Pit-Bull's...friend or foe?

[Pea-n-Me]

I have to say I've never heard of this "importing dogs" from other countries.

Sounds like that needs a thread of its own!

Dogs do come from other countries - we have rescues from Mexico, some of the islands, war zones, and from the meat trade, etc. That's been going on for a long time.

But the idea that there is a sinister underground going on to bring dogs in from other places on purpose in order to fill U.S. shelters? That is what I think would make for a very interesting discussion! (And note, I don't think it's necessarily untrue, but the degree to which it goes on, and the whys and hows, etc., are less clear.)

 

[ThistleMae]

About 3 years.

Really, omg, so no issues for three years and then out of nowhere this happened? Makes us all really think hard on this topic.

 

[Christine]

Really, omg, so no issues for three years and then out of nowhere this happened? Makes us all really think hard on this topic.

The history of the dog that did this was the I got her from the shelter at 7 months old. No "bad" experiences...she was just a puppy with puppy behavior and got to be too much for the previous owner. For instance, she was jumping on their toddler. She was a super good dog when we brought her home. We did do dog obedience with her and it was there that I found that she didn't overly care for other dogs. I had an older dog still at the time (about 14 years old) and all was well there. The older dog eventually passed after about 8 months. I waited a few a months and then got a JRT puppy (3 months old) from a breeder.

Things seemed to be fine. As the JRT got a little older (and very aggressive as JRTs are), there were squirmishes; mainly over toys or if the JRT was getting out of hand. The bigger dog would often try to "keep her in line" out on a walk by nipping an ear or something like that. One time when we were on vacation and my parents were taking care of them, they got into a fight over some food. Not sure who started it. So, there were a few incidents like that.

One day, they were out in the yard and I was in the house cleaning. I heard some barking going on and I checked out the window and they were both barking at something on the other side of the fence. My yard is large and heavily wooded and it was either a fox or a squirrel or something. Went and took a phone call for about 10 minutes. I then looked out my kitchen window and saw the JRT laying in the yard. I knew immediately something was wrong as the dog never sat still for anything. Ran out, grabbed her, and jumped in the car. She died on my lap on the way to the vet. When I got home, the bigger dog was bleeding from her chest and had a big "rip" in her fur/skin on her chest from the JRT.

They got into a fight or a frenzy of some sort. No way to say who started it. The behaviorist thinks they may have been both overexcited by whatever they saw through the fence and the "prey drive" kicked in for one or both. She said it was very common for dogs to have this happen when prey close by and they get wound up. Dogs will often get into it with each other. Due to the size differences of the dogs, the JRT didn't stand a chance.

After it happened, I immediately consulted with my vet about whether my "hound" was a dangerous dog and, based on the circumstances, I think he got a little upset with me that I might euthanize the dog when it was just "acting like a dog would around other animals." He was our trusted vet of 20 years so I had no reason to think he was being biased or anything. I know if he thought the dog was dangerous he would have said so. I then took it a step further and consulted with the behaviorist. They found her to be extremely good with people, and not overly fond of other dogs. Her prey drive would also kick in very easily when a small animal was in her periphery.

 

[ThistleMae]

The history of the dog that did this was the I got her from the shelter at 7 months old. No "bad" experiences...she was just a puppy with puppy behavior and got to be too much for the previous owner. For instance, she was jumping on their toddler. She was a super good dog when we brought her home. We did do dog obedience with her and it was there that I found that she didn't overly care for other dogs. I had an older dog still at the time (about 14 years old) and all was well there. The older dog eventually passed after about 8 months. I waited a few a months and then got a JRT puppy (3 months old) from a breeder.

Things seemed to be fine. As the JRT got a little older (and very aggressive as JRTs are), there were squirmishes; mainly over toys or if the JRT was getting out of hand. The bigger dog would often try to "keep her in line" out on a walk by nipping an ear or something like that. One time when we were on vacation and my parents were taking care of them, they got into a fight over some food. Not sure who started it. So, there were a few incidents like that.

One day, they were out in the yard and I was in the house cleaning. I heard some barking going on and I checked out the window and they were both barking at something on the other side of the fence. My yard is large and heavily wooded and it was either a fox or a squirrel or something. Went and took a phone call for about 10 minutes. I then looked out my kitchen window and saw the JRT laying in the yard. I knew immediately something was wrong as the dog never sat still for anything. Ran out, grabbed her, and jumped in the car. She died on my lap on the way to the vet. When I got home, the bigger dog was bleeding from her chest and had a big "rip" in her fur/skin on her chest from the JRT.

They got into a fight or a frenzy of some sort. No way to say who started it. The behaviorist thinks they may have been both overexcited by whatever they saw through the fence and the "prey drive" kicked in for one or both. She said it was very common for dogs to have this happen when prey close by and they get wound up. Dogs will often get into it with each other. Due to the size differences of the dogs, the JRT didn't stand a chance.

After it happened, I immediately consulted with my vet about whether my "hound" was a dangerous dog and, based on the circumstances, I think he got a little upset with me that I might euthanize the dog when it was just "acting like a dog would around other animals." He was our trusted vet of 20 years so I had no reason to think he was being biased or anything. I know if he thought the dog was dangerous he would have said so. I then took it a step further and consulted with the behaviorist. They found her to be extremely good with people, and not overly fond of other dogs. Her prey drive would also kick in very easily when a small animal was in her periphery.

