Yeah, that’s more or less what I meant–“proper training” is something every dog should get, it’s just marginally more dangerous to neglect it as a function of how large and strong a dog is (which puts pits in the middle of the pack in the “improper but well-meaning training” risk pool–let me tell you about the lab/mastiff cross that didn’t get to eat my face solely because I reacted appropriately to its aggression upon first meeting. Short version: knowing in your gut that “now is the appropriate time to dominance-roll this particular dog” is the difference between “getting attacked by a gigantic formerly-abused monster” and “hey, <former girlfriend>, looks like she’s my dog now”. Seriously, that dog went from full-on no-shit territory defense to “oh shit, sorry boss” in the space of ten minutes–not a typical result, granted, but one I was willing to live with so long as she continued to sleep in her crate.)
I gotta say - after witnessing the train wreck that was the other thread it’s downright alarming at how civilized this thread has been…
I agree 100% that proper training is required of every dog. While I don’t necessarily agree 100% with how Cesar works, I do think that every dog requires a pack leader - and yeah, when a dog flips out because it doesn’t have a leader to put him in his place, the bigger/stronger the dog, the more likely a minor problem turns into a major problem with nasty consequences.
This focus on owner education - and letting potential pitt/rott owners understand the greater responsibilities involved with owning a dog that needs a strong owner and the greater risks they run if they aren’t ready/willing/able to be that kind of owner…that, I think, will do more than anything in both reducing pit/rott dog bite deaths and will help improve the breed’s image in the publics’ eye.
nods I can’t disagree with any of this, really. I think the fundamental disconnect is that even if pits and rotts are far and away the worst fatal biters, realistically, it’s a vanishingly small percentage of dogs who do this.
The biggest issue and the one I think that is not going to go away is that the tough guys are always going to want their tough dogs, and there’s not a lot of good ways to legislate around that–breed-specific bans are either too broad or don’t work, in my experience. (my “favorite” is an acquaintance who has a wolf hybrid that is registered as a German Shepherd/Husky cross due to the local ordinance prohibiting wolf hybrids.)
I’d amend your “potential pit/rott owners” with “potential medium-to-large dog owners”–as I said, the closest I’ve personally come to a violent attack from a dog was from a black lab/mastiff cross (two very typically gentle and family-friendly breeds). Similar to my wife and her experience with the Great Dane at work.