My English Mastiff, Hercules and my son.
It occurred to me today that I am a dog lover. Actually, I'm an animal lover in general, but I truly do love dogs. I LOVE DOGS. There, I have made it abundantly clear.
In recent weeks, there has been article after article about dog attacks. Mostly pitbulls. And I find myself growing increasingly angry. Not at the dogs, but at the people and owners around them.
A healthy and stable dog, regardless of breed, does not hurt people. And a dog cannot be healthy and stable without a good pack leader. Being that pack leader requires the ability to be patient, calm, assertive, and disciplined. More and more, I find that people are lacking in this.
And then they wonder why dogs go nuts.
Pitbulls are NOT an evil breed. They are not any more likely to 'go bad' than a rottie, or a mastiff, or a pomeranian. It is the OWNERS, and the people around them, that teach them whether violence is alright or not. It is the way they are treated that makes them liable to bite.
And the reason I can say this will all certainty? This man below. Cesar and his recently deceased dog, Daddy.
Daddy and Cesar Millan
Daddy is the kind of dog that I would trust with my kids every day, all day. He was kind, he was caring, and he was able to be calm around even unstable dogs. To give the energy needed to calm others down.
He was a rare dog in that he was fortunate enough to have a pack leader, an owner, that cared not only about feeding and watering, but truly giving him what he needed!
So when I read about how pitbulls are evil and breed specific laws are necessary, I cry inside. For every bad pitbull out there, there are hundreds that are amazing family dogs. For every story of a mauling or an attack, there are hundreds of that breed which have never in all their lives shown aggression. Breed specific laws do not work.
If we make it illegal to have a pitbull in a state... guess what? That state will see more statistics on other dogs. Labradors, Mastiffs, Pomeranians, Dachschunds. More breeds of dogs will step up to take the spotlight.
The problem is not the dog. It is people.
Daddy and a newcomer to Cesar's pack, Junior.
REST IN PEACE, DADDY.
In recent weeks, there has been article after article about dog attacks. Mostly pitbulls. And I find myself growing increasingly angry. Not at the dogs, but at the people and owners around them.
A healthy and stable dog, regardless of breed, does not hurt people. And a dog cannot be healthy and stable without a good pack leader. Being that pack leader requires the ability to be patient, calm, assertive, and disciplined. More and more, I find that people are lacking in this.
And then they wonder why dogs go nuts.
Pitbulls are NOT an evil breed. They are not any more likely to 'go bad' than a rottie, or a mastiff, or a pomeranian. It is the OWNERS, and the people around them, that teach them whether violence is alright or not. It is the way they are treated that makes them liable to bite.
And the reason I can say this will all certainty? This man below. Cesar and his recently deceased dog, Daddy.
Daddy and Cesar MillanDaddy is the kind of dog that I would trust with my kids every day, all day. He was kind, he was caring, and he was able to be calm around even unstable dogs. To give the energy needed to calm others down.
He was a rare dog in that he was fortunate enough to have a pack leader, an owner, that cared not only about feeding and watering, but truly giving him what he needed!
So when I read about how pitbulls are evil and breed specific laws are necessary, I cry inside. For every bad pitbull out there, there are hundreds that are amazing family dogs. For every story of a mauling or an attack, there are hundreds of that breed which have never in all their lives shown aggression. Breed specific laws do not work.
If we make it illegal to have a pitbull in a state... guess what? That state will see more statistics on other dogs. Labradors, Mastiffs, Pomeranians, Dachschunds. More breeds of dogs will step up to take the spotlight.
The problem is not the dog. It is people.
Daddy and a newcomer to Cesar's pack, Junior.REST IN PEACE, DADDY.
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