I agree completely. The owners should pay for raising the dogs to be vicious, not the breed of dogs. If there is an individual dog that is vicious and nothing can be done, it should be put down. It's sad because it's not really the dogs fault that he was raised wrong, but the same could be said for humans that murder.

Re: banning certain dogs?
 

No breed of dog is inherently vicious in my opinion. Rottweilers have a bad rep because the people who own them typically train them to be nasty. You know the guys who are like, "HE CAN SMELL FEAR!" and are flaunting these big ass growling dogs as if compensating for some percieved personal shortcoming... I happen to have met quite a few rottweilers who are just big teddy bears.

Now pinschers... THOSE little dogs can be nasty... or at least one of them that I know of. But then again, he's too cowardly to do more than bark at you anyway :D

Even though I've heard of horrible stories about pit bulls...I still don't think that there should be a ban on specific dogs. There is not a ban on having something like a Tiger as a pet, as long as you're trained and you have to get a special license to have something like that (a wild cat) you can have it....so I think something like that would be more appropriate, for potentially vicious dogs like rots and pit bulls. But if there is a ban on certain dogs, what else will happen next? There could be a sudden attack of one or two collies, should we put a ban on having a collie?

banning dogs and they dont think thats discimanation against dogs that is sooooooo mean

It doesn't matter if you ban a certain breed. In the end, it all comes down to the temperament of an individual dog. Pitbulls scare many people because of their reputation as fighting dogs. Unfortunately, pitbulls are used in dogfights primarily because of their best traits--their loyalty and obedience. Pitbulls tend to be extremely loyal to their owners, even if those owners force them to fight against dogs in multiple matches. They will tolerate abusive behavior and extreme cruelty during their training. These are good traits in good dogs that are sadly being exploited by horrible people.

Contrary to popular belief, pitbulls are wonderful pets since they tend to be loyal, obedient, and gentle. If you raise one from its birth in a good environment, it will most likely turn out just fine. If anything, pitbulls actually make better pets for families with small children than smaller dogs. Small dogs, such as chihuahuas, tend to be more aggressive and less tolerant of constant prodding and touching. Children will be able to aggravate a small dog more easily than a larger dog, such as a rotweiler or a pitbull and make them more likely to bite.

Honestly, banning certain dogs is essentially stereotyping them for no good reason. Fighting dogs are dangerous only because they have been raised to be aggressive and cruel. You can take another dog of that same breed and raise it in a good, loving environment and it will make a wonderful pet.

That's true. You really can't do anything about an individual dog if it has a horrible temperament and training fails. However, just because one pitbull snapped at a young girl doesn't mean that ALL pitbulls behave similarly. For each aggressive pitbull, I'm sure that you can find an equally aggressive poodle or cocker spaniel. My point is that each dog should be treated individually and should not be judged by its breed.

My cousins have a cocker spaniel that is extremely aggressive. It snaps and bites at you if you get close to its food. You don't even have to be taking its food away, just moving near its food bowl will incite some aggressive behaviors in the dog. On the other hand, my uncle owns a dog that is half-wolf and it is the sweetest dog that I have ever met. It would never harm another creature and is extremely well-behaved. Now, I'm sure that, on average, dogs with wolf ancestry tend to be more aggressive than cocker spaniels. But that doesn't necessarily mean that ALL cocker spaniels will make wonderful pets and that ALL dogs with wolf ancestry should be banned.

Alright, so this seems like a good idea, but wouldn't this also discourage people from adopting 'high risk' dogs? Right now, a lot of shelters actually won't put pitbulls up for adoption and opt to euthanize them immediately after receiving them. The few pitbulls that make it past the adoption criteria and aggression tests also need to find good homes. Approximately half the animals in United States shelters will never find a home. Unfortunately for pitbulls and other 'high risk' dogs, those terrible odds are further increased due to fears about aggression and other misconceptions. I don't know if it would be a good idea to add extra monetary fees on top of all that. I mean, that's practically condemning those dogs to death. When the odds are stacked against them already, why make it any more difficult?

Money is a great incentive, I definitely agree with you there. Except maybe instead of extra fees for owning 'high risk' dogs, people who are caught up in dogfighting should have to pay hefty fees. Right now, there are definitely laws in place, the problem is that they are rarely enforced. Communities should voice their opinions on dogfighting and hopefully their police services will react accordingly.

I was bit in the face by a pitbull when I was 9, and I am very leery of strange or untended dogs. However, I do not blame the dog for the attack. (She had puppies, and I was a stranger. My friend and I were being very stupid.)

None the less, those circumstances aside, that dog was not well trained. I remember my friend's mom brought the dog to school, and it was barely under her control. As people have said, it's cases like that, where dogs are improperly raised, that cause so many unfortunate cases of dog attacks. (The persistence of dog fighting also contributes.)

A dog of any size, history, breeding or temperament is going to require a great deal more work and attention than most other pets. Considering that dogs are descended from wolves, and are still more than capable of behaving wildly, they can be incredibly dangerous if improperly raised. Sometimes I think that people should be required to have a license to own any dog. It wouldn't need to be hard to get or anything, just require people to take a class (online or in person) in dog training, or require that people get their dos trained. Or something.

Really, it's not a subject I've given much thought to. There is part of me that is inclined to legislate everything, and part of me that is inclined to deregulate everything. Don't take me too seriously.

Some dogs have an aggressive nature and it's just how the dog is but, a lot of time it's the people that's provoking the dog which makes it attack someone. If kids are throwing rocks at a dog, you can't blame the dog for fighting back. If a dog were to randomly attack someone walking down the street, then it should be put on obidience program where the OWNER must teach it to behave and if failed to do so the dog should be put to sleep due to it being a danger to the public.

I do not believe that certain dogs should be banned. That's just crazy. My nephew was bitten by a dog a while ago and it was his fault, he was messing with the dog when he was told several times to leave him alone.

Sadly the dog had to be put down. I didn't want it to happen, but the vet said it had to be done.

I do believe that people should be forced to take a screening test then have some kind of monitoring system on them so that it's known what they're doing. If not that a weekly check if they pass the test.

Exactly. A friend of mine has a Pit Bull, and it's the kindest dog I've ever met. I truly believe that a dog will become what the owner makes of it, no dogs are born good or bad.

To start this off, I've known quite a few pitbulls and rottweilers. I actually fell in love with rottweilers because every one that I've met has an amazing attitude and were huge love bugs, not to mention that they're just gorgeous dogs in general. One pitbull I've known loved to steal my covers for me, and he could do some awesome tricks. The other was so sweet and would let a complete stranger come up and pet her puppies without a growl or anything. They were sweet dogs.

Now, this isn't to say that there aren't some dogs out there that are just plain mean. Just like people, I believe that a dog can just 'snap' one day and attack someone for no reason. I also believe that there are some dogs that are just plain mean and will continue to be no matter what kind of training that they're put through. These dogs should be put down. However, should a whole breed be punished for what one did? No, of course not!

I do not believe that any breed should be banned. Why should an innocent family have one of their loved pets ripped away and put down because of what a few did? That's just stupid. Plain and simple. Every dog is different. Obviously, this means that every dog is going to do something different. You can't say that every single pitbull or rottweiler is evil and out to rip off some kid's face. It's simply impossible.

However, that doesn't mean that I don't think anything should be done, because something should. Stricter laws, definitely. I agree with everyone who said that you should need a license to own a dog. Any dog, in my opinion. It would cut down on the amount of dogs being neglected and abused. People need information on what they're bringing home, but all too often someone brings home a puppy, realizes they don't like it, and then what happens? Another poor dog in the pound. Either that or the dog isn't properly trained, and then you get some poor kid's face bitten off. It would definitely cut down on the neglected animals, as only people who really wanted to devote time to a pet would be able to adopt one. Any person caught with a dog and no license would have the dog taken away and, if they didn't get a license within a certain amount of time, the dog would be relocated to a new home.

Another reason that I say all dogs is because if you just put a 'license needed' tag on one breed, the neglectful owners will just find another breed to corrupt! The same reason that banning dogs is bound to fail. As soon as all the dobermans, rotteilers, german sheperds, and pitbulls are banned, the dogfighters are just going to find another breed to train and fight.