Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

[Bob_VT]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

I have taken in and taken care of so many strays that my first wife called me St Francis. I you have the resources and time I would suggest he could be at a great home. How about that family that now has the trailer...... do they need a puppy?

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Ether and Aussy Shepherd or a Blue Healer . My Red/Blue Healer cross (one of the loyalist dogs I ever had) was very afraid of thunder.

I have yet to replace my last best friend Kodiak, a Red Healer. She was with me for 12 years, you are absolutely correct their loyalty is without measure. I truly believe she would have gone to Hades and back with me, never questioning a word.

 

[CC245]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Like the others have said look on CL for the owners. If you can't find the owners then maybe it was meant to be. I have 2 rescued dogs and they are wonderfull. You should put that pup in the boat and see how it likes it. You can teach it to tend the dock lines.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

I have yet to replace my last best friend Kodiak, a Red Healer. She was with me for 12 years, you are absolutely correct their loyalty is without measure. I truly believe she would have gone to Hades and back with me, never questioning a word.

With out a question for sure.

 

[wifisher]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

A good friend of mine has several pits. They are very friendly. His young kids play with them and the dogs are surprisingly tolerant of them. I wouldn't worry about her being an aggressive dog as long as you don't teach her to be. Most dog's aggressiveness is learned behavior.

Congrats on your new friend!

 

[Limited-Time]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Agree with the above. The puppy's attitude/demeanor is what is. It should not change unless you or someone effects it. Aggression for the most part is a trained action in a dog.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

I have quite a few friends that have pit mixes and it really comes down to how they are raised, I am not a pit fan, but have found over the years, it is far more important on how they are treated and raised, you have found one of the better mixes which is a lab/pit mix, they seem to balance out quite well. One of my friends has a female pit/lab mix, that has been spayed, she is just about 3 years old now and has the playful obedient temperament of the lab, every time I drop by his place, she just wants to chase the ball and is very willing to lay back and let you rub her belly, he has small kids, and I have never seen her show any aggression to the kids.

She loves to retrieve ducks as well as grouse and other upland game when he hunts.

So, based on my experience, I would say raise her right, show her lots of love as well as discipline and you should have a pretty good dog on your hands.

 

[WIMUSKY]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

I don't have any experience with pitbulls, but I would be concerned. Especially since the vet said it was probably bred to fight given the mixture. If this pooch has a long blood line of fighters, I wouldn't think you could never 100% trust it. Even tho we all love our pets, at the end of the day it's still an animal. Tough call. Just don't wait too long to make that call one way or the other....

 

[avenger79]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

a pit mixed with lab is not bred to fight. pits are not naturally aggressive. they are fantastic dogs. if you get one young (as you have) and raise as a family pet you will have no problems with it at all. I have had 3 pits, all were great dogs. i had two young boys with the dogs. the male pit that I had was very protective of the boys but only from strange adults. funny I never considered that a bad thing. the dog would simply get between an adult and our son(s).
we never had an issue with biting, attacking or any of the other horror stories out there. in fact the dog catcher in our town asked if I would take one of mine into court to show they were not always a vicious breed as some people would say.
pits are very misunderstood as a breed and honestly if it is mixed with lab and a female to boot i doubt you'll ever even hear her growl. LOL
pits that fight or are used for guard dogs are very strictly conditioned for those roles. they are not loved in anyway. they have no human contact, i know a few people who would even go so far as feeding gunpowder to the dogs. rips up their stomach and makes them very testy. not because they are a bad dog but because they are in pain.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Personally I share the concerns about pits that you and WIMUSKY have expressed. However, I also put a lot of stock in what aveneger79 just posted. Seems to me like you have a nice dog there that should be too tough to find a home for with someone who maybe doesn't share our reservations about the breed.

 

[scipper77]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

If I remember correctly your German Shepard (as a breed) is more likely to turn on you than a pit bull. The bad rep given to pit bulls is more based on the incredibly bad results of any pit bull attacks. If a beagle attacks someone nobody cares. Because pit's jaws are so powerful they are not to be taken lightly in the event of an attack.

In my experience even the most friendly dog can snap at someone if they are scared or threatened. There is a big difference between snapping out of fear and an attack. In my opinion any dog that attacks anyone should be put down. If a dog snaps at someone/ takes a nip at them it is normal behavior, poor but expected.

If the dog is going to be a farm dog free to run around unsupervised you can't keep it. There is too much liability there. What happens the first time it comes home stained in blood? If that dog gets a taste for blood you may have a problem the next time the UPS guy comes to your door.

 

[aspeck]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

I was not fan of pit bulls and was not a happy camper when my daugher and SIL became the owners of a Pit. That said, Roxy has won me over to the breed. She is a riot! Her most agressive nature is that she chases cars, and that cost her a leg. Now she is a 3-legged Pit Bull, and even more fun. That dog is CRAZY! When it had 4 legs it would literally climb trees! It will run into the woods and CHEW down a tree (some up to 4 - 5 inches in diameter)! She loves for you to play catch with her (using a 2x4)! She will chew a 2X4 or 4X4 till her gums bleed! Just an absolute playful nut! Definitely a fun dog to have around. Not afraid of Pit Bulls anymore.

