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AIBU?

To want to tell others to do their research before judging!

391 replies

Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 10:51

I get stopped every day by other dog walkers.i get rude comments about my parenting because of my choice. I get shocked faces and utter disbelief when asked do I have a pet!
I have a pit bull!
He was not my choice of breed and I didn't even want a bloody dog!
But.... a family member was treating him very badly he was under weight riddled in fleas being hit and attacked by other dogs in the house being given just left over food from whatever takeaway they had that night I observed this for a few months until I was invited to a barbecue five years ago in 30degree heatwave I could hear this dog crying in a room upstairs. I went up to see the dog who was in a boiling room with NO water!
I lost it! And took the dog home that moment to mine !
Iv now had him 6 years he's now a confident gorgeous family pet and we all adore him and he's amazing with my children he sleeps with my 10 year old every night as he hates being alone (naughty I know) and even lives peacefully with two cats!
He's not got a aggressive bone in his stocky body
But nearly every day people stop me and demand I put THAT dog on a lead ( in a huge field) or how could you own such a monster!. Or omg how could you allow such a dog around your children!
I'm so sick of this it makes me so upset Because he's so lovely he's and been given a second chance to be a happy pouch.
I feel like I have to explain his story constantly AIBU to think that people should just mind their own bloody business or do some research on the breed!

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Floggingmolly · 31/07/2017 12:59

Op has had him for six years, Team.

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TeamCersei · 31/07/2017 13:00

He looks very young in the photos.
Have you thought about dog training classes? He might be young enough for it to work.
Would a Pit Bull be accepted onto one of those classes? Anyone know?

You also say it's the first time you've ever owned a dog.
Which is a bit worrying.
Even a seasoned dog owner would have to be really switched on and clued up about dogs before taking on a pit bull.
Never mind a person who's never owned a dog before.
You sound like a lovely caring person OP, but your naivety surrounding the whole business is slightly worrying.

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ExConstance · 31/07/2017 13:01

You did a kind thing to rescue him, keeping him on a lead will keep him safe. I have always walked my Staffies on extending leads as I know if they ever got into a scrap ( and my old Collie cross fought every dog she met and lost) the staffie would always get the blame. Now your dog is 10 he won't miss charging about having fun in quite the same way as if he was 2. Good luck with him, sometimes feel there is not much appreciation for those of us who rehome the "less attractive" breeds.

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TeamCersei · 31/07/2017 13:01

Oh, You've had him six years.
Not so young then.

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Magpiemagpie · 31/07/2017 13:05

Being polite isn't always guaranteed to get
Sometimes a few swear words are appropriate to get the point across

It will take one incident of your dog scaring someone or someone feeling scared by him to have the dog warden & the police on your back
He won't actaully have to attack or even bite anyone . Just for that person to have felt scared of your dog while in a public place

You've been extremely lucky up to now that no one had reported you for not having him on a lead or that their hasn't been an incident with another dog . That's really all it takes .

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amprev · 31/07/2017 13:09

I love dogs, no matter their breed. I own a whippet and have 2 children. When we got him from a rescue shelter the owner was desperate for me to take one of the many staffies she had. Although I could see they were lovely dogs, my fear with the bull breeds is the potential for damage they could do if they were to snap. Apparently, the dog most likely to bite is a chiauaua (can't spell!) but the damage they do is minimal. I think the bull breeds are less likely to bite than say a Jack Russell, but the damage they would be capable of due to their strength frightens me. I think bad dog owners contribute to their bad reputation but in essence I have never met a bull breed with a bad temperament and I can see why people love them so much.

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Magpiemagpie · 31/07/2017 13:10

If you mean me my post where I wrote put him on a fucking lead
That's not me being aggressive that's me being nice and polite 😄

You did a really good thing by taking the dog on
I wouls hate for you to lose him because of a stupid mistake or not thinking that the law doesn't apply to you

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tintrighttintfair · 31/07/2017 13:13

Dogs are wonderful, they usually get on very well with humans, but they are not human and we should not judge them so. I have had several through the years, done training and obedience classes with them and shown some, and my advice would be not to take any risks with anyone vulnerable. That means leaving not them alone or unsupervised with the dog. If you can't manage family life around that then you may have to think again about whether having one is right for you at the moment.

All it takes is for one split second of instinct, which is born in them, to kick in and there is potential for disaster. It may never happen, God hope it doesn't, but the risk is there, I'm sorry to say. Public perception usually acknowledges that, which explains the comments you get. Don't make your well-behaved dog a target, keep him on lead.

