6 reasons that the pit bull you’re afraid of isn’t the dog that’s going to bite you
Everybody’s seen it — the vaguely pit bull-like mutt strutting down the street sporting a heavy choke chain, or even more terrifyingly, a frayed rope with the other end attached to an equally alarming-looking human being. You know a fierce dog when you see one, right?
Not so fast, Cesar Millan. It turns out that you are more likely to be wrong than right when you try to eyeball a dog to assess its friendliness, and here’s why:
- Even dog experts can’t tell the breed of a dog just by looking at it. So the killer pit you cross the street to avoid may not be a pit at all. Not convinced? Take this little quiz, published by the National Canine Research Council:
Of course, if even the experts down at the Kennel Club can’t tell which dog is a pit, what chance do you, the mere dog-fearing Joe Blow, have? Slim to none.
2. Most pit bulls and their owners are responsible, non-biting individuals. So although it’s true that when data on dog bites are analyzed, the number one breed most likely to mistake your arm or leg for a t-bone steak is the pit bull (see http://www.livescience.com/27145-are-pit-bulls-dangerous.html), to conclude that a pit bull is likely to bite simply because of its breed is like saying that the muralist who lives down the block from you is likely to paint the side of your garage when you’re not looking. Sure, muralists spend more time painting the sides of buildings than most people do, and pit bulls spend more time shredding human flesh than most dogs do. However, most pit bulls, like most muralists, comply with the rules about these things. So the odds are slimmer than you might think that a pit will bite you, or that you’ll stroll out to your garage and find a furtively stroked pod of whales cavorting on its walls.
3. There are other breeds you may be ignoring that would be pleased as punch to tear you limb from limb. These big, lovable canines — along with the vilified pit bull — share the infamous distinction of being in the top ten breeds that not only have an irritating habit of biting people, but display an even more irksome tendency to keep biting until the aforementioned people are dead: huskies, malamutes, St. Bernards, and even Great Danes.
(See http://www.livescience.com/27145-are-pit-bulls-dangerous.html for the full list.) Yet these breeds are fairly exempt from the racial profiling that follows pits into every dog park, apartment complex, and pampered pooch salon in America. Pits were bred to kill; it’s true. But just because pits have “professional killer” on their resume, let’s not underestimate the talents of those breeds who take down humans and other prey purely as a hobby.
4. Dogs are about as easy to read as Tarot cards. Of course, if you’ve never been trained to read Tarot cards, you will be clueless. For example, is your first impression of this card, called the Ten of Swords, positive or negative?
In fact, this Tarot card can have a positive interpretation (e.g., perhaps the spirits are simply reminding you to make an appointment with your acupuncturist), and the happy-go-lucky Labrador can be as vicious as any junkyard dog. (Proof here: http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/wild/videos/cesars-worst-bite/)
The best advice for judging a dog’s friendliness can be lifted straight from the cracked but venerable pages Tarot wisdom. Just substitute the word “dog” for “card,” and all becomes clear:
“Whilst our first reaction might be that we think a card is ‘bad’ because of what we see in the picture, we need to push ourselves to go beyond our first reaction and delve deeper into exploring all sides of that card. What’s more, every card … has light and shade, positive and negative aspects.”
Source: http://www.biddytarot.com/good-cards-bad-cards/
So although the pit bull may look like the death card to an untrained observer, dedicated owners will tell you that the breed has redeeming qualities, too, as described by one pit bull rescue organization:
“Pit bulls are energetic, agile, and strong. They are also very resourceful and driven. Determination is one of their most notable traits: They put their heart and soul into whatever they set out to do, whether it is escaping an inadequately fenced yard to explore the neighborhood, destroying your new couch if left home alone without a proper outlet to combat boredom, or climbing into your lap to shower you with kisses!”
Ready to head out the door for the nearest pit bull rescue shelter? Perfect. Just remember to reinforce your fence and cover your couch in industrial-grade Kevlar first.
5. You might be asking for a bite and not know it. When you see a scary-looking dog, you don’t rush up to offer a chin scratch, unless you happen to be Katy Perry (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CevxZvSJLk8) or a wannabe star in your own version of the next Jackass movie. But you may do some subtle things that bite-prone dogs take to mean, “Please sample a chunk of my delectable thigh.” Here’s a quick list of do’s and don’ts to help you stay out of the ER and the rabies clinic:
DO ask the dog’s owner whether the dog has a taste for human flesh. You might word this in a more innocuous way, such as, “Is your dog friendly with strangers?”
DO look at the dog’s body language. Growling and baring teeth are two ways that dogs say, “Keep coming. Soon I will be tasting your fresh arterial blood.” But there are subtler ways, too. Dogs that are about to bite often close their mouths and become very still just before the strike. To the uninitiated, they may appear to be docile, but they’re actually pausing to say, “Dear Lord, for this meat I am about to receive, may I be truly thankful…” Some dogs will turn away from you in a last-ditch effort to avoid a confrontation. It’s the same body language used in bars. The message is “I’m not interested. Take the hint, and don’t make me drive my point home by doing something rude.”
DON’T roughhouse with dogs you don’t know very well. An innocent game of tug-of-war can be a great way of revving up an already aggression-prone dog’s primal brain to shift into fight or flight mode, and ‘flight’ isn’t on the menu; you are. Games like “pretend to attack me” are in the same category: they’re gladiator contests where the winner is the one who doesn’t get an arm bitten off.
DON’T pat a dog on the top of its head. Who likes that? Do you? And among dogs, this is akin to saying, “I’m your Daddy now.” Pretty forward for someone you just met, wouldn’t you say? The same goes for touching anywhere on the top of the dog’s body. Butt-smelling is also not recommended, even if your own dog can get away with it. Instead, offer a lightly curled fist a few inches in front of the dog’s face as a way of saying “How do you do? I’m a harmless person who had chips and salsa for lunch.” Dogs dig that, and the fist helps to ensure that if Fido isn’t in a friendly mood, you’re more likely to lose the skin from a knuckle, and not an entire finger. Visit dog food advisor to get free advice about dog food.
6. You may not have the opportunity to be bitten because the breed is now banned by your HOA, city, ashram, or dog park. It’s sad but true that pits are being denied access to more and more places these days. Widespread legislation in the U.S., Canada, and Australia means that along with considering home prices, schools, shopping, and noise pollution, newcomers to a neighborhood will have to note whether their beloved canine companion is already on the black list. Advocating against this breed-profiling approach, the ASPCA and the American Kennel Club have both spoken out for breed-neutral laws, and some municipalities are working with dangerous dogs on an incident-by-incident basis.
The bottom line? Some kids act up. Some muralists paint gang symbols on the public library. Some pit bulls bite people. But unbridled fear leads to unfair restrictions, and the tendency to punish first and ask questions later is scarier than even the baddest-ass pit bull could ever hope to be.
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