Sandy.klo

Redog- I think maybe you misconstrued what I was saying. My dog is leash reactive, so I'm definitely not saying she would never start a fight. She totally would in certain circumstances.
Actually multiple times dogs have started fights with her; I work at a doggy daycare, dogs scuffle. She holds her own okay in general, but hasn't ever tried to inflict damage, I step in, never has there been a mark on either dog.
The only thing I've been trying to say is that every dog is different, and what's important is knowing your dog's limitations and risk factors, but still always proceeding with caution and maintaining control of the environment. Although I'm always cautious and watch closely, I don't really worry about her starting fights and whatnot at work, because she doesn't, and when other dogs start things, she will let me finish them. I am also very aware of her limitations, and will not allow her to ever interact with other dogs on leash, because she has displayed some aggression in the past.

All I'm saying is that every dog is different, and Breed really doesn't seem to provide clear cut information to determine how interactions will go.

Sandy.klo

Kenai- I do agree that pure-bred APBTs from a good bloodline are more likely to be dog-aggressive, I've never disagreed with that. We might differ on how much more likely, but that's absolutely not my point.
I'm sure Bindi is an amazing loving wonderful dog! Just because a dog is animal-aggressive, that means nothing about who they are inside.
Also I know your not pro BSL. I'm saying I'm not comfortable with ANYONE saying that pits are unpredictable and may snap.
I believe you saying that one may never know when or if a given Pit will wake up one day and try to kill other dogs is a very dangerous thing to say. Many say the same thing about pits with humans, children, etc.
All I'm saying is that every dog is much more than the sum of their breeding. It factors in, but I've met many human-aggressive Labs, many dog-friendly pits, and even some Border Collies who don't herd. You can't simply say that a certain tried and tested dog is likely to all of a sudden 'snap' and behave exactly the opposite based on Breed alone.
At my work, we treat every knew or young dog like they may BECOME violent, but then we get to know that Dog, as an adult, and they show us who they are. That is the way things should be done with any dog, regardless of breed, should you want to have your dog in a given environment.

redog

Sandy, I agree to an extent! But not everyone who owns this breed or a mix of such is neither smart enough or capable of or even being aware of these tendencies, therefore it IS irresponsible to suggest these dogs go to a dog park. The fact is, never trust them not to fight. The first rule in being a responsible pit bull dog owner��

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Dave

Sandy.klo

That's definitely something I can agree with! I'm not advocating for dogs parks for any breed. I have mixed feelings, but I don't think they're the safest places, and even if you did you know your own dog's limitations, the dog park isn't really an environment you can control.
I was just concerned the wording made it seem that no Pit could be a trustworthy player in any multidog environment, like a training class, or a Doggy daycare, or even a responsible multidog play date, because of the dog's Breed, and was concerned that might send the wrong message.

bernabe

There's this video that I saw on social media the other day a pit fighting a husky. Don't know the story behind that but it makes our pits image worse. We can't control what others will say to us we just need to prove that our pits are fine and there's nothing to be afraid or be concerned of.

Lokipup

I take Loki to the dog park all the time, but this thread is definitely making sense and I think I am changing my mind on a dog park. I am glad I took him because he has definitely learned to socialize with other dogs in the 3 months that we've had him, he has learned some ropes and enjoyed playing with other pups. He is 6mo old and is getting older, and I am considering not taking him there anymore. He now has a little scar on his eyebrow and on his ear from other dogs snapping at him when he just wanted to play. Also, it terrifies me to think that there always that one time when something goes wrong on either part- and I will lose him. Even if it is .0005%, it's a percent big enough for me.
Our dog park is very pit friendly and there are a lot of pits and mixes there, mostly rescues, so nobody is shocked when I bring my Loki there (he's a pit mix, btw). He sometimes plays a little rough, but so do other breeds and the owners are never upset or anything. However, we did some scary experiences there that are making me change my mind.

Beagles...they are DA as HECK and pretty much every one of them at the park has tried to attack my pup aggressively. I worry that he will get hurt and that their dog will get hurt as well. But guess whose fault it will be? Ofcourse, not a cute dough eyed beagle! Loki just avoids them for now and when there is one, he just runs away and plays with other dogs, but they are persistent and you ever know when he will get tired of running away.

