Pit Bulls are ticking time bombs

[Jinglebob]

A four year old boy in Tecumseh Oklahoma had his arm ripped off by a Pit Bull.

Pit Bulls may have a bad reputation, but it appears to be very well deserved. I wouldn't have one, regardless of how "sweet and loving" it appeared to be. You're trusting a ticking time bomb, never knowing when it will explode.


Boy's Arm Ripped Off After Trying to Pet Pit Bull at Grandparents' Home | PEOPLE.com

 

[biku324]

I've owned horses most of my life. The only dog I've had to kill for attacking one of my horses was a pit bull. The owner never claimed him (or my vet bill).

 

[Screwball]

All comes down to training/lack there of…

How is that attack any different from some 64 year old bringing a bunch of rifles into a hotel room, with no knowledge of violent tendencies, and kills 60 and directly injured another 400+ (just those he shot)?

Maybe we should start executing 64 year old males…

 

[redlevel]

Oh Lort!
What some people say!

 

[Rustyt1953]

All comes down to training/lack there of…

How is that attack any different from some 64 year old bringing a bunch of rifles into a hotel room, with no knowledge of violent tendencies, and kills 60 and directly injured another 400+ (just those he shot)?

Maybe we should start executing 64 year old males…

I must be as dense as a week old litter box as I don't understand your meaning.

A little clarity, please?

 

[Screwball]

I must be as dense as a week old litter box as I don't understand your meaning.

A little clarity, please?

Someone decides the way to “train” a dog is to beat the heck out of it… you get dogs with those types of tendencies. That is correct in some crappy dog owners’ minds; it is easier to beat the dog than it is to train it correctly (reinforce good behavior). And it’s all dogs, not just pit bulls.

The OP labeled the breed that way… completely his opinion. But it is identical to how anti-gun folks label us as “the problem.” It isn’t the case that some dog was made that way… but the entire breed is the cause.

Similarly, some 64 year old guy shot up a country music event in Las Vegas… it’s all of our faults; not the jerk who did it for whatever reasons that made him do it. I gave an analogy that is identical to what the OP is arguing.

Spark notes… I’m disagreeing with the OP.

 

[biku324]

The pit bull that I killed had never been seen in my rural area before the incident. He was well-groomed, had a nice collar without tags, and was clearly well-fed; I advertised on local boards for the owner with no results.

I also hung the carcass on my cornerpost of the horse pen (at a rural intersection) as a warning to other dogs. Or negligent owners.


77-1-2. Dog killing or injuring livestock; damages; dog to be killed.
If any dog shall kill or injure any livestock, the owner or keeper of such dog shall be liable for all damages that may be sustained thereby, to be recovered by the party so injured before any court having competent jurisdiction, and it shall be unlawful to keep such dog after it is known that the dog is liable to kill livestock, and it shall be the duty of the owner to kill, or have killed, the dog upon order of the court after a finding that the dog has killed or injured livestock, and provided further, that it shall be the right of any owner of livestock so killed or injured by the actions of any dog to kill the dog while it is upon property controlled by the owner of the livestock.

History: Laws 1901, ch. 105, § 2; Code 1915, § 219; C.S. 1929, § 4-2002; 1941 Comp., § 49-103; 1953 Comp., § 47-1-2; Laws 1957, ch. 131, § 1.

 

[Beemerguy53]

My homeowners' insurance company, and others as well, will not insure a house where a pit bull resides. That's all we need to know about them.

Insurance companies are the most cold-blooded entities around. They base decisions like this on their experience paying out claims, and nothing more. They don't care about myths, or slogans, or rumors; if a given dog breed is costing them money, they'll refuse to cover it; if not, they won't.

 

[Onomea]

I suspect that in part the problem is the type of people who want to own pit bulls are — to a greater extent than owners of poodles, say — the type of person to mistreat their dogs, causing the dogs to become overly aggressive.

 

[biku324]

My homeowners' insurance company, and others as well, will not insure a house where a pit bull resides. That's all we need to know about them.

Insurance companies are the most cold-blooded entities around. They base decisions like this on their experience paying out claims, and nothing more. They don't care about myths, or slogans, or rumors; if a given dog breed is costing them money, they'll refuse to cover it; if not, they won't.

