Toddler dies after pit bull attack in West Haven, CT apartment

[Martlet]

Not too many people I know that are scared of my Golden Retriever.

Or my black lab.

 

[MichaelJR]

Yeah the argument against pitbulls being dangerous is the same as "assault rifles". Dogs are dogs, breed is irrelevant, upbringing is everything.

 

[Martlet]

Yeah the argument against pitbulls being dangerous is the same as "assault rifles". Dogs are dogs, breed is irrelevant, upbringing is everything.

Then why do people traditionally choose different breeds for different tasks?

 

[joeendris]

Guns should not be allowed in the hands of citizens since they can be deadly.




[sarcasm of course]

sad news..prayer for the little girl..pit bull should not be allowed in apartments since they are not friendly dogs..

I have a pitbull. I'm in a duplex, and I have a 4yo. But I guess that's irresponsible because, according to you and every other ignorant human, pitbulls are not friendly dogs. Pit bulls are one step below a shotgun AFA home defense goes. It's the tools like Michael Vick and gangsta-mall-ninjas that teach their dogs to fight or to be generally nasty. Those owners should be put down next to their dog.

Save us the verbal diahrea by denouncing pitbulls as "not friendly dogs"

<----again, for good measure

Only thing you got right was sending a prayer for the kid, which I will second. Hopefully the family can cope, relatively speaking.

 

[Rick1987]

Not too many people I know that are scared of my Golden Retriever.

Why would people be scared of a golden retriever? No one has any reason to be scared of them.

My brother in law has a pit bull, and it's the MOST friendly dog I have EVER met. It's the owner that is to blame.

I would bet that 65% of the population would be terrified if they went to your house and saw your guns. Does that make them bad?


Prayers for the little girl. But if it was a black lab we wouldn't hear about it.

 

[LKB3rd]

The reason they get a bad rap is because they have strong jaws, and are more likely to do serious damage than say a golden retriever.
I agree that it isn't the breed that is inherently violent but anyone has to see that they are stronger than most dogs, especially in the jaws. That's why people fight them. They are strong and good fighters.

 

[Martlet]

Why would people be scared of a golden retriever? No one has any reason to be scared of them.

My brother in law has a pit bull, and it's the MOST friendly dog I have EVER met. It's the owner that is to blame.

I would bet that 65% of the population would be terrified if they went to your house and saw your guns. Does that make them bad?


Prayers for the little girl. But if it was a black lab we wouldn't hear about it.

The guns=dogs argument doesn't fit.

 

[hminsky]

The huge muscles around the jaws in in the pit bull breeds make them more scary. Everything else being equal, I'd rather fight off a retriever than a pit bull.
I also think that not all breeds have the same instincts; Some dogs have been bred for fighting and some for gently holding
a duck in their mouth without breaking the feathers.

But 95% of the time, its the owner who has let an aggressive dog become a problem.

 

[fencer]

Pit Bulls are classified as an aggressive breed by insurance companies and my suspicion is that it is determined by data compiled about attacks.

I truly believe that a dogs behavior is a reflection of it's owner but I also believe that certain dog breeds are more likely to exhibit and excel at certain activities. Huskies are better at pulling sleds, Retrievers and Pointers are naturally better hunting dogs, Blood hounds are naturally good trackers. Pit Bulls are renowned for clamping down their jaws and violently shaking their pray.

I saw this first hand about ten years ago when my neighbors lovable pit bull got loose and chased down a kid in the neighborhood. I was out working in the yard when I heard the screams. The pit, named Missy, had hold of the kids arm and was shaking violenty. I hit that dog seven times with a long handled pointed shovel and finally started stabbing it in the face with the shovel point.

The kid that got bit received dozens of stitches and suffered a dislocated shoulder. My kids played with this dog a dozen times with no problems. I think that what happened is when the kids all started running the dog went into flight/prey mode.

Maybe Pit bulls do not bite as frequently as some other breeds but I can not remember the last time I heard of a child being killed by a Basset Hound. I don't hate Pit Bulls but I certainly watch them more closely than my Black Lab. I do not think that using extra caution with children when they are around certain breeds is ingnorant. I think it is prudent.

As far as the dog owner in this case is concerned I think she should be charged with Manslaughter. She deliberately raised her dogs to be aggressive, knew they were dangerous and attempted to lock her dogs up. She failed and now a kid is dead.

 

[Fixxah]

Still going.....

Sent from the Hyundai of the droids, the Samsung Replenish, using Tapatalk.

 

[Nicole]

I know a lot of pit bulls, none of them owned by accomplished trainers, and none of them have ever given me a moment's worry.

However, as an infant I was nearly killed by a house cat (tried to sit on me while in search of any milk I may not have swallowed and was suffocating me) and almost lost an eye to a small poodle (flipped out and attacked me - I still have a faint scar under my eye).

Yes, pit bulls may have the instincts and physiology to do much more damage than a Cocker Spaniel. Why does it matter? Where do you draw the line on size and damage potential? A single casual, entirely non-malicious kick from a decent sized horse could be fatal...I've got that scar too. And if you think dogs are unpredictable...oh baby, try dealing with animals whose default setting when anything goes wrong is "Ah! It's trying to eat me!" Let's ban horses!

Animals are not machines. They are not 100% predictable. Neither are people. And people are much, much more dangerous than pit bulls, coyotes, or whatever your boogey man of the day is.

The problem isn't pit bulls. The problem is people who encourage or allow aggressive behavior in their animals. *That* shouldn't be tolerated.

And just to buck the trend a bit more, we are currently dealing with a family a few doors down with a Golden Retriever that they occasionally let loose. When they do, it comes down to our place and actively threatens us and our German Shepard. Despite the negligent owners and documented aggressive dog, there's precious little the "system" is interested in doing. I don't care what breed it is, it's big and strong enough to seriously injure any one of us. The fact that it might leave a bit more of me intact than a pit bull is REALLY not comforting.

 

[Martlet]

I know a lot of pit bulls, none of them owned by accomplished trainers, and none of them have ever given me a moment's worry.

However, as an infant I was nearly killed by a house cat (tried to sit on me while in search of any milk I may not have swallowed and was suffocating me) and almost lost an eye to a small poodle (flipped out and attacked me - I still have a faint scar under my eye).

Yes, pit bulls may have the instincts and physiology to do much more damage than a Cocker Spaniel. Why does it matter? Where do you draw the line on size and damage potential? A single casual, entirely non-malicious kick from a decent sized horse could be fatal...I've got that scar too. And if you think dogs are unpredictable...oh baby, try dealing with animals whose default setting when anything goes wrong is "Ah! It's trying to eat me!" Let's ban horses!

Animals are not machines. They are not 100% predictable. Neither are people. And people are much, much more dangerous than pit bulls, coyotes, or whatever your boogey man of the day is.

The problem isn't pit bulls. The problem is people who encourage or allow aggressive behavior in their animals. *That* shouldn't be tolerated.

And just to buck the trend a bit more, we are currently dealing with a family a few doors down with a Golden Retriever that they occasionally let loose. When they do, it comes down to our place and actively threatens us and our German Shepard. Despite the negligent owners and documented aggressive dog, there's precious little the "system" is interested in doing. I don't care what breed it is, it's big and strong enough to seriously injure any one of us. The fact that it might leave a bit more of me intact than a pit bull is REALLY not comforting.

I haven't seen anyone draw a line. All I've seen is people correctly observe that pit bulls are far more dangerous than most other breeds.

 

[Ink]

My buddy has a pitbull and he's a wonderfully friendly pooch, very playful. I am still a little cautious, maybe more than i should be because of the supposed reputation of these animals, but i am a dog lover---- if the dog hurts someone, blame the owner, not the animal. I feel horrible for all involved. Total tragedy. BUT ANY animal kept as a pet has a chance of going on the attack at any random time.

 

[jcetto0351]

Seems like it is never a black lab or golden retriever or beagle mauling you read about.

Just sayin'.

Then why do people traditionally choose different breeds for different tasks?

why would anybody on this sight be in favor of banning ANYTHING? My american bulldog has no "task" other than to be affectionate but if you break into my house, he will f*** you up... so sure he is "dangerous" but he has never hurt anybody so why ban him from apartments or deny insurance to me on a house because he looks scary(which he doesn't really look all that scary by comparison). Banning breeds is akin to banning firearms because they look scary....I can have my .308 deer rifle but ban the AR-15....they both can kill you but the AR just looks evil and I heard it fires cop killer bullets too!

If you weren't told its a "pitbull mix" would you ban this dog?

 

[Martlet]

why would anybody on this sight be in favor of banning ANYTHING? My american bulldog has no "task" other than to be affectionate but if you break into my house, he will f*** you up... so sure he is "dangerous" but he has never hurt anybody so why ban him from apartments or deny insurance to me on a house because he looks scary(which he doesn't really look all that scary by comparison). Banning breeds is akin to banning firearms because they look scary....I can have my .308 deer rifle but ban the AR-15....they both can kill you but the AR just looks evil and I heard it fires cop killer bullets too!

If you weren't told its a "pitbull mix" would you ban this dog?

Could you point out where I called for ANYTHING to be banned? Ever. Anywhere. Dog, firearm, drug, or soft drink. Where have I EVER called for something to be banned, regardless how dangerous it is.

 

[jcetto0351]

sad news..prayer for the little girl..pit bull should not be allowed in apartments since they are not friendly dogs..

This is the closest litteral reference but your "pitbulls are unpredictable and bad" comments infer a type of non-ownership mentality...so while you never actually said ban them, you are here saying pitbulls are an accident waiting to happen and my black lab is a better breed.... I'm glad you own a nice black lab but he's most likely bigger and meaner than my bully breed. While I understand these comments are just opinion, your dog is most likely more "dangerous" than mine is but your broad remarks state that my dog is more of a threat to others due only to his breed

 

[Lopro]

and on and on it goes


I have both a Pit Bull and Boxer ( 100 lb ) debatable who has the stronger jaw , its all on the owner period you are responsible.


Prayers for the family [sad2]