File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
so /an/,
We're most likely going to be taking in a pit soon. His owner's can't keep him, and due to their landlord threatening to have them put it down we wanted to step in and help. We're told its a very sweet dog, but I'm a little unsure- I figured I'd ask here.
Do pits have a high prey drive? We've a cat, and I'd rather not find out this dog is sweet only as far as humans. The dog has no history of violence, wasn't trained to attack or anything. We'll introduce them slowly, but I want to know just what to expect here, or if it would be best to not try.
tl;dr are pits known for getting along with cats?
pic related to breed but not the exact dog in question.
>> Anonymous
All the Pits I've known personally got along excellently with the cats/birds/rats/whatever in their house. They do have a higher tendancy to be aggressive with other dogs, but as far as I know they're actually pretty good with smaller animals.
>> Anonymous
i have knows 3 pitbulls in my life and they all got along with cats, but they grew up around them, so they can coexist
now let me tell you a story, when i adopted my dog (Australian cattle dog about to be put down) the first thing he did when he saw my cat was chase it and pick it up in his mouth... luckily i got to it in time. they are now the best of friends, i started by putting the dog in a crate and introducing the cat into the room, if the dog got aggressive i would say no and take the cat out of the room for 10- 15 minutes and then reintroduce, it took about 2 weeks of doing this 3 or 4 times a day but the dog soon realized that the cat was a pack member, and was to be respected and also that cat but smells really really good. and he is an aggressive dog towards people, other dogs, small animals- but he now loves kittys, so they can learn, be careful and patient and your dog will get along with cats.
>> KZN
I've seen Pit Bulls get along with cats. I don't think their prey drive is much higher than any other breed in general, but I think it really depends on the individual dog and how he/she was raised.

I have a shepherd mix, and when I introduced him to my cat, he just wanted to play with her. She of course didn't like this because by "play" he means "play rough" like it would be appropriate to do with other dogs. The two of them still get into little "arguments" sometimes (Dog jumps playfully towards cat and barks, cat scratches and hisses,) but they are gradually becoming friends. Sometimes the cat will come up and rub against the dog or some to bat playfully at his legs. I'm not worried about the cat getting hurt, though, because the dog means no harm and I'm sure she can defend herself.

So I'd say it really depends on the individual dog and cat. If introduced properly, you will probably be able to get them to at least tolerate each other.
>> Anonymous
The second-most sweet and skittish dog I've ever known is a pitbull. The first is a shitzu...and it's a pretty close tie.

Then again, two pitbulls in the next town over just attacked a kids's softball game, and ate one kid's arms and a leg.

Apparently it depends on the owner and the training, so if *you* are not the person who's raised it, I'd think carefully about what the previous owner is/was like.
>> Anonymous
Buffalo, NY -- A disturbing and violent attack leaves a toddler in serious condition at Women and Children's Hospital. Neighbors heard a mother screaming that her child was being raped.

Lockport Police received a 911 call from a frantic City of Lockport mother Sunday afternoon.

The mother told Lockport Police that she left her two-year-old unattended for a short time and after hearing the baby scream, she ran to see what was wrong.

When she got in the room, she told Lockport Police the dog had sodomized the toddler. The mother screamed, scaring the dog and it ran out of the house.

One neighbor told 2 On Your Side, she heard the mother screaming "the dog is raping my baby." Neighbors ran to help, but only one man was able to get the dog and child apart.

Anastacio Castillo says "I tried to get the dog away from the baby, the dog was already inside the baby." When the baby was finally free, he was visibly sick.

The baby was rushed to Women and Children's Hospital where the toddler underwent reconstructive surgery.

The dog is being held at the Niagara County SPCA for evaluation. An animal behavior specialist is scheduled to evaluate the Pit Bull.

The Niagara County District Attorney's office is assisting Lockport Police with the investigation.

Miranda Workman, behavior specialist at Purrfect Paws in Amherst says, "Most likely this is not a learned behavior. Dogs intact, not spayed or neutered have a higher hormonal drive."

She urges parents to never, ever leave their children alone with a dog.

http://www.digtriad.com/news/mostpopular/article.aspx?storyid=86779&provider=top
>> Anonymous
>>246150
Haha, raped by a dog.
>> Anonymous
>>246067
i agree with this, when i was growing up i always messed with my friends pitbull(laying on him and such) and he never once put up a fight, they are the sweetest dogs if you raise them right, but if they are raised by someone else and you don't know how so....be careful, cause they can become quite vicious.
>> Anonymous
>>246150
And this is why you do not leave two year olds unattended.

They get raped by dogs.
>> Anonymous
>>245972
if you love your cat, you will pass on the pit. i cannot imagine how any loving, responsible owner would risk such a thing.

in spite of the breed apologists, pits (actually, terriers in general) were bred for aggression, no different than greyhounds were bred for speed, or bloodhounds for tracking. even if this aggression does not manifest toward humans, it may occur toward animals, especially if it has no history of familiarity with them.

>>246150
heh, i've read this before. guess the kid was naked, so it was asking for it.
>> BitterAnon !!WJLRQ1cwCyZ
Pits are great. They are the sweetest, most obedient and loyal dogs ever. You just have to be very very careful with them around other animals. Some dogs learn what is and is not okay really fast, while others will always be aggressive to other animals no matter what you do. I have only been bitten by a pit once, versus hundreds of lab/shephard mixes and pursedog bites.

>>246150
The mother was watching television and the child came to her asking for a diaper change. She sent him to go get a new diaper and at some point he took off his diaper (I guess he was going to just change it himself) and that is when the dog "attacked" him. It is VERY VERY likely that the dog had been molested and "trained" certain behaviors and he got confused. This isn't the dog's fault, it is that horrible mother's fault, and now a dog is dead and a child's life is ruined because of something she did.

In general, its not a good idea to leave small children alone with any dog. Not because the dog might go crazy and rape your child or kill them, but because children do stupid shit and don't know when to leave dogs alone (see: thousands of bites where kids were "just playing" and the dog was defending itself)
>> BitterAnon !!WJLRQ1cwCyZ
>>246876
Actually, I need to correct myself. The dog has not been put down, he's just been in a kennel the Niagara County SPCA since last july, waiting for them to decide what to do with him.
http://www.stinkyjournalism.org/latest-journalism-news-updates-90.php
http://savebearthedog.com/
>> Tired Anon !EHsj4EGwIQ
Yea, like most of the Anon's on here have stated, Pits can be great, or horrible, depending on how the owners have raised and trained them.

My retarded brother is a good instance of how not to train your Pit. My brother was one of the military 'bad asses' and believed he needed a 'bad ass' dog as a status symbol. And instead of teaching the dog obedience and socialization, he would violently rough house with him, and even laugh when his own kid was brused up by the rough housing. (the pit was pretty big, btw).
Well, his ex girl friend's daughter ended up getting bit in the face by this dog, for reasons 1. not supervising the kid, 2. the dