Bad Reputation: Are the Breeders To Blame?

[Verderben]

Interesting article though not sure how I feel about it. I liked this part the best : <<< Goodman said dogs bred for fighting are usually a mix of bloodlines. He said the American Pit Bull Terrier itself isn't particularly aggressive, but when other breeds, such as the Labrador, are bred with it, that can be a problem.>>>



http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623
Bad reputation Are the breeders to blame?




http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully3.jpg (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully3.jpg/photo_view) (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully3.jpg/photo_view)

Jimmy Garza of Cali Edge Kennels sits with Kimo, an American Bully. American Bully breeders say humans are responsible for creating fighting dogs many people call 'pit bulls.'
Photos by MIKE MORONES/THE FREE LANCE-STAR
(http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully3.jpg/photo_view)



http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully1.jpg (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully1.jpg/photo_view) (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully1.jpg/photo_view)

Handlers show American Bullies in the young male category at yesterday's show at the Fredericksburg Expo Center.
Photos by MIKE MORONES/THE FREE LANCE-STAR
(http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully1.jpg/photo_view)



http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully2.jpg (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully2.jpg/photo_view) (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully2.jpg/photo_view)

Visitors take photographs of Ryan Gowler's American Bully, Ziggy. Gowler, of Phoenix, Ariz., was representing Hypnotized Minds Kennel.
Photos by MIKE MORONES/THE FREE LANCE-STAR
(http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/lo100706bully2.jpg/photo_view)



http://fredericksburg.com/Include/post.gif (http://fredtalk.fredericksburg.com/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=sifrit) http://fredericksburg.com/Include/printer.gif (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/printer_friendly) http://fredericksburg.com/Include/mail.gif (http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623/email_story)
Who's to blame? Humans or pit bulls? Back 2 Bullies Convention spurs debate

Date published: 10/8/2006



By MICHAEL ZITZ

Beloved dog actor Petey from "The Little Rascals" was a pit bull--even though the famous ring around his eye is said to have been fake, courtesy of Hollywood makeup artist Max Factor.

Many therapy dogs and search-and-rescue dogs are pit bulls.

But so were the dogs that killed Dorothy Sullivan, an 82-year-old Spotsylvania County woman, 18 months ago.

The Back 2 the Bullies Convention that attracted an estimated 2,000 dog enthusiasts to the Fredericksburg Expo Center yesterday offended some area residents with Sullivan's death still fresh in their minds.

State Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania, one of the sponsors of a Sullivan-inspired measure tightening dog laws, called hosting the convention in Fredericksburg "really poor taste--insensitive to the tragic nature of Dorothy Sullivan's death here in our community."

But Dave Wilson, the Spotsylvania man who put on the convention, said its purpose was to promote the American Bully, a larger, more mellow dog that he said takes the bulldog and pit bull back to what they used to be considered--family-friendly pets.

"It's not a pit bull show," Wilson said, although there were some dogs there that breeders described as pit bulls, and some vendors were selling pit bull T-shirts.

Wilson called Sullivan's death "a tragic event."

He said it pointed out the need to stop irresponsible breeders and owners from turning dogs into weapons. And, he said, it underlined the need to keep all adult dogs on leashes.

"Any time you have grown dogs running free, that's a recipe for disaster, no matter what the breed," he said.

Wilson, 35, is one of the American Bully Kennel Club members who helped start the breed. He said it was an effort to directly respond to the bad things irresponsible dog breeders and owners have wrought.

In recent decades, he said, the American Pit Bull Terrier breed was corrupted by some breeders and owners who crossed it with other breeds to produce fighting dogs.

"It got into the hands of the wrong people and was used for the wrong purposes," he said. "I didn't want a fighting dog. I wanted the look of the dog, but not the attitude of the dog.

"My dogs are different--big impressive dogs, but real mellow and laid-back," Wilson said.

Spotsylvania Animal Control Warden Willy Tydings, who had a booth at the convention, agreed there's a big difference between the American Bully and the kind of pit bull bred to fight.

"This dog here [the Bully] would probably have a heart attack if it got into a fight," Tydings said. "It's too big and fat to fight. Fighting dogs are lean."

Tydings was on hand with John Goodman, deputy manager of animal fighting issues for the Humane Society of the United States, to pass out fliers and talk to people at the convention about a new effort to stamp out dogfighting.

"Dogfighting is to blame" for many animal attacks today, Goodman said.

Tydings said he suspects that the dogs that killed Sullivan had at one time been used for fighting, but can't prove that.

Goodman said dogs bred for fighting are usually a mix of bloodlines. He said the American Pit Bull Terrier itself isn't particularly aggressive, but when other breeds, such as the Labrador, are bred with it, that can be a problem.

"The Labrador is high-strung," Goodman said, and a mix of Lab and American Pit Bull Terrier can produce a powerful dog that gets overly excited and bites.

"Fight-dog breeders are the ones who perverted the pit bull," Goodman said.

Many argue that the typical family pit bull is not at all dangerous. They lobby against legislation they said could "outlaw" certain breeds, simply because of human irresponsibility.

