I know pit bulls can be sweet, but today at the print shop I was talking to the owner who was worried about his Yorkie. A 6 month old pit bull puppy had been playing with his older dog a week ago and the puppy got the older dog onto it's back and basically ripped the neck, chest, underarm, belly and side open on the Yorkie to the tune of 54 stitches, some of which were still infected.
This was a 6 month old pup. Not an adult dog.
So many people do blanket statements one way or another on these dogs (for or against) but it still comes down to the fact the breed is bred to bite and hurt animals -- bulls originally, other animals now.
The two owners separated the dogs asap, it wasn't done as an attack, the puppy was not owned by someone who wanted to fight the dog or was encouraging aggression to have a 'protector'. I think this comes across more as a cautuionary tale for people with smaller dogs, cats, young children and babies to watch the actions of pit bulls in general.
Could this have been a kid with this puppy who could have gotten hurt? Very likely.
Your thoughts on this?
2008-12-22T16:51:38Z
The Yorki was a neutered male, the pup was a female.
I know the owner of the Yorki wasn't holding it against the puppy, but he was really concerned for his own dog who was having a hard time healing the wounds on it's belly.
I'm not condeming the puppy, just very concerned that two people who trusted their two dogs to play together could have had this happen so fast and so extensively. That many stitches is a lot on a dog from what the puppy considered play. He said there was no snarling or what he would call aggression from the pup.
I know human and dog are two different things, I think most what I had in mind when I first wrote that was babies laid on the floor on blankets. Infants act different than two or three year olds. They smell different and the move very different.
We had a pair of pit bulls kept for three weeks in the neighbor's back yard, the female was so sweet, the male was not fixed and would bite at her if she was near his food. I was cautious with each
Living a Salt Life2008-12-22T16:24:45Z
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Animal aggression is NOT human aggression. A dog that will tear another dog apart on sight can be a lamb with a child. Indeed many fighting dogs were also called "Nanny dogs" as any fighting dog willing to put their teeth on a human was put down. Assuming this wasn't an accident on the puppies part either (which can happen with a larger puppy playing with a very small dog)- I would more than likely vote that this individual did not supervise as he should have. I would also say it's likely he did not get his pup from a reputable breeder who breeds for good temperament, and may have not done a very good job socializing either.
American Pit Bull ***Terriers*** even have animal aggression/high prey drives as part of their breed standard- and anyone thinking about getting one needs to know this and how to deal with it. As an added note- Dogs of any breed should not ever be left unsupervised with other dogs or children.
Add: The two people should have been supervising- End of story. You have a small puppy that played too roughly and possibly thought the Yorkie was some sort of prey animal rather than a small dog. Any parent stupid enough to leave a small baby in a blanket on the floor with a dog of any breed needs to get checked out by child services- Dogs and children NEED to be supervised. They should never be left alone together period. The male Pit Bull you describe sounds to have food aggression as well- Something brought upon either A. due to lack of training, or more likely B. The natural reaction that an "alpha dog" would have- He considered himself higher ranking than the female making his food his and he gets to eat first.
I also would like you to play this game: http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/findpit.html
Dog aggression is part of the breed. Dog aggression is in many breeds. A dog does not have to be taught to fight to not like another dog. It's called genetics.
Just because the dog hurt another dog it does not mean it will go after a child. Dogs know the difference.
Dog aggression and human aggression are two different things. Encourging the dog to be a protector would be teaching human aggression.
This young Pit Bull could very well be developing dog aggression at a young age. But this is a large dog playing with a very small, fragile dog and it very well could have been an accident. Play getting to rough. Supervision should have been better IMO. A Yorkie is a small dog and it is not gonna take much for any breed of dog to seriously injure a Yorkie.
I own 4 Pit Bulls, A Golden, a Dachchund, I have 3 children, I have a cat. There must be very close supervision with the dogs and cat. The cat plays with the dogs but sometimes they can forget and think he is a toy. Nothing serious has happened cause we have stopped it before hand. And monitor the play.
Sorry it's not the dogs fault regardless of breed. The fault is with the owner.
ADD: The Yorkie is 14 yrs old it is gonna have a hard time healing after such a thing. How many stiches do you expect a small dog to need that got injured by a LARGE dog. The Yorkie can probably fit in the pups mouth already.
This was owner error. The Pit Bull is just that a puppy and is still learning. It was an accient. Does not sound like dog aggression.
An owner that leaves a dog unattended with a child is an idiot and should not have dogs let alone a child. That is just plain irresponsibilty. No responsible owner is gonna leave their baby on the floor with a dog without watching them. Dogs do not think like humans. Children have been injured because the parents left them unsupervised child starts crying and go trys to help the child. Not the dogs fault, it's the owners.
As for the unneutered male. He was most likely the Alpha and he gets to eat first. She gets to eat last. It could also be resource guarding.
You have nothing to fear with the breed as whole. What you need to fear is the person on the other end of the leash. That is where the problem starts.
As I said earlier, I have 4 Pit Bulls one of which is my Service Dog.
Pit bulls were bred to fight. They are raised to fight or to be a loving family pet. The dog didn't do it on purpose and it's not anyone's fault. You never let a small yorkie play with the large boned, greatly muscualr Pit Bull Terrier. They may both be dogs but when it comes to playing, one is bigger than the other. It's horrible if someone fights Pitties but it's a total accident if the dog ended up on the smaller dog. If the dog showed no signs of aggression (growling, barking, clawing, biting, "smiling", etc...) then it was not on purpose and should be ignored if the smaller dog turns out okay. I hope the Yorkie is okay as is the Pit-Bull. My neighbor owns one of the most sweetest dogs I've known and guess what? That's right, She's a Pit Bull. I have nothing against any breed, as for children, they need to be taught the proper way to greet a dog, or need more supervision. No one's fault but your own's what I say. :-/
People aggression does not translate into dog aggression.
Yes, pitbulls are game bred animals with a HIGH prey drive for other animals, especially those small and furry (hence the Yorkie situation).
A child is not furry, nor as small as a Yorkie.
Comparing those situations is like comparing apples and oranges.
EDIT: Aussie has touched on a great subject. Pitbulls do play VERY rough, I would never own a small dog for that reason-- they're just too prone to being hurt.
EDIT2: There are many pitbulls that do famously with children. I have a 10 month old child, and we have had this dog since my daughter was about 5 months old... and we've never had an issue. My daughter crawls all over the dog, pinches, pulls, pats, squeals at, screams at, drools, mouths the dog, and does famously, this same dog is fear aggressive towards strangers (we are working on socialization as we speak) and animal aggressive.
I think that the breed could be improved, its aggressive aspects minimized and the better aspects improved over time, but I do agree. Its important that pit bulls be separated from other dogs, especially tyohse, such as the Yorkie, who can easily be injured. Its not by fault of the dog, its simply instinct, which comes with caution. I have nothing against Pit Bulls, they are the right dog for the right people, I just agree that certain precautions should be taken.