PetSmart takes heat for excluding pit bulls from doggie day care

Newsday's pet columnist and blogger Denise Flaim writes in a recent post that the pet supplies retailer PetSmart has been the target of online complaints about “breedist” requirements at its doggie day-care facilities.

Its PetsHotel and Dog Day Camp programs do not welcome any dogs with a “bully breed” classification, which it defines as “American Pit Bull Terriers, Miniature Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Bull Dogs, Bull Terriers or mixed breeds that have the appearance or characteristics of one of these breeds.” It also retains the right to reject individual dogs of any breed.

“I will no longer patronize them in any way -- and have written them to tell them so,” wrote one irate cross-poster. “On the Web site, there is a ‘contact us’ capability to send an e-mail. I thought a good name for them would be PetStupid, and told them that was what I would call them from now on ... ” Animal House

The criticism of PetSmart is another installment in the ongoing debate about much-maligned pit bulls, which have experienced high kill rates at local animal shelters and have faced municipal bans, mostly because of their tough reputations as fighters.

--Tony Barboza

Photo: Anne Cusack/Los Angeles Times

Comments

[squarf]

Pit bulls should be smoothly, quickly, and efficiently destroyed as a breed. They are not pets; they are psychotic killers. Kill the killers before they can inflict harm. Thankyouverymuch.

[ItsTheOwners]

Unfortunately, it's the owners.

So many pitbull owners have "issues" that they try to deal with by having a "bad" (dangerous) dog that they train/abuse to visciousness that it is too big a liability risk for PSmart to take pits in, even if they are sweet-tempered.

Legally, you can discriminate against dogs but not owners, though, in this case, it would make much more sense to do so.

[NoMoreViciousPitBulls]

These unpredictably vicious dogs have already been banned in England, Netherlands, France, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and parts of Canada. They are also banned in 14 cities and counties in the US, with many more bans pending. They should be banned throughout the US. Dogs that have been bred to fight and kill for hundreds of years have no place among people as "pets." I have personally witnessed unprovoked attacks by these dogs on people who were merely passing by. Adios, pit bulls. If you feel inadequate, go buy a jacked-up pickup truck.

[dave]

I'm surprised the Times would post such an ignorant comment by Squarf. My "killer" pit bull adopted from the Carson pound licks me to death every day, along with every child and dog she meets.

[Mark]

i agree with Persmarts policy of excluding these types of dogs.

[Lee]

I have had the same pit bull for almost 8 years now, she is not a killer, she is not vicious, and she is just a fun loving, ball chasing “lap-dog” (If you can have a 60lb lap-dog).
I live in a nice apartment building, and I have had to deal with the ignorance of land-lords who choose just to limit their liability. It has caused me to have to move, obtain letters from my vet, letters from animal trainers, obtain personal liability insurance, and to court apartment managers like some would court a fiancé.
Our daily trips to the doggy park are the highlight of her life. Where Ginger is known by name, and where she walks from person to person, begging for an ear rub. It can be un-nerving for some people, to see all teeth and tongue with a tail going 90 miles per hour, begging for an ear –rub, but once people get over their fears, fed by the media, they love her.
In the almost 8 years I have had the dog, the only time she has ever become what most people categorize as a pit bull was when someone tried to break in my door, in the middle of the night. Needless to say, I do not know if it was the pit bull, in attack mode, or the sight of my 9mm that made him run away, but I do know that I feel safer living in Los Angeles with her sleeping in the bed next to me.
I do know that there are pit-bulls who need to be euthanized; however, I know from experience that it is not the breed, but the inbreeding and how the dogs are raised. If you raise a poodle the way some people raise pits’ you will have an attack powder puff. If you raise a pit with love and attention, you will have a friend who will love you for life.

This said, I will now boycott Petsmart. I will also e-mail and write their corporate office concerning this, as I will not do business with a company that claims it does it for the animals, who chooses to classify a whole breed as animals who are killers.

[Comeonnow]

Pit Bulls are not psychotic, that is just ignorant. There are tens if not hundreds of thousands of pitbulls living happily across the country in family homes and doing just fine. The problem is those people who train some poor dogs to be aggressive AND owners who are so negligent that they let what can be a powerful breed run wild. You can say the same for Rotties, Dobermans etc.

Some pit bull lines have been bred to be animal aggressive. So I don't fault petsmart here for their policy. They have the liability in the end and they know their employees.

But all the hysteria over one specific breed just misses the point. There are LOTS of powerful breeds that can be trained to fight. If you destroyed every pitbull on earth tomorrow I can promise you that by may the cruel people who fight dogs would have picked a new breed to fight with.

[Gwen Lebec]

This is complicated. PetSmart can upset those who think all dogs are alike, or prepare to be sued and attacked when a bully-type dog hurts or kills another dog at the facility. If they took bully dogs, I would not let any of my dogs stay there. It's taking a bet that the dog's owners, who you do not know and will not likely meet, are among the smaller percentage of knowledgeable, responsible bully owners. They can be great dogs with the right genetics and the right owners. But way too many people that own them don't understand that they are a 'special responsibility' dog. One of my dogs is a bully mix, and I would never trust her in a confined space with strange dogs, even though I have never had problems. It's my job to make sure everyone, including her, is safe. PetSmart is doing the right thing.

[jamilyn]

I own two pit bulls, they are the most loving, caring dogs I have ever owned.
And it is true that its all about the owner and how they treat their animals.
I have had them for 9 years and never, have they ever attacked anyone or anything and my friends even let their little ones around them.
So please don't discriminate against all pit bulls.

[Paul]

You naive people, all of your opinions are a reaction to what you see on TV and hear on the news. I have been a proud owner of Pit Bulls for 20 years and NOT ONE of my dogs have EVER been aggressive. It is ignorant to say that the breed should be destroyed that is like saying ignorant people should be destroyed because they are too lazy to find out all the facts before they offer an opinion.

ANY dog and be taught to be aggressive. My rat terrier is more aggressive to people that any Pit Bull I have owned. He was severely abused as a puppy and was a stray I adopted him knowing he had these issues. He has bitten me several times out of fear from past trauma but over time he is getting better. He is 17 pounds and not threatening but I have to be careful with him because of his temperament to lash out if scared.

Pit Bulls by nature of protective of their owners more than any other breed. My Bully is a 70 pound lapdog and will piddle on the floor so excited to see new people. She wants nothing more then to give kisses and have her belly rubbed like any other dog but since her breed has a bad rep due to IGNORANT humans lets just get rid of the whole breed. Very intelligent? very well thought out?....no very narrow minded...Yes.

If one was to use that analogy than mankind should be eliminated because as a species we are the most aggressive and destructive of all species on this planet. My Pit Bull is a better friend, dog and companion than ANY person I have known. I'll take my pit bull over any person any day.

I wish you naive people would do a little research and educate yourself a little before you say ridiculous statements. Go find a breeder of these animals go see them, go see how loving and friendly they are go educate yourself. Bad people make bad dogs regardless of breed.

[Mary Ellen]

Unfortunately, the pit breed has to suffer the consequences of the IRRESPONSIBLE HUMAN who is responsible for negative perceptions of all these so-called "restricted" breeds.
When human take responsibility and change how these dogs are bred and rasied, then the negativity will disappear- but only when that happens.

[steve]

An unfortunate decision that PetSmart will, hopefully, reconsider. My wife and I will be rethinking our patronage of their stores and will definitely be informing our dog owning friends of this new policy.

[PitLover]

I own 2 APBT(American Pit Bull Terriers) and they are the best dogs I have EVER owned, one of them is a registered therapy dog and teh other one won a obiedence compition and is excelling in weight pulling! They are great dogs, they get along with every other dog they meet, they love kids and other people and I have never seen them show a tooth! The APBT is just a dog, yet its like no other! If only PetSmart knew what wonderful breed they are missing out on!

[C Murillo]

If you are so stupid to believe its the breed than you don't deserve to own a dog. If the dogs were raised in loving homes instead of being bullied or trained into attack dogs they wouldn't be in the news. It used to be Doberman Pinschers, then German shepherds and then Rottweilers, and now anyhting with bull in it.

[Dawna]

I completely agree and will shop at PetSmart now exclusively. Our labrador was viciously attacked by a pit bull mix at a local LA daycare facility that she has visited for the last year. It was a bad attack and she almost lost her leg. Luckily, she didn't, but I will never visit that facility again. Its unfortunate but this country needs to follow Europe with the banning of those breeds and we should force them to all be spayed/neutered at birth.

[AES]

Actually, I've never met a dangerous pit bill. The most dangerous dog I ever met was a springer spaniel. I agree with ItsTheOwners, but not exclusively with respect to pit bulls--people can make vicious dogs out of ANY breed.

I think we need to talk about what PetSmart's decision is really reflecting: a culture that had hisorically loved to base its discrimatory decisions on physical appearance and ill-informed hype. It's too bad that this tendency applies to multiple species. Would you argue that because the majority of violent offenders are male, we should put all men in prison preemptively?

[Bald Bull]

Its the owners of the Pitbull that makes them over agressive for fighting yes they are agressive by nature but so are german shepards so dont blame the dog blame the owners of the dog who train them to kill

[tina cooper]

I have a pitbull... he is the sweetest boy in the world.. before saying how horrible a breed is.. do some research.. and get to know them.. not through books but in person..

[Mea]

Those that would selectively destroy a species are narrow minded and deserve nothing but our pity for their lack of understanding of the world. Any dog can bite, any dog can attack. Rather than exercising breed discrimination, the public would be better served with education. Start treating animals with humanity and start punishing the owners who allow their pets to roam out of control. Bull breeds offer kindness, love and loyalty not often found in other breeds.

[Rick]

It's the owners? What planet are you people on? Do you watch the news? Story after story about irresponsible parents who buy a pit bull puppy, raise the dog with nothing but kindness, then watch as the dog attacks and kills their 2 or 3 year old kid. It's happened over and over. And the idiot owners always say, wow, he never did that before. He was never mean before. Right. Not until he chews your kid up. It's the breed, stupid! If you get one of these vicious dogs, you're getting a four legged time bomb.

[TheOwners]

It's definitely the owners fault. Dogs aren't born killers. It's the humans they live with that make them so. We're the ones who screw them up and now we just want to flush them away and forget about them.

Shame on PetSmart.

[Chris Camp]

As a new pit bull owner I can say that I've encountered quite a bit of prejudice against these guys. The reality, at least with respect to our dog Lola, couldn't be further from popular perception. She's a super-angelic canine - snuggly, nice to other dogs, accepted at snooty day care after lengthy interview process, very loving with other people and gets along well with children.

She was a rescue and I couldn't ask for a better dog.

One of the problems here is that there's not much empirical evidence backing up the idea that these dogs are innately, genetically more dangerous than any other breed. I'm of the mind that the problems are much more owner-related than breed related. If problems are owner based, punishments and frustrations should be focused there as well - not on the dogs.

The comments by squarf are symbolic of the disrespect for the breed - arguing for a sort of canine genocide? Um... that seems a bit extreme doesn't it. Even if you're just making a point I think the extremity really drives home the emotion/fear-driven foundation of squarf's argument. Our inability to reduce this sort of unsupported bias (towards animals as well as other humans) is a continuing human flaw.

[Let's be rational]

Pit Bulls may not necessarily be "human-aggressive" (unless trained to be), but they are definitely aggressive against other dogs, as most terrier breeds are. Their strength and fighting ability make them uniquely qualified to rip a smaller dog to shreds. They may lovingly wag their tail for their owner and tenderly lick a child, but I wouldn't want to be anywhere near a pit bull whose territory is threatened. That's why Bassett Hounds aren't the preferred breed of Gang members.

[BittenTwice]

It's not just the owners, it's the breed. You never hear about a toddler who wandered into a neighbor's yard and was torn to pieces by two Golden Retrievers. Very few other breeds are capable of that kind of damage. Pitbulls were designed and bred to kill for sport, nothing more. If you own one, you (a) are asking for trouble, because that dog is going to hurt somebody someday, and (b) better keep it away from me, my dogs, and my kids; because we aren't going to be the victims of your misguided, misinformed and idiotic dog selection process.

[Dee]

Pit bulls are NOT bad, they are just very willing to please their owners. Also, they are not ticking time bombs. All too often people take in a pit bull and do not realize that importance of training and exercise. These are high energy dogs, they need to be excersided everyday, and not just a short walk.

Training is also very important. A dog with this type of strenth and energy needs to be under control at all times.

It is not the dogs, it is the owners. Of course there are going to be some dogs that are too aggessive and they need to be euthanized. But, for the most part they are great dogs, and would do anything for thier owners.

[James Langer]

It saddens me to hear such ill informed whining from people. It is in the owner's actions reflected how a bully breed turns out. Reference Cesar Millan and how he specifically finds "bad" breeds and turns them into the most tame and wonderful dogs. (He keeps pits and rottie's as his personal pets) Yes, certain people give them a bad name, but remember; animals are animals and the only reason their behaviors go astray is because of human interruption to their natural instincts. I have two bully's in my life and they are sweet hearts and more obedient than most labs I've interacted with lately. I WILL NEVER GET ANYTHING OTHER THAN A PIT AGAIN.

I'm assuming the people who are crying about bully's are the same people who have NO tolerance for smokers, butt in to the woman disciplining her child in public, or crosses the road when you see a group of teens coming up. If you live your life in fear of everything and shelter your kids from the world, you are in for a pretty terrible life. Go watch FOX news.

[Jimmy]

Too many wannabe-thugs own this breed to make up for their own inadequacies and male insecurity, so I'm not surprised about this ban. Good for PetSmart

[JD B]

It isnt about individual dogs. Some dogs have a predisposition to kill or approach people and other animals in a thereatning manner. It is to a degree an inbred genetic attitude. Do the people who feel they have to own dogs who could rip your face off while you sleep think the general public owes them special doggie days or something?

Get a collie or a lab and get over yourselves. Keep your killer poochies at home and quit bellyaching. No one forced you to buy a toxic pet.

[sfdoglover]

there is always some breed that gets sensationalized in the media as being dangerous - it used to be the doberman. yes, these dogs were trained historically to be fighting dogs, so they have breed characteristics that are line with that. Obviously a dog that was traditionally a lap dog will have less capabilities in those areas. But I have seen goldens as well and chihuahuas put down because they've bitten children or their owners. A well balanced dog, one with proper training, exercise and socialization do not harm people. I adopted a pit bul, who was rescued by a program at the UC Davis vet. school. She was microchipped, neutered and re-socialized with dogs and humans. I never expected to be a pit bull owner and did a lot of research before regarding the breed. I could not be happier, she is such a sweet dog, she plays well with other dogs, kids, squirrels whatever... but most importantly, she's so well-behaved and happy-go-lucky that I really think she helps change people's perceptions about the breed in general. Don't judge a dog purely on looks alone, there are always exceptions and most of the time fear comes from ignorance and misunderstanding. I wish everyone could meet my dog and see just what a great companion pit bulls can be.

[65mph]

You can't require a store to individually evaluate your dogs. A high enough percentage of these dogs is dangerous, and that's just prudent that they're banned from a facility that cannot offer to monitor each dog all the time. It's like driving - the highway patrol is not going to test your driving ability and your car's mechanical condition. If you're over the speed limit you get a ticket. These dogs are over the treshhold of reasonable caution. It doesn't matter if your dog is the sweetest in the world - there are too many incidents with these breeds so they're all banned. It's simply responsible (and smart) of PetSmart to do this. If you want to pay more for individual day care - it's your choice. But for the price you're paying at PetSmart you cannot demand a service that simply costs more.

[Dan Priven]

Pit Bulls cause more problems than other dogs for the same reason that Camaros are in more accidents per mile than Sables - self-selecting owners. It's not the Camaro's fault, and it's not the Pit Bull's fault - but I still don't want my daughter being driven around in a Camaro, and I don't want my kids approaching a Pit Bull in the park.

[Adam]

If the comments to this article prove anything it is that humans have been horrible failures in the breeding of both pit bulls and our own children. First, the amount of sorely uneducated people on the Pit Bull breed that have comments to make like they should all be killed is very sad. When in fact the Pit Bull breed has been demonized by American's who were born and bred to think it's alright to harm or kill animals, or pit them against each other in fights to the death. If we are to destroy a breed I suggest we start with the breed of humans than thinks causing animals pain is a fun thing to do. That said, although I agree with individually destroying troubled animals, I also am fine with destroying troubled humans that kill others... in neither case should we make sweeping generalizations and say all of any one race or breed should be destroyed because of the actions of a few.

[RrL]

Seems reasonable but a bit silly. Probably wiser to assess things on a dog by dog basis. Considering the pure strength of those dog breeds listed I could see how a large retail chain like PetSmart would want to protect themselves in the lawsuit happy America we currently live in, should one those those types of dogs get into it.

Dog owners need to be reasonable. I own a very large and very friendly French Mastiff (think Hooch), however, she was turned away from a smaller dog day care in my neighborhood for similar reasons. Nothing against them but these types of breeds are by nature very tough, very strong and capable of some serious harm and they didn't want to expose themselves to that.

She is great but she is an animal and although I am not afraid of her biting me or people in general she doesn't get along with every dog she comes across and I think PetSmarts realizes that. It is enevitable that dogs are going to get into it at daycare, PetSmart knows that. Iti is a whole different story when a Lab and Beagle get into rather then a Pit and Beagle.

Just because you love your dog doesn't mean every has to. I don't like little tiny dogs too much and would prefer they not come to my dog park because they always instigate fights between other dogs but it's part of living.

Take it easy, find someone who will enjoy taking care of your dog and st

[Chris]

One person wrote: "You never hear about a toddler who wandered into a neighbor's yard and was torn to pieces by two Golden Retrievers."

No, you just hear about the woman who had facial transplant surgery because her labrador ripped it off.

Clearly labradors should also be banned from Petsmart...I mean I don't want to get my face ripped off. And what about rottweilers, and dobermans too, they done some severe damage.

Face it (no pun intended). None of that will work. Get rid off all the pit bulls and inept owners will just switch to Mastiffs, Labs whatever...

Read Malcolm Gladwell's piece from the New Yorker; the data proves it's owners not dogs. This is a case of poor logic and nothing else. Petsmart should ban agressive dogs, and they should not plan on getting my business.

[Daphni]

Please, no more letters from pit bull lovers. The victims should have their say, not the perps who keep these biting machine breeds alive. I'm sure your Pooky is just perfect, like others who have bitten people and shocked their owners who said 'I just can't believe my loving poochy did that'

If you are an experience dog owner you should know you can never trust 100% any dog, that the dog won't get demented and start attacking at some point because of his inner delusions, or that the dog won't get loose, start running with others and be overcome by pack mentality when they see a small child running and attack it with out stopping to think 'what is the responsible thing to do, follow the other loving poochies and have fun or stop and just watch, or tell my owner?'

We don't deserve to have our children and loved ones attacked by these loving kind peeing on the floor sweetie pie timid dogs. We don't need their genes in the gene pools of neighborhood dogs.

[Greg]

This is not fair. As usual, American people cannot take responsibility. It is always someone else's fault. In this case, the Pit Bull or Rotty..

BTW, I am a American and a Vet from the last two wars. But I am no hypocrit.

A dog is a dog. I love animals of all kind. STOP penalizing good people with good pets. It is the owners that make those dogs aggressive and mean. It is the owners responsibility to keep his dog well aclimated to his surroundings.

And it is the parents fault if they let there kids ramble about un chaperoned. No small children should be un-accompanied with animals. Kids are curious. They pull, hit, push, etc... Animals don't like that as well as people don't like that. So don't do it. And the most ridiculous part of this scenario with PetSmart is ... Any owner that would put his or her dog in day care, is not the same caliber of person that would spend time making there dog mean !!!! Think about it !

Before one can by certain breeds, they should be investigated or interviewed. Same for people who want to have kids.

Good day !

[jfx]

Both statments are true:

Most pit bulls and Rottweilers are gentle loving animals and excellent pets.

Most vicious dog attacks are by pit bulls and Rottweillers.

"According to the Clifton study, pit bulls, Rottweilers, Presa Canarios and their mixes are responsible for 74% of attacks that were included in the study."

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/statistics.html

[toby]

Hey Petsmart ANY dog over 40 pounds can be a deadly animal if treated poorly.

It's a shame that we always have to pick on one dog.

Before it was German Shepards, then after the movie Oman, it was Doberman Pinchers and Rottweilers and now it's Pit Bulls.

To think, that 70 years after the world fell in love with Petey, The Little Rascals Pit Bull, and Nipper, the Pit Bull in "His Master's Voice" (You know the RCA Record logo with a Pit looking into a Megaphone)...

That America would once again forget that it's not the nature of the dog but how we humans raised it.

Shame on you Petsmart for propagating misinformation and fear. If you don't know any better...then maybe you should just go out of business.

[KateNonymous]

1) Different types of dogs have been bred to have specific characteristics.

2) Dogs can be trained.

So a responsible, caring owner is likely to have a well-behaved dog, regardless of breed--but part of being responsible is knowing the characteristics of that breed, not ignoring them.