Did you decide to put the hound down? I just can't even imagine how you must of felt, seeing your little dog just lying there. Such an unexpected tragedy. I think this is the point many folks are trying to make, you just never really know. And many won't consider the pit breed, because of their ability to do great harm if they turn. But like you've experienced, it isn't necessarily a Pit that can become aggressive. And there are many dogs out there that don't like other dogs, and given the right situation, you never know. Thank you for sharing your heartbreaking story. Again, so sorry for your loss, it must have been terrible.

 

[Christine]

Did you decide to put the hound down? I just can't even imagine how you must of felt, seeing your little dog just lying there. Such an unexpected tragedy. I think this is the point many folks are trying to make, you just never really know. And many won't consider the pit breed, because of their ability to do great harm if they turn. But like you've experienced, it isn't necessarily a Pit that can become aggressive. And there are many dogs out there that don't like other dogs, and given the right situation, you never know. Thank you for sharing your heartbreaking story. Again, so sorry for your loss, it must have been terrible.

No, I didn't. After consulting with the vet and behaviorist, I was told that the dog was perfectly fine, no reason to believe she would be a problem with people, etc. So I kept her. At least for the first month, I was just very ambivalent toward her. I got over it (with the dog at least). She lived until she was 18 years old (we had to put her down last year because everything was failing) and, besides her ONE BIG INCIDENT, she had to have been one of the best dogs I ever had. I still haven't gotten over missing her. With a lot of time and researching animal behavior, I realized that she, indeed, behaved like a dog toward the other dog. She actually wasn't even an aggressive dog. Just had a high prey drive and, admittedly, the JRT was probably the aggressor but it's hard to see a 13 lb dog as the instigator.

 

[ThistleMae]

No, I didn't. After consulting with the vet and behaviorist, I was told that the dog was perfectly fine, no reason to believe she would be a problem with people, etc. So I kept her. At least for the first month, I was just very ambivalent toward her. I got over it (with the dog at least). She lived until she was 18 years old (we had to put her down last year because everything was failing) and, besides her ONE BIG INCIDENT, she had to have been one of the best dogs I ever had. I still haven't gotten over missing her. With a lot of time and researching animal behavior, I realized that she, indeed, behaved like a dog toward the other dog. She actually wasn't even an aggressive dog. Just had a high prey drive and, admittedly, the JRT was probably the aggressor but it's hard to see a 13 lb dog as the instigator.

Awe....so glad you were able to keep her without incident. It sounds like you did a lot of research before making this decision, and it turned out to be the right one. Did you get another dog yet? Or will you?

 

[Christine]

Awe....so glad you were able to keep her without incident. It sounds like you did a lot of research before making this decision, and it turned out to be the right one. Did you get another dog yet? Or will you?

I adopted a dog about a month ago...she's absolutely wearing me out!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

No, I didn't. After consulting with the vet and behaviorist, I was told that the dog was perfectly fine, no reason to believe she would be a problem with people, etc. So I kept her. At least for the first month, I was just very ambivalent toward her. I got over it (with the dog at least). She lived until she was 18 years old (we had to put her down last year because everything was failing) and, besides her ONE BIG INCIDENT, she had to have been one of the best dogs I ever had. I still haven't gotten over missing her. With a lot of time and researching animal behavior, I realized that she, indeed, behaved like a dog toward the other dog. She actually wasn't even an aggressive dog. Just had a high prey drive and, admittedly, the JRT was probably the aggressor but it's hard to see a 13 lb dog as the instigator.

You also didn’t see exactly what happened, but given that she had significant wounds herself, it’s safe to say it’s possible she was just defending herself and with the size difference, something really bad happened, i.e. one bite might have landed just right at an artery or something. Tragic regardless, but at least you knew it wasn’t completely one sided by the wounds. I also remember when it happened. (Time flies, doesn’t it?)

 

[Christine]

You also didn’t see exactly what happened, but given that she had significant wounds herself, it’s safe to say it’s possible she was just defending herself and with the size difference, something really bad happened, i.e. one bite might have landed just right at an artery or something. Tragic regardless, but at least you knew it wasn’t completely one sided by the wounds. I also remember when it happened. (Time flies, doesn’t it?)

Yes, I never did see what happened, just new that they both had been at the fence about 10 minutes prior (if it was even that long) and going nuts over something on the other side. The larger dog had quite a gaping wound on her chest that required 4 large staples to pull the skin together. It had taken me a while to realize it. It was like a section of her fur had been just ripped off of her. The wounds to the JRT were directly to the carotid and neck.

Time really does fly and sometimes I marvel out just how long I've been posting here.

 

[ThistleMae]

I adopted a dog about a month ago...she's absolutely wearing me out!

LOL....I bet. What kind of dog is he/she and how old?

 

[Christine]

LOL....I bet. What kind of dog is he/she and how old?

Not sure what type of dog. Part Cur, part Retriever. It's really hard to say. She's about 6 months old.

 

[ThistleMae]

Not sure what type of dog. Part Cur, part Retriever. It's really hard to say. She's about 6 months old.

I'm so glad you were able to find another dog to love. Carry on!