I think you will grow to love your Pit Bull/Lab mix. Have fun.

I don't trust my mother's ****su, it will snap at you in a heartbeat, especially if it is playing with something. But the Pit Bull, NEVER a problem. I am more comfortable with my 9 year old being around the Pit Bull than the ****su!

EDIT: Since I can't spell out the name of the breed, it is a "Fecal material"su! HA! (Or a Sheetsu, whichever you prefer! LOL!)

 

[Limited-Time]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

If your afraid of the breed watch a few reruns of the Dog Whisper. It not about the breed as much as the up bringing or training. That said if you or your wife are not comfortable with the mix you need to find someone who is.

 

[avenger79]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Yeah, there is the rub, I need to make a decision in the next few days before I and the wife become to attached to the pup and to give it a chance to adopt a new family while she is young if we get rid of her. FYI: I did put up an ad "free to good home" in hopes someone will take her. In the ad I was honest and said she was part Pit Bull. I didn't think it fair not to put it all on the table.

whether you keep the dog or not PLEASE REMOVE pitbull from your ad. when someone comes to see her and you "feel" they are looking for a good pet tell them the truth.

with those words in a free ad Bubba she will be a bait dog within the week. don't do that to her.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

One thing I will add, I have seen boxer/lab mixes that look exactly like pit/lab mixes, so even though you suspect, you could be wrong and the vet could be wrong on what she is actually mixed with. If someone shows up to see her, let them know your suspicions, but without actually spending the money to test, there is really no way to know for sure..as I said, I have not been a pit fan, but over time and being around a few of them, I have learned a lot about the breed, and as I and others have said, the upbringing, like raising children really does have more to do with it, than the breed...

 

[j_martin]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

On pit bull aggressiveness. I had a friend with 2 pit bulls that were pests, but not aggressive. One of them got so excited when I pet her she threw up on me.



It was wierd.

 

[Smuggler's Blues]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

After reading the thread I would like to shed a little light if I can. I have been an animal control officer for approximatley the last six years. I would like to say that Pitbulls are one of the best breeds you can ever hope to adopt. If you research the breed you will see that in history the Pitbull was known as the "nanny" dog because of thier wonderful demeanor. They were the poster dog for the United States during world war II. If you do a google search for SGT Stubby he was the only dog ever promoted to SGT by the U.S. military. Contrary to popular belief they do NOT have a locking jaw or a more powerful jaw than other breeds. The thing about pitbulls is that they do not give up easily. They live to please their owner, that is why they are used as fighting dogs. If the dog attacks another dog and the owner is telling him or her "good dog" they learn that is what the human wants.

As far as a pitbull turning on its owner they are no more likely to turn on the owner than any other breed. Also the people that fight these dogs actually breed human aggression out of them. When they need to break up the fight the last thing they want is for the dog to re direct onto them. There are several websites I would encourage you to check out if you want actual facts about Pits and not just media hype.

http://www.pitbull-chat.com/forums.php

http://www.workingpitbull.com/

Try this one I am willing to bet you pick the wrong dog:

http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/findpit.html

http://www.workingpitbull.com/index.htm

Just one more thing. I would highly caution anyone posting a free to a good home ad on Craiglist. Most dog fighters get their dogs that way and use them as bait dogs. If you are not familiar with what a bait dog is. It is a dog that they will take and duct tape its mouth shut and throw it in a ring with their prize fighter and let the dog get attacked. I wont go into detail of a dog fight but you can use your imagination. Then they will dump the dog usually still alive into a dumpster or back road.

 

[CC245]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

As others have said the upbringing is more important than the breed. I think you should use a ad to try to find the previous owners not new ones. Many times "free dog" ads bring people looking for bait dogs. If you decide not to keep it a no kill shelter or rescue would be the best bet to find it a new home. They screen new owners and it is more likely to find a good home.
That said I still think you should keep it. It sounds like it is becoming attached to you and your wife, and it will be a great friend for your Sheperd. Good luck and I hope everything work out!

 

[avenger79]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

One thing I will add, I have seen boxer/lab mixes that look exactly like pit/lab mixes, so even though you suspect, you could be wrong and the vet could be wrong on what she is actually mixed with. If someone shows up to see her, let them know your suspicions, but without actually spending the money to test, there is really no way to know for sure..as I said, I have not been a pit fan, but over time and being around a few of them, I have learned a lot about the breed, and as I and others have said, the upbringing, like raising children really does have more to do with it, than the breed...

yep, if you know pits you will know this is not one but I have had at least a dozen people come up and ask how I like my current "pit bull" this is her. Lucy the boxer.

 

[Smuggler's Blues]

Re: Rant Mode On! I want to hurt someone.

Those site do have a lot of info on them. I am curious thoug were you able to pick the correct dog? I always thought of myself as being able to spot any breed of dog. However I have to admit it did take me three times to get it right.