"our" new pitbull puppy

Our sheltie is larger, size of a collie, but like all herding dogs, more a nipper than a biter. The pitbull plays like trying to take down a wild hog, jumping on and grabbing back of the neck, or side of the neck. Stubborn too, have to whack it a good one for that with the stick to stop it. I don't like using a stick but just pushing the dog away at such time isn't always sufficient. I've had a bull mastiff before and that was a great dog, but very even tempered and not so stubborn. This one needs to wear off some energy in the mornings before it settles down, then it's OK for the most part. I'd have preferred my daughter NOT to have gotten a pitbull. I'm worried about when it's older and she wants to drop it off here for a week or so. I don't want to be responsible for it then, especially in a legal sense.

I don't want to do anything to encourage aggressive behavior, but seems you really have to force the attention at times. She seems OK with the cats after their understanding was reached. Only time will tell for sure. Sometimes you can do everything right and still have something go wrong. When my two older were preschool we had a rotty-shepard mix that most times seemed great, but we think it killed the cat, one neighbor claimed he was petting it over the fence as normal and it suddenly tried to grab him vicious like. Finally was sitting in living room with 8yr old girl visiting our two, a child the dog played with in backyard from puppy, and suddenly the dog with no provocation jumped up and attacked her back of the head. Stitches that day for the child and I had the dog put down immediately. After that I wanted ONLY sedate breed. We had a great Amish collie mix for 15 years and this sheltie now for about 7 years.

Tony, wasn't that rascals' dog a bull terrier?

and enjoy ->http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6vwl1amjPk

OK just to clear a few things up,...petey was a pit bull,...the American Staffordshire Terrier and American Pit Bull Terrier at the time of this film were one and the same breed...except the UKC recognized the breed as American Pit Bull Terrier and the AKC recognized it as American Staffordshire Terrier as a matter if fact in the twenty's and thirty's there where many duel registered dogs...petey was one of them,..also the dog used in 1994 was an American Bulldog .... <<--This info was a little farther down the page....Digger

confused him with Spuds.

http://www.btca.com/cms_btca/index.php/history/famous-bull-terriers

Don't want to be negative James, but this just in. http://news.sky.com/story/1167658/connecticut-woman-loses-arm-in-pit-bull-attack

Dafydd.

I wonder if she had it from puppy, or got it already grown?

a pit acting this way unless it was mistreated. Would you expect the woman to admit it had been either used for dog fights or trained as a guard dog? I wouldn't believe her.

Glad I am too. Last night our collie sheltie had finally gotten enough of the rough play and was trying to attack it, although the puppy seemed to misunderstand that as the older dog finally playing the way it wanted. Peace again in the house among our dog and the cats. One cat had made it her special duty to stalk puppy and dare him, the others tended to try and avoid him.

in the wounded dogs yard.

If I recall correctly, police shot one on the spot because it would not back off, the other was captured. Not sure if they put it down later or not. Never heard they identified the owner.

that says a plow horse is no different from a Kentucky derby contender.

Breeding over generations do slant animals toward certain traits.

Dogs bred for territorial defense or attack on command even if not for dog fighting well probably be a bit quicker on the trigger as a breed, while individuals still cover a wide range.

Of Course Of Course..... Ask Mr. Ed.... .... I had to say it ! .....Digger

Dafydd.

My uncle breeds Arabians and sells them as racers , they all don't make it, some are just rotten mean animals and can't be trained and some are lovable as kittens. On the other hand G'pa and dad and uncle ( same uncle) had plow horses on the farm and some of those were mean rotten animals and some were lovable as can be. They like you one minute and not the next and can turn on you in an instant. I don't see a difference between plow horses and Kentucky Derby breeds... A horse is a horse...Digger

I believe which would be good family and guard dog combo without risking a pitbull, like boxers or bull mastiffs. You're preaching to the choir here, I'd not have one just to be on the safer side. I wish my daughter hadn't gotten it, but who knows, maybe it will save her instead at some point from a bad person. Part of the problem is also the public perception in any court room setting. "That your honor is when the "pitbull" dog attacked...." and almost immediately you would be on the defense more than "that your honor is when the shih-tzu attacked".

until pit bulls took the role of big bad evil misfits. That was due t a lot of them were bred and trained for dog fighting I suspect.