# dealing with pitbull haters, does not know how to respond? :(



## pauldobe (Nov 30, 2011)

I didn't know where to put this...asks for knowledge, o' forum of dog people I don't know. <:I

recently my dog..."made friends"(?)with some pitbulls/pitbull mixes around the area. one particular mix has similar fearful behavior like her and is a little scared of her but it's more super submission you see, not aggression.

yesterday we're on a walk and bump into the pibble mix and his caretakers, mutt was wearing a little winter vest; guess they just had to stop us to ask about it? idk...

we're talking and the dogs are sitting next to eachother, facing us. out of nowhere 2 retrievers(golden and lab)run out of the entrance of the nearest neighborhood a ways away. they were off leash, appeared to just be playing but they glanced around upon reaching the street, once they saw our dogs they ran right at us. our dogs didn't notice the retrievers until they were too close, they had been facing us but once they noticed the retrievers charging at them they whipped around and jumped back(away from the other dogs) giving one of those loud "you startled/scared me" barks.

upon hearing the barks the owners of the retrievers chose to finally put their dogs on a leash but not before saying our dogs were vicious, nuisance, killers just because they barked at their dogs...

the bark was no different than a person saying "oh!" if something startled them, no growling, lunging or biting yet the retrievers charged us with the intent to bite until being momentarily stopped by being barked at.

these people went on to rant that mutts where you can't tell what breeds they have(like my dog)or pitbulls/pitbull mixes(like the fearful pibble mix mentioned here)are only verified to be aggressive because of one bark from our dogs.

*huff* I love my animals like a none crazy person would love their human children, this upset me that they were wailing on my dog and our pitbull friend so I got in their face and yelled at them...

now has to pass these people every day and every time I'm with my dog or we're with a pitbull they gang up on us and harass us about it.

should I ignore it? just agree and hope they'll leave us alone? pitbulls are good friends to mutt and I and I feel like I should try to defend them...but I dunno. I don't have knowledge of them...but stuff like this is upsetting. what should I do? :c


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## Huginn (Nov 21, 2011)

I wish I had knowledge and wisdom of the magical words of getting people to accept pits. . . 
I work in a pet store and a friend of mine had a pit she used to bring in with her all of the time. His name was Cerberus and he was the sweetest goofball ever, little kids (people never supervise them in the store) used to run up and hug him and hang on him and pull on his ears and he loved it. Just saw there with a big dumb grin and a wagging tail. It seemed like every day customers would complain about me (being the one in the uniform) allowing that vicious beast in the store, and it was only "seconds" until he "attacked the next thing that walked in." 
I have never seen a pit attack ANYTHING in that store. Interestingly enough, I have seen more people attacked by Yorkies, Poms and JRTs than anything else. People will never understand, they are prone to listening to whatever they have been told. Fear is the best motivator. 
Best you can do is to, kill them with kindness and try to hold your tongue (as hard as it may be).


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## hmbutler (Aug 4, 2011)

My response would be "you think MY dog is the nuisance when YOURS just comes running at us, with no control from you? I think not, mate" and then I would've walked away.

Unfortunately there wont be much you can do. Some people will always believe stereotypes.


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## naturalfeddogs (Jan 6, 2011)

I agree with Hayley. People have beliefs about pits, and other breeds as well that will never be changed. It was the same with us years ago when we had dobes. People would go way out of their way to go around us, and the comments that were made! Jeez! Some folks are just too close minded to open up and even try to learn about these breeds. The best thing I think you can do is when something like that happens, just nicely explain to them that not all pits are the same as what you hear from the media. Truthfully, I have yet to meet a bad Pit. Never met one.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

It doesn't seem like they just don't like pit bulls. They sound like purebred snobs who think if you don't spend a thousand dollars on a fancy bred dog you are worthless and so is your dog.

Can't do much about stupid people, except get them to know your dogs if you get the opportunity.


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## shellbeme (Dec 8, 2010)

The best way you can represent the breed, if you own it is to socialize it and train it well so that it gets along well with others. There are always going to be ignorant people-this case though, I would have went off. It is one of my biggest peeves when people let their dogs run off leash and I would have completely gone off about it. Don't let anyone intimidate you about your dog, you are your dogs best advocate. Breeds have tendencies but bottom line that any human with half a brain will understand is what it most important is how the individual dog is raised and treated.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

seriously, you acted very responsibly.

theirs were the dogs off leash in public. they were the ones whose dogs charged yours, whether playfully or not.

i don't care what the breed is. 

poor manners on the part of the dog is reflected on the owner who does not instill manners.

after two years, my pug wants to jump on people. i put my foot on the leash and he stays down. 

in all reality, i'd find a different route to take. there are some wars you cannot win, because of stereotypes.

be the bigger person and take your wonderful dogs on a walk both of you can enjoy.

i'm truly sorry that you and others like you have to endure this crap, for that is what it is.


