Pit Bull Dog picture from Wikimedia Commons - Public Domain.
The Pit Bull dog breed suffers from a bad reputation. Some of this reputation was earned and much was not earned. In fact, it is easier to find a Pit Bull hero than it is to find a Pit Bull villain. In both war and peace, Pit Bull hero dogs have steadfastly gone about the dog duty of minding over humans and making sure we don’t get into too much trouble.
From Petside;
Maryland has recently deemed that pit bulls are inherently dangerous dogs. Yet, for those who own them, these dogs are far from dangerous; rather, they are intensely loyal and loving creatures. Proof of this can be found in the form of a Massachusetts woman who is alive today solely because of her pit bull.
According to a report by KSDK, a woman was rescued from certain death after falling unconscious on a set of railroad tracks thanks to her pit bull, who sacrificed her body to save her owner. With a freight train bearing down on her owner, the pit bull, an eight-year-old named Lilly, either tried to push or pull her out of the train’s path. With time running out, the dog then moved between the train and her owner to spare her owner the brunt of the train hit. She wound up bearing the entirety of the hit from the oncoming train, and suffered severe trauma, including a sliced foot and a fractured pelvis along with other injuries.
At one time the American Staffordshire Bull Terrier (the Pit Bulls foundation dog breed) was the favored dog in this country. The breed was America’s babysitter and parents routinely trusted their children to the care of the family dog. Even Petey who was the dog made famous by ‘The Little Rascals’ films was one of this breed.
These animals were quite simply the pet to have back in the day and families loved their dogs as part of their families just as they do today. This leads me to question the people who decide an entire breed of dogs is to be outlawed because the actions of a few over-bred and badly abused dogs made bloody headlines.
I am not saying the dogs who badly injure or kill people shouldn’t be judged. I am saying each dog has to be looked at as the individual they are and judged accordingly. Because a dog looks like another breed is insufficient reason to remove them from their homes and deprive them of the love of their families.
Let’s put an end to breed discrimination and get rid of archaic breed specific laws. Let’s allow more Pit Bull hero dogs to live and be happy in our homes and neighborhoods.
