Post by emilys on Oct 24, 2011 19:43:23 GMT -5
what can you say to this person, other than what I replied: that I hope someday she gets to know a real APBT and loves it for what it is, not for its status in society
(names and other id removed)
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Hi Emily,
I agree with you that the terms "pit bull" or "pit bull type dog" mean very little in the way most people define it. In my area, most dogs that have a medium, muscular build, a slightly square head and a somewhat short snout, and short fur are called "pit bulls" or "pit bull mixes." Most of them are not APBTs or even APBT mixes. My dog Chick is 50% AmBull, but in our shelter system, he would be called a pit bull, and he would have special restrictions on his adoption. In my homeowners policy, he would be called a pit bull and under many policies, I would have to pay a higher rate because of him. In Denver or Prince George's County in Maryland, he would be called a pit bull and would be taken from me. In many apartment buildings, he would be called a pit bull and I would be denied a lease because of him. The list goes on.
I am attracted to these dogs because they are underdogs. They are just dogs, like any other, and have been on the receiving end of some pretty unfair discrimination, just because of a broad set of physical characteristics. Folks (well-meaning and not) assume they know things about these guys just because of the way they look -- as though there is some correlation between short fur, wrinkled foreheads, and temperament. It's crazy, I agree. Many people have formed negative opinions about this broad set of dogs -- tied together by appearance alone -- and we're working to help break down those opinions and show why they are flawed.
Have a great day,
A...
(this was in reply to my post on her blog):
On Sat, Oct 22, 2011 at 2:31 PM, comment-reply@wordpress.com
Author : EmilyS (IP: 66.119.59.2 , NAT2.MILLECT.COM)
Comment:
As you're proposing, "pit bull" or "pit bull type dog" means exactly... nothing. It certainly doesn't refer to any behavioral characteristics, which you deny exist. Well, except maybe a few that you admire. Can't have it both ways though. If a dog has a certain look and a certain behavior, then .. wow... it might just be a "breed", not a "type", whether or not it has "papers". The fact that some people are ignorant about the behavioral traits of a particular purebred dog does not mean they get to define those traits (the APBT is NOT known for guarding behavior, or for being good K9's... you'd be thinking of the hard working dogs like the Malinois)
If you're only interested in dogs by appearance, then calling them by a type means... nothing.
Is there nothing other than short hair and blocky head that you like about a particular dog?
What's the point in calling a dog a "pit bull" or a "pit bull type dog" anyway?
Just call them "mixed breeds that look a certain way I like".
It's a slur on the real breed, the APBT/AST, to refer to any dog that sort of looks like someone thinks might be one as a "pit bull" (anyone who knows anything can tell that NEITHER of the dogs in your illustration is an AST or APBT, just from that one photo)..
I know I'm barking up the wrong tree... seems everyone wants to have a "victim" dog and everyone wants to call every dog that someone else calls a "pit bull" by that name. Pointer mix, bulldog mix, lab mix, boxer mix... all "pit bulls". Though they are not, and never have been. They have nothing in common with the APBT/AST other than short hair and a blocky head
There are still a few who insist that "pit bull" means APBT and that know how to tell what one is.
(names and other id removed)
-------------------------------------
Hi Emily,
I agree with you that the terms "pit bull" or "pit bull type dog" mean very little in the way most people define it. In my area, most dogs that have a medium, muscular build, a slightly square head and a somewhat short snout, and short fur are called "pit bulls" or "pit bull mixes." Most of them are not APBTs or even APBT mixes. My dog Chick is 50% AmBull, but in our shelter system, he would be called a pit bull, and he would have special restrictions on his adoption. In my homeowners policy, he would be called a pit bull and under many policies, I would have to pay a higher rate because of him. In Denver or Prince George's County in Maryland, he would be called a pit bull and would be taken from me. In many apartment buildings, he would be called a pit bull and I would be denied a lease because of him. The list goes on.
I am attracted to these dogs because they are underdogs. They are just dogs, like any other, and have been on the receiving end of some pretty unfair discrimination, just because of a broad set of physical characteristics. Folks (well-meaning and not) assume they know things about these guys just because of the way they look -- as though there is some correlation between short fur, wrinkled foreheads, and temperament. It's crazy, I agree. Many people have formed negative opinions about this broad set of dogs -- tied together by appearance alone -- and we're working to help break down those opinions and show why they are flawed.
Have a great day,
A...
(this was in reply to my post on her blog):
On Sat, Oct 22, 2011 at 2:31 PM, comment-reply@wordpress.com
Author : EmilyS (IP: 66.119.59.2 , NAT2.MILLECT.COM)
Comment:
As you're proposing, "pit bull" or "pit bull type dog" means exactly... nothing. It certainly doesn't refer to any behavioral characteristics, which you deny exist. Well, except maybe a few that you admire. Can't have it both ways though. If a dog has a certain look and a certain behavior, then .. wow... it might just be a "breed", not a "type", whether or not it has "papers". The fact that some people are ignorant about the behavioral traits of a particular purebred dog does not mean they get to define those traits (the APBT is NOT known for guarding behavior, or for being good K9's... you'd be thinking of the hard working dogs like the Malinois)
If you're only interested in dogs by appearance, then calling them by a type means... nothing.
Is there nothing other than short hair and blocky head that you like about a particular dog?
What's the point in calling a dog a "pit bull" or a "pit bull type dog" anyway?
Just call them "mixed breeds that look a certain way I like".
It's a slur on the real breed, the APBT/AST, to refer to any dog that sort of looks like someone thinks might be one as a "pit bull" (anyone who knows anything can tell that NEITHER of the dogs in your illustration is an AST or APBT, just from that one photo)..
I know I'm barking up the wrong tree... seems everyone wants to have a "victim" dog and everyone wants to call every dog that someone else calls a "pit bull" by that name. Pointer mix, bulldog mix, lab mix, boxer mix... all "pit bulls". Though they are not, and never have been. They have nothing in common with the APBT/AST other than short hair and a blocky head
There are still a few who insist that "pit bull" means APBT and that know how to tell what one is.