A dog you can trust or a dog that will kill?

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  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    There is a really horrible maiming case involving a dachshund and an infant if I remember right.

    But dogs are still individuals like people, I know that doesn't really mean I should flee every time I see those short little legs churning toward me, or that I'm safe with every golden retriever ever bred.

    I was just quibbling earlier because someone else tried to compare humans with dogs in a way that seemed wrong to me. While I would never assume someone was more likely to have a specific personality trait or ability based on race I certainly would say dogs statistically differ in ability and personality based on their breed.

    But in the end it's still all about what the humans do. Dogs can't help it.
  • AudreyinNC
    AudreyinNC Posts: 59
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    There is a really horrible maiming case involving a dachshund and an infant if I remember right.

    Haven't heard it, but it would not surprise me. There is a horrible maiming case involving every single
    breed there is, if you look for them.
    Like I said, there are good examples or every breed, and bad examples of every breed.
  • AudreyinNC
    AudreyinNC Posts: 59
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    But in the end it's still all about what the humans do. Dogs can't help it.

    Obviously, I wish that people were the smarter of the two, but sometimes this is not the case. Like you said, dogs can't help it.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    Now here is about the most unlikely killing ever:

    A Labrador Retriever-mix and a Dachshund killed Julia Beck, an 87 year old woman.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_dog_attacks_in_the_United_States

    I suspect the Lab retriever mix lay in wait while the Dachshund tripped her.

    I also suspect that joke was in very poor taste.
  • ClassicStyles
    ClassicStyles Posts: 49
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    All breeds are safe when raised appropriately.

    I have had Saint Bernards my entire adult life. I have had three at a time at one point. Some see this massive breed like the mastiff and fear for their lives. I have raised my animals with gentleness and pure love - never negative punishment always positive reinforcement and rewards. They are the kindest most gentle loving and loyal dogs on the planet. If you have children, tons of patience, and know how to handle a large breed animal - which can be a challenge - I recommend the breed for families with big spaces and lots of love.

    A dog should be a cherished creature - God put them on this earth because they teach us humans what unconditional love is.
    i am so sorry for the family - and the poor animals that must have been suffering.
  • junctiongirl
    junctiongirl Posts: 57 Member
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    look at my profile pic. I don't know what breed max is, but he could have some pitbull in him and he wouldnt hurt anyone.

    Lets ask why these people had 5 big dogs in one house? I highly doubt 4 dogs would attack a girl in the home un-prevoked. I would trust my dog around anyone.

    This breed garbage has got to stop. Its the way people raise their dogs. Yes there are anomalies to this, just as there are in people. Raise your dog with love and care and it will return the sentiment.
  • juicemoogan
    juicemoogan Posts: 999 Member
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    There are no bad breeds..... just stupid owners



    Breed specific targeting or legislation is ridiculous.



    Jess
    involved in Boston Terrier Rescue
    & had a Pittie as a family pet.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    Yet breed must affect personality because dog breeders and judges of dog shows do attribute specific traits to specific breeds including personality traits. Recommendations are also made to potential owners based on how a breed's standard traits will fit or not fit into an owner's lifestyle and environment.


    All of those breeders and judges and well meaning writers of 'You and your new (insert name of dog breed here)' books can't be delusional, can they?

    Well okay maybe but I don't think so. And if a breed can be more aloof or hard headed or calm than another breed then a breed can also be more aggressive than another breed. Which does not mean all dogs of a more aggressive breed are naturally aggressive or that aggressive breeds should be banned. All I'm arguing is that it's likely some breeds are statistically more aggressive than others independent of how they are raised.
  • juicemoogan
    juicemoogan Posts: 999 Member
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    Sure breeds have traits... just like horoscopes type people... eg.. scorpios are hard headed and stubborn...

    But no Breed has an attribute of being "aggressive"

    I actually heard Lab's have a higher bite record than Pitties...
    Its just that pitties look a little scarier so they get the bad rap whenever one happens to bite.
  • Cait_Sidhe
    Cait_Sidhe Posts: 3,150 Member
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    Haven't read the whole thread, and honestly I don't want to. It'd probably make me angry if I did.

    It is sad that this happened and we'll never know the cause. 4 individual dogs do not represent an entire breed. I was once bitten by a miniature dachsund and spent 3 days hospitalized for my 23 puncture wounds. This does not mean that dachsunds as a breed should be banned for aggression.

    I am a veterinary technician. I have been for 12 years. I've worked shelters, small private practice, large specialty medicine, and emergency. I restrain animals for things they don't want. I poke them with needles. I inject things into them. I place IV catheters. I manipulate painful limbs for radiographs. I deal with hit by cars, broken limbs, organ displacement, etc. In short, I am more likely to get bitten and deal with aggressive dogs than most of the population.

