Pit bull coming at me, owner screaming "Vicious NO"

[Ber Rabbit]

He was on a leash but slipped completely out of his collar, one of the evil looking metal ones that pokes the prongs into their neck. Outrunning him was out of the question so my only option (and I'm not that great on rollerblades) was to find a place to make a stand. It was definitely one time I was thankful for always wearing those bulky wrist pads because it gave me an option of something solid to put in his mouth if I needed it. I suppose the reel from my leash would have worked too but my arm was easier to aim accurately so that was my planned defense.

Here's my girl, the other dog was just a shade bigger than she is.
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[Walter]

The wrist guard with the metal plate was getting jammed in his mouth as hard as I could, he was only a foot away and I was already in position to place it. Get him on the ground on his back and lay on him to pin him with that metal plate choking him. He submitted to Katie so once I had him in a submissive position he may have submitted to me also. I hate to do more damage than is necessary, I could have permanently injured or killed him if needed.
Ber :lilbunny:

Ber, my dear, I suspect you would not have been able to kill him. They are extremely strong. I don't think you would have been able to put enough pressure on his throat to come close to choking him. Keep in mind, he wouldn't be laying there passively while you tried, he would be scratching you with all four paws while he dragged you by the arm where ever he wanted to take you. Pit Bulls have a well deserved reputation. While Andy is correct, it's not the breed that attacks, (there are many gentle pit bulls) when you have a nasty pit, he can easily kill you.

Andy, while you may not be aware of anyone breeding pit bulls to fight, that doesn't mean is isn't taking place. It is.

 

[Cacia]

My reference to Doberman's was only in the context of people not willing to control them. You must at some point acknowledge that in an imperfect world, these Pit Bulls are not getting culled. they are living in houses where the government cannot/does not protect the children from neglect and the dogs just continue to breed. I understand your very measured argument, Lynne, but somewhere, where the rubber meets the road, these dogs are causing problems, especially in urban settings.

I hear these very intellectual reasonable arguments from educated people. The street smart people will tell you differently I am afraid.

The real test of do you believe what you say, is, would you leave your Toddler alone with a Pit Bull? I already know what some of you will say...."Never leave a child with a dog of ANY type" Well, I don't live like that. How about I have a dog I can trust?

We have radar and instincts for a reason, don't let intellect override it.

Rachel, your post is right on. BUT while I "blame the owners", if I want to keep from being attacked, I avoid these dogs. Its not like you're gonna hurt their feelings, guys. Go into the ghetto and blame the owners all you like, it doesn't have any consequences.

 

[gangrel441]

I don't see myself getting all PC about Pit Bulls. Certainly there are exceptions, but certain types of people are attracted to certain types of dogs, IMO. When I see one, it goes on my radar.

maybe there isn't a breed called Pit Bull in your book. I know one when I see it.

I think if you talk to mail carriers, ambulance workers, cops and animal control you might change your view.

The ones you hear about on the news ARE the exceptions. The dogs that the drug dealers have and that are used in the fighting arenas are not just bred that way...they are conditioned and trained that way as well. A mean and ill-tempered pit bull is indeed a scary thing, just like a frenzied bull shark or barracuda is. On the other hand, Labradors have the reputation of being the gentlest dogs around, but I have heard a few stories about labs mauling kids pretty good. It is all in the upbringing and the control the owner shows over his/her dog. (I have two black labs, and you'll not see my dogs out of control!)

Limiting the response to the breed instead of holding the owners responsible for proper training is irresponsible and dangerous.

Ber - good that you're still with us and unscathed....if it happened to me while I was walking my dogs, I probably would have brought Vicious to an abrupt end....if my pups didn't do it for me!

 

[TSandM]

catherine, if you ban "pit bulls" (assuming you can even define what one is), the people you are talking about will get Rotties or Dobes or Shepherds and pervert them as well. It is NOT the dogs that are the issue.

 

[Cacia]

I am not saying ban them, I am happy just hating them and carrying a bat. Seriously, I don't expect the government to do anything. But, I would not buy a house if there were a bunch on the street, I would not leave my little kids at a house that had them.....practical thing like that. This week, I did not hire a painter because he had one and it would come with him and hang out outside my house. I don't want to worry about my 80 lb housekeeper and the kids and their friends. If he had had another breed, it would have been fine probably.

I really don't mean to be offensive, I promise. When I see "hold the owners accountable for proper conditioning", I honestly wonder what planet I am on. And if you say that you have no problem leaving your babies with them, I will think that you are not very smart. Educated, maybe, but not aware of reality. Generic conversation, not directed at anyone.

 

[justleesa]

ah...thanks for the memory jog Andy...it was a chow-chow with a lock bite that took several hunks out of a friend of mine...She was babysitting and the child pissed the dog off, the kid got away fast and my friend was attacked.

I grew up around dobermans and a neighbor had a pit bull - They can be very loving dogs. A larger dog that is trained to be a certain way and has slightly more aggressive genes can be a threat....but not trained or treated aggressivly the traits are not supported and wouldn't be threat....does that make sense?

Unlucky there are people out there that bring the worst out of such animals...and misuse them.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

Ber,

Sounds like you had quite an adventure. Glad both you and your dog are fine. I suspect you were not being advised that the dog was vicious, but rather that some moron named their pit bull "Vicious". Then they take it walking in public when they cannot control it or ensure it won't get loose. This would be about par for the course. The next thing would be to find that they had no liability insurance.

In any standard population distribution bell-curve there will always be a few datapoints that fall into the lowest 10%, a few standard deviations from the norm. The objective in life is to avoid them. If you can't, however, the next best thing is to avoid the consequences of encountering them. For this I find that large caliber handguns are remarkably effective tools. A 4" stainless steel Smith & Wesson revolver in .357 magnum, for example, may be stored next to your dog leash with relative ease, and tucked into your belt with minimum fuss. I understand that pit bulls require significant amounts of pursuasion before they'll cease attacking, but six rounds of .357 should at least alter the odds in your favor! Doc's tip of the week!

Best of luck the next time you take your dog for a walk...

Doc

 

[Green_Manelishi]

wow, Ber... what a story

you know, there are no bad dogs, just bad owners. sounds like you were in
the precense of one such. too bad for the dog.

how would you have handled it if the dog had come for you?

Not.

A breed meant to attack/guard/kill/fight is not an ideal pet. Too many dimwits fail to understand that some breeds were not intended to be pets. And other dimwits think it's cool to name their dog something synonomous with the breed's general disposition.

 

[wreckchick]

I would happily leave any child I had with any dog I had raised. I would never leave a child with a dog that I had not raised or been in enough contact with to know that dog's likely behavior in ANY situation.

All children should be taught how to act around dogs, all dogs, any dog. I've truly not ever heard of a child sitting playing in his/her own yard, paying no attention to a dog on the street and had that dog, with no provocation, come out and maul the child (or adult for that matter).

I wasn't going to bring up the Lab thing, but I've heard that that's the dog breed responsible for the most dog bites in the US. I actually tried to Google it, but there aren't statistics kept on non-fatal dog bites by breed.

Rachel