BAD owners...Everyone was enjoying the dog park when two enormous pits barge in- cropped ears, huge muscles, no collar or tags or anything. The owners just slowly walk in behind them. One pit a size of a tank runs up to Loki playing with his friend and starts attacking the friend on the legs. Not play fighting, full on attack. My SO picked up Loki in his arms and pushed the pit away from the doggie he was attacking which was screaming and on his back. Loki was freaked out and the pit was jumping up on my SO, trying to get to my pup. He was actually nipping at my SO's shirt sleeve. My SO is a 6'1 muscular guy and the pit was reaching his shoulder level. People were scared, and the owner goes "don't be kicking my dog". WTF???? My SO doesn't like confrontation and just ignored, while others were like "he wasn't, he was saving those dogs from yours." They huffed and puffed and walked away, with the huge pits running behind them. I am fairly certain they were not registered, didn't have shots, park registration, a single day of training-nothing. It was horrifying. There are rules and regulations posted right there, but some people are rude inconsiderate assholes that won't even read them.

People with kids. I was at the park and Loki was running around with his friends when the latch door opens and in walks a family of 5, with 2 little kids. All the dogs run up to the door and Loki, being a pup, starts jumping on a kid and trying to lick. He is a sweetest dog, but he is a puppy and unfortunately I can't socialize him with kids since I don't have any and don't really have any friends near me who have them (nor do I want to take him to a playground to learn, lol). I am training him off jumping right now, so he doesn't do it with adults that much anymore, but kids are a different game. The kid was crying, Loki was all hyped up cause he wanted to play. Then there was a guy sitting on a bench who looked at me like I just murdered his first born. He was staring at me with a ANGRY off look before and was getting NASTY when Loki came up, being a friendly ham as he is, trying to get pets. Even though his medium sized dog was going for my hands earlier and it made me very uncomfortable. I said "he just wanted to play" and he was like "well, they don't know that." Well, then maybe they shouldn't be taking little kids into a dog park filled with mostly large energetic dogs who could even knock your kid to the ground while being rambunctious! Not to mention that they just opened the DARN gate without any warning, with all the dogs standing next to it. Ofcourse they had a little fluffy dog that Loki wanted to play with, but I took him away.

At any rate, I am definitely now very wary of dog parks and while I'm glad that Loki got to experience it, I would rather not take him there when he is older. Maybe even now.

raemei

I have taken both my dogs to dog parks many times, though the parks we go to usually don't have many dogs in them. They don't really like dog parks, because they only really want to play with each other. Where we go often though is the dog beach, where they occasionally find a great dog or dogs to join in on a game of fetch. Most often though, we play our own game of fetch and if other dogs are getting in our space we "be boring" and sit until they lose interest, then we move down the beach and resume our game of fetch.

I definitely agree that taking pit type breeds to dog parks who can get in trouble is terrible for the breed, but when you have a genuinely good dog who avoids conflict I think that going to parks can be okay. I am always watching my dogs and every other dog around my dogs, and can read body language very well. Little dogs often go after my AmStaff on walks, but generally he's safe at dog parks since those aggressive little guys are not usually there!

Little dogs are the ones I look out for with my staffy, and big dogs are the ones I have to look out for with my golden mix. He's been chased down by German Shepherds that were leashed and got away. My staffy was standing next to me and my other dog, crying, as I held the shepherds at bay and managed to pick up my golden mix (50 pounds), then the three of us went to the car which happened to be close by. I put my golden mix on the roof as the shepherds' owner caught up to grab them. My staffy was darted after once by one of the German Shepherds, but ran away just enough so that the shepherd turned back to my other dog.

My point is that no matter where you go, even if other dogs are leashed, you may not be safe. The dog parks here that I've experienced have very good reputations though and I've only seen a couple minor "fights" between dogs that were friends prior to the park. None of these were pit types, and the dogs were always fine within less than a minute after establishing their dominance. I've found that the dogs people bring to the parks I go to are not DA. I do my best to avoid conflicts with my dogs, but I also want them to enjoy life to its fullest. And the beach is their favorite place in the world!