Live, Laugh, Go Crazy

Every woman is entitled to have at least one meltdown a month...or maybe a week depending on you're mental and emotional ability

Friday, April 8, 2011

Punish the Deed, Not the Breed

My family and I recently adopted a Rottweiler mix and the reaction from some friends and family was, "Are you guys crazy. Those dogs are so dangerous!"

This is just one of many breeds that has been pinpointed for scrutinizing. The Rottweiler, among Pit bulls and others are a particular breed that is manipulated to become aggressive and dangerous, therefore singled out as being evil. If any dog is mistreated, chained up, not spayed or neutered, or not socialized properly they are at risk for being dangerous.

The Rottweiler is listed as the ninth smartest dog in the world. They are incredibly loyal and loving. Maggie, our Rottie, is only eight weeks old and already housebroken!

Not everybody is a responsible pet owner, and owning certain dog breeds requires the proper knowledge, time, and ability to socialize and train your pet. Not doing so results in an unbalanced, dangerous animal.

It isn't fair to blame a particular breed in general. The situation needs to be broken down to a case by case basis. What were the circumstances that these particular dogs attacked?

In a recent case last February, a Rottweiler attacked a five year old boy after the dog was left in the care of a drug addict and the parents of the little boy said, " I blame the owner more than the animal."

This particular Rottweiler obviously wasn't socialized properly and was running around a community garden scared and without supervision. Not having responsible owners resulted in a very unbalanced animal. The dog was destroyed after the attack, which is also unfair.

The drug addict that was supposed to be responsible for the dog was offered rehabilitation, and the dog was killed.

If a child isn't raised in a safe consistent environment, and that child goes to school in a bad mood, causing them to attack, or get into a fight with another student causing that child to need hospitalization and stitches, do we put the child that started the fight to sleep, deeming them "unbalanced and out of control?"

Dogs deserve rehabilitation too. They don't choose their owners or how they are raised. A child bites someone and we say, "oh, they don't know any better, it's just a phase."
A puppy, or dog bites someone, and we say, "oh my god, that dog is bad, just put him down."

How can we expect a dog to know better if they were never trained to know better?

Owning any dog breed is a risk, and there are never any guarantees, but taking every precaution and doing everything you can as a dog owner is the key to a happy balanced pet.Research a particular breed before commiting to ownership and make sure you know how to train your pet.

Most importantly, time for your pet in important too. Adopting a dog, then letting it roam around your yard by itself all day, or chaining it up isn't being a good pet owner.

Socialize your pet by bringing it with you on long walks, soccer games, dog parks, or out to lunch. Especially Rottweilers, who tend to be cautious of strangers. Know your breed before you buy. Keep and open mind, don't judge.

Check out this link! http://www.librarydogs.com/Missouri_Hero-Halo-Megan.html
http://www.librarydogs.com/

4 comments:

  1. Nice try but I'm still not sold. :) You know I'm a huge animal lover, obsessed even, but the fact is they are unpredictable and you can't compare them to children. Certain breeds have certain tendencies that you can't train out of them. Just like breeds with tendencies to hip dysplasia. It's a nature/nurture thing. I totally agree, know your breed before you buy and the evidence is stacked against that particular breed. I'm not saying it's the wrong breed for everyone I just think it will do better in certain environments than others. My 2 cents and you told me to give them. Love ya!

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  2. They are a very protective breed, and because of that, if not socialized properly, and trained, the aggression comes as a result of poor socialization and bad training habits.
    People are very unpredictable, often basing most decisions on emotions and feelings. Puppies are like children, new to the world, unaware of how to behave...they need to be shown how to act in certain situations. Children and puppies who aren't trained or taught rules, will grow up and go AWOL.

    Certain types of people are geared towards these breeds because of their strength and intelligence, using them in an inappropriate way. Dog fighting,aggressivly protective and what not. This is what gives them a bad rep, causing people to think these tendencies are hard wired into the breed itself.

    Hip dysplasia is genetic, personality is environmental. :)
    Thanks for your input!! love ya!

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