Don’t Blame the Pitbull

As a Pitbull lover and a former owner of two Pit bulls, I cannot say it enough “do not blame the Pit bull, blame the owner.” All dogs can misbehave if they are not trained. Some people adopt Pit bulls for the wrong reasons. These owners want the image of strength, intimidation and aggression. This translates to owners that are not aware of the training, exercise and discipline Pitbulls require. Pitbulls have a strong personality and they will test you to make sure you are the leader of the pack.

Remi and Rogue were my Pitbulls, a brother and sister pair I adopted from Ontario where Pit bulls are banned.  They provided me with unconditional love and security. They loved their walks and everyday after work we would take our 45 minute trek in our neighborhood.  Remi liked to pull while walking so he wore a walk master to prevent him from pulling, which made a lot of people think he had a muzzle on. Remi and Rogue did not want to say “hi” to humans or dogs because they were so focused on their walk. They were not aggressive or antisocial; I just trained them to listen to me when I was walking.

My dogs were judged by other people just because they were Pit bulls. People would cross the street, pick up their dogs (even though their dog is behaving aggressively towards my dogs), hide their children (even though the children wanted to say hi because it is just a dog to them) and I had people swear at me out their car window.

It was a sad day when I had to euthanize Remi for medical reasons.  I started bringing Rogue to work with me and she became one of the greeters at the clinic and was a great advocate for Pit bulls. Clients would tell me they thought all Pit bulls were bad, but once they met Rogue they saw for themselves the friendly, fun loving dog she was.  Another sad day came when I euthanized Rogue because she had intestinal cancer.

Unfortunately, the media and public have made inappropriate judgements on Pit bulls as well as German Shepherds, Doberman Pinschers, and Rottweilers. Banning certain breeds in a community or province is NOT the right decision. The owners need to be held responsible, not the breed. Education, proper training, socialization, and regular exercise are the key to having a well behaved dog.

Don’t judge a pitbull by its cover.

Written by: Trina, Office Manager