Lucky girl

How great it is to hear that a badly injured pit bull, Bitsy, found a home for Thanksgiving. Pit bulls can definitely bounce back quickly from injuries. Whoever plunged a hunting knife into that dog's head belongs with Michael Vick. It's wonderful that Bitsy even survived. I know her new owners must be grateful.

'We have a real soft spot in our hearts for pit bulls,' Chris Rabold said. 'They get such the bad rap. But we would have adopted her even if it was a daschund.'

Speaking of Vick, many of his dogs are getting ready for adoption while he's behind bars on Thanksgiving. Good riddance.

Canine experts say one reason pit bulls are such good fighters is that their desire to please their owners is so strong they will do whatever is asked of them.

Sad but true. At least the head-trauma pit bull and the pit bulls that Michael Vick didn't kill are getting second chances. Maybe this will encourage more people to open their hearts to these sweet dogs who just want to please.

AKM

When tiny dogs go bad!

Attack of the killer chihuahua! Teacup poodle mauls children, labeled dangerous! Those headlines never make it to the newspapers. If only. My point is simple: There are other breeds that bite. Often. Yes, little Toto from "The Wizard of Oz" could have been a monstrous creature, yet no one would ever suspect it. On the other hand, walk a pit bull down a sidewalk, and people think of fighters and walk in the other direction. In Wisconsin, at least, there's a humane officer who acknowledges that most of the biters he comes in contact in his job are not pit bulls; they are the beloved tiny breeds and sometimes playful labs. He also says that bites often occur from accidental (though sometimes intentional) provoking by children and adults who don't know better.

'A lot of our bite cases are kids teasing the dog or playing with the dog too rough and just not knowing the tools to prevent the dog bites,' Officer Wiza said. . . . Officer Wiza says it’s not the stereotypical pit bulls or rottweilers that are to blame for most dog bite cases, but rather labs and little toy dogs that bite people the most.

If that isn't enough, I've heard several veterinarians say that they've seen nasty bites from chihuahuas and Chows. (Chows generally bite the most out the breeds, but I won't speak for all of them.) Of course, only the pit-bull bites make the news. I do understand that bigger dogs cause bigger wounds. Still, people in the journalism field should know better than to accept such blatant attacks and stereotypes without questioning and researching. Of course the power of the media is huge, and of course a lot of people will believe anything they read or see on TV. Some of those idiots are in the insurance business and charge huge fees for pit-bull owners. Thanks a lot. Get your facts straight before you judge, and keep your tiny dogs away from me if you're going to judge my pit bull.

AKM

Proud owners

Pit-bull lovers, unite! Take your bully breed and join a march or enter him/her in an agility course. No room will be made for negativity this time; this is all about other devoted owners striving to show the talented and sweet sides of their pit bulls. The majority of the negative news stories are the same: Some "pit bull" attacked someone. ALLEGEDLY. Those of us who are informed and not naive know that there are so many things wrong with those stories.

Now it's time to shine a light on the good things going on with pit bulls these days. Proud owners in Indianapolis marched with their pit bulls to show people the good nature of these dogs. Some dogs even wore Halloween costumes. (Mine would have worn her ladybug costume if she was there.)

And look -- positive stories about pit bulls in the news! That one's a great story.

Being mauled by a pit bull was painful. It felt like a whip slapping my legs. The mammoth dog whipped my thighs with anvil-like strength. It was his tail. I could have suffocated under the deluge of soggy kisses he forced on me, smack on my mouth.

And on the west coast, pit bulls and their owners are hard at work. I wonder how many people know that the strongest of the strongest pit bulls can pull up to 10,000 lbs. Come on -- that's impressive. They deserve to be able to show off their skills. Take a moment to scroll down to the end of the Coastal story and look at all the comments it's received. There's a full debate right there. The fearful ignorant and the proud informed.

Good pit-bull ownership. That's the theme at this Tennessee talent show. Watch the video too. Who wouldn't want to watch the great feats these dogs can do and want to do? It's not like these dogs are bragging -- we proud parents are. Good riddance, pit-bull haters; our dogs can pull tons and then play with kittens the next minute. What cat or chihuahua can do that?

AKM

Stupidity

Once again, terrible dog owners are getting their dogs, mainly pit bulls, in trouble. The news stories would be so different if the pit bulls were the ones starving their owners, strangling and electrocuting them, forcing them to fight each other, and kicking them to the streets to fend for themselves. Instead, it's the pit bulls getting abused. This is one area where I would actually support the "eye for an eye" motto. Those who abuse deserve to be abused. Maybe hell will be punishment enough for the owners when they die. I'm serious.

Children who have extreme behavioral problems from being abused are taken care of, treated as victims, and are given chance after chance to have normal lives after abuse. Dogs get abused more or put down. How corrupt are we? Have a look here if you're not the queasy type and see if your heart doesn't break. Pit-bull abuse and fighting are becoming an epidemic. As mentioned in that Cleveland story, some people view owning pit bulls as a badge of strength. Anger problems, anyone? I think so.

When NFL superstar Michael Vick pleaded guilty in August to a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge, animal lovers and the general public responded with revulsion.

For 'dog men' and other participants, however, the Vick case was an affirmation that dog fighting is 'glamorous,' Bengle said.

