Owning a pit bull and adopting a child

[princessmom29]

They brought the puppy to the vet and that's what he said it is. But isn't that just a type of pit bull?

He is a cute little thing. I'll try to post a picture tomorrow.

Yes, it is code for pit bull. A lot of people will use this instead of pit bull and hope people don't know they are the same thing. It will not get you past and insurance company or DCF. I have had 2 personal bad experiences with pits, and never had another dog act aggresively towards me. Obviously, I don't care for the breed. I personally feel that there is too much unperdictability in thier genetic makeup because so many are bred for fighting these days. A dog bred for fighting is naturally aggressive and territorial. Both dogs that tried to attack me were "protecting thier yard". One charged me in the street in front of its house, andthe other met me at my side door at 6 am and kept me inside untill I called the next door neighbor to get her. You can never be really sure that the dog you are getting didn't come from fighting stock unless you find a really, really good breeder who keeps impeccable records. Even then you are trusting thier word on the matter. Iti s nto a risk I am willingto take. I know that in Alabama Pit bulls can increase your homeowners insurance or keep you from getting it at all, and in many cities the DCF will not place foster children under 13 into a home with a pit.

 

[handinpocket]

During our training classes to become foster parents, we were asked early on if we had a dog. There is one breed that would disqualify us from getting a license, and that is a pit bull. I would assume it would be the same for adoption.

As it should be. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Mare.

When we adopted Vince and Natalie, we had two Siberian Huskies. Not sure if it was even questioned as to having a dog. Keep in mind that was over 30 years ago.

 

[locolala]

They brought the puppy to the vet and that's what he said it is. But isn't that just a type of pit bull?

He is a cute little thing. I'll try to post a picture tomorrow.

American Staffordshire Terrier is the actual name of the breed, pit bull is just a nickname that sprung up.

 

[locolala]

As it should be. Thank you for sharing.

What about German Shepards then? AmStaffs aren't the only breed known for biting. Should adoption agencies not adopt out to people who smoke cigarettes? Smoking is very dangerous too, you know.

 

[Sparx]

During our training classes to become foster parents, we were asked early on if we had a dog. There is one breed that would disqualify us from getting a license, and that is a pit bull. I would assume it would be the same for adoption.

I think its odd that only ONE breed was restricted. Nothing like a Rottweiler was listed as a concern either?

 

[Indiana Rose Lee]

It could. The problem is that there aren't any guarantees. Anyone doing a home study is smart enough to know what a pit is and not be fooled by "code." lying or covering up anything is not a good idea. That will get you (general you) flagged.

As a GAL I have been bitten three times. One pit, one chow and small terrior mix. That sort of thing did affect placement.

There are far more families wanting babies than there are babies. If I wanted one of them, it would not be a risk I would take.

 

[Zachsmom4]

My guess is that it would depend on the Homestudy Agency. We adopted two years ago, and all that was requested from us was a vaccination record for each dog. No questions were asked.

 

[Pigeon]

It will depend on the agency and the social worker. We adopted twice. The social worker met our dog (Dalmatian), patted her on the head, and moved on to other things. It was a non-issue. We didn't have to provide any vet records.

 

[princessmom29]

What about German Shepards then? AmStaffs aren't the only breed known for biting. Should adoption agencies not adopt out to people who smoke cigarettes? Smoking is very dangerous too, you know.

German Shepards are not bred for fighting the way Pits ahve been in recent years. They are porblematic without proper training, but are great family dogs when they are properly trained and exercised. I have seen bad Shepards, but typically they are the product of someone leaving them penned in the yard all the time. Without a "job" to do they get bored and act out. If their needs are met they are great dogs.

I think its odd that only ONE breed was restricted. Nothing like a Rottweiler was listed as a concern either?

Again Rots are not fighting dogs. My DH had several as a child. One in particular thought sahe was a 98 lb lap dog. I have neverseen a rot just be aggressive without being taught that behavior, every pit I have ever met has had aggressive tendancies. I think Pit bulls are restricted because they present more danger than other breed because of the pervasive dogfighting done with them. They have been bred for aggression over and over to the point that it is no longer a risk worth taking.

 

[Rupert B Puppenstein]

They brought the puppy to the vet and that's what he said it is. But isn't that just a type of pit bull?

He is a cute little thing. I'll try to post a picture tomorrow.

They are two different breeds. Many get that confused as the Pitbull was bred from the Am Staff. The American Staffordshire Terrier is an AKC recognized breed, whereas the American Pit Bull Terrier is not and is why there are so many variations of the Pit Bull since it lacks a standard which creates a bad name for the breed. It isn't the breed that is the problem. It is the people around it. Idiots that think it is cool to breed and keep their dogs on a chain all day, etc. There can be no one dog breed that can be singled out as being dangerous to people or children because there are always going to be irresponsible breeders/people who think it is fun to bring more puppies in the world without knowing what they are doing. As long as a dog is trained and supervised around children, and the children are trained to correctly interact with animals there are never any problems. I had my reservations about a friend having a Presa Canario (sp?) with her children but they are a happy family and he is a big baby who just looks very scary.

To be honest, I have seen documentation of nearly every dog breed injuring a child. So, there is no one breed that is exempt from that. It is sad that a dog breed has such a bad rap.

 

[barkley]

It will depend on the agency and the social worker. We adopted twice. The social worker met our dog (Dalmatian), patted her on the head, and moved on to other things. It was a non-issue. We didn't have to provide any vet records.

do you know if anyone who was sent questioneers on behalf of your homestudy was questioned about your dog?

i ask this b/c some years ago a friend was applying to do foster/adopt and they had named us as someone the agency could send a questioneer to. the extensive paperwork we received indicated that if we chose to complete it, the information would be entirely confidential-with no disclosure by the agency to the applicant(s) of our answers. there was an entire section on the household's pets-and what kind of observations/interactions we had with the animals (specific questions-if the animal was prone to barking/growling at us when we visited, did the animals behaviour change in the company of an adult vs a child, did the applicant have the habit of putting the animal outside/in another room/in an animal carrier if people were visiting, had the applicant ever told us of any behavioural issues with the animal...).

 

[luvmy3]

They are two different breeds. Many get that confused as the Pitbull was bred from the Am Staff. The American Staffordshire Terrier is an AKC recognized breed, whereas the American Pit Bull Terrier is not and is why there are so many variations of the Pit Bull since it lacks a standard which creates a bad name for the breed. It isn't the breed that is the problem. It is the people around it. Idiots that think it is cool to breed and keep their dogs on a chain all day, etc. There can be no one dog breed that can be singled out as being dangerous to people or children because there are always going to be irresponsible breeders/people who think it is fun to bring more puppies in the world without knowing what they are doing. As long as a dog is trained and supervised around children, and the children are trained to correctly interact with animals there are never any problems. I had my reservations about a friend having a Presa Canario (sp?) with her children but they are a happy family and he is a big baby who just looks very scary.

To be honest, I have seen documentation of nearly every dog breed injuring a child. So, there is no one breed that is exempt from that. It is sad that a dog breed has such a bad rap.

While there is documentation of every breed injuring a child, you would have to look at the stats on which breed/s have the highest cases and the highest case of serious injury or death associated with those attacks. I'm not a gambler, but I'm wiling to be the pitbull is one breed that has a very high percentage of that and thats why its one breed who gets a bad rap, which to me would be totally justifiable and not at all sad.

 

[razorbackfan22]

A friend owns a very territorial American Bull Dog (one of the breeds used to create pit bulls) that is rarely friendly to anyone except the owners. The dog bothers me because while any dog can hurt you, that dog could kill you.

 

[Pigeon]

do you know if anyone who was sent questioneers on behalf of your homestudy was questioned about your dog?

Nobody was sent questionnaires. We needed several non-relatives to write letters. If the sw had questions, he could call them, but as far as I know, he didn't.

 

[Planogirl]

This is an interesting question. I'm impressed that the workers even ask about cats. Better safe than sorry IMO.

 

[ZachnElli]

I don't remember the social workers asking us anything about our dogs, maybe they did, but it isn't anything that sticks out in my memory. That was 5 years ago and we had 3 dogs, one golden mix and two poodle mixes (ankle-biters ). I mailed the questionnaires out to our chosen people and there were no questions on it about pets, only about us and our ability to be parents.

 

[Jynohn]

This thread interests me because we are just starting our home study process to adopt a waiting child from China, and while we do not have pitbulls, we do have Great Danes. Anyone who has been around a Dane knows that they are big babies and great with children, but obviously their size is intimidating. We have our first home study visit coming up, and the dogs are our biggest concern. I'm interested to read more stories from families who have been through the process, and what, if anything was said about their dogs...

 

[*pixie*dust*]

When we adopted, we owned 2 cats. They were already about 8 and 10 and pretty much ate and slept. We had to have all their vaccinations in order, plus get letters from our vet attesting to their temperments and the fact that they were in good health and not a danger to a child. Basically, the vet had to vouch for our kitties being compatible with a child.

In all seriousness, I cannot imagine a vet putting their reputation on the line by vouching for a pit bull's compatibility (and safety) with children in the same manner. Certainly not all adoption agencies/home studies require such a statement from the family's vet, but many do. I know my vet had zero hesitation about vouching for my cats. I cannot help but wonder if a vet would be so willing and eager to sing the praises of a pit bull being around babies/children. They have a lot on the line if they do so.

If the adoption agency/home study has no such requirement, then that's a different story.

My experience was similar to this. The vet had to vouch for the cat.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

As both an adotive parent and a dog lover, I'd say this is a very valid question. I don't think that most agencies or states have rules against owners, but that doesn't mean that individual social workers won't have biases, or in the case of domestic adoption, that individual mothers might think twice about choosing a family with a pit.

If I were in the process of adopting, or planning on adopting, I'd think twice about bringing a pit bull into my family, or any other large powerful breed, because I'd be concerned that it wouldn't be completely trained before the baby came home, and because I'd be concerned that social workers, and others might think twice. I also wouldn't add a pitbull or other large dog to my family while I was pregnant or trying to conceive. I think that managing young powerful dogs and babies/toddlers/preschoolers is an ongoing safety concern and I wouldn't want to deal with it if I didn't have to.

If I had a pitbull or other large dog that I loved, and thought would be safe with children, and I then decided to begin the adoption, I'd want to make sure my dog was as well trained as possible, and that I had documentation that he was trained. A "Canine Good Citizen" certificate might be a good place to start. I'd probably find a trainer to work with who could vouch for my dog -- even if I didn't have any behavior issues for the trainer to work on, we could do flyball or agility or something. I'd also make sure that I had a plan that I could articulate, about how I would manage the challenges of a baby or young child and the dog -- how would I keep them separate if I couldn't supervise (to be clear, I don't think that any breed should be left alone with young children), how would I provide the dog with enough exercise -- is it trained to walk alongside a stroller, would I carry baby in the backpack, would I send the dog to daycare? I'd want to have a plan.

But if I did that, I don't see why it would be a problem.