I haven't posted about Pit Bulls lately, but that doesn't mean I have forgot about them. It's the complete opposite actually. I have gone absolutely CRAZY over them. Anywhere I go I will point out a Pit Bull. I constantly talk about them to people that probably could care less. When I hear someone talking negatively about them, I explain to that person why they aren't bad. Not to mention, I have gone into a new craze over the "Dog Whisperer" aka, Cesar Millan. I am like a 12 year old girl to Justin Bieber when it comes to Cesar, using my dogs as test dummies to his methods.
A Pit Bull CAN be a wonderful dog with the right owner, training, and cooperation. You may here that alot, but Cesar's dogs go to show you it. He not only has many calm and submissive Pitties, but he has also rehabilitated many red zone cases involving them. If you have not yet watched "Dog Whisperer", a red zone case is the worst of the worst. Where a dog is so fearful or aggressive that it has attempted to or has injured another animal or a human. The way he trained his now deceased dog, Daddy, and his current favorite dog,Junior, inspires me. Despite being around an aggressive or unstable dog, both Pit Bulls were calm and submissive. In one episode, Daddy was even attacked by a red-zone Pit Bull and he handled the situation tremendously.
I would LOVE to have a Pit Bull to train it and show people that they can be kind, but at this point I can say my "pack" is not ready for one. Currently, I own two Chihuahuas; Bindy and Baby. We have owned Baby since she was a puppy, she was socialized with many dogs and lived in a house with three others at one point. She is now nine years old and well behaved. I bring her on many walks with the APL where she encounters many dogs and children and does phenomenal. Bindy on the other hand did not grow up with us. She lived in a bad house and was never socialized with children, dogs, cats, e.t.c. The difference between her and an aggressive Pit Bull is nothing beside the fact that she does less damage. That doesn't mean she's the better dog. She's just as aggressive. She has even attacked a four year old at one point. She is the reason I would not get another Pit Bull, at least one that is not a puppy. She will not hesitate to attack a dog when she sees it. She goes crazy over any cat and pretty much every other thing that moves. My worry is that she will attack a dog to the point where it attacks back. I am working on her though, hopefully she will shape up soon.
I read an article on Cesar Millan's website where a woman wrote to him with a concern that her new Pit Bull puppy may injure her two labs, here is Cesar's response:
How do we keep a powerful breed
humble, surrendering, submissive, and peaceful? We never reward
excitement. We don't favor any one dog over another. Once you have a pack, you can't favor any particular dog. You need to favor the calm-submissive state of mind. That's what keeps a pack healthy.
When you're feeding three dogs, always choose the dog that is the
most calm and submissive to receive the food first. If that happens to
be the pit bull, then feed him first. But if he's too exited, he should
eat last. Wait until he's achieved the state of mind that you want. That
way, he understand that it's the calm-submissive state that makes him
part of the group.
If you have a high energy pit bull and lower energy Labradors, then make sure that you challenge the pit bulls more than the other dogs. Always keep the powerful breed very, very tired. And when youre taking them on a walk
together, who gets the leash first? The most calm and submissive. When
you open the door, who goes out first? Obviously, the human and then
the most calm and submissive. If all three of them are in a
calm-submissive state, which is ideal, then you can take everyone at the
same time!
If you have problems walking all three dogs together, then take them
one at a time. Master the walk that way. Then add a second dog to the
walk. Then once you have that down, bring the third along. Your goal is
to make them a calm-submissive unit, working together.
Stay calm and assertive,
Cesar Millan
I believe if I got a Pit Bull puppy, I could apply the same method, also using a slow introduction like we used when we introduced Bindy to Baby, but I dare not to take a chance. I would also want to earn a fair amount of money to purchase the things I need for a new dog (Crate, toys, food, harness, leash, e.t.c) as well as training. So it may be an even longer time before I get a dog than I hoped. For now I will just work on my Chihuahua and learn more about training.
Despite the fact I can not own one, I will attend everything involving my beloved Pit Bulls. My local APL is having a "Pittie Party" to raise awareness about Pit Bulls and they will have games, food, t-shirts, and best of all PIT BULLS! I can not wait for it. I am so excited! I remember when I was with my church and I got knocked on my butt by one, where she pinned me down and kissed me to death. I am so thankful that the APL is doing this. Along with injured dogs and elderly dogs, Pit Bulls are among the list of "least adoptable dogs".
