Neighbors - Do you have control of your dogs? Time for a posse...

[JohnBuffaloMN]

The reality is that ANY dog that has a master should be secured at all times. The added reality is people even on this forum own dogs and let them roam without supervision.

You are SO righteous, and Amazingly accurate on your judgements about others. Wow.

 

[JohnBuffaloMN]

I'm curious Sigarms - do you ever leave your house, or do you sit behind your keyboard sniping trying to feel better about yourself?

 

[Dftodd]

I have heard this same story many, many times, people thinking their pit would be okay in social situations. I would never own a pit. Too bad, since the dog used to be called the nanny dog until wackos bred them to be fighting dogs. I hope the heeler survived and that the pit was put down. It could have been one of the grandkids....

Unfortunately when I said the pit bull tore up the healer, it was a literal statement. Happened right in front of the grand kiddos. Thankfully she didn't go after the boys, and the oldest had enough thought to lock the pit into the dog run before trying to tend to the healer. Any further discussion on her injuries isn't fit for a family friendly site.

My son and daughter in laws friend picked up the healer, cleaned up the mess while his fiance tended to the boys. Before he left, he also collected the pit. Took them both down to his property, and put the pit bull down as well.

My wife and daughter in law both wanted to find a new home for the pit. I had to pull over the truck when my wife mentioned it to me and ask her if she bumped her head. Pointed out to my wife that what happened to the healer wasn't the pit establishing dominance in the pack. It was the pit doing it because it enjoyed it. And that if their friend didn't do what he did the night before, I would have left work the next morning, run over to there house and done the same thing while the kids were at school.

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

I was bragging on my kids pit the other day. But, after last night there is no more bragging. Grandkids were home alone when the pit who is around a year old tore into there 3yo blue healer.

Tore the healer apart in front of the Grandkids.

Daughter in law was at work when the kids called and an hour away. Sons out of town for work for 2 weeks.

Daughter in law called a friend who lived down the road. He went up with his fiance. She consoled the kids, he grabbed both dogs and hauled them off. Wife told me about it this morning when our daughter in law texted her about it. Told my wife, that if he hadn't done what he did last night, I was fixing to leave work and take care of it while the kids were at school.

My heart goes out to you and your family. The poor healer too. What a horrific experience for everyone. Thank God it didn't go for the kids.

 

[Semper Paratus]

20 or so years ago I had a young Brittany and my now 101 then eighty something friend had a young setter *****. We were out walking his 200 acres of mixed pasture wood lot and swamp property and we hear the setter and brit yelping and calling for help. We hollered out and here they came with 5 or 6 uncollared feral dogs chasing them. This bunch of ferals had been around off and on for a couple of years and the rural county animal control folks response was "What do you want me to do about it? When you see them I am likely an hour away. You need to deal with them when the opportunity arises." I dealt with it, that time, by shooting and hitting three of of the dogs through the chest, with a .22 LR Buckmark. One coming in head on,end to end, and the next two through the ribs as they turned and fled. The dogs ran off and my friend, The Colonel, said that was the best outcome you could hope for you hit three hard and they ran off so we don't have to bury them. Some time later I, when I was hunting groundhogs, I saw two of of that same pack and shot one of them through the ribs with a .223. This one I had to bury.
During that time frame animal control in that county and the one just across the river (fordable most of the time most anywhere) started encouraging the elimination of the free ranging dogs. Another mitigating factor is the coyotes have moved back in and the coyotes are real hard on the feral pups as well as step on size domestic dogs. I don't know if there has been a real population decline or that or they are staying way back in the swamps not bothering much. But the bow and black powder deer hunters don't seem to be seeing many.
Feral free ranging dogs are a problem, for children, for large livestock like cattle or horses. They play heck on the fawns and any small to medium size farm critters. Some of these roamers are deer dogs that got lost, probably not that good a dog if the owner's could be bothered to catch them at the end of the season. Others are drop offs from the surrounding urban areas (25 or 30 minutes away) that learn how to hunt and survive. Finally some of them are local dogs that just end up in the free roaming pack. If you have free ranging dogs harassing you, yours or your domestic critters my suggestion is SSS (Shoot shovel and shut up).

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

People don't realize how these violent breeds can *snap* based on the circumstances being slightly different. Until it happens.

I've told this story before, but for anyone who missed it, I think a personal account carries some kind of weight in these discussions.

