. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27400935/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27400935/ --- Characteristics of Dog Bites in Arkansas > family dogs represent a more significant threat than often is realized and that, among the breeds identified, pit bulls are proportionally linked with more severe bite injuries https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30075476/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30075476/ --- Morbidity of pediatric dog bites: a case series at a level one pediatric trauma center > Pediatric dog bites span a wide range of ages, frequently require operative intervention, and can cause severe morbidity. Dog familiarity did not confer safety, and in this series, Pit bulls were most frequently responsible. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25638634/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25638634/
- newguy1000 7mo ago99% of dog related deaths are caused by them
- bsder 7mo ago> Are pit bulls known for being docile? Not really. Even "old school" working catch dogs in this breed may require a break stick to get the dog to release game. In addition, the dogs are strong. And that's really the crux of the problem. Dogs will be dogs. They can be the nicest animal on the planet, but at some point a dog will bite you--maybe you did something stupid, maybe the dog accidentally got underfoot and got kicked, maybe the dog is just sick, maybe something agitated the dog, whatever. A bite will happen. The problem with pit bulls is that when they bite the damage is much more problematic than with other breeds. And this is the real issue. Because of their strength, pit bulls (and a small number of other breeds) account for a disproportionate amount of deaths and hospitalizations relative to other breeds. It also doesn't help that these types of dogs are disproportionately owned by jackasses.
- dgan 7mo agoYou talking like a bite must happen. No it's not. Source: myself, we ve had a dozen of dogs. Among them : rotweiler, new foundlands, montagne de pyrénées, terrier, and dozens of chihuahua and spitzs
- deleted 7mo ago[deleted]
- fractallyte 7mo agoMy dog bit me accidentally while playing, a few times. Every time, he apologized. (That is: he stopped playing, made a characteristic sound, and licked me to make sure I was OK.)
- mlrtime 7mo agoWas it a pit bull?
- fractallyte 7mo agoEnglish Bull Terrier - closely related to a pit bull
- phyzome 7mo agoIngenuous question. You know they have a bad reputation. The main problem with pit bulls, AIUI, is that they can be aggressive towards other dogs. Also, assholes buy them (due to their reputation) and then encourage aggressive behavior. I've met some pit bulls owned by nice people and the dogs were super friendly and especially very tolerant of children.
- dbg31415 7mo agoNothing stopping them from being great with kids. All dogs can be great with kids. Pit bulls have a long history as family dogs -- they're loyal, affectionate, and incredibly gentle with kids. The whole 'nanny dog' reputation exists for a reason. An example... https://www.luccishouse.org/post/misunderstood-angels-the-history-of-pit-bulls-as-nanny-dogs https://www.luccishouse.org/post/misunderstood-angels-the-hi... My pit mix was actually a therapy dog for autistic children through a program at a local hospital in Austin. The kids would read to her while she cuddled up next to them, putting her paw on them gently when they were nervous or frustrated. The program was designed to help the kids build confidence by providing a social interaction where they wouldn't feel judged. And she was great at it. It was the highlight of her week getting to go to the therapy center. I've had a lot of dogs in my life, and I've never had one more sweet or gentle than she was. But look, any dog can be awful or wonderful. That comes down to the owner, the environment, and the individual animal way more than the breed -- and honestly, the whole concept of 'breeds' is a bit silly to begin with. But I get that people need to classify things. It's just dumb. So, stop being a dog racist. (=
- tanjtanjtanj 7mo agoThe reason they have the “nanny dog reputation” is because a breeder made it up in the 1970s and then it caught on through shares and likes through Facebook in the late 2010s. There is no historical basis for the contents of what was basically a chain letter.
- aucisson_masque 7mo agoSome dogs races are known to attract people who have social and or mental issues. Not all pit bulls are dangerous, in the right hands they are some of the nicest dogs I have seen, but yeah. Personally I don't judge dogs anymore by their races but by their owner, I found it to be much more accurate. And on a sidenote, this owner really doesn't inspire me much. When she say it was disheartening to loose this dog because she paid for it with her own money... That's the kind of things I hear from the low life with pits.
- fennecbutt 7mo agoSo we can breed dogs for size, for behaviours like retrieving or guarding, but magically we can't breed for aggression like pit bulls have? Lmao.
- IAmBroom 7mo agoWell-raised pits aren't aggressive. They used to be recommended to watch babies. "Lmao."
- tanjtanjtanj 7mo agoThe nanny-dog thing is a myth made up by a breeder and shared through basically Facebook chain letters. There is no historical basis that pits ever were recommended to watch babies.
- aucisson_masque 7mo agoWe can actually bread dogs to get them physical attributes but I’ve never seen dog races that were natural home guardian. Pitt bull sure aren’t. Aggressivity isn’t instinctive, it’s learnt through experience or rather lack of. Lmao xd lol wtf.
- fennecbutt 7mo agoEhehe you're so mad.
- AngryData 7mo agoThey are pretty friendly and loving overall, their problem comes in that when they do lose their cool they lose it completely and go 100% on kill mode without clear and obvious warning beforehand. And when you combine that with people poorly taking care of them or training them to be aggressive bad things happen. I wouldn't have them around young kids because of that, if they accidentally hurt the dog like pulling on its ear wrong it isn't likely going to warn them, it will take it until the moment it decides it is too much and then possibly go for a full force bite on what seems like a reaction which can be deadly for a child. They also can be extremely protective, so if the dog perceives kids playing as a fight it might attack one of them thinking it is protecting another from harm. Now don't get me wrong, it still isn't super common and I would have no problem owning one myself, provided there are no kids younger than teens. But it isn't a dog for someone to buy and then get annoyed at and ignore or not train well or get frustrated and hit them which can make them aggressive. People who take good care of their dogs will have a great dog, people who don't take good care of their dogs is risking a small chance of creating a time bomb.
- eudamoniac 7mo agoFor dog bites that result in hospitalization, pitbulls are the culprit more often than every other breed combined.