THE OVER ABUNDANCE OF IGNORANCE IN SOCIETY

[mastiffsj]

I live in a very rural area in TN...we do not have an animal shelter within 20 miles, many people think throwing the dog out in the back yard and giving them food & water is giving them a good life, etc.

I ran into the Parks & Recreation guy over the weekend, he is in charge of all animal related issues. I have worked with him on placing pits and other breeds he gets calls about/has to take, and recently had to go to court in one case of neglect of a Pit Bull here.

My neighbors called him last week to ask how many dogs I am supposed to have, and to tell him that he (my neighbor) is afraid my dogs are going to jump my fence and that he fears for his wife's safety. He went on to say that he THOUGHT he saw one loose in my yard and went inside TO GET HIS GUN!!!!!!!!

This is one time I am thankful that I live in a small town, and that he (the parks & recreation guy) knew who I was, and knows what I do. My neighbor knows I am involved in rescue, he has seen several dogs come and go over the past few years and even told me once before that he admired what I do.

For all he knew, they could have come and taken some of my dogs...I guess that's what he wanted them to do?? I have NEVER caused him any problem, nor have my dogs. My dogs are never outside without me being there, no one has ever jumped the fence and the closest he has seen ANY dog being loose in my yard is being on a tether in the front yard when I am doing something in the front yard b/ c the front area is not fenced.

I don't understand why or how people can do this...to me he TRIED to put my dog's lives in danger when they have dong ABSOLUTELY nothing wrong. Everyone sleeps inside, so there isn't any barking at night, nothing. I just don't get it. He has been trying to sell his house for the past few months and the only thing I can come up with is that he thinks no one is going to buy the house with all these "vicious" dogs next door.

The IGNORANCE in this world never ceases to amaze me. I guess I just needed to get that off my chest. I plan to go back to get a full report of what I can of what was said, and I will get it documented of exactly what was said when so there will be record of it. I am going to also insist the parks & recreation guy come to my house, see my set up, and meet my dogs so there is no question.

Has anyone else dealt with a similar situation and have any ideas or suggestions on how I should approach the situation?

[RealPitBull]

Hey Jessica....sorry you had to deal with all that. I think all APBT owners have had to deal at some point with ignorance and prejudice to varying degrees of severity. This was obviously a pretty severe example considering your dogs were potentially in danger.

I think you have to right idea, getting all the documents you can to keep a paper trail going. The other thing you might do is confront your neighbor in a non-defensive way, and ask if there is anything you can do to make him feel better about the dogs. Also, see if he'd be willing to come meet them and get to know them a bit. You might also want to bring a little something over as a peace offering (maybe a little goodie basket?) with some breed information attached.

The good news seems to be that this guy will be moving. So hopefully he won't continue to be a problem for you. I'd still suggest going over and at the least speaking with him, though. Shouldn't take this lying down (which I know you're not), because he essenntially filed a false report.

[mastiffsj]

Thank you Mary...I've read/heard several accounts of people being targeted for no reason other than others ignorance but I guess I just thought or hoped it wouldn't happen to me.

My dogs are my heart and soul, every dog that is in my care-whether they are my own or my fosters...and this has hit a very deep nerve with me to put it mildly. I have to give it a little more time before approaching him or am I afraid my temper will get the best of me. I did speak to one other neighbor today who told me if she wanted me to speak on my/my dogs behalf, she would be more than happy to do so. She sees the dogs every day, and knows they are not reason for anyone to "fear for their safety."

I think the goodie basket is a great idea, I will start getting thigs together now to help educate or at least hopefully open his eyes.

What gets me the most is before I ever got involved with Pit Bull rescue I had a Neapolitan Mastiff in my care who almost killed me...he (my neighbor) knew about this and knew that I kept my own Neo and English Mastiff after that experience, and he never complained then...is he that ignorant or has been that badly influenced about the breed that he thinks he "fears for his wife's safety" JUST because they are Pits??

Sometimes I think I will never be suprised at the things people will do, and then something like this happens and I am all over again.

Enough of my venting, thanks for taking the time to read and for the suggestions.

[valliesong]

I had to deal with this from my boyfriend's mother early in our relationship. (We have been together six years now.) I used to take Roscoe with me when I would go over to friends' houses, and with her permission, I brought him to spend the night when I was visiting Craig.

To this day, she still claims that Roscoe tried to attack her poodle, even though he was never out of my sight and was either in the basement with us, away from the poodle, or on leash with me attached. She also tried to claim that her borough had rules against pit bulls, but I checked with the police and they did not. This was very hurtful to me and especially Craig.

