It happened AGAIN! Child loses arm!

[JeanieK]

Originally Posted by ScootieBootie

She is the most well behaved dog I have ever had cross my path. She has even raised several "foster puppies" of various mixes, and they turned out gentle as well.

Yes but this does seem to be the general nature of pitt bulls. thay are very gentle affectionate dogs until they snap. time after time you hear the owners say that they don't understand what happened, that the dog was such a pussy cat never even growled at anyone, never showed any agression and then BAM, something snaps and they attack.

That is why they are so dangerous, no one expects it, they trust the dog completely with their children. But they are like time bombs, it's jsut a matter of time.

I think they are beautiful also, and I feel bad for them. I just wish people would stop breeding them so the world could stop having to put them down.

I would not want to have to feel the horrible guilt that these owners have to feel when they dog injures someone elses child. it just would not be worth it no matter how much I loved the breed.

[Tcarnagie]

Originally Posted by ScootieBootie

I have a pit bull and have had her for years. She was bred over and over, dumped and left to starve when I found her in a park.

She is the most well behaved dog I have ever had cross my path. She has even raised several "foster puppies" of various mixes, and they turned out gentle as well.

The stories you hear in the news do not share the stories of the "typical" well bred pit bull. They are sensationalizing the few bad things that happen because that is what gets people all riled up.

The reason that "pit bulls" like the one that attacked this family (considering it was more than one member) are the product of the OVER breeding of the dogs, in breeding, without concern of what is created.

Years ago Dobies were "the demon dogs" that the public cried to be banned. Rottweilers have also gotten bad press.

This was clearly a case of an improperly bred dog who should have been euthanized at the FIRST sign of trouble....it never should have gotten to a bite...

You can see Liberty on my website. She is my best friend, and goes with me every where I can take her. She has been a wonderful ambassador for her breed.

Pit bulls were (and in a lot of cases are still) bred for fighting by insecure, immature (enter your own words as well) people who have to use a dog to make their ego liveable. However, pit bulls were NOT bred to be human aggressive. Human aggressive pit bulls were immediately killed because the owner had to be able to get his dog from the pit and attend to the wounds himself, since dog fighters do not use vets.

This is one fact that many do not know about. However, due to the stupidity of people, some dogs were bred to be human aggressive, or made that way by the way they were treated. Also, those big pitbulls you see, and the "low riders" as they call them, are all BRED with different breeds in their backgrounds to encourage human aggressiveness, size, and a meaner look.

I want to share with you MY story.

I had lost my lab, and was devastated. My husband had a friend who was getting rid of a dog his ex girlfriend abandoned with him. He brought her over and she was a beautiful, pure white mixed breed I named "Abby." She was all of about 45 pounds.

While at the lake with my 2 children, my dad, my pit bull Liberty and my white mixed breed Abby, Abby launched a full on attack on Liberty from the rear and when Liberty turned to protect herself, Abby latched onto her face, almost removing her eye.

My dad and I stepped in and Liberty accidently got my finger in her mouth and immediately let go, even though she was being ripped to shreds by my other dog. Abby, on the other hand, turned her attention and launched her attack ON MY FATHER!!

I almost lost my dad that day at the lake. As I ran with my two children for help, my dad was bleeding severely. Abby bit down to the bone in his hand, and almost severed the artery in his arm. And she was NO pitbull.

In the album, you will see a pic of Abby. I'd had her two years. The pic of my finger with the scratches from Liberty, the near fatal bites to my dad's arm (almost severed his artery) and the bite to his hand that exposed his bone.

For the pics, see this link:libertydogtraining/dog fight - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

I agree with you on this one. I too have a pit bull that is around my dogs. She is great, but I DO NOT leave her unattended at any time. If I am not at home, she goes into her kennel. If she wants to play with my other dogs, I am right there. I had a German Shepard that bit me when I was 2 years old, and recently a German Shepard killed my 4 lb Yorkie, do I think all German Shepards need to be killed....NO. Human Aggression in ANY dog should not be tolerated. If a small dog bits someone, then people just brush it off because usually small dogs don't do much damage, but if a large dog bites then the public wants all of those dogs banned and that is not fair. I have seen more HA small dogs than I have seen it in large breeds.

