On the news tonight, a mother discusses the circumstances surrounding the death of her 6 year old son.

She had a male Pit Bull dog that she had raised since it was 4 weeks old.

The story goes that she and her two children (13 year old daughter, and 6 year old son) had always treated the dog well, never hit the dog, and made sure the dog always felt loved. Then one day while the dog and the 6 year old were laying in front of the TV, the boy got up and the dog lunged at him. The dog grabbed the boy by the throat and would not let go. The mother and daughter tried to pry the dog off. They finally succeeded. She then grabbed the dog, which acted like a "puppy" again from what the mother said. She threw the dog outside and called 911. The boy died shortly thereafter.

I feel for the mother, I really do. No parent should ever outlive their child, and nobody wants to see them die. However, she goes out of her way to blame the entire Pit Bull breed, not just this particular dog. In fact, she encourages the Pit Bull ban in my area more so.

I do not know that much about dogs, but I do know that there is a pack structure that must be made clear to dogs. All too often, parents will put children in charge of a dog --- young, squealing, often rough-playing, and inconsistent children. Personally I think this spells disaster for a family, regardless of the breed. Albeit, less danger from a small breed, but still danger.

I think this could have been averted if the mother took the time to take the dog to a trainer, or at least bought some books on basic dog behavior. Every book I have stresses consistent training and discourages allowing dogs around young children.

Am I wrong for thinking this? I do not feel that the dog just "snapped."

I just read a story about a 7 yr old being left alone in the back yard with the family's Alsatian...the result was the same as in this story. Pack issues were assessed to be the reason. If pack issues are the reason then it is never the dogs fault, but it quickly becomes the dogs problem.

I think a dog can just "snap" if it's ill or injured. But an attentive, responsible owner knows their dog, can read their dog, and keeps the kids away.

I also think you can have a dog who is "off", but again, an attentive, responsible owner will see that and take the necessary precautions.

There's more to this story than what mom is saying. I do feel sorry for her but you know...if she didn't take responsibility for her dog or her child in the first place, I wouldn't expect her to do so when the worst happens.

Very sad

 Quote: Jennifer Wiseman

She had a male Pit Bull dog that she had raised since it was 4 weeks old.

Was the reason this pup was removed from its litter at 4 weeks old ever discussed? That screams irresponsible breeder IMO. I can't imagine much thought was put into the genetics of the dog for good health or sound temperment and certainly no consideration was giving to if this pup would be a good match for the family. I could be wrong but that line jumped out at me as the beginning of the problem.

I can't fault the mother for the way she feels. How horrible for her. Her baby is gone. She is doing what she thinks will help others keep their children safe.

 Quote: sheila buckley

 Quote: jennifer wiseman

She had a male Pit Bull dog that she had raised since it was 4 weeks old.

Was the reason this pup was removed from its litter at 4 weeks old ever discussed? That screams irresponsible breeder IMO. I can't imagine much thought was put into the genetics of the dog for good health or sound temperment and certainly no consideration was giving to if this pup would be a good match for the family. I could be wrong but that line jumped out at me as the beginning of the problem.

Well, what if she bred it herself, or what if he was an orphan, or a whole bunch of other what-ifs? I just had a litter that Mom was done with at about 5weeks, and so I can say that I've raised my male since he was 5 weeks old. Does that make me irresponsible or make the litter bad or not well-thought out temperamentally or genetically? There are lots of reasons why these things happen, and IMO, the age they leave the litter at is not nearly as important as the next few years, and the initial set of genes.

Sadly, it's not "all how you raise them." The sooner people understand the influence that genetics can have on a dog, the sooner we can get out of this BSL mess. I'll try to be brief, but let's use my youngest male GSD as an example of "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Now, I know none of us want to be just like our parents , but Xander is a case where he's a virtual behavioral clone of his sire. He hasn't seen his sire since he was just under 5 weeks old, yet they are sooo similar in behavior, mannerisms, and temperament, it's uncanny. His sire chases birds; Xander caught and killed a bird in midair at 14-15 weeks. His sire is a convicted cat killer. At 7mos, Xander is no longer permitted anywhere near the cats, and will attack them through the windows...even though he was raised with them. These two even have the same aggressive physical posture provoked by the same stimulus. My point is, I raised Xander about 180 degrees from where he ended up. They are who they are, and genetics, IMO, is waaay more responsible than anything else.

