Sporty dogs

[smilinpitbull]

Are there any people out there anymore interested in sport pets? The reason I ask is that I thought that I had seen posts where people bemoaned the lack of dogs with sport potential in shelters (not here but other boards) and I have found 4 in the past year, two are currently at my home, one permanently and we are now in level three agility after three months, one is a foster dog looking for a home, one went to a police training program through the shelter and sadly, the fourth was euthanized because I couldn't find foster care.

I'm just curious and throwing that out there. Daisy is my current sport pet foster dog. She came from a small bust in NC, small and gamey but good with cats, slow intros with other dogs but is not one to put it out there. Great with people, friendly, social and obsessively affectionate.

Just putting it out there. I'd like to continue to rescue what I consider to be real pit bulls but seems like people are only interested in fancy colors and super low drive dogs.

[RealPitBull]

Um, Amy, get out of my head! Seriously, I wonder the same thing all the time - people aren't interested in REAL Pit Bulls anymore, they want "pit bull type dogs" that are couch potatoes and have zero drive. Gawd forbid any prey drivey behaviors or - gasp! dog sensitivity. I don't understand why these people keep saying they do "pit bull rescue" because frankly, half the people out there are rescuing mixed breed dogs and don't seem to have any clue what the APBT is all about.

Yeah, man, I'm bitchy tonight.

[patchopits]

Sadly many who are looking to get an American pit bull terrier or any breed for that matter they don't "really" research the breed. They don't understand drive and or don't want to deal with it. They often want more of an AmStaff or AmBully than an APBT. A dog that is watered down so to speak by fad breeding and the bigger is better craze which I find sad. Of course, there are plenty of APBTs who are more laid back but also can work and still play and are fun dogs. The over the top extreme high drive dogs aren't for the average owner or home. The working quality correct temperament dogs are JUST RIGHT for me and are how the breed is supposed to be in my opinion and according to the standard. Sadly, I just see too many lately that have a wet sponge type personality.

I wish BYBs would get a clue and stop breeding and people obtaining dogs would be responsible and take it on for the life of the dog not just when it is "easy" or when they are cute pups...

[loverocksalot]

hmmm funny I was at the shelter on Tuesday and a man was spending alot of time with one of my favorite dogs there. He was concerned that he was not able to get her to play and that he did not want a couch potato. Funny I saw the opposite. Very playful dog. A bit mouthy she nipped my ear not hard. She does it all the time to me as soon as I see her she is mouthing.grooming. He spend hours with her and she never did it to him. Good luck Hershey! I am hoping she wont be there next week, however I will miss her. I had thoughts of adopting her just not ready yet.

[RealPitBull]

Oct 14, 2010 5:26:14 GMT -5 patchopits said:

The over the top extreme high drive dogs aren't for the average owner or home. The working quality correct temperament dogs are JUST RIGHT for me and are how the breed is supposed to be in my opinion and according to the standard. Sadly, I just see too many lately that have a wet sponge type personality.

I agree with you completely. And it's not that there is anything WRONG with wet sponge dogs, but people in "pit bull" rescue too often penalize dogs with true working temperament, label them as being "damaged" somehow, or they just have no idea how to deal with the energy level and intensity and make up stories about how the dogs were abused or "trained to fight". These dogs get dumped in favor of mushy, low-key, often-mixed bull breed-ish dogs who then get called "pit bull type dogs" (whatever THAT means ). The experiences these people have with their "pit bull type dogs" is supposed to prove that you cannot/should not generalize about breed - but the propblem is, these people aren't actually dealing with any sort of specific BREED to begin with and NO you cannot generalize when you are not talking about a specific BREED! DUH!

"Pit bull type dogs" are NOT a breed, just a made up category that in all actuality is a meaningless classification. The reason why "sporty" dogs (love that term, btw ) get penalized is because people have NO understanding, AT ALL, of the APBT aka REAL Pit Bull.

But I AM talking about a breed and RPB as an organization works with a SPECIFIC BREED of dog, so guess what! WE CAN make generalizations because, hey, if you can't make generalizations, you don't have a breed. Definition of a breed is a certain level of predictability in LOOKS AND BEHAVIOR. GET IT?! If you are too worried about making any sort of generalities, stop calling what you do "pit bull" advocacy/education/rescue, and instead just do generic dog education, anti-BSL work, and rescue. If you like generic bull breed type lookin' dawgs, rescue them! But unless you have a pretty good idea that the dog IS actually a Pit Bull - as in the BREED, APBT - do NOT call it a "pit bull type" ANYthing.