This dog, if it has bitten before, it should have been put down then. I believe that any dog should not be put into a position where there is a chance for something to go wrong. The owners are to blame in this one, they left a 10 year old home alone and they still have a dog that has bitten before, maybe they should be put down for stupidity.

[JeanieK]

Originally Posted by mscat

It is very sad that a child was hurt so severely. Not all Pit Bulls are dangerous though, however, if one has already attacked somebody, then that should have been taken seriously the first time.

The problem is that you don't know which ones are dangerous, many, show no signs ahead of time. It's like having a loaded gun around the house with small children, it's jsut a matter of time.

[MindieRose]

Hey thats from my TV channel I watch. This happened right by us.

In recent years, the dogs responsible for the bulk of the homicides are pit bulls and Rottweilers:

"Studies indicate that pit bull-type dogs were involved in approximately a third of human DBRF (i.e., dog bite related fatalities) reported during the 12-year period from 1981 through1992, and Rottweilers were responsible for about half of human DBRF reported during the 4 years from 1993 through 1996....[T]he data indicate that Rottweilers and pit bull-type dogs accounted for 67% of human DBRF in the United States between 1997 and 1998. It is extremely unlikely that they accounted for anywhere near 60% of dogs in the United States during that same period and, thus, there appears to be a breed-specific problem with fatalities." (Sacks JJ, Sinclair L, Gilchrist J, Golab GC, Lockwood R. Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998. JAVMA 2000;217:836-840.)

The Clifton study of attacks from 1982 through 2006 produced similar results. According to Clifton study, pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes were responsible for 65% of the canine homicides that occurred during a period of 24 years in the USA

[MindieRose]

From dogbitelaw.com

The deadliest dogs
Merritt Clifton, editor of Animal People, has conducted an unusually detailed study of dog bites from 1982 to the present. (Clifton, Dog attack deaths and maimings, U.S. & Canada, September 1982 to November 13, 2006; click here to read it.) The Clifton study show the number of serious canine-inflicted injuries by breed. The author's observations about the breeds and generally how to deal with the dangerous dog problem are enlightening.

According to the Clifton study, pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes are responsible for 74% of attacks that were included in the study, 68% of the attacks upon children, 82% of the attacks upon adults, 65% of the deaths, and 68% of the maimings. In more than two-thirds of the cases included in the study, the life-threatening or fatal attack was apparently the first known dangerous behavior by the animal in question. Clifton states:

If almost any other dog has a bad moment, someone may get bitten, but will not be maimed for life or killed, and the actuarial risk is accordingly reasonable. If a pit bull terrier or a Rottweiler has a bad moment, often someone is maimed or killed--and that has now created off-the-chart actuarial risk, for which the dogs as well as their victims are paying the price.

Clifton's opinions are as interesting as his statistics. For example, he says, "Pit bulls and Rottweilers are accordingly dogs who not only must be handled with special precautions, but also must be regulated with special requirements appropriate to the risk they may pose to the public and other animals, if they are to be kept at all."

[JeanieK]

Our city has banned Pitt Bulls. Of course people still have them and breed them, you just can't register them.

[mizzwanned]

The thing is with pitbulls you need a strong owner that will take control and know how to raise and train it. Just because you feed it, walk it and play with it that will not stop it from some day snapping.

[amandawash]

All I can say is I would much rather get bitten by a lab or doberman than a pit. Bite for bite, one bite from a pit is going to do far more damage than one bite from a different breed of dog. In my area there has been two or three fatalities and one or two serious injuries of children from being attacked by their family pit bulls just in this year. The unpredictability and shear force are why I strongly dislike the breed. Poor child.. my heart goes out to him.

[ScootieBootie]

Originally Posted by yougetthesmiles

I don't understand why the dog was not taken away the 1st time this happened!

When our dobbie attacked me, we did not have a say so in the matter, they took him away and said we could not have him back unless we had a 6 foot privacy fence and a special insurance. Of course I did not want him back after what he did to me.

But that dog should have been removed from the home, especially where children lived!

Sadly, some places, (including here) have a "one bite rule." The dog gets "one bite" with out having any punishments. The next time, they are not forgiving.

[ScootieBootie]

Dog bite "statistics" are not an accurate measure of the dog danger. If you have 10,000 pitbulls, and 10 of the caused fatal bites, and have only 5,000 labs, and 5 of them caused fatal bites, how is that accurate?

