Don't get me wrong because I love the Pit Bull breeds, but they are dogs for gaming, it is how they are made and why they are bred. The best to the best for performance in GAME. I have read all the comments regarding Pit Bull breeds as working dogs here, and agendas by some more notorious Pit Bull advocates, but I truely believe the few that are representative of good working dogs are the exception and not the rule. Let this breed do what it was meant to do, fight BSL because it won't solve the dangerous dog problem, and don't try to make these dogs behave in a fashion they were never meant to. Get the pit bull breeds into the hands of the folks that know what to do with them and you will see the stats of viscous dog incidents by pit bulls decline, and I'm almost sure you won't see them trying to be molded into a working dog, I have a problem with that.

I hope I won't offend anyone or the management of this forum by asking for some more discussion, but I really thought Will made a good point on the last thread regarding this and wondered if we could open it up for further discussion..if not, well management rules. Thanks.

These dogs need something that works them out and challenges their heart. That is why weightpulling is such a great outlet for these dogs. It tests the dogs physical strength and heart (their will and determination). I use to weight pull and these dogs would be half way to the finish line and when it got hard and the cart was only starting to creep these dogs would get low dig hard, and be screaming like a wide open malinois in full prey drive determined to pull that weight. It was really awesome to see, But thats where they belong. Trying to make them into something their not can't be good for them.

I've heard stories like this but never seen them in action, my husband and I are going to a competition OCT 29, can't wait....

I'm new here, but I have to disagree with your statement concerning the gaming of pit bulldogs.

"Scratch" contests have played a major role in the development of the breed, but it is naive to think that the sporting dog community is all that they were meant for or capable of.

Pit bulldogs have always had a dual role in hunting, and the farming/ranching way of life. It is these activities which allow pit bulldogs to "work", and it should also be noted that it is this role associated with the breed which actually predates their use in the pit.

Sincerely,
Andy Andrews

"Pit bulldogs have always had a dual role in hunting, and the farming/ranching way of life. It is these activities which allow pit bulldogs to "work", and it should also be noted that it is this role associated with the breed which actually predates their use in the pit."


I seen more than a few pitbull folks make that claim, yet when I ask for some type of proof of their previous use in those fields, I never get any. And it's not like I haven't looked for some evidence of their use in those working field, but I haven't seen anything that was very convincing from a historical standpoint.

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"Pit bulldogs have always had a dual role in hunting, and the farming/ranching way of life. It is these activities which allow pit bulldogs to "work", and it should also be noted that it is this role associated with the breed which actually predates their use in the pit."

Sorry, but this is just flat out false. I know quite a bit about this breed, I owned them most of my life. The bulldog (pitbull) while not in it's true nature to be human aggressive but rather very accepting of even strangers, was created from scratch and perfected with one job in mind, battle. This has even been documented in black and white from the founders of this breed. Anything else is nothing but a spin.
~CHRIS D

Research "catch" work and you'll find what you seek. There are dozens of historical photographs showing pit bulldogs on farms and ranches.

Read any book on the history of pit bulldogs and you'll discover their accomplishments outside the pit.

Pit bulldogs were originally used to "bay" large game, by gripping an animal and subduing it until a hunter arrived to capture or kill it. It was this ability that led to the development of baiting contests against bulls and bears, as well as the development of "scratch" contests between dogs.

Pit bulldogs have been used by ranchers/farmers in much the same fashion as they're used by hunters. They're used to defend a rancher/farmer's land by preventing ferrel animals from trespassing on fertile soil, and to keep predators from killing their livestock, as well as to "catch" lost or escaped livestock to the owners land.


The information is already there, its just a matter of you accepting it. I nor anyone else can "convince" you of anything, if you choose to have a foregone conclusion.

Chris,


I too have owned pit bulldogs and have been around them my entire life.

Not only have I researched this alot, I personally know people who continue to work their dogs in hunting and farming/ranching.

To state as fact that the pit bulldog does not have a long tradition outside of the pit is ridiculously inaccurate, and confroms only to the agenda to portray the breed negatively.

Catchwork is a cornerstone of the breed, and does pre date their use in the pit. It was the bulldog's ability to grip and hold game many times its size that eventually lead to their fighting prowess.

I can find plenty of historical references, wood carvings, old historical paintings, etc. of "bulldogs" doing bull catching in England. Those were not even remotely pitbulls, they were much closer to the classic old english pitbull.
When I look up "catch dogs", I find a history that goes back about 30 years. Not exactly the strong historic basis that I'm looking for as evidence.

Sorry, these were not farm and ranch dogs and there is no body of evidence to suggest otherwise.

"Evidence" is different than "information", by the way.

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Read any book on the history of pit bulldogs and you'll discover their accomplishments outside the pit.

Accomplishments outside the pit doesn't mean thats what they're "bred for" purpose was. Petey from the little rascals was an actor dog, but that doesn't mean pitbulls were originally bred for acting. Sounds like you have been reading Richard Stratton, he's a moron.

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Pit bulldogs were originally used to "bay" large game, by gripping an animal and subduing it until a hunter arrived to capture or kill it. It was this ability that led to the development of baiting contests against bulls and bears, as well as the development of "scratch" contests between dogs.

False, because the key word you used in there was originally, that was the bulldog, not the APBT. They had one purpose combat. Just because someone finds another purpose for them doesn't change what they were originally bred for.

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Pit bulldogs have been used by ranchers/farmers in much the same fashion as they're used by hunters. They're used to defend a rancher/farmer's land by preventing ferrel animals from trespassing on fertile soil, and to keep predators from killing their livestock, as well as to "catch" lost or escaped livestock to the owners land.

Again what individuals use them for doesn't change what they were created for

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Research "catch" work and you'll find what you seek. There are dozens of historical photographs showing pit bulldogs on farms and ranches.

I'v also seen some Mals that do therapy work, they certainly wasn't bred for that. So just because people have some pictures of them laying up on a an old folks bed makes Malinois therapy dogs?

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The information is already there, its just a matter of you accepting it. I nor anyone else can "convince" you of anything, if you choose to have a foregone conclusion.

You right, because a life time of living with these dogs and having contact with them and a life time of research on these dogs has taught me what I know.