Tell your life insurance carrier you've just earned your private pilot's license and see what happens.

 

[Puller]

I agree that a pit bull has the ability to do more harm than, say, a beagle.

I also agree that a .44 magnum has the ability to do more harm than, say, a .32 ACP.

The owner of each is the deciding factor, outlawing pit bulls is like outlawing black rifles.

 

[Imissedagain]

While Pits account for the most carnage, exactly how those Pits were raised is not in that data.... as if the "owners" would say.

Then there's the puppy mill breeding problems and who knows what they do to make money with what sells.
Bad genes.
Incompetent humans.
What could go wrong.

Back in the mid-seventies, Dobermans were the problem.
Rottweilers then became the dog to get.

A kid I grew up with got a wee bit mangled by his Saint Bernard.
Based on the fact that he jumped on one of his college basketball players and beat him up, while the game was on as he didn't like his performance, we could only imagine how that pup's life was.
Was fired from his coaching job immediately.

 

[Screwball]

I suspect that in part the problem is the type of people who want to own pit bulls are — to a greater extent than owners of poodles, say — the type of person to mistreat their dogs, causing the dogs to become overly aggressive.

I had a classmate in high school (loosely say that, being he was kicked out junior year) that was into drugs… and when I say drugs, weed was the bigger thing at that time (he supplied a good chunk of the school, and while heavier stuff was around, it wasn’t the norm). He didn’t want people messing around with his supply that he would have in a shed, so he “trained” his pit bull to be aggressive.

Forget the situation, want to say he got in a fight with his father… but two local cops roll up on his house. He denied it, but knowing one of the officers, he opened the door and commanded the dog to attack (I believe it). Dog got lit up with multiple .40 rounds.

Local news portrayed him crying, saying how the bad police shot his poor dog… which I was disgusted with. Same idiot stole a car from Walmart, got on a chase with multiple agencies for 20-25 miles… rolls the car, gets out to run down the Parkway… and gets hit by another car. Just perspective of the outstanding individual I’m mentioning.

Would I have shot that dog in the same situation? Yes, without hesitation. But again, it isn’t the breed… it is the people that want a “mean dog” or just really shouldn’t have a dog at all.

I have a lab and a German Shorthair Pointer… neither would ever attack a person unless they were hurting myself or a loved one. I can say that with zero hesitation, being I trained my dogs correctly. But even though those two breeds are not considered aggressive… I can guarantee that a terrible owner could get either of them to a similar point where they could do damage. It isn’t just the breed.

 

[biku324]

Puller:

You're talking theory rather than incidence of dog attacks. Data says differently:

New research at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center identifies dog breeds and physical traits that pose the highest risk of biting with severe injury. Doctors want parents of young children to use this information when deciding which dog to own.

The study, published in the International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology, explores the risks of dog bite injuries to the face in children and bite severity by breed, size and head structure. Researchers found pit bulls and mixed breed dogs have the highest risk of biting and cause the most damage per bite. Study identifies dog breeds, physical traits that pose highest risk of biting children -- ScienceDaily

Results
One-hundred and two patients met the inclusion criteria. The mean age was 5.84 years, and 43.1% were preschool-aged (2–5 years). Parental presence was reported in 43.6% of cases, and most attacks occurred in the evening (46.8%). Injuries often involved the head–neck region (92.1%), and 72.5% were of major severity. Pet dogs were responsible for 42% of injuries, and pit bull was the most-identified breed (36.2%). Most injuries occurred while the child was at home (57.8%) and was petting or playing with the dog (28.4%). Intervention in the operating room was required in 34.3% of patients. Pediatric Dog Bite Injuries in Central Texas - ScienceDirect

Dog bites have been well described and characterized in the pediatric population. Comparatively, dog-bite injuries in adults and the settings in which surgeons become involved are less studied. An electronic hospital database identified all patients 18 years or older who were treated for dog bites from 2010 to 2014. Demographics, injury information, intervention type, and payer source were collected. Socioeconomic analysis was performed using Geographic Information Systems mapping. A total of 189 adults presented to the emergency department with dog-bite-related injuries. The most common injury location was the hand (n = 62, 32.8%), followed by the head and neck (n = 36, 19.1%). Of the 189 patients, 33 adults (17.5%) were forwarded to a surgical subspecialist for repair. A head and neck injury was significantly more likely to be repaired by a surgical specialist (P = 0.011). The most common breed of dog identified was pit bull (n = 29, 47.5%). The majority of pit bull attacks involved the extremities (65.5%) compared to other breeds of dogs. Epidemiology, Socioeconomic Analysis, and Specialist Involve... : Journal of Craniofacial Surgery


The real world results seen in hospitals are that pit bulls are the breed that causes the most (and most severe) injuries. That is why many insurers either decline to ensure homeowners with pit bulls or charge higher rates for pit bull owners.