When I was riding horses, the stable owner had two huge dobermans that wandered freely over the barns and paddocks every day. They were EXTREMELY well cared for and well trained. The owner was an expert horse trainer as well, and all his animals obeyed his every command. He was very good with animals. It was a busy stable and the dogs interacted freely with adults, kids, babies, everybody, on a daily basis. The dogs were super-friendly with everybody and widely beloved; they were "love bugs." This went on for years. One day I arrived a bit early at the stables and no one else was there. I casually walked into the doorway of the large barn. The two dobermans had been lying down at the other end of the aisle; they saw me; and they went for me full-speed, growling, barking and slavering, literally with red eyes, out for blood. The sounds they made I can't forget. They are fast dogs so it took only three seconds for them to be within 10 feet of me. I was literally looking death in the face. The owner had a small house near the barn and apparently had already walked toward the barn when he heard my car, so when he heard the dogs he ran up and yelled their names and they immediately stopped, and were totally submissive. If he hadn't been there, I probably wouldn't be writing this. If they had been pits, I probably wouldn't be writing this, as pits usually won't respond to their owners once they snap. Those dogs knew me, very very well. I was a 16-year-old small girl, no threat. Yet they went from pets to killers in a millisecond. Something "triggered" them. The fact that their owner wasn't right there? The fact that there weren't any other people around? The outline of a person at the barn entrance when they weren't expecting it? Well, gee, I guess I have no wish to own an animal that can go from "love bug" to "killer" in one second based on some unknown, subtle trigger.

In case you're wondering if I mischaracterized this, the barn owner, a classic cowboy tough guy, was visibly shaken. He got rid of the dogs shortly thereafter.

Dobermans are now out of fashion and pits are "in." I will never understand why people keep things like rattlesnakes and attack dogs as pets.

 

[Mace Canute]

The reality is that ANY dog that has a master should be secured at all times. The added reality is people even on this forum own dogs and let them roam without supervision.

This is true. :thumbsup: I'm sure there's some people who don't understand what "secure" actually means or why it's imperative but every responsible dog owner is well aware of it.

 

[Mace Canute]

Dftodd, I'm very, very sorry to hear about the blue healer and I'm so glad it wasn't worse and I hope everyone is able to recover from that terrible experience, especially the children.

 

[Sigarms]

Dobermans are now out of fashion and pits are "in." I will never understand why people keep things like rattlesnakes and attack dogs as pets.

According to most insurance companies, the following are the more common dangerous breeds or blacklisted Breeds...

Pit Bulls & Staffordshire Terriers
Doberman Pinschers
Rottweilers
Chows
Great Danes
Presa Canarios
Akitas
Alaskan Malamutes
German Shepherds
Siberian Huskies
Wolf-hybrids
Or a mix of any of the above

By your own question, the OP shouldn't have the dogs he has, added we have a member on the forum that is very proud of a show dog he owns shouldn't own his.

Just pointing out the irony.

The reality is any dog can snap, but needless to say, due to a dogs strength and size, some or way more dangerous than others.

I'm old enough that I do remember that before dobermans, it was the German Shepherd, and then one time it was the rottie who seemed to be America's "most vicious" dog. Still remember a rottie that I lived with that was the worlds biggest baby but you'd never know it looking at her.

 

[Dftodd]

According to most insurance companies, the following are the more common dangerous breeds or blacklisted Breeds...

Pit Bulls & Staffordshire Terriers
Doberman Pinschers
Rottweilers
Chows
Great Danes
Presa Canarios
Akitas
Alaskan Malamutes
German Shepherds
Siberian Huskies
Wolf-hybrids
Or a mix of any of the above

By your own question, the OP shouldn't have the dogs he has, added we have a member on the forum that is very proud of a show dog he owns shouldn't own his.

Just pointing out the irony.

The reality is any dog can snap, but needless to say, due to a dogs strength and size, some or way more dangerous than others.

I'm old enough that I do remember that before dobermans, it was the German Shepherd, and then one time it was the rottie who seemed to be America's "most vicious" dog. Still remember a rottie that I lived with that was the worlds biggest baby but you'd never know it looking at her.

Sounds like some of the same experiences as us. Neighbor across the field behind us had a Siberian husky that ran the roads. She was the biggest, sweetest dog I've ever met. Never bothered us when she came to visit. I looked toward to it.

She would bark at about 200 yards away to get your attention. Once you acknowledged her, she would coming waddling up as fast as she could. Plop down on her butt and lean against you for head scratches, then it progressed to belly rubs. Then she would start "talking". it was a combination of wimper, howl, and yip. I would ask her how she was doing? Did the neighbors give you any good treats? Then progress to " go ahead, tell me all about it!!!!!" To "I know, your just so abused". Each time I asked something she would talk back in return. My wife used to watch us go back and forth for a half hour that way just laughing. I was really heart broken when she got cancer and the neighbor had to have her put down.