That is very unfortunate and I am not certain how it's legal to take individual animals that have done nothing wrong. However, fear of Pit Bulls has escalated over the last few years. In my area, two running loose went into someone's pasture and killed a retired racehorse who was rather famous in the area in his youth. What a way to go out...taken down by 2 dogs. We also had a child's death last year, in addition to a dead cat and threatened woman just behind me. Me and my puppy (she is now a year old) have personally been threatened three times in 12 months by PB's running loose - they charge at you snarling so you have to carry a weapon or mace.

The problem seems to be the trashy people who decide to breed them and sell them to whomever without any regard for health, temperment or bloodlines, or even the kind of homes they are going to. In my area some deliberately breed brother to sister in the belief it will make them better fighters. They are damaging and using this breed the same way the GSD breed was damaged and used years ago by the same kind of people. They breed dogs with poor temperment/health problems, abuse/neglect them and don't keep them securely fenced. To them it's not an animal, it's a paycheck or an extesion of their fragile ego. We have 2 PB's just around the corner that get animal control called on them monthly - three times I have been challenged by them. My big question is WHY AREN'T THEY AT HOME WHERE THEY BELONG?? The answer is their owner is a moron.

People REALLY should have to take some sort of test before they are allowed to own or breed dogs of any kind!

 Quote: Julie Wilson

People REALLY should have to take some sort of test before they are allowed to own or breed dogs of any kind!

Thats exactly what I was thinking! Unfortunately, criminals always find a way. This is a great idea though, Julie. It would be nice if they put it into play.

 Quote: Nathan Tierney

 Quote: Julie Wilson

People REALLY should have to take some sort of test before they are allowed to own or breed dogs of any kind!

Thats exactly what I was thinking! Unfortunately, criminals always find a way. This is a great idea though, Julie. It would be nice if they put it into play.

What would this test include?

I know PB people are adamant about this, but I'm not so sure banning this breed is a bad idea. If there were a way to let "select" people breed them and raise them and train them, that would be ok. But how do you monitor that? As Rick says, what would the test be?

I have a different angle on the "no bad dogs, just bad owners" argument. I believe that almost 90% of ALL dog owners are "bad owners". They own dogs for their own pleasure and comfort, and neither know how to train them, nor are willing to train them. It takes time, effort and money. MOST people will not do this. But with poodles and labs and goldens and 99% of the breeds on this earth it just doesn't matter cuz they never(or extremely rarely) go nuts. No matter what PB lovers say, this breed goes nuts. When they do, they kill children. I think there has to be some sort of ban or serious restrictions or like zillion-dollar registrations so that no "bad" i.e."typical" owners ever get their hands on them.

 Quote: anna christie

No matter what PB lovers say, this breed goes nuts. When they do, they kill children.

Are you freaking kidding me?

Ladies and gentlemen, here is a perfect example of the mentality threatening our right to own working breeds, one breed ban at a time.

BTW, Anna, you failed my preliminary dog-ownership IQ test miserably.

Um, criminals don't care about "zillion dollar registration." It's only RESPONSIBLE, law-abiding people who even bother obeying city registration regulations. Banning only makes them more of a novelty.

 Quote: Anna Christie

No matter what PB lovers say, this breed goes nuts. When they do, they kill children.

Discussion and debate about breed-specific legislation is one thing.

Statements like this are quite another. Please check your PMs.

Uh, I'm honestly quite shocked at some of the member's responses. Of all places, I thought this forum had the most educated & un-biased views. I don't own a PB and don't have the need to defend them from THAT point of view. The reason I do is because, I think they are treated & targeted unfairly, and like I said, if they become extinct, BSL will move to Boxers, GSDs, Rotties, Dobes.....

Here's a good site to see it from the other point of view:
http://www.understand-a-bull.com/BSL/OtherBreedBites/AllDogsBite.htm

Now that I've calmed down a bit....keep in mind, folks, that most people wouldn't know a Pit Bull if it bit them in the @$$. If you find the time, take the "Can you find the Pit Bull" quiz online. http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/findpit.html It's an eye-opener. The dogs that are mistaken for Pits amaze and horrify me almost daily. My Chihuahua was called a "baby Pit Bull"-no joke.

ANY dog who bites, that someone refuses to claim, seems to be labeled a Pit Bull lately-whether it weighs 120lbs is of no significance. People even think it's a slang term for breeds like AmStaffs, Staffy Bulls, and even Boxers. It is not a slang term; it's a proper breed name. There is only one "Pit Bull"-the American Pit Bull Terrier.

Now, if you take all these stories and were able to really analyze them for factual data, I wonder how many "pitbulls", "pitt bulls", or "Pittbulls" were actually Pit Bulls, and how many were a completely different breed or mix.

Do you think the media will go back and say "We apologize. The Pit Bull accused of mauling a child last week was actually a labrador with a steroid addiction." They don't care about facts; they will report what will garner the most attention. Crazy Bichons just don't make the ratings.

 Quote: jenni williams

Um, criminals don't care about "zillion dollar registration." It's only RESPONSIBLE, law-abiding people who even bother obeying city registration regulations. Banning only makes them more of a novelty.

I've seen it first hand.
I believe Hamilton County in Ohio (see; Cincinnati OH) has a "pit bull" ban. I lived across the river for most of my life. I once took a job for a friend as a driver for an exotic dancer. She owned a "pit bull" (generic looking pit mix dog, looked part Staffie) that she refused to neuter because he was brindle with white on his nose and chest, and swore up and down that if she bred him to another brindle pit bitch that "pure brindle pups would sell for $500 each!" Needless to say, I quit that job because her upbringing conflicted with mine so much and I nearly had to adopt her two dogs (she got herself a 12wk old brindle female pup to "breed" to her male, but couldn't care for it and gave it to a friend) because of her alcohol problem.
But because of her I got a chance to see how irresponsible and completely uneducated the "pit bull" owning populace was in the tristate area. BYBs. The people I experienced owned "fighting dogs", breeding indiscriminately any "pit" dog they had for the "fire". When I asked some of the pit owners in the ghettos I went around if their dogs were APBTs, Bull Terriers, Staffordshire BTs... they had NO IDEA what I was talking about. The "breeds of pit" I did learn were: red nose, blue nose, blue pits, brindle, red pits, and pure pits. Apparently, getting a red nose pit or a pure brindle pit was a good thing and sold for high prices. Of course, even the most dog-aggressive pit I met during that time was very people-friendly, but poorly trained and had awful conformational traits/temperament flaws.
Of course, when the pit ban in OH came into effect, I saw MORE pits. Claimed as "bulldog mixes", they were EVERY CORNER I LOOKED. It's a sad statistic, but it appears that if you take it away, people just want it more. Up goes the market. I mean, where's the fun in owning a dog that is totally legal and societally acceptable to possess?

So true. They don't even understand what a Pit Bull is or isn't. And I feel that 'exotic dancer' is a much too kind word for the woman you describe. Let's call a spade a spade, a Pit Bull a Pit Bull, and a stripper a stripper.


I have a blue fawn APBT, which only means that she's a very pretty dog with a blue nose, blue lined eyes, and beautiful eyes that match her coat. BUT, in scumbag currency, she's like gold. I have a 6'privacy fence so no one sees her in the yard; I worry about her being stolen. Although, she's of proper APBT conformation, so maybe they won't recognize her after all!

Back on topic- banning will only increase the percentage of scumbag ownership, and make fighting that much more fascinating. Anyone who is threatened by Pit Bulls needs to take a look at the lives these poor abused, tortured animals lead at the hands of these sadistic excuses for humanity, and THEN decide who's to blame-dogs or "people"???