13 reactions to this article

Gerry posted: 11-06-2008 | 8:18 PM

Unbelievable,
"dogs are judged by their behaviour rather than breed." Does she propose some kind of test before the biting incident occurs?
Idiot, Pit Bulls are bread for their behaviour which includes attacking children given half a chance and a little encouragement from their blood thirsty owners, Oh look at me I'm hard.
Enforcement is what is needed here, Oh that's right the Police Dog Squad are all stoned and down the knocking shop. There is simply no need for the poor cross bred pit bull. How do these people get into these positions of power!

denise lebeau posted: 11-06-2008 | 9:27 PM

Gerry is obviously not knowledgeable about dog behavior nor the English language. Pit bulls account for a very low percentage of bites in the US where the CDC tracks this information. Unfortunately, there is so much media attention given to any incident involving pit bulls that it can seem like pit bulls are accountable for more than they are actually guilty of. What makes any dog aggressive is what should be addressed when looking to make your community safer: anti-tethering, rigorous spay/neuter, and strong anti-cruelty laws can help ensure that every member of your community as safe as possible.

Murr posted: 12-06-2008 | 8:16 AM

There's no such thing as a bad dog. There are only bad dog owners. And anyone who would choose to own a pitbull is a total dork, they are not necessarily aggressive dogs - depends on the owner - but oh la la, they redefine the word stupid.

Gerry posted: 12-06-2008 | 12:10 PM

Pit Bulls are bred for dog fighting. Why? because poodles will not tear each other apart as readily. If we had to depend on the responsible nature of the owner I'm afraid the number of biting incidents would increase, why take a chance with children.
Sorry Denise "bred not bread" and a knocking shop is a brothel. The Pit Bull, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Labrador cross has a genetic disposition to attack and that's why they are different from other breeds.

Gerry posted: 12-06-2008 | 12:25 PM

And yes they probably do account for a low proportion of dog bites, check again for fatalities and not just a nip on the hand.
"after three children were bitten to death by pit bull terriers." Yes 3 and even more in GB.

common sense posted: 16-06-2008 | 4:19 PM

now whats it going to take 10 children to die before the law is reinstated,,,she obviously does not have children and if she does,shame on her,,,idiot

common sense posted: 16-06-2008 | 4:23 PM

Thers no such thing as a bad dog just bad owners",,,,,well,duh?but why give these bad owners the chance to own,A WEAPON!Everybody knows the type that get pitbulls,comeon,there not the most intellegent of the society,there the morons who want one to toughen up there image ,infact they are cowards who feel safer with one,idiots

Jay posted: 18-06-2008 | 5:12 AM

Have any of you ever owned a pit bull or a pit mix? If so, then you would not be making the condescending comments listed above. My wife (a doctor) and I adopted a stray pit-bull from the local pound and he is a fantastic dog. Our dog has been through 2 classes and ranked #1 (of 12) in his class for obedience. The criminal justice system is based upon case by case evidence, not broad swaths of conjecture or half-truths. To generalize owners, breeds, or any population is unwise and unjust.

Gerry posted: 20-06-2008 | 12:52 PM

There are exceptions to every rule and to generalize is not as unwise or unjust as showing total naivety. I'm afraid Common Sense is correct in his assessment of the average Pit Bull owner. Harold Shipman was a Doctor too, you have just sterotyped doctors as responsible dog owners and therefor contradicted yourself. I do however agree with your generalization regarding their suitability as pet owners.

B.H posted: 23-06-2008 | 4:46 PM

Pit Bull conversations usually take place between people that have owned or known a real Pit Bull Terrier, and between people that get their information from newspapers or from so and so down the road, who spoke with so and so a few weeks back, and who is basically playing a game of Chinese Whispers. It's good to see a politician with their thinking cap on for a change. We also need tougher dog ownership rules and to take a closer look at the people that prove they can not own dogs responsibly.

"How do these people get into these positions of power!"

I would be more concerned with people that are willing to play off the Pit Bull's negative reputation, manipulate facts, tell bold faced lies to the public, in order to secure your vote, such as Ontario's Michael Bryant who did this.

"Idiot, Pit Bulls are bread for their behaviour which includes attacking children given half a chance and a little encouragement from their blood thirsty owners, Oh look at me I'm hard."