Maureen Hill-Hauch, a Chancellor woman who is executive director of the American Dog Owners Association, pointed out that there are no pit bulls listed on the current Spotsylvania dangerous-dogs list that warns residents about pets that have attacked people.

On the list of a dozen dangerous dogs owned by people in the county and posted on the Internet by Spotsylvania Animal Control are two Akitas, a bulldog, a Chesapeake Bay retriever, a chow mix, two German shepherds, a shepherd mix, two Rottweilers, a Rottweiler mix and a shar-pei, but no pit bulls.

"But I've never seen a headline that said 'Akita bites girl,' " Hill-Hauch said.

She said the press is too eager to write headlines when they hear about a pit bull bite, because reference to the breed has become unjustifiably inflammatory.

[Verderben]

Also, the term "pit bull" is widely used for many different breeds that are stocky, have big heads or have a ring around the eye.

"'Pit bull' is a generic term," said Lisa Peterson, director of communications for the American Kennel Club in New York.

Hill-Hauch went further.

"There is no such thing as a pit bull--there is no such dog," she said. "We don't know what a pit bull is."

Hartwood dog trainer Paula Thomas was at the convention with a flier that showed pictures of 25 different breeds often referred to as "pit bulls," and defied anyone to identify the one American Pit Bull Terrier.

She said her own pet is a rescue dog that is a mix of breeds but considered by some a pit bull.

Thomas pointed at another dog in the hall and said, "That's also considered a pit bull, but they're nothing alike."





To reach MICHAEL ZITZ: 540/374-5408
Email: mikez@freelancestar.com







Date published: 10/8/2006

[pennsooner]

I consider it about as bad as it can get. Someone is lying about real Pitbulls and exploiting the hysteria to promote blue hippos.

[Pitbull219]

"Goodman said dogs bred for fighting are usually a mix of bloodlines. He said the American Pit Bull Terrier itself isn't particularly aggressive, but when other breeds, such as the Labrador, are bred with it, that can be a problem."

Interesting statement right there. Not that it hasn't been done, but few if any breeders involved in breeding sporting dogs would mix in other breeds anymore. But the "Bully Pits" are mostly of mixed heritage. So then, wouldn't they be a problem as well going by the logic of that statement??

[tommy3]

Wow that was full of crap.

"In recent decades, he said, the American Pit Bull Terrier breed was corrupted by some breeders and owners who crossed it with other breeds to produce fighting dogs."

The APBT was bred for fighting. So how the hell does breeding fighting dogs corrupt a fighting breed???
That makes absolutely no sense.

This guy is trying to make his bullies look good and the true APBTs look like monsters. Funny, I have been around these dogs for a long time and I have never known of a true APBT to bite anyone. However, I know a few people that have been bit by those bully type dogs.

"Fight-dog breeders are the ones who perverted the pit bull"
WTF? They created the APBT, not perverted it. I can't say the same for bully breeders.

[miakoda]

Bad reputation Are the breeders to blame?

October 8, 2006 12:50 am

By MICHAEL ZITZ
Beloved dog actor Petey from "The Little Rascals" was a pit bull--even though the famous ring around his eye is said to have been fake, courtesy of Hollywood makeup artist Max Factor.

Many therapy dogs and search-and-rescue dogs are pit bulls.

But so were the dogs that killed Dorothy Sullivan, an 82-year-old Spotsylvania County woman, 18 months ago.

The Back 2 the Bullies Convention that attracted an estimated 2,000 dog enthusiasts to the Fredericksburg Expo Center yesterday offended some area residents with Sullivan's death still fresh in their minds.

State Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania, one of the sponsors of a Sullivan-inspired measure tightening dog laws, called hosting the convention in Fredericksburg "really poor taste--insensitive to the tragic nature of Dorothy Sullivan's death here in our community."

But Dave Wilson, the Spotsylvania man who put on the convention, said its purpose was to promote the American Bully, a larger, more mellow dog that he said takes the bulldog and pit bull back to what they used to be considered--family-friendly pets.

"It's not a pit bull show," Wilson said, although there were some dogs there that breeders described as pit bulls, and some vendors were selling pit bull T-shirts.

Wilson called Sullivan's death "a tragic event."

He said it pointed out the need to stop irresponsible breeders and owners from turning dogs into weapons. And, he said, it underlined the need to keep all adult dogs on leashes.

"Any time you have grown dogs running free, that's a recipe for disaster, no matter what the breed," he said.

Wilson, 35, is one of the American Bully Kennel Club members who helped start the breed. He said it was an effort to directly respond to the bad things irresponsible dog breeders and owners have wrought.

In recent decades, he said, the American Pit Bull Terrier breed was corrupted by some breeders and owners who crossed it with other breeds to produce fighting dogs.

"It got into the hands of the wrong people and was used for the wrong purposes," he said. "I didn't want a fighting dog. I wanted the look of the dog, but not the attitude of the dog.

"My dogs are different--big impressive dogs, but real mellow and laid-back," Wilson said.

Spotsylvania Animal Control Warden Willy Tydings, who had a booth at the convention, agreed there's a big difference between the American Bully and the kind of pit bull bred to fight.

"This dog here [the Bully] would probably have a heart attack if it got into a fight," Tydings said. "It's too big and fat to fight. Fighting dogs are lean."

Tydings was on hand with John Goodman, deputy manager of animal fighting issues for the Humane Society of the United States, to pass out fliers and talk to people at the convention about a new effort to stamp out dogfighting.

"Dogfighting is to blame" for many animal attacks today, Goodman said.

Tydings said he suspects that the dogs that killed Sullivan had at one time been used for fighting, but can't prove that.

Goodman said dogs bred for fighting are usually a mix of bloodlines. He said the American Pit Bull Terrier itself isn't particularly aggressive, but when other breeds, such as the Labrador, are bred with it, that can be a problem.

"The Labrador is high-strung," Goodman said, and a mix of Lab and American Pit Bull Terrier can produce a powerful dog that gets overly excited and bites.

"Fight-dog breeders are the ones who perverted the pit bull," Goodman said.

Many argue that the typical family pit bull is not at all dangerous. They lobby against legislation they said could "outlaw" certain breeds, simply because of human irresponsibility.

Maureen Hill-Hauch, a Chancellor woman who is executive director of the American Dog Owners Association, pointed out that there are no pit bulls listed on the current Spotsylvania dangerous-dogs list that warns residents about pets that have attacked people.

On the list of a dozen dangerous dogs owned by people in the county and posted on the Internet by Spotsylvania Animal Control are two Akitas, a bulldog, a Chesapeake Bay retriever, a chow mix, two German shepherds, a shepherd mix, two Rottweilers, a Rottweiler mix and a shar-pei, but no pit bulls.

"But I've never seen a headline that said 'Akita bites girl,' " Hill-Hauch said.

She said the press is too eager to write headlines when they hear about a pit bull bite, because reference to the breed has become unjustifiably inflammatory.

Also, the term "pit bull" is widely used for many different breeds that are stocky, have big heads or have a ring around the eye.

"'Pit bull' is a generic term," said Lisa Peterson, director of communications for the American Kennel Club in New York.

Hill-Hauch went further.

"There is no such thing as a pit bull--there is no such dog," she said. "We don't know what a pit bull is."

Hartwood dog trainer Paula Thomas was at the convention with a flier that showed pictures of 25 different breeds often referred to as "pit bulls," and defied anyone to identify the one American Pit Bull Terrier.

She said her own pet is a rescue dog that is a mix of breeds but considered by some a pit bull.

Thomas pointed at another dog in the hall and said, "That's also considered a pit bull, but they're nothing alike."





To reach MICHAEL ZITZ: <LINE />540/374-5408<LINE />
Email: mikez@freelancestar.com (mikez@freelancestar.com)

http://www.fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/102006/10082006/227623

[miakoda]

Gotta love Dave's oh so edumacated comments:
he said, the American Pit Bull Terrier breed was corrupted by some breeders and owners who crossed it with other breeds to produce fighting dogs. Ummm, does he know ANYTHING about the APBT?

"I didn't want a fighting dog. I wanted the look of the dog, but not the attitude of the dog.Get a penis enhancement. How crappy that one thinks that an oversized mutt wearing a ginormous spiked collar at the end of a 2inch think gold linked chain helps boost one's ego and/or rep. Sounds like someone needs to grow up & be comfortable with their small "stuff". Oh, & those dogs look NOTHING like the APBT. Good try though with that retarded comment.

& last but not least:

"It's not a pit bull show," Wilson said, although there were some dogs there that breeders described as pit bulls, and some vendors were selling pit bull T-shirts.

Funny, since someone I know went to the latest show & said EVERY single peddler there was advertising his dogs as "pit bulls" or "APBTs". So much for the new name.

[Luke.UK]

Goodman said dogs bred for fighting are usually a mix of bloodlines. He said the American Pit Bull Terrier itself isn't particularly aggressive, but when other breeds, such as the Labrador, are bred with it, that can be a problem.

"The Labrador is high-strung," Goodman said, and a mix of Lab and American Pit Bull Terrier can produce a powerful dog that gets overly excited and bites.




absolutly crap!If you cross breeds you get a pit bull mix, surely?
Also if lab`s are so `highly strung` then why are they used as guide dogs??:confused:

[gil230]

Damn! I made the mistake to read this out loud to my wife and now I have the taste of Bullshit in my mouth!

[Pitbull219]

Ok Mia, you're messin with my mind here. I read this and had that deja-vu feeling, lol. Here's what I mean: http://www.game-dog.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16951

[Miss Conduct]

This makes me sick.... ARGG


I sent a nice, and quite informative email to them :)

[Attila]

And people wonder why I make and drink moonshine. they are constipated.

[Ch.Hog05]

I just went and put my boots on the shit was getting deep with that article.

[14rock]

I've merged two similar threads on the same discussion. If anyone is confused as to why somethings dont quite match up front post to post in order, that is why.

[Pitbull219]

I've merged two similar threads on the same discussion. If anyone is confused as to why somethings dont quite match up front post to post in order, that is why.ok, now you're messin with me even more, lol. I think I'm better now though, thanx....