Having a pit bull and fighting it is like 'walking around with a gun. It's like a badge of honor,' he said.

But for dogs like E.T., it is a life filled with brutal training and vicious maulings in the ring. And not long ago in Philadelphia, even a rescue meant likely death at the city shelter, where pit bulls were routinely euthanized because the breed was regarded as dangerous.

It must make people feel powerful to kick around such a noted breed and turn them into scared fighting machines. I imagine they wouldn't feel the same boost in confidence if they just tossed around little chihuahuas.

If people would stop being so gullible and believing that pit bulls attack more than they submit, they could stop fueling this ridiculous stereotype. People who've had no experience with pit bulls have no right at all to call pit bulls monsters or threats. That's like me saying that all Iraqis are dangerous and evil. Think about it.

AKM

Ontario; Michael Vick

Ontario; Michael Vick

Pit-Bull Awareness Day was on October 20. I wonder how many people are truly aware now. Probably not many more. Unfortunately, pit bulls continue to have bad images in the news. They've been banned in Ontario, Canada, which is a huge loss for pit bulls and those who love them. It looks like the bad reputation is spreading to other countries. Come on, Canada! Don't follow in America's mostly negative footsteps. Some Web sites have been devoted to following this ban and urge pit-bull lovers to visit the Dog Legislation Council of Canada Web site to fight. The breed is already banned in numerous U.S. cities. People opposing the ban are calling this ban legislated hate. Now those who abuse any dogs are [usually] getting very little punishment for their actions. Sixty days of jail for slashing a dog's throat is just pathetic. That's just a slap on the wrist.

Thankfully, some of the remaining pit bulls from Michael Vick's property have a second chance in America -- they are up for adoption. This is nothing short or a blessing for those dogs. In almost every case of severe abuse where dogs were forced to fight, the dogs get put down. These must have been the lucky ones who didn't get mutilated. I hope this wide adoption will encourage people to look in their hearts and see that these poor dogs deserve the best.

PETA is also speaking up, of course, against Vick and encouraged him to take a course on animal empathy and responsibility, which he did. Surprisingly, he even passed the test at the end of the course. I say good for PETA. They're giving Vick a chance to clean up his filthy image, and they're giving him a second chance, just like people should give the innocent dogs. In a way, all this news about pit bulls lately is just as ridiculous and tiring as the endless speeches by Hilary Clinton about why she'd be a good president. In both cases, I'm waiting for the general public to catch up and realize the truths. Please hurry.

AKM

Pit-bull racism

To prove that all pit bulls are not evil, here is an inspiring story. Yes -- a certified hearing dog that is a pit bull. The owner still faces discrimination from strangers, but his dog is setting a wonderful example for all pit bulls. Cesar Milan, a renowned dog psychology specialist, has said that Doberman pinschers were the targeted bad dogs in the '80s, Rottweilers were of the '90s, and this decade belongs to the big, bad pit bulls. It's a racist phase, basically, for breeds. Such racism leads to increased fear, misunderstandings, and sometimes abuse.

My fiance's cat is more vicious than my pit bull, but people laugh in my face when I tell them that. No one would dare put a ban on certain cats or teach their kids to fear cats, even though many cats are hostile and get meaner with age. In some areas, pit-bull owners must leave town or give up their dogs to be euthanized. That is horrifying and as inhumane as pit-bull fighting. I would never give up my dog because she has always been the victim and has never victimized. It's not her fault that ignorant people refuse to let go of their stereotypes.

Pit bulls are viewed as monsters in society, which only encourages poor treatment of them. A fellow pit-bull blogger shares my frustrations here. Morever, some people take it upon themselves to abuse, abandon, or kill pit bulls for sport. Now who deserves to be euthanized?

AKM

Pit-bull controversy

I saw on the "Power of 10" show a few weeks ago that 55% of Americans think people should NOT be allowed to own pit bulls. Most people haven't even spent any time with pit bulls personally. In the 1800s and early 1900s, pit bulls were often called "nanny dogs" because they were popular family dogs and great with children. It's discouraging when people judge my pit bull mix Gypsy before they even know her. Parents only encourage stereotypes and fear when they tell their children not to pet the mean doggy (who actually never bites).

It's true that some irresponsible people trained/bred pit bulls to fight each other (not people) illegally. Train any dog to be vicious and you can get a fighter. Ironically, Chows have the highest bite rate of any breed, and German Shepards are another top biting breed. Pit bulls scored higher on the ATTS Temperament Test than chihuahuas. Every veterinarian I've talked to has said that pit bulls are never the problem -- it's people. One vet said he's seen worse bites from chihuahuas than pit bulls.

My dog was abused and abandoned before I got her. Did she deserve it? There's rarely a case in the news where pit bulls are stood up for. One pit bull incident had to end in a pit bull's death for the dog to be recognized as an innocent victim. Of course, there's more to say about the Michael Vick case later. Also, all of those "pit bulls" in the news are rarely confirmed pit bulls. It's often regular people making assumptions about breeds. Who confirms the breed reported? Usually no one. The National Canine Research Center shows the flaws of politics/media mixed with pit bulls. It's truly sad . . . .


Nanny dog