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:14

Points taken he will be on the long leash now I'm sure il still get looked at in disgust and called names nothing will change I suppose. He will be leashed muzzled and walked at night this still wouldn't be good enough to most but he's my dog and I love him no not inexperienced like anyone who owns their first dog it's all about learning iv had him six years now had great vet who worked with me and him also a lot of research done and I wanted classes but was refused due to him being the breed unfortunately but I have done well with him he was a very shy timid dog who's come such a long way he was never walked before I took him so he's done so well over the years apart from rain he don't like rain it's hard to get him out at these times and heights I have to pick him up to walk across raided path ways or bridges and he's a heavy load !!

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simon50 · 31/07/2017 13:15

The problem is these dogs have locking jaws.
In Feb this year 3 of us spent around 5 mins trying to get a Pit Bull type dog off another dog. It was a bitch so we could not grab it by the balls, the owner was useless, kept screaming "she never done this before" in the end I jammed a stick in its jaw and it released. It then tried to bite me, I was lucky it didn't lock onto my hand but I still have a nasty scar) it caused permanent nerve damage to the other dogs face and mouth.
I drove the injured dog and owner to the local vet and still can't get the blood stains out of my cars carpet !

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QuestionableMouse · 31/07/2017 13:16

Pitbills/staffes do not have a different jaw to other breeds ffs.

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Godstopper · 31/07/2017 13:18

It might be worth seeing if you can hire a field for an hour or so now and then to avoid some of the ridiculous aggravation from uninformed people.

I have a Stafford but haven't experienced the reactions you have. I think this is because she's so small. We've had an issue recently though when trying to book a campsite. A stupidly large percentage ban Staff's (along with German Shepherd's, Rottweiler's etc). Because obviously, my dog who has never put a paw wrong in four years is going to savage a child. Meanwhile, my Border Terrier who can be aggressive to strange dogs is welcome everywhere, and when she kicks off people often laugh and say it's "terrier fiestiness." If Matilda did the same, I'm fairly sure the reaction would be very different.

Photo of 'dangerous dog' that's banned from many U.K campsites attached.

To want to tell others to do their research before judging!

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Fluffypinkpyjamas · 31/07/2017 13:19

He is gorgeous OP. Tell them to mind their own business. If that doesn't work a sharp fuck off should do. Any dog can bite, some can do more damage than others. People believe all sorts, like this myth about locking jaws. Some people are just dumb. Morris

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FlyingElbows · 31/07/2017 13:19

Put your damn dog on a lead. You and everyone else who lets their bloody dog roam free in public. If I had my way it'd be a legal requirement for all dogs in public. I've owned dogs all my life and it absolutely infuriates me how entitled some owners are. I've never met a dog with impeccable recall which wasn't a working dog and the vast majority of pet dogs have woeful recall skills (including one of my own who is a four legged bullet and gives not a single shit about recall!). Nobody wants your arsehole with teeth all over them, no matter how well intentioned he is. It is just rude to let your dog, anyone's dog, run all over people and other dogs in public. I really wish we had designated fenced public areas for exercising dogs off lead.

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Godstopper · 31/07/2017 13:19

Refused from classes? That's a shame. We go to obedience and she's doing really well. She's also done the Good Citizen Dog scheme. I wonder if it's due to the 'pit' component.

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:20

They don't have locking jaw they have very muscular jawlines not locking I had to have a lesson in how to handle him if the worst was to happen and I think all owners should be taught this to help. We had a Doberman growing up s collie clamped onto her belly ripping it open and spilling her insides into the grass she SURVIVED the owner was served and the dog destroyed as it was the exscuse of she's never done that before!
Any dog can be nasty

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Fluffypinkpyjamas · 31/07/2017 13:21

God you have a very lovely Dog!

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SoupDragon · 31/07/2017 13:22

Can I please point out that my dog is ALWAYS LEASHED

You clearly have no idea what that means. You keep flipping between insisting he is always on the lead and then claiming that actually you sometimes let him off but really he is always on the lead andnever off it. Apart from when he isn't. I wonder if the same vagueness applies to "he's always muzzled", especially as muzzling wasn't mentioned when you listed what you thought the rules were.

I'm not entirely convinced you sound responsible enough to have a dog that needs to be on the IED.

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PoppyBucket · 31/07/2017 13:23

Photo of 'dangerous dog' that's banned from many U.K campsites attached

Thank goodness for that.

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:24

Godstopper she's beautiful:) unfortunately like my boy they are labelled wish someone would label bloody jack Russell lol they are awful to me for some reason never met a friendly one

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Godstopper · 31/07/2017 13:24

Thanks :) Perhaps less lovely when snorting and making constant emissions though!

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:25

Soup dragon re read posts please

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PoppyBucket · 31/07/2017 13:26

We had a Doberman growing up

But I thought you'd never had a dog before.
I really can't keep up here. I'm off.

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:26

Mine had this bad habit of sniffing the cats and them giving him a left hook lol they get on well but it's on the cats terms not his ha ha but he still has not learnt this lol

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Mumzzy88 · 31/07/2017 13:27

Poppy he's my first dog iv had as a child growing up it was my mums dog

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