Here's where we come in. As the humans in charge of potentially dangerous animals, we need to see the physiological tendencies toward aggression, and make allowances for safety and protection of those likely to be harmed...ie, children. This is just another case of a clueless parent who has suffered a probably preventable tragedy. I absolutely do not believe that this dog showed no signs of this behavior previously ; she simply did not see them for what they were. This reminds me of the pictures of the mammoth mastiff of some type I don't remember, leaning over and onto a small baby, while the moronic parents snapped pictures and called them "how to hug a baby." The dog was clearly dominating the child, and in his mind, was being praised for it, so, I'll be he'll be shocked after he kills the baby and the parents are somewhat less pleased w/his behavior. I'll bet it's a similar situation w/this story and the dog's previous interactions w/the kids. Bet there're a ton of pics in this lady's album of her dog "hugging" the kids, or similar red flags. Sad.

 Quote:

I can't fault the mother for the way she feels. How horrible for her. Her baby is gone. She is doing what she thinks will help others keep their children safe.

Her energy is misplaced. Education on dog behavior (like the fact that dogs neither "snap" nor "hug") would be a good start if we want to hear fewer of these stories. It's so much easier to say the dog snapped than to say "I made mistakes. I overlooked and/or praised behaviors that in turn caused the death of my child."

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Yes Jenni!!

All of that!

I get so sick of people saying that their dogs were abused, and that's why they are nervous and/or aggressive. It has, IMHO, so much more to do with genes. My female has had a great life, never abused or neglected, well trained, and excercised, and is stil very nervy. I even caught an ex of mine explaining to a stranger, "She was abused before we got her." We got her at 8 weeks!!!!

The fact that this dog was perhaps taken from its mom at four weeks, probably had very little (if anything) to do with the dogs behavior. Around here, many brag about "hand raising" their (back yard bred) puppy from 4 weeks. Makes me shake my head at them. They are just clueless. I hand people my business card, with Leerburg's address written in red on the back and hope that they care enough to educate themselves.

Very, very, very sad handler error that resulted in the death of an innocent My heart is with that family.

I don't think dogs just "snap" out of the blue unless there is a serious mental problem or the dog has been injured. They always give indications, people just aren't always savvy or responsible enough to pick up on it.


I've been wondering, what kind of penalties are parents normally subjected to when a family pet mauls one of their children? I guess it might be hard to prove that there was any indication the dog would attack, unless there had been neighborhood incidents. It just seems that everyone seems so sorry for the parents in these cases that they are given a sort of pardon for negligence (though it could just be very incomplete reporting). If a child dies from a family pet I think that they should be investigated for manslaughter in most cases.

Then there was that case posted here where the parents locked their kid in the basement to keep him away from their dogs.

I am on my second pitbull right now. I am training him for personal protection (although alot of people disagree with the idea). He is very proficient in basic obeidiance, he will bite and out on command, and has shown no aggression other then when bite training. I spend alot of time with this dog and most people would be in aw of how instantly he obeys commands (i attribute this to the motivational bernard flinks style training) anyways, I never let him around anyone without me. I would never let him play with kids. Its not that I think he would bite, but these dogs are STRONG and can easily get excited and hurt a child.

I would compare a 40-60lbs pitbull left with a child to a 100lbs working german shepherd, or 120lbs rot.

Kids are often times heavy handed with animals. Especially when nobody is looking.

Breed specific bans on dogs are going to be ineffective at best, unless you want to ban german shepherds, malinois, rots, and any other high drive working dog. If anything breeder accountability enforced from the orginaztions who paper the dogs. Such as actual testing or training being required before a dog can breed. That would probably help out the pitbull.

Also, if a child shoots itself with a parents gun, then the parent is held accountable. Or if a stranger gets bit by your dog, then you are held accountable, so why not if it bites your child. If parents knew that they are directly responsible for their dogs/children(which you would think they would already) Many people would be discouraged from half assed dog ownership.

In addition, the dog feeling loved, in my mind is an afterthought. Dogs im convinced, are happier with structure then they are with "love" I do love my dogs but it comes after they learn respect. I doubt anybody saying "the dog always felt loved" has any idea of how to train/control or otherwise handle such a strong dog.