[Dailydrool] Pit bulls & chihuahuas

[Riche Churchill]

Am always sorry to see a media uproar over a pit bull attack. It really 
is unfair. Yes, pit bulls mean business when they do attack, and yes, 
some of them do, but thousands upon thousands DON'T. Meanwhile, 
thousands of chihuahuas, pomeranians and various small terriers do every 
single day -- and more often attack humans (hands, ankles and faces, 
mostly) rather than other dogs.

There are a great many pit bull owners here in Tennessee, but most of 
them need to be put down (the owners, not the dogs). They seem to like 
the "image" of owning a pit bull, but considering the way they treat 
them, image is all there is. I can't count how many such dogs have died 
here during the recent heat wave. They almost always are confined to a 
tiny pen and may have a dog house but no shade or are chained to a tree 
with no other shelter. When the owners venture out of their 
air-conditioned houses and discover several dead bodies (there almost 
always are several) they gasp in shock and horror and say, "I loved 
those dogs!" Yeah, right. I always knew there were/are a lot of stupid 
dog owners, but until I got involved in rescue work, had no idea there 
were so MANY. It's not just that they have no clue about caring for a 
dog, they have no clue about dogs in general.

We have a pit bull. She looks more like an Ibizan Hound, though, except 
for her color, which is dark sable with white stockings. She adores 
people. She hates excitable little dogs. She hates our Basset Hound the 
most. The BH is something of a snot, so can't really blame her -- but we 
keep the BH and the little one (who looks exactly like the PB but in 
miniature) separate at ALL times. We also have an American Bulldog, who 
would be classified as a pit bull, even though he isn't really. Talk 
about a love-bug. He never met a person or a dog he didn't like -- even 
though when he was a puppy, some fun-loving boys poured gasoline on his 
head and set him on fire. He's not pretty, but he holds no grudge. He's 
a better "person" than I am.

Of the 7 breed classifications (though I think one or two have been 
added in recent years) the LEAST likely to bite anyone is the Sporting 
Group. The Cocker Spaniel is not quite as trustworthy, but if you want 
near absolute safety, that's your group. The Hound Group, which includes 
our beloved Basset, would be in second place.

The point of all this is, you have to know dogs. Your dogs. Other dogs. 
You are the brains of the outfit. They have superior noses, not brains. 
They are not furry humans; they are not children. Bassets fight, too. 
Some of them will attack a human. They are dogs. I love them. I couldn't 
live without them, but I make the rules and I know what could happen if 
I didn't enforce them.

Riche (Bugler pub/ed)


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