I have owned Rottweilers since 1995 and I think my experience with them has given me some personal knowledge of their true nature. My second and third Rottweilers were both adults who had been passed through three homes before I got them. While they were last owned by my daughter, they were technically rescued dogs, but they adapted to their new home and quickly filled it with love simply because that is how we treated them. If you treat any dog with love and respect and affection they will return that love to you and everyone else ten fold. On the other hand Rottweilers and all dogs for that matter, have something in common with children. If you abuse them and mistreat them they will respond by becoming mean and vicious. Show me a vicious dog, of any breed, and I will show you an owner who doesn't give his dog any love. Some people, I like to refer to them as the "Joe six-pack" people, enjoy having the meanest, most vicious dog in the neighborhood - just for the bragging rights. These people are as dangerous to society as the dogs they own.
I have written a Guest Editorial on this subject and post it below:
A long time friend who has been a breeder of Rottweilers and also a judge for the American Rottweiler Club once commented that every animal with teeth will bite. And don't think for a moment that only big dogs can cause harm. Dog bites are as much the result of human negligence and stupidity as bad attitude on the part of the dog. Any dog chained or tied up to a tree will have a bad attitude and responsible adults shouldn't let children play in the yard with this dog. Likewise, don't leave infants unattended around dogs.
Take a look at the following news stories about what some small dogs have done and think about how these tragedies could have been prevented if some adult has used a little common sense.
I'm sure a lot of people got a big laugh when they read the story from California a few years ago about the pack of angry Chihuahuas that attacked a police officer. The fact is that many small dogs have a vicious tendency to bite, a lot more than big dogs.
Most lawmakers who write ordinances against specific breeds of dogs do so as a result of some emotional incident that has raised the ire of the public. They write these laws without bothering to do any research into animal behavior or temperament. There is a source for such scientific research that has been around for many years, it is the American Temperament Test Society and they have compiled a list of over 30,000 tests done over every breed of dog since 1977. You should note what these temperament tests consist of and how they are conducted and then read the percentage ratings of some of the common dogs that get a lot of media coverage. How interesting is it that the popular Jack Russell Terrier has less temperament than the Rottweiler. Anyone interested in reading these results can look them up on the ATTS web site. Click here: http://www.atts.org/statistics.html
I have a simple solution that would eliminate many dog bite incidents. Following a dog bit incident, check the owner of the dog and the way the dog has been treated and then prosecute the dog owner for making his dog vicious. It won't be long before Joe six-pack gets the message that he'll go to jail if he raises a vicious dog. If your town or city doesn't have such a crime on the books then push your lawmakers into making it a crime for mistreating an animal and causing it to become vicious. Dogs don't become vicious all by themselves anymore than Guns Kill People. And leave those nice families alone who have provided their pets with all the love and kindness they require.
If you want some proof about the true nature of dogs read about the famous case of NFL player Michael Vick. Michael Vick was convicted of conducting dog fights and went to jail, but his dogs, at least the one's who were rescued alive were rehabilitated by a group that simply cared and showed them some love and then these so-called vicious Pit Bulls were adopted by ordinary families. Read the story here: http://www.badrap.org/rescue/vick/
I personally do not beleive that BSL has anything to do with our family pets but rather Useless and Failing Politicos,who need to create laws to justify being able to keep their paws in the cookie jars.In our wonderful free world where Criminals are so well protected these laws to which I refer are made against the law-abiding and their family pets.
ReplyDeleteWill give a few examples,Scotland release a Terrorist who blew-up an aeroplane killing 270 people,sending him home to Libya to a heroes welcome but at the same time hold a little dog that has done nothing wrong but the way he looks and refuse to release him.Northern Ireland release 2 murderers that killed 1 policeman and badly wounded another in cold blood and for no reason,Gerry Adams claimed they showed remorse,but at the same time they are holding a little staffy that also has done nothing wrong barring the way he looks.Harper of Canada has closed his parliament as he is thinking up an excuse why it is alright to continually bludgeon in heads of baby seals.The wonderful new kid on the block Obama who at one stage I rated is very busy signing bills ridding USA of wild horses.
I am not really sure who the Terrorists are anymore,but I do not think it is such a bad idea to move to Iran where I will be safe from murderers(they get executed)and my family pets will be safe from Hitler's Law BSL.
smarock10@yahoo.com
I'm going to guess you live on the other side of the big pond based on your U.K., Scottish and Canadian sentiments, but I happen to agree with you. BSL is a bad idea that doesn't work anywhere. Over here in America our politicians react to every crisis by finding an urgent need for a new law - to the extent that one political observer said, "A crisis is a terrible thing to waste." While the subject of your last comment about terrorists has no place on this blog you may be interested in checking out my political blog http://oldironsides-thesilentmajority.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteHi Nelson,
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more with the good points you brought up on the matter of breed restriction legislation. It is a shame that responsible owners have to suffer with where they are allowed to raise their dogs because of the animal abusers who raise vicious dogs. Owners who abuse their dogs should face much harsher penalties than they currently do. Dogs are gentle and loving creatures, and only become mean as a result of bad owners treating them badly. As you mentioned, most dogs can be rehabilitated even after they come from the worst situations. Mike Vick's dogs are great examples. Keep up the good work! I loved your article and enjoy your blog so much. My hello's go out to your family and rottweilers.