And a person who wants to raise an aggressive dog is going to pick a breed that has more aggressive tendencies.

How is PetSmart to know the difference? I'm not asking this to be flippant. For those of you who have good-natured pit bulls, I can understand why you feel that your pet is being discriminated against. I'm sure you don't want your dogs to have to interact with aggressive animals, either. How should PetSmart protect your dogs from the dogs of owners who want aggressive animals? Is there a screening method you would recommend?

[MG]

What the Experts have to say about Breed Specific Legislation
http://www.animalfarmfoundation.org/topic.php?id=21&topic=17

[MG]

California Stats
http://www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/CaliforniaStats.asp

[quote]Over the past 43 years (1965 - 2007) there have been 59 fatal dog attacks in California, or an average of 1 to 2 dog attack fatalities per year.

At least 14 different breeds/types of dogs have been identified as participating in a fatal attack in California. The breeds include small and medium-sized dog (Pomeranian, Schnauzer) -- up to large and giant breed dogs (Malamute, Presa Canario).

The victims were: 14 adults and 45 children.

In keeping with being the most populous state in the U.S., California is also the state with the most fatal dog attacks.

California also leads the nation in having the largest number of criminal, negligent and abusive owners receiving felony convictions after encouraging or permitting their dogs to exhibit behaviors which resulted in a fatal attack.[/quote]

[quote]Furthermore, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:

In 2005, one hundred and forty (140)* California children died as a result of maltreatment (abuse or neglect).

In ONE YEAR, 2005, more than THREE TIMES as many California children died from maltreatment (abuse or neglect) than the TOTAL from ALL fatal dog attacks in California over the past 43 years.[/quote]

It seems there may be a bigger problem than dogs in California.

[Kim]

It's pretty amazing how much the anti- pit bull crowd is focused on hyped news reports of children torn limb from limb. There have been a handful of such reports. The number one killer of children, as far as my research has taken me, is accidents--most of which I'm betting are caused by people, not dogs.

In other "news:" I have a 100-pound pit bull next to me on my couch right now who's been a far sight kinder to kids than some of the parents I've seen in my neighborhood. I'd love to ban THOSE folks from the local Babies R Us!

[sfdoglover]

my dog goes to daycare once a week- she had to go through three evaluations before they would let her stay and become part of the program: 1) health evaluation 2) One hour behavioral evaluation 3) half day evaluation at the day care. The daycare my dog goes to is more expensive then petsmart i'm sure... but I like the fact that ALL dogs are evaluated the same way. As someone said above, I don't want my dog playing with an aggressive dog and getting hurt either. If there are any 'incidents' or behavior problems along the way, the dog is asked to not come back. The dogs are also designated to three separate play areas based on their size. My dog was the first pit bull admitted to the daycare and has been going for months. San Francisco has a lot of dog daycare facilities, but it still took us quite a while to find a place that would call us back, let alone accept a pit bull.

[tufflove]

Wow. So many false statements (pit bulls that snap? please.. the only fatalies from pit bulls in the last two years have been from intact, breeding cycle dogs and/or chained dogs and some Darwin award winning children...any one who knows dogs would have seen any of those attacks coming) Some people just aren't worth arguing with though.

I will say that I'm the guardian of three gorgeous, rescued pit bulls. They hold Canine Good Citizen Certificates from the AKC and are loved by all of our neighbors and friends. We (the humans) hold advanced degrees from top universities, have great careers, own a home, and are politically active.

One of the best thing about having pit bulls is that they serve as a great filter; people who are scared of them or don't like them are people we don't want around us anyway. So, you losers who hate our dogs? Stay on the other side of the park with your scaredy cat face on. Pit bulls are the most popular breed in the United States. There's more of us than there are of you! And yes, for a long time most pit bull owners were lowlifes who didn't have alot of clout, but that is quickly changing. Proposed pit bull bans are getting shut down all over the place. Hell, even Rachel Ray has pit bulls...doesn't you Fox news, fear-mongering people love her?

[Shwoop]

Luckily for PETM, they won't miss the patronage of the minority of canine owners that own the pit breed. If everyone is so inclined to hang PETM, why don't they also go after insurance companies who for long have not written home policies if you own such breed? IMO, it's a sound business practice that acts to mitigate costly and lengthy litigation coupled with headline noise that is a PR nightmare. You pit owners would do everyone a favor by just sticking together and crying breedism. Enough said.

[MG]

Merritt Clifton Debunked
Part 1
http://lassiegethelp.blogspot.com/2007/08/dangerous-breeds-dog-bite-statistics.html

Merritt Clifton Debunked
Part 2
http://lassiegethelp.blogspot.com/2007/08/pit-bulls-dog-bite-statistics-and.html

Dog Bite Statistics-Science or Junk Science?
http://www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/dogbites1.asp
Merritt Clifton-Junk "Science"
[quote]Mr. Clifton's "study" can be found on a prominent dog-bite attorney website and is being used as "statistical evidence" of breed behaviors by those who seem unable or unwilling to recognize the critical errors in data collection and the damaging and erroneous conclusions drawn from a biased and flawed sample.[/quote]
...
[quote]Clifton then went on to draw sweeping and totally inaccurate conclusions about breed behaviors; presenting his collection of newspaper articles as "evidence" and "predictive" of the nature and behavior of all the other dogs in the U.S.[/quote]

[Sled Dog]

Year after year the news reports on pit bull attacks...and not just those trained to be mean. Good on PetSmart. I'd be fine if the breed was phased out. When I see pit bull owners I always wonder "why would you wan't that kind of dog, knowing it's record?"

[I_Slay_The_Dragon]

Only in California, would "doggie day-care centers" be debated,
ad-nauseum. Meahwhile, one-in-five kids go hungry, drop-out rates
steadily increase, and teen-age STD-cases hit a record high.
Ah, "The Golden State" and its unmistakeable stench: Pretentiousness.

[MG]

[quote]Is there a screening method you would recommend?[/quote]

Dogs range from dog social to dog selective to dog aggressive.
They can be anywhere on that scale.
That applies to all dogs not only the dogs that the public and media are calling "Pit Bulls".
I personally wouldn`t take ANY dog to ANY doggie care centre unless the people running it understood that.
Having owned many dogs of many breeds and types throughout my life including one "Pit Bull" I wouldn`t have put any of them in a daycare with dogs they did not know and with people that think they can make sweeping generalizations about breeds or types of dogs.
BTW the "Pit Bull" was at the extreme end of dog social.
The Cocker Spaniel was at the extreme end of dog aggressive.
The others were about midway on the scale.
The worst case of dog aggressiveness I have seen was a Westie that had to be peeled off a "Pit Bull".
Luckily for the Westie the "Pit Bull" was very dog social and just rolled over to play.
A small dog will lose in a fight with a larger dog.
Dog aggressive small dogs can seriously injure and kill other small dogs.
Know your individual dog`s tolerance level,slow introductions and supervised play.
That applies to all dogs.
I have a Lab that I would not place in a doggie day care or a dog park situation due to the fact that a lot of people do not understand dog tolerance levels and they`re surprised when a fight occurs.
My Lab is dog social after slow introductions.
All dogs can and will fight.Some have short fuses,some have long fuses.
It`s up to owners to control dogs.They don`t control themselves.
If you need to put any pooch in daycare I`d be looking for a small daycare with compatible dogs and experienced people that understand dog tolerance levels.

[GM]

I have a Neapolitan Mastiff. Their background includes thousands of years worth of fighting. They have fought in wars, against lions, and each other. Being a mastiff, my dog is a HUGE. His main job is to guard us and our home from anyone who may want to rob or hurt us. This instinct has been part of the "Neo" and is not something that will simply go away. However, I can train him to be friendly with people and other dogs with some simply steps. Currently, I allow him to wander freely in my front yard because I know he is not going to attack anyone without provocation (i.e. someone breaking in or someone attacking my wife or I).

Similarly, a pit bull is first and foremost a guard dog. Perhaps that anyone or any dog is perceived as a threat. Instead of euthanizing these dogs, the owners of these dogs should be educated and be required to attend classes and obtain a certificate that indicates their dog is both trained and socialized. For the people who are not educated, their dogs should be taken away and given to a person who is willing to go through a process aimed at decreasing any unwarranted attacks. Again, pit bulls are guard dogs and are good at their jobs. People should not be ridiculed for wanting a good guard dog- it does not necessarily mean they are lacking in "other" areas- but instead they should be encouraged and perhaps even forced to educate themselves and train their dogs.