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## kevin bradley (Aug 9, 2009)

you can't fix bigotry and ignorance.

I mean, seriously, do you think you are going to say, "NO, Pits are actually really nice!" and change their ignorance. I wish it were that easy. Christ, look what it took with the civil rights movements in the 60's to change behavior--and these were PEOPLE who were being persecuted. 

You handled it well. Live your life with integrity and love... AND with attention to truth and reality. If others don't follow, you can't help them(most of the time). 

Hopefully they will get their own form of a wake up call at some point. 

Funny, someone wrote that they've never met a Pit they didn't love. I'd echo that thought. I'm not just saying it either. Literally, EVERY one I've ever been around have simply been great, great dogs.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

I too think you are dealing with blatant snobbery (like what xellil said). I sadly also get thinly veiled comments like that from time to time, but I just laugh and choose to ignore the ignorant. 
When it comes to pitbulls, I like the following quotes. Have no idea who said them, but I find if someone really annoys me about something they don't know enough to know they know nothing, then I take a mental snigger and think of these: 
A wise man makes his own decisions, an ignorant man follows public opinion.
The greatest ignorance is to reject something you know nothing about.
Fear always springs from ignorance.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

I've pretty much always had mixed breed dogs. Except for the ones I have now, and they are so defective no one would think I was being pretentious by having them. I say that with great love, because to me they are beautiful dogs. But they aren't winning any beauty contests.

I have gotten used to the snobbery, but only since we moved to Indianapolis. Before that, I wasn't hanging around or taking my dogs to those places. I really guess I thought everyone who has dogs loves all dogs, but that's just absolutely false. People buy them like they buy a Mercedes, for status.

Of course, since my everyday car for the last 6 years was a 1991 Escort I'm not much of a car snob either.

I think there is a difference between breed snobbery and pit bull ignorance, although I guess if the end result is they don't want their dogs around your dogs it's kind of all the same.


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## nupe (Apr 26, 2011)

I wouldnt even worry about it....either ignore them..or if you really want it to stop,,,give a real loud "F*** YOU TO THEM"!! while giving them the bird!!..............................Like was said earlier bigotry cant be fixed!!!


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## Dude and Bucks Mamma (May 14, 2011)

I PARTLY agree with them on one thing: With a mutt you are taking a bigger chance because you typically won't know the parentage (breed personalities), but the aggression wouldn't be the concern for me. For me, it would be more like, "Well, I wanted a mellow couch potato and I ended up with this hyper active thing instead" or whatever. The only time I would be concerned with a mutt (like THEY claim to be)would be bringing home an adult (and this would even go for any purebred) dog to a home with small children. In those instances, caution is warranted until you come to know the dog. 

Their "purebreds" proved themselves to be bigger nuisances than your "mutts". I don't care what breed(s) the dog is, it should be on a leash if it cannot be properly controlled by voice. We walk Dude off leash all the time but slip his leash back on when we see other people, not for us or Dude, but out of respect for others. I don't want people to have to worry about my dog when they are trying to enjoy a walk. Mutt or purebred, those dogs were out of control. Oh, and if there is a leash law.

I can guarantee you that either they think their dogs are better than yours or they were embarrassed of their dogs' behavior and turned it around on you to make themselves look better. 

All I can say is that you guys clearly have the better dogs and, if you must walk by them just act like they are saying something funny. Don't get angry. Just laugh it off. 

I had a woman (who was supposedly a breeder) say that when a male dog ties to the female, his testicles moved up into his pizzle. I corrected her and she sent me this message: "If you want any credibility you will remove that dog, whatever it is....from your avatar. I see someone is trying to stack him, but I also see his front is so weak, down in the pastern, and very splayed flat feet. The front legs are actually curved they are so bad. Weak rear also. Pot belly, just a horrible example of a dog. You act like you know what you are doing, but it sure doesn't look like it. 
Yep, I have personally finished 2 Great Danes....don't like the political attitude or the expense..for what? Just to say you own a champion? Not worth it. All a huge game."

She got all of this from a picture that is smaller than a postage stamp. I just told her that she had a great sense of humor. You have all seen Buck and he has turned out to be a great example of how a bluetick should look. Some friends of mine co-own 2 females from Buck's breeder and one of the women shows both girls and has the older one finished. They ooh and ahh over Buck. The woman never responded because she knew she was just being spiteful. Buck was 7 weeks old in the picture, being kibble fed by his breeder, and being "stacked" by his teenage son who has never even seen a show ring. They hunt. They don't show. Curved legs... That was my favorite part. And the weak rear??? Hahahaha! I actually laughed out loud at that one. If Buck was weak in the rear there is no way that he would have enough strength at 3 months to jump into the back of the jeep from a standstill. That pup can jump like crazy! Haha. 

You just have to let nasty people be nasty. They are only making themselves look like fools to everyone around them every time they open their mouths.


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