Helen Keller, the kids from the Little Rascals, Fred Astaire, Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Edison, Fatty Arbuckle, Michael J Fox etc have all owned Pit Bull Terriers. Do you think Helen Keller was trying to look all gansta? You seem to think you know how Pit Bull Terriers are "bred". Please tell us the books you've read that support your comments. And yes, I said books, not newspapers.

"Yes 3 and even more in GB"

The ban on Pit Bull Terriers in the UK was made so that there would be no one killed by Pit Bull Terriers in the UK. It looks to me like what the United Kingdom's laws say is when somebody is killed by another breed of dog, then that death is somehow less important than somebody that died from a "Pit Bull".

"A WEAPON!"

Good one, never heard that before.

"Everybody knows the type that get pitbulls,comeon,there not the most intellegent of the society,there the morons who want one to toughen up there image ,infact they are cowards who feel safer with one,idiots"

Before labelling other people cowards and idiots for some reason that exists only in your head, and unless English is your second language, I suggest you not throw stones in glass houses. I'm willing to bet most Pit Bull enthusiasts can at least manage to spell words like "their" and "intelligent" which you can not.

"here are exceptions to every rule and to generalize is not as unwise or unjust as showing total naivety. I'm afraid Common Sense is correct in his assessment of the average Pit Bull owner."

And? The Pit Bull has become a fashion item, you can't blame the dogs for that. If you put that same dog in the hands as the typical Golden Retriever is in, or the same hands that Pit Bulls used to be in prior to the 1980s before they were a fashion item for street thugs and idiots then we wouldn't be having this discussion - period. Stop blaming dogs for a human problem.

J.T. posted: 25-06-2008 | 9:15 AM

I fully agree with BH, and he especially highlights one very significant fact that pro-BSL people seem eager to overlook: the unequal treatment of dog attack victims and potential victims.

The vast majority of people are bitten by non-pit-bull-type dogs; why aren't they being protected by the law?

BSL basically says "If you are bitten by a pit bull, we feel sorry for you and we want to help you. The rest of you lot can suck it." The media does the same thing, making a circus over pit bull bites and pit bull victims, yet turning a deaf ear to the pleas of people being threatened and bitten by non-pit-bull type dogs. It's pretty pathetic when society judges your worth based on the appearance of the dog that threatens you.

Death by dog is death by dog, and being killed by a pit bull is no more or less horrible than being killed by a Cocker Spaniel, a Lab, or any other type of dog. In the U.S., a little girl was killed by Alaskan Malamutes and we barely heard a peep--one quick story in the local papers--but not long afterwards, a boy was killed by pit bulls (mistreated, mishandled, intact pit bulls already known to be biters) and the whole country heard about it for months on end. Every bloody second of the attack and discovery was played out in the paper over and over--and folks started screaming for a ban almost immediately. Meanwhile, everyone forgot (or never even knew) about the little girl's death, and no lessons were taken from it at all. Talk about injustice. That little girl is probably rolling over in her grave.

Victims deserve equal treatment and equal recourses. The public deserves safety across the board; it shouldn't favor a handful of fearful, selfish people who only care about their own dog problems and have no concern for anyone else.

Dutchess posted: 02-07-2008 | 4:23 PM

I dont even know what to say about Gerry.

We bred pits and AKC staffs for over 20 years had red AND black noses, all colors and all bloodlines during that time AND raised 6 kids who , belive it or not Gerry, are all still alive . No bites,, not one . We even had an old female we adopted after fighting in Oklahoma most of her life ,face half torn off,, and the only thing she ever did wrong was steal the barn cats kittens to raise herself. We were constantly putting kittens back where they belonged. When I married my Dutchie , he was TERRIFIED of them because of all the "Things he had heard " , but had a Bordeaux that would attack anything including children but that was OK because it wasnt a pit..jeez.I recently gifted him with a new pit female here in America.NOW he knows what they are like and wouldnt ever have a different breed....PS.. her best friends are another herd of barn kittens.

And the above poster is right ,, there was a golden retriever here that FINALLY was euthanized due to 5 different attacks on people, they gave the owner many chances????? ridiculous One chance should be the only chance no matter the breed

KING posted: 02-06-2009 | 6:10 PM

first of all half the people trying to give their 2 cents dont know shit about what they're talking about and are just trying to sound smart. common sence is an idiot what does he mean the type that get pitbulls? what type of people is that?? i can tell you've probably never even seen a real pitbull just on your tvs an what the media shows and you think that makes you smart.