    I've worked with every dog breed there is. As a whole, pit bulls have been some of the happiest, friendliest, silly dogs I've encountered. The ones who have been aggressive have been rare and few between. As individuals they do not represent the entire breed!
  • Terryism
    Terryism Posts: 314 Member
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    As a former vet assistant for 13 years, I say if it has teeth, it can bite. I trust no dog with my son, including my own. I have two mini schnauzers and I trust the timid one more than the outgoing one, but I believe either one will bite if provoked. I also truly believe that I am more likely to be bitten by a 3# chihuahua than a 60# pit bull, because it's happened.
  • asnnbrg
    asnnbrg Posts: 34 Member
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    Sure breeds have traits... just like horoscopes type people... eg.. scorpios are hard headed and stubborn...

    Horoscopes aren't real. Breed traits are. People spend decades breeding in or breeding out specific traits. Terriers, for example, have been bred to be tenacious hunters. I've had terriers nearly my whole life, until my last one died nine years ago. They all have their own *personalities,* but they also most certainly do have specific traits. Does that mean every terrier in the world is stubborn? Of course not. Just that they're more likely to be stubborn than a dog who wasn't bred to hunt that way.

    In the end, though, it still comes down to what people have done to dogs, i.e., deliberately breeding in or out specific traits. And to my knowledge, no dog has ever been bred specifically for aggression. That said, sloppy breeding of so-called dangerous breeds is what's gotten us here. While responsible breeders are breeding to improve lines, BYBs aren't. They're in it for the money, and they'll use any dogs, regardless of temperament or traits, and what you end up with are poor examples of the breed. Mix that with a bad owner, and you get an aggressive dog.
  • asnnbrg
    asnnbrg Posts: 34 Member
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    I have a Lab/Rottie mix and a St Bernard I don't leave kids alone with either of them.
    Not that I don't trust my dogs but kids are brats.


    o5nrlj.jpg

    Which is why when my husband had his old dog and had small nieces and nephews he made sure he "pulled" her tail and ears and did everything a small child would do to a dog to get her used to it and it worked. She never bit, snapped at or did anything to his kin but when she was tired she sure as heck let them know with a low, menacing warning growl.

    I can't imagine pulling on my cats' ears (or my dogs', when I had them) just to get them used to kids. I'd rather stay on top of the kids until they learned to act right.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    Any dog bred to truly guard is going to have to have some aggression in its nature. Just barking to warn won't always cut it.

    Any breed trained to go after something bigger than itself (especially lions, bears, or other predators) is going to have aggression-the willingness and confidence to attack a dangerous creature much larger than itself and bring it down.

    And poor pit-bulls, I figure they are less likely to warn with barking and growling first (if what I read is true) because they were bred also by cruel idiots using them for sport. No point in barking or growling at a bull or bear trapped in a pit in hopes it will turn and flee and present an easier target. Might as well just charge right in. How many pitbulls come from that particular breeding line though and how many come from the line used in general to hunt or guard livestock? No telling. But they were sometimes set upon their bear or bull victims in packs, so that also might make them more likely to be pack aggressive.

    Anyway, watch out for those dachshunds. A vet study shows that small dogs are the most aggressive, with wiener dogs topping the list. So if you see one, run! They're toothy, short legged little missiles fueled by pure hatred! What we really need to fear isn't pit-bulls, it's the day some breeder gets it into her head to cross breed dachshunds with irish wolfhounds until they get the ultimate, leggy killing machine. :laugh:
  • ukheather
    ukheather Posts: 66 Member
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    I absolutely hate it when people say a whole breed is evil and should be banned because of what one dog did. It happens all the time and makes me so angry.

    It is down to how the dog is trained.
  • jsiricos
    jsiricos Posts: 338 Member
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    Somethings missing..

    She was eating, and they attacked? were they hungry? was she teasing them?

    As others have said, it's in the breeding, the socialization they get at birth, a LOT of factors weigh in here.

    Not all dogs are bad, just like not all dog owners are idiots, there is always the exception to the rule.
  • hamiltonba
    hamiltonba Posts: 474 Member
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    To MeMyCatsandI-where in the world did you get toddler from????
  • darkguardian419
    darkguardian419 Posts: 1,302 Member
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    It's not the breed, it's the owner.

    My pitbull is an absolute doll with my 3 year old. He can do whatever the F*** he wants, she will ignore him. If she's had enough she will walk away.

    I can't help but laugh at the idiots that are afraid of my 30lb puppy because she's a "pit bull'. The most damage she will do is walking up you to lick your face off.
  • MeMyCatsandI
    MeMyCatsandI Posts: 704 Member
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    To MeMyCatsandI-where in the world did you get toddler from????
    If you keep reading you'll find out.
  • DeeJayTJ
    DeeJayTJ Posts: 355 Member
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    i would NEVER leave a big dog with a small child

    my grandparents have a doberman, a huge doberman named Herman. hes the sweetest big dog ive ever met. hes giant but hes very very gentle, hes GREAT with my uncles 3 year old baby girl and she plays with him and he appears to be absolutely no threat.

    but would i leave him alone with the kid? absolutely not. because you just never know what could happen.

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