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Post by Milkbonez on Sept 1, 2009 22:24:34 GMT -5
I have heard it all before. When someone makes a bad comment about a Pit Bull, everyone jumps on him and says, "It's only because they use them for fighting. Any breed can be used for fighting."
Well, it just occurred to me that, what about instincts that are different to each breed? Huskies were bred to pull heavy loads, Australian shepherds were bred to round up sheep and cattle, and Norwegian Elkhounds were bred to distract moose so that the hunter could shoot it. Several of the breeds commonly used for dog fighting were bred for just that &mdash fighting other dogs in the pit.
Most of the bully-like terriers were descendants of the Old English Bulldog. These dogs were bred to grab bulls by the nose for human entertainment. When bullbaiting was outlawed, the men decided to pit the dogs against each other. These fights were often boring, because once a Bulldog had grabbed on, they gripped at each other. There was no leaping and biting and tearing to be seen, like in the modern dog fights. The men decided to cross these dogs with terriers so that there would be some action in the pit, instead of two bulldogs simply gripping each other.
Post away. This is just a spur-of-the-moment thing, I guess.
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Post by Collie on Sept 3, 2009 4:24:36 GMT -5
A dog can be bred to be ideal for something. But a Husky isn't born knowing how to pull a sled, a Collie isn't born knowing how to herd, and and an English Springer Spaniel isn't born knowing how to flush fowl. They have to be taught, have to know the right way to get the job done.
Certainly, a dog can be bred to be aggressive. Pit Bulls specifically, were bred to be dog-aggressive, not human aggressive. They were even used as nanny-dogs in the early 1900's.
But genes are not what shapes the greater part of a dog's personality. The majority of the personality is shaped by how a dog was raised--breed for the ideal qualities for fighting, teach a dog to fight, ingrain aggression towards other dogs into their minds, and they will fight. But even those dogs are not beyond hope--as I have brought up many times, Vick's dogs--two of which went on to become therapy dogs--prove that every day.
Any dog could attack. But only certain dogs can make as effective a fighter a Pit Bull. Doesn't make the breed any less of a companion than my German Shepherd or Papillon mix.
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Post by Milkbonez on Sept 12, 2009 0:47:20 GMT -5
While that is true, how do you explain Border collies and Australian shepherds? The times I've seen them at the dog park, they run around groups of talking humans as though trying to herd them. This is their powerful instinct to herd. Although, I do see what you mean; just because they have the instinct to herd doesn't mean that they'll automatically herd it right into the corral, or know what the shepherd is trying to tell them.
But when instincts come into play, what would happen when you put a Pit Bull up against a Border collie in the fighting ring, both having had the same training and experiences up till then? That is, what will they act like? Would one of them be a better fighter because of instincts? I understand that any dog can fight and attack; but despite the insignificant part of temperament that is inherited, it is still something.
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Post by Collie on Sept 14, 2009 4:57:28 GMT -5
While that is true, how do you explain Border collies and Australian shepherds? The times I've seen them at the dog park, they run around groups of talking humans as though trying to herd them. This is their powerful instinct to herd. Although, I do see what you mean; just because they have the instinct to herd doesn't mean that they'll automatically herd it right into the corral, or know what the shepherd is trying to tell them. The breeders who bred the instinct into the dog used one the dog already had--herding is part of hunting in wolves. They selectively bred dogs with a high prey drive. But when instincts come into play, what would happen when you put a Pit Bull up against a Border collie in the fighting ring, both having had the same training and experiences up till then? That is, what will they act like? Would one of them be a better fighter because of instincts? I understand that any dog can fight and attack; but despite the insignificant part of temperament that is inherited, it is still something. The Pit Bull would be a better fighter because he's ideal to the task. Though, the Border Collie may come in close or perhaps even equal if the trainer uses his herding instinct to channel it. Speculation, of course. But American Pit Bull Terriers were originally bred to herd as well. "" ~Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_bull#American_Pit_Bull_TerrierThe resource that the Wiki listed: www.ukcdogs.com/WebSite.nsf/Breeds/AmericanPitBullTerrierRevisedNovember12008When a dog is trained to fight, I imagine that the dog's loyalty to it's master and not just aggression had a part in it. Something? Yes, it's something. But that something doesn't always, maybe even doesn't usually, make the dog beyond hope of rehabilitation. |
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