The daily newspaper has kind of let the pit bull problem in Moorhead go after the dog was euthanized this week after the owner could not raise the insurance necessary to keep the dog. Opinions are still flying on the "talk about it" section of the online FORUM.
I did not have time to read all of them but there are about 6-7 pages of differing opinions on keeping that breed of dog as a "pet" inside the city’s neighborhoods. Many of the Opiners take the side of the pet owner and the dog saying it wasn’t the dog’s fault that someone came on "it’s" property (I was totally unaware that dogs are property owners). Others blamed children or adults for approaching a dog and trying to pet it. (I agree it is very foolhardy to try to pet a dog one does not know) Many simply said that killing a pet should never be done no matter what that pet does. (Hmmmm)
The most compelling opinion that I appreciated was that of "Jack Daniels" on a September 18 post on page 4 of the 6 pages of posts. JD said this (partial quote) "She (owner) didn’t keep the dog kenneled, control her(dog) or train her. That’s the owner’s fault. An act of omission is the owner’s negligence…not the community’s fault…..she(owner) did nothing correct to prevent the dog from becoming a dangerous {one}….she didn’t get the dog trained or find a new home or watch the dog better after the first event…"
Some others that seemed a lot more "brainless" to me was a terse one-liner: "Kill ‘em all" and the other was a whine saying "I think it is a shame the dog had to be put down….the owner said her kids cuddled with "Priness" {sic}. how could she trust her children with him{sic} if he was so mean?" Duh!
One thing I think needs to be learned and kept in mind by anyone who wants to bring a pet dog into their home: You better know the breed’s characteristics before you buy the dog. Pit bulls have been bred to be vicious fighters and protectors. So have Doberman Pincers and German Shepherds…..two breeds which are mostly un-insurable in the U.S. A well trained German Shepherd can be used as a service dog….but the key is "well trained". Golden Retrievers, German Shorthairs, and Springer Spaniels have been bred to find and retrieve game birds. Dachsunds were originally bred to be "badger dogs"…to hunt badgers and go down the badger holes and bring them out and break their necks by shaking them violently. Border Collies and Blue Heelers are bred to round up sheep and other livestock.
Our family has perfect examples of how strong in-bred instincts are. We had a Border Collie, who at the age of 8 weeks got down into the Border Collie "crouch" when he saw our few sheep the day we brought him home. He continued his rounding-up behavior for the rest of his long life (15 years) by "herding" and "rounding" me every time I walked out to get the mail. His intense stare and quivering crouch were sure signs I would get "rounded" and nipped lightly on my lower legs by our faithful "Mac". Our first "grand-dogger", an enthusiastic Springer named Trudi, was an insatiable retriever of old tennis balls and would continue to retrieve them til she collapsed from exhaustion after putting her entire head underwater in a bucket to drink thirstily. Our Dachsund granddog Jobie enthusiastically dug up every gopher hole he could find in pursuit of a badger. Anytime we played with him and offered him and old towel or rug to tug on, he would "kill" it by shaking it violently. Our Bailey, a female Beagle follows scents and trails and bays loudly when she is on the hunt. These family pets all displayed the very traits that had been bred into them by long years of patient breeders selecting the traits they wanted to foster. Pit bulls were bred to be attack dogs….how can anyone say that a Pit Bull will not attack or kill??? It is what they were bred to do and people foolishly call them their "pets". I cannot understand why anyone who lives in a crowded neighborhood would even want a Pit Bull in the first place. If you want a pet, get a gentle Golden Retriever if you have to have a big dog.
The entire hoo-hah about this incident in Moorhead has been overblown. Apparently nothing was learned from the episode of the tame ducks in Barnesville.