The fact is that with so many people breeding certain breeds, it stands to reason that there will (statistically) be more bites likely due to more individuals in the pool.

My dog Abby did not make the national news. Heck, she didn't even make local news, even though my dad almost died. Why? People aren't "interested" in the mixes, and "softer" dogs that bite. I have worked with more aggressive (human) labs than I have pit bulls.

Most people form opinions on breeds based on other people's "experiences." Most people do not even closely know a person who has had a bad experience with a pit bull. They just "hear" stories and lump them all together.

Also, in several cases, the news reported the offending "dog" as a pit bull, but upon seeing photos of the dogs who were aggressive, they didn't resemble a pit bull at all. However, the news does not "retract" false info on pit bull bites. They would rather feed the fear by not putting in their mistake, because they want to sell papers.

Pit bull bites sell papers.

Did you hear about the case where a 7 week old pit bull puppy was left alone with a 1-2 week old baby? The baby and puppy were left unattended on the floor, while mommy and daddy were "sleeping." The puppy chewed off the babies ear...and the dad dismembered the puppy alive... C'mon! Can you really state that the 7 week old puppy was "evil, dangerous, and a man eater?" No! Puppies chew. Who in their right mind would leave a defenseless baby alongside a chewing puppy? Unsupervised no less?

THAT guy was a monster. One, for leaving the two together, and two for dismembering that pup ALIVE!!! That is heartless. The ones who should have been killed were the parents. It was 150% their fault!!!

Are my kids alone with my dogs? Absolutely not! But not because of the "breeds." That's just responsible parenting!

I wish that more people would "base" their opinions on actual experience, and not on newscasts that are biased.

Also, dog on dog aggression is NOT the same as dog/human aggression. If a dog is dog aggressive, this is not an indication that the dog will attack a person.

I have seen instances where "small dog owners" will talk crap about the big dog who snapped or growled at their "little darlings," but will not admit to their dogs' bad behavior, lunging, growling, barking and even biting larger dogs.

ANY dog that shows unprovoked human aggression should be euthanized, regardless of breed. A dog that attacks someone who has abused, teased or taunted it should not, if he is not aggressive toward other people, in my opinion.

I can tell you this: When the incident I described happened, I called animal control and learned of the 'one bite rule.' I aksed what would be done, and told it was my choice because the dog was allowed one incident. I had her put to sleep, my choice, because she was dangerous!

This family, I'm so sad for that little boy who will live his life forever changed and with a disability because of POOR parenting! In my opinion, parents who keep known biter dogs should be charged for child endangerment if their child gets into this situation.

It is so disturbing to me. Really. I don't care what breed.

[MindieRose]

My opinion is based on actual experience. We had pit bulls on 2 separate occasions when I was growing up. Both dogs had to be put down for horrible things they did. And they were raised in a loving home and were raised with kids. Also, my mil's leg was almost torn off by her neighbors pit bull last summer. She actually took care of these dogs (there were 2) frequently, so it was not an unfamiliar dog. On top of that, one of my best friends growing up had a pit mix a couple of years back that basically scalped one of her friends that was over. Her friend was playing around with her, sorta pushing her a little in her livingroom and the dog went crazy.
I would rather be bitten by a lab or poodle any day. They don't usually bite to kill. Not that they never do, but usually they are saying "get away, I dont like you" more of a snap bite then let go, not "I'm going to rip into you until someone stops me".

[Sunnie]

Originally Posted by ScootieBootie

Dog bite "statistics" are not an accurate measure of the dog danger. If you have 10,000 pitbulls, and 10 of the caused fatal bites, and have only 5,000 labs, and 5 of them caused fatal bites, how is that accurate?

The fact is that with so many people breeding certain breeds, it stands to reason that there will (statistically) be more bites likely due to more individuals in the pool.

My dog Abby did not make the national news. Heck, she didn't even make local news, even though my dad almost died. Why? People aren't "interested" in the mixes, and "softer" dogs that bite. I have worked with more aggressive (human) labs than I have pit bulls.

Most people form opinions on breeds based on other people's "experiences." Most people do not even closely know a person who has had a bad experience with a pit bull. They just "hear" stories and lump them all together.

Also, in several cases, the news reported the offending "dog" as a pit bull, but upon seeing photos of the dogs who were aggressive, they didn't resemble a pit bull at all. However, the news does not "retract" false info on pit bull bites. They would rather feed the fear by not putting in their mistake, because they want to sell papers.

Pit bull bites sell papers.

Did you hear about the case where a 7 week old pit bull puppy was left alone with a 1-2 week old baby? The baby and puppy were left unattended on the floor, while mommy and daddy were "sleeping." The puppy chewed off the babies ear...and the dad dismembered the puppy alive... C'mon! Can you really state that the 7 week old puppy was "evil, dangerous, and a man eater?" No! Puppies chew. Who in their right mind would leave a defenseless baby alongside a chewing puppy? Unsupervised no less?

THAT guy was a monster. One, for leaving the two together, and two for dismembering that pup ALIVE!!! That is heartless. The ones who should have been killed were the parents. It was 150% their fault!!!

Are my kids alone with my dogs? Absolutely not! But not because of the "breeds." That's just responsible parenting!

I wish that more people would "base" their opinions on actual experience, and not on newscasts that are biased.

Also, dog on dog aggression is NOT the same as dog/human aggression. If a dog is dog aggressive, this is not an indication that the dog will attack a person.

I have seen instances where "small dog owners" will talk crap about the big dog who snapped or growled at their "little darlings," but will not admit to their dogs' bad behavior, lunging, growling, barking and even biting larger dogs.

ANY dog that shows unprovoked human aggression should be euthanized, regardless of breed. A dog that attacks someone who has abused, teased or taunted it should not, if he is not aggressive toward other people, in my opinion.

I can tell you this: When the incident I described happened, I called animal control and learned of the 'one bite rule.' I aksed what would be done, and told it was my choice because the dog was allowed one incident. I had her put to sleep, my choice, because she was dangerous!

This family, I'm so sad for that little boy who will live his life forever changed and with a disability because of POOR parenting! In my opinion, parents who keep known biter dogs should be charged for child endangerment if their child gets into this situation.

It is so disturbing to me. Really. I don't care what breed.

I know for a fact that the incident I was talking about above was totally not provoked. My "little darlings" were straining their leashes in the opposite direction because they were scared to death of the pitt.

[Jakey123]

We have had a cocker spaniel that was aggressive, he wold lung (sp?) bite and hold on, either randomly or food aggression. We sent him to the pound because we couldn't handle him. That dog was 30 lb's and the msot damage he ever did was just bruises, and some broken skin. I can only imagine how much fear that poor kid went through during the attack. Im sure the boy must have done something to provoke the dog, but why do parents keep leaving their kids home alone? Im sure I have heard a law stating no child is to be left home alone under the age of 12..Maybe in CA.. Now that child probably will have really bad emotional scars..

Whoah who would leave an INFANT alone regardless if there was a puppy or not??!?!?!?! I bet those parents don't have parental rights, or pets.. Morons

[MindieRose]

Originally Posted by Jakey123

We have had a cocker spaniel that was aggressive, he wold lung (sp?) bite and hold on, either randomly or food aggression. We sent him to the pound because we couldn't handle him. That dog was 30 lb's and the msot damage he ever did was just bruises, and some broken skin. I can only imagine how much fear that poor kid went through during the attack. Im sure the boy must have done something to provoke the dog, but why do parents keep leaving their kids home alone? Im sure I have heard a law stating no child is to be left home alone under the age of 12..Maybe in CA.. Now that child probably will have really bad emotional scars..

Whoah who would leave an INFANT alone regardless if there was a puppy or not??!?!?!?! I bet those parents don't have parental rights, or pets.. Morons

The 2 children that were injured severely by our pit were only walking by our house....they were out walking.
I dont think pits need to be provoked. I think some things "trigger" them, but I wouldnt call a trigger provoking, since provoking would involve intent to piss the dog off. Last year a mother was attacked by a pitbull that got out of one of the neighbors houses and tried to attack her 2 year old. She threw the 2 year old on the trampoline as the dog was going after it, and the pit attacked her instead. When my mother in law was attacked last summer she had just gone for a walk down to the creek behind her house and the neighbors pits were waiting on her porch when she came back. She got attacked while protecting her grandkids (not our kids, sil's kids).
None of these incidences were the dogs "provoked". Unfortunately these dogs are just more known to snap.

[Emmsmom]

I do not like or trust Pitts. So that I don't start anything I will leave it at that. I feel so sorry for the child that was hurt.They have a long road ahead of them.