Too many of these dogs being called "pit bull type dogs" aren't even CLOSE to being Pit Bulls so the opinion of what the breed is is skewed due to the fact that people in "pit bull advocacy and rescue" aren't really technically even dealing with the actual breed. Then people get all bent out of shape when I/We/RPB talk about breed temperament because "That is not MY experience, my dog is super laid back, loves cats, plays with every dog he meets, and that is my across-the-board experience with pit bull type dogs". Yeah, one problem: you aren't really dealing with a breed, you are randomly selecting dogs that kinda-sorta look like Pit Bulls, labeling them as a "type", trying to "educate" on a "breed type" when you are just dealing with dogs of a similar look, and not an actual real BREED.

RPB's been criticized for using the name "Pit Bull" when the organization deals specifically with APBTs, and not a super generalized, made up 'type' of dog that is only classified by a broad range of physical traits that some people call "pit bull type dogs". Apparently if I am talking APBT specifics, I'm "not allowed" to use the nickname for my breed, "Pit Bull". I say, you aren't allowed to use the term "Pit Bull" ANYthing unless you are talking about a specific breed, because you are confusing the FARK out of people by doing otherwise.

WHY do people insist on calling EVERYthing a "pit bull something-or-other"??? WHY???? A LARGE majority of these dogs do NOT have temperaments even resembling (nor do they really even LOOK like) actual Pit Bulls! Why do "pit bull education/advocacy" orgs love to pick and choose the "positive" aspects of the APBT temperament and history, deny everything else that makes them uncomfortable, then do everything in their power to claim there is "no such breed as a pit bull", insist you CANNOT ever predict temperament, and that those of us making generalities (because, ya know, like, RPB actually IS a breed specific organization, and you CAN actually - shocker! - make certain predictions as a rule about a breed) are actually the "bad guys" hurting the dogs. ??? ??? ???

The moral of this post is that people THINK they want a Pit Bull based on what they have read and been told and seen (which is often totally wrong/incorrect), but in actuality, most of these people have no idea what a true, real live APBT is and simply want a dog of a certain "look", not an actual APBT. MOST people, IMO, shouldn't have a Pit Bull anyway, and although there are certainly some laid back, super chill, couch potatoe APBTs, if someone tells me that is what they WANT in a dog, I'm probably gonna just tell them to pick a different breed, or go find a cute mixed dog in a shelter or through a rescue.

[maryellen]

the JQ public unfortunately cant handle a true to breed dog.. of any kind.. doesnt matter if its a apbt or a gsd or a collie- the public wants a fairytale of a dog to fit their needs and that is it.. thats why people have no idea on breed type of any dog.

[adoptapitbull]

You're right, ME, you're exactly right.

If anyone had a clue about breed purpose, we wouldn't have half the breeds in puppy mills today. Most people pick a dog based on looks, then complain when the dog acts the way its breed is supposed to, or anything different than what they are expecting of it.

A side story that's kinda related...

I went to the mall the other day and noticed a new pet store. Grrrreeeeat. I saw their puppy mill..I mean, puppy section. They had two Cane Corsos for sale. A male and female, each $1,000. The only info about them was birth date, and weight when full grown. Seriously?! Now I'm opposed to any and all puppy mill store, as I'm sure you are. But, if they want to have a shred of decency, at least have breed pamphlets or something to give to a "buyer". That is NOT a breed for the average shopper. I was half tempted to ask the worker about the breed, but I knew I'd come off as a stone cold bitch. You know, maybe I should go ask this weekend, just for the he!! of it. I see a giant disaster coming to anyone who buys any of those dogs at that store, and the dogs are the ones who are going to suffer from it. Luckily, I didn't see any APBTs. They had an OEB for $1,700, and lots of "mixy-poo" mutts from $475-$800. I swear they make up new designer dogs every day...

[RealPitBull]

OMG Corsos in pet shops!?!?! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[adoptapitbull]

Yep, one of them (the male) is blue. I will bet everything I have that some Mr. Tough Guy will go in there and buy him, throw on a spike collar, and chain him to a tree. Mr. Tough Guy needs a big strong dog to make himself feel better.

Oh, and they listed both the male and female as 110lbs when fully grown. I guess in this breed, both sexes weigh the exact same, and they only weigh 110lbs exactly!

[smilinpitbull]

Corsos in a pet shop, that's a nightmare. I just took in a neo mix that was picked up with an adult cane corso female (blue brindle with a battle crop of course). She got adopted from the shelter because she was quiet and subdued but Biglove (my name for him) was not wanted because he's a 105lb 9 month old puppy with zero manners. So glad we got him and not someone just walking in off the street to adopt.

I'll be stuck with my little sporty dogs forever. I can't take in another one until I get Daisy adopted. It's sad, no one wants to adopt them and no one wants to foster them. They just have no place to go anymore. The world is changing and the real apbt doesn't seem like it's going to be around forever.