 

[Rudi]

All comes down to training/lack there of…

How is that attack any different from some 64 year old bringing a bunch of rifles into a hotel room, with no knowledge of violent tendencies, and kills 60 and directly injured another 400+ (just those he shot)?

Maybe we should start executing 64 year old males…

Talk about thread drift! We will never know the truth about that day.

 

[Rustyt1953]

I have been surfing and according to the CDC and every other medical organization that studies dog behavior lists the American Pit Bull Terrier as the most dangerous breed.

The thought of the horror and trauma that boy went through and the painful road ahead is heart crushing. I showed the news article to the boys earlier and we all cried.

Rather than waste time on judging I will spend it praying.

 

[jeffrefrig]

Ya know, we, I, don't know all the facts about the people that raised the dog or the gene pool of the dog, or the owners. But, we know the grandparents let the kid alone with a pit & her puppies. Also, apparently nobody has hospitalization insurance for the boy. That in itself is negligence, IMO, on the parents. I know it's tough, but, dang...I can see the poor kid now, excited over the puppies, running over to pet the pups. Momma dog is gonna protect them. Being one of the strongest-jawed dogs on the planet, nothing good was gonna happen. I can't speculate on anything we don't know anymore than I already have. Read between the lines. A "Go-fund-me" account. Cripes. I'm not going to sleep tonight. I'm sorry for the way I feel, and I said too much already. That poor boy. Prayers from me to him for sure, and the people that had to witness what happened. Mainly the emergency personnel.

 

[vt_shooter]

... outlawing pit bulls is like outlawing black rifles.

I would agree with you if black rifles had any history of ripping people apart or killing them, totally driven by the black rifle's own consciousness and desire.

 

[Imissedagain]

I would agree with you if black rifles had any history of ripping people apart or killing them, totally driven by the black rifle's own consciousness and desire.

Barring bad breeding that creates issues, the dogs behavior is the result of how the owner trained the pup or didn't.
I rarely see dogs that are trained properly.

Some great dogs can get a bit cranky with age and the owners have to pay more attention when youngsters are present.

 

[Chukar60]

My experience is personal and some will say it jades my opinion of pit bulls.
No it just caused me to look into the statistics after my experience.
We had a tenant at the ranch who had a male Pit Bull. We were assured it was a “nice dog” and would not hurt a flea. All was well for several months and we had been to the rental several times and interacted with the dog. One day the lady called my wife and asked her to come over and get some fresh vegetables she had grown.
I was at the other end of the ranch helping put out a hay stack fire when a teenage boy who stayed at the rental came looking for me and telling me that my wife needed me really bad at the rental.
I arrived to find my wife covered in blood with her shirt and Levi’s completely torn off her back and legs. She had been attacked by the “nice” pit bull the instant she stepped out of her truck. Had the owner not come around the house to see what the screaming was about the dog would have killed her. Of this there is no doubt in my mind. It took 68 stitches to close the wounds that ran from her neck to her calves.
When the deputy and animal control went to collect the dog for impound they could not get control of the dog. Finally the animal control officer made the decision that for the safety of all involved the dog had to be killed where it was.
If it is all about how the dogs are raised why is it that bad owners overwhelmingly choose a Pit Bull as their dog of choice? Statistics show that the breed far and away leads the nation in attacks ending in serious injury or death. Before you argue the point do yourself the favor of searching “dog breeds attacks injury death”. I could not find one study that did not list the Pit at the top of the list for serious injury and death by attacks. In every one I looked at they were number one and number two was far below them in numbers of attacks.
Facts and statistics are stubborn things. Argue with them if you will but emotion is a weak position in any debate.