I am also very careful and responsible with my dogs, and would never allow them to hurt another animal. Roscoe has lived with cats and small dogs (fosters) since then, played with puppies, etc. with no issues. He did not hurt poor little Taffy, who has since passed. In fact, he only sniffed her once and had no other contact.

[Jay]

ive delt with ignorance on many occassions. in addition to loving APBT's i also love pythons, mainly reticulater and burmese pythons (the big ones). unfortunatly ignorance is much like terrorism, it cant be stopped. but what can be done is educating the ignorant folks. for about 10 years ive been on a crusade to educate folks about pythons and it started with my own family and i was successful. people easily beleive what they see or hear on tv...granted pitbull attack clips are obviosuly undeniable but they never show how the animal was raised/trained and often times the owner is simply not capable of maintaining or properly caring for them. i used to tell family and friends not to beleive everything you see on tv while i was in the military and overseas....same goes for pitbulls or any other animal. i often get alot of flack for the pythons because they "escape and eat someones cat" well........if the owner properly stored that python it would have never escaped. in the 10 years that ive been working with these massive pythons ive had one get loose and it was my fault, i carelessly forgot to lock its enclosure. luckily the python was found unharmed and nothing else was unharmed. folks in my neighborhood became uneasy about my APBT...that lasted about a week because they see and know the type of person i am and how i treat/house/care for all my animals.

EDUCATE THE IGNORANCE!!!

[RealPitBull]

Jay...

I wonder why people believe what they see on TV and hear from celebrities and news anchors more than what the see/hear in real life. It is mind blowing to me. As a trainer AND as a Pit Bull activist, I have to deal with peoples' misconceptions that have been formed based on what they see on TV on a regular basis. TV is a god to the masses. Pretty scary. And not many people stop to question what the see on TV. If it's on the TV, it must be fact!

[Jay]

i can tell you why....people are tricked into beleiving it...they are also to lazy to research or find out the facts for themselves. i donno maybe i was brought up differently...different morales...values...different outlook on things. some people are simple minded.

[sicilianchic2002]

hello i am new to owning a pit and it is shoking to me how many people have the look of fear when i say i have one and how many people FIGHT these dogs....i love my poppa so much and i cant believe how this breed is treated. im doin research about them not just to know my dog better but to protect him as well. we moved into a new place(took along time when the landlords find out what kind of dog he is they almost hang up!) when my b/f had poppa on a lead in the yard behind a fence 3 different people came asking if he has a lic. if he was a 5 lb dog i doubt they would have asked. im hoping to go to our spca to see if i can help in any way. wish me luck!

julie

[Jay]

ya know what im sick of seeing......the girls that walk around with the little dogs in the mall or whereever else i see them....in their purses and stuff.......why cant i bring my dog to the mall when i wanna go shopping? wtf is up with that? since when did animals become an accessory? i wear timberland boots....they match my dog so can i take him shopping with me??? lol

[RealPitBull]

The "dogs as accessories" craze has me annoyed too - well, annoyed is putting it mildly. It is an example of how far removed our society is from reality in regards to animals and who/what they are at their cores. A trainer I know was just telling me about a student that showed up to her class with a toy dog in a bag with no collar or leash on. The dog had barely ever even stepped foot on a floor. One of the first things the trainer said is "Get that dog out of the bag, and start treating it like a DOG, for chrissakes!"

Also wanted to add, that as peoples' attitudes towards dogs change (i.e. they aren't "Dogs" they are "fur kids", accessories, and should just "look cute" and never do "doggy things"), there will be less and less tolerance in society for "real" dogs, for instance larger (and even medium sized) drivey breeds that - God forbid!! - would kill a cat if given the chance. People are so far removed from reality and what a dog IS and SHOULD BE that they are confused, , appalled when a dog does something, well, normal.

[bullymommy25]

yeah, i totally understand that, how our society is humanizing our dogs, so that when they exhibit canine behavior, people FREAK. Hey, my sweet, angelic little girl caught a robin in the air and killed it a few weeks ago... yes, it was gross (she was coughing feathers for an hour after), it was sad for the bird, but she's a DOG...
That being said, she's totally tender with HER cats (she has two), and HER kid (my five year old daughter)... And she's the biggest lovebug on earth. It's just... well, what self-respecting dog wouldn't catch little things?
You know what makes me sick? When people cross the street or actually walk out of their way when we are coming. If they only knew how STUPID they seemed to me, how much of a tenderheart my Stella is... I mean, don't like dogs, but must you be obviously rude?
We just keep on walking in public, meeting people, playing in the front yard... most people actually smile at her, but there are a few idiots out there who muck it up for all of us...