Originally posted by Jailhack
It is all in the way a dog is managed by his owner. If an a$$hole drug dealer owns a Rottweiler or a Pit Bull and mistreats the dog and fights the dog, then obviously, the dog wil not behave the way it would if it is trained properly. Is that the dog's fault? Blame the owner, not the dog.
In the 1980s and into the early 1990s, whenever a Pitbull would bite someone in Maryland and then the local TV Shows would have these stupid "Townhall Meetings" or whatever, there was always some paranoid and very vocal minority controlling the debate. Same with Guns, same with knives...same with everything in this Country and in many other countries as well.
Jailhack is correct when he says it is sh*tbag "owners," if you wish to call some of these people that, that will turn a dog into what Massad Ayoob referred to as, "The equivalent of a five year old human running around with a handgun." That is in a slightly different context, Ayoob was stressing the point that the most intelligent of dogs are possibly as intelligent as a five year old human child. But that is also an entirely different form of intelligence too and that must never be forgotten.
I grew up around the basic, aforementioned, "sh*tbag owners" in the form of Bikers and wannabe badasses that wanted badassed dogs. I've seen abused dogs. No, they were not all abused, some of them just treated in a manner that made them extremely hostile towards anyone but the Owner of the dog. There are several different forms of abuse and a book could be written on the myths associated with "fighting dogs" or "attack dogs" and that whole subculture that has developed around them in this country alone.
Dog Lovers will not like what I am going to say and Dog Haters have already dismissed what I have said in agreement with Jailhack. Jailhack might not like what I have to say next either...I agree and then disagree on one point.
Dogs are no different than human beings in one aspect, which Jailhack hit upon but I am going to say something further...
Yes, the vast majority of dogs that attack and kill people were abused, tormented or something went wrong somewhere with the way they were handled, raised and or "trained." Using the word "trained" very lightly...
What Jailhack might disagree with is this, I don't know.
Dogs are also like people in that, some of them are just bad eggs. And that about sums it up. They are NOT perfect, cuddly creatures and some of them are downright nasty without human intervention to make them so. I've seen it personally. Sometimes inbreeding can cause this, which is ALSO a HUMAN INTERVENTION PROBLEM but you can get a dog that you think is good, treat it well and it is still basically a waste of life. It's useless because for whatever reason, they are just screwed up. Just like some people do not have to be abused but grow up to simply defy the norm and attack people. They are rare, but they do exist. In what percentage? I have no idea but a guess would be way less than 5%. It might be lower than 1%, given the fact that the Media is responsible for creating hysterias about fatal dog attacks. Surely no more than 5% though.
There are Doberman Lovers that will tell you that it is a myth that a Doberman will "bite the hand that feeds it," meaning, turn on the Owner. That is not exactly a myth. A Doberman, from personal experience, is a strong-headed dog, the descriptions used above are popular with Doberman Haters, but they do in fact feel the need to test their Master once in a while.
I've owned a couple of them in my day. They are good dogs, but they do tend to be high strung and because of nasty inbreeding over the years, some tend to be even more so, this makes for a fear biter as well. If you had to take one breed of "Working Dog" that would have the greatest possibility of being a fear biter, it would be a Doberman. They are not high strung because they are "neurotic" as some people like to say, but they do have a nervous energy about them and alot of them do not get the proper exercise and attention they really require. That is why I don't own one now, or a Rottie. I don't have the time to spend with them, added to the fact my Wife and Son are allergic to dogs.
The Rottie is a MUCH MORE stable dog than a Doberman, a much better choice. But you still have to get a good bloodline and you have to treat them right. Simple as that. Is it possible you might get one of the "bad eggs" I spoke of? Of course...that is a possibility with any dog.
They are
animals, if we leave behind the cuddly and loving adoration for the dog and the cat, they are still animals. People begin to attach human sentiments to a dog, that's the wrong thing to do. They are
animals and you must never forget that you own an
animal and it is NOT your
child. There is absolutely no scientific basis for what some people's emotions allow them to believe.
That having been said, it is perfectly OK to have one as a companion and to love it! They can be great friends and indeed, they can save your life. But never forget there is a dividing line there as well. They are still a dog. There is no benevolence natural to the dog. A dog is a dog, you can get a good one, but if you don't, you might be in for some trouble.
I find debates on large dogs to be a bag of poop. My Mother had a Cocker Spaniel that was a fear biter that sent me to the hospital for three sutures in my face. Any animal can injure and even a Cocker Spaniel could kill a small child
if they wanted to. Think about that for a moment...they still have teeth, teeth can still hit the throat and vital structures of the neck, it is a no-brainer.
In fact, a year or so ago, a person in some State, I cannot remember which, was killed by a Raccoon or Opossum, how is that for rare? They have teeth and they can be vicious, just like a Poodle or any other animal with teeth. They can kill you. It is just easier for the larger dogs to do so for whatever reason.
I have also watched children walking home from school and poking sticks through chain link fences on an almost daily basis, tormenting good dogs...if the dog that is so tormented should turn on a child in the future, what then? The dog should be put down, simple as that. But what about the tormentors? When they are caught they should be punished because in a very real way, they are, at times, directly responsible for that future killing of innocent people.
Pit Bulls are another breed that takes a lot of heat. Sure, they can be nasty, but I think we already established any dog can be. I like dogs...they have a rightful place in the order of things.
Dismount soapbox, you may now flame at will.
). Don't know if that's normal or not. 
That little dog is hilarious!
