- Challenging for food or water. For example, removing food from a dog, or appearing to intervene between a dog and its food. Even when inadvertent, this may trigger aggressive behavior in some animals.
- Attacking (or perceived attacking) a dog or its companions, or encroaching on its territory. Dogs are pack hunters; they often have an instinct to defend themselves and those they consider their "pack" (which could be other dogs, humans, or even other animals), and to defend their territory, which may include areas they consider "theirs" or belonging to their family. Any dog is unpredictable in the presence of an intruder, especially but not always a burglar.
- Sickness or injury. A sick or injured dog, or an older animal, like people, may become "cranky" or over-reactive, and may develop a tendency to become "snappish".
- Failure to recognize insecurity or fear. Like humans, dogs that feel insecure may ultimately turn and defend themselves against perceived threat. It is common for people to not recognize signs of fear or insecurity, and to approach, triggering a defensive reaction.
- Intervention when dogs fight. When dogs fight, a human stepping in between, or seeking to restrain one of them without due care, may be badly bitten as well.
- Threatening body language. Especially including direct staring (an act of aggression/perceived as threatening by dogs) or a person not known to the dog moving their face very close to the animal's own snout (may be perceived as a challenge, threatening, or imposing). Staring is more dangerous when on the same visual level as the dog (such as small children), or when the human is unfamiliar.
- Prey behaviors. Dogs retain many of the predatory instincts of wolves, including the chasing of prey. Running away from a dog or behaving in a manner suggesting weakness may trigger predatory behaviors such as chasing or excited attack. For example, the instinct to jerk one's hands upwards away from an inquisitive dog may elicit a strong impulse to grab and hold.
- Ignoring warning signs. Trained attack dogs may act against an intruder without warning.
Notice how I underlined and bolded that last section of the sentence. Just because you know the property line, doesn't mean your dog does and because dogs are territorial, this can serve as a problem. Sometimes even a fence will not convince a dog what is and isn't its territory and when it sees, hears, or smells another dog near, it's going to protect its land. That is why it is important to have proper fencing for your yard. The problem is, some dogs are so determined to protect their territory, they will dig under the fence to get to another dog. So if your neighbor has any children, cats, or other dogs, you MUST watch yours when you let it out because even if you go to do something for a minute, that can be the minute your dog decides it doesn't want someone else in its territory.
When I say proper fence, I don't mean electric fence either. An electric fence is even worse because it sets no boundaries to a dogs territory and whatever it sees is probably considered their's in a dogs mind. It also allows other animals, people, and dogs to enter it which can prove to be deadly in some cases. When you hear of an attack where the dog was on a tether or chain, it is both the owner's and the "victim's" fault. I've talked about tethering before and how it is inhumane and I will somewhat touch on it again. When an animal is tethered to something, it is forced to urinate, sleep, eat, and drink all in the same area. Because of that, it becomes territorial. That is the only area the dog knows and when someone enters it, the dog's instinct kicks in and it defends it's home. So, say a child accidentally kicks a ball into an area where a dog is tethered to a tree. Because the child entered the dog's territory, it is considered a threat to the dog. Another problem with tethering is that it is easy for a dog to escape. When the dog is tied outside its whole life because of its owner, it may associate humans as bad or evil. Teenagers that may have taunted the dog safely away from it may get "payback" from the dog.
Also, when you go on a walk with your dog, don't expect your flimsy collar and leash to hold your dog back when it sees something it wants. I recommend a harness for certain dogs that pull because it doesn't choke the dog and doesn't allow the dog to slip its head out.
"But what about when a Pit Bull attacks another dog. That means that the Pit Bull is naturally aggressive" No. Even with other dogs, there is always a reason for an attack. Usually with other dogs, there are also warnings too that people fail to notice. Some triggers for aggression are:
- Fear and self-defense. Like humans, dogs react when fearful, and may feel driven to attack out of self-defense, even when not in fact being "attacked". Speed of movement, noises, objects or specific gestures such as raising an arm or standing up may elicit a reaction. Many rescued dogs have been abused, and in some dogs, specific fears of men, women, skin coloring, and other features that recall past abusers, are not uncommon. A dog that feels cornered or without recourse may attack the human who is threatening or attacking it. A dog may also perceive a hand reached out toward its head as an attempt to gain control of the dog's neck via the collar, which if done to a wary dog by a stranger can easily provoke a bite.
- Territoriality and possessions. Aggressive possessiveness is considered a very important type of aggression to test for, since it is most associated with bites, especially bites to children.
- Predatory instincts. In isolation, predatory behaviors are rarely the cause of an attack on a human. Predatory aggression is more commonly involved as a contributing factor for example in attacks by multiple dogs; a "pack kill instinct" may arise if multiple dogs are involved in an attack.
- Pain or sickness. See above. As with fear, pain can incite a dog to attack. The canonical example of sickness-induced attack is the virulent behavior caused by rabies.
- Redirected aggression. A dog that is already excited/aroused
by an aggressive instinct from one source, may use an available target
to release its aggression, if the "target" does something to evoke this
response from the dog (e.g. shouting & staring at the dog for
barking at the mailman).
Why do you think kids always seem to be targets of an attack? That's not what comes to my mind when I hear of an incident. What comes to my mind is "Where were the parents of the children in the first place, especially if they knew a dog was around?". The reason children always seem to be "victims" is because they are not yet mature enough to know how to act around a Pit Bull, or any dog. Children often engage in behavior that will trigger a dog attack. For example, approaching a chained dog, trying to hug or kiss an unfamiliar animal, trying to pull its tail or engaging in other behavior that the dog may feel is threatening. Behavior such as this on the part of children may invoke either an aggressive territorial response from the dog or an aggressive defensive behavior from the dog. I know that my Chihuahua does not like her tail or ears touched at all. Even if you accidentally touch them, she will try to sink her little teeth right into your hand. The difference is that she has much smaller teeth than a dog such as a German Shepherd or Pit Bull( it still hurts when she bites though!). That is why it is CRUCIAL to ALWAYS watch children around an animal. Your dog can be the nicest dog in the world but if it has pain anywhere or a child pulls something uncomfortable, the animal can easily inflict pain to the child. The age group with the second-highest amount of fatalities due to a dog attack are 2-year-old children. Over 88% of these fatalities occurred when the 2-year-old child was left unsupervised with a dog or the child wandered off to the location of the dog.
Why is it always Pit Bulls that attack? That's simple, it's not. The media portrays it as if it is only Pit Bulls though. In fact, in the 20th century, American Pit Bull Terriers were considered the number one family dog. Helen Keller -a blind and deaf woman- owned a Pit Bull and was not harmed by it. Tell me, if a blind AND deaf person can handle a Pit Bull appropriately, why can't other people? The Pit Bull represented the U.S in World War 1 and now it represents aggression and fear. Back before Fox News and dog fighting, the American Pit Bull Terrier was considered a loyal, loving, and courageous, well respected breed of dog. Did you know Petey from The Little Rascals was a Pit Bull. Bet you didn't know that Theodore Roosevelt and Thomas Edison owned a Pit Bull either. I am sure you consider Thomas Edison an idiot now because he owned a "viscous dog". Some more famous people that have owned a Pit Bull include:
President Woodrow Wilson, John Steinbeck, General George Patton, Fred Astaire, Humphrey Bogart, Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft, Mary Tyler Moore, Michael J. Fox, Madonna, Brad Pitt, Bernadette Peters, Alicia Silverstone, Linda Blair, This American Life host Ira Glass, Usher, Pink, Eliza Dushku, Anthony Robbins, Ashley Olsen, Orlando Bloom, Serena Williams, and Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen are just a few other celebrities.
When a Pit Bull does a heroic deed, it is never recognized. But when a Pit Bull attacks it is all over the news. Have you ever heard of Sgt. Stubby? Probably not. Stubby was the most decorated dog of World War I. He was adopted by Private J. Robert Conroy and became the mascot of the 102nd Infantry, Yankee Division. He learned a lot about military life including bugle calls and how to execute a salute with his paw. He was smuggled to France when his owner shipped out and allowed to stay when the commanding officer saw him salute.
After surviving exposure to gas, Stubby became invaluable as he had learned to recognize the scent and alert the human soldiers to its presence. He also could recognize English and was able to locate wounded soldiers and alert paramedics. He also was credited with capturing a German spy, who he tripped and attacked until American soldiers took him prisoner.
Stubby was wounded by a grenade and was sent to a Red Cross hospital, where upon his recovery, he became a therapy dog, comforting other soldiers. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant and received many medals, and became the first dog to be received by a sitting president, Woodrow Wilson. Amazing right?
So, why don't we improve the Pit Bull's rap instead of tearing it down. Have you heard of the whole gun legislation brewing about. At first, I thought we should ban guns, but then I thought of Pit Bulls. It's not the gun, it's the person. With the right, responsible people, guns are okay. But as soon as a gun is placed in the wrong hands, they can ruin all guns for everyone. Same with Pit Bulls. They NEED to be socialized and trained! They NEED to be watched! They NEED to be loved, not lawn-ornaments. Why is that too hard to comprehend? You need to know about the breed before you judge it. People are ignorant. Is it okay for me to hate all Muslims because of 9/11? No. Just because a few bad apples did something, doesn't mean that ALL of the apples are bad. People will put myths out there to cause fear and you believe them. That is ignorant. Some myths about Pit Bulls include:
