quick question

[Unregistered]

Hi,

my brother has been living with me for the past 6 months and he has a 2 year old pit. so far, everything has been okay with him, but yesterday he attacked a stray cat that came into the yard. He didnt kill it thank God, but thats only because i stepped outside and stopped it. I'm worried now because i have a cat that i've had for almost 12 years. Is this something I should be worried about or is it just a territory thing? please give me all the advice you can. i love my brother but if it puts my pet in danger, hes gonna have to get out.

[14rock]

Unfortunately, its accepted, and almost to be expected for a mature APBT to be animal-aggressive. Even if raised together from birth, the instincts many times win out when the dog is full-grown. APBT's do not thrive off animal compassion, they live for human compassion. Hundreds of years of battling most anything on 4-legs and being well-cared for by those on 2, has created an animal who adores humans, and wants to fight 4-legged "foe". Its a shock to somepeople how much these animals can love people, and "hate" animals, when most breeds who act aggressive towards animals, are also not so loving of humans. You must understand the breed history to realize why human aggression, and canine-aggression are completely seperate in this breed, and being canine-aggressive (or in your case feline) does not in any way equate to human-aggression. What does this mean for those living with other companion animals? Learn how to handle your bulldog, and keep it out of situations where a problem could arise. I also have cats, 2 of them, and the dogs are not allowed to interact with them any longer. When you live, make sure they are seperated, and the bulldog is securely contained (either locked in a room, or on a chain, in a kennel, whatever you choose). My housedog will tolerate felines for a short time, and look the other way. If left together for any length of time(more than a few minutes), it becomes more fun to chase the cat down.

I completely understand your concerns, and I wont say they are unjustified,the situation might occur where the dog does not care to play with the cat in a nice way anymore. However, it doesnt have to be "get rid of the APBT, or get out!", as I hope you can tell from my example. Many of us have multiple dog/multiple animal homes with canine-aggressive animals. It takes some time to get used to a routine,so as where a problem can't occur, but after a week or two, your in the schedule as much as the animals. After that, its simply educating those around you to be as responsible as you are. For example, if someone watches your house for the night, stress to them how important it is to keep the cat and dog seperate, no matter how much they think they should be together to play. Aside from broken equipment, I'd say the number one reason for yard accidents, is people with good intentions, not understanding the situation, and causing a fight (ex. the housekeeper taking two grown bulldogs off their chain, because they seem to want to "play" so bad, wagging their tail, not barking/growling, and the two canines getting into a scrap). I hope you can work something out, for both your brother, his dog, your cat, and most importantly your sake. Many of us are living proof its not that difficult to avoid the situation, if you know what to do, and its not that much of a hinderance if you do it correctly.

Thank you for the questions, and coming to the forums to ask for help, instead of jumping to conclusions as so many would do. Lord knows with the onslaught of media hype we've been facing for 10 years, every logical person to seek the truth on their own, is one person who may see the light of what this wonderful breed has to offer.

Feel free to register a name, or your brother, and ask questions any time they arise. Its free to do so, and then we can communicate with you more efficently, then only being able to talk to a unregistered user who can only post in one section ;).

Again, thank you, and if you have any more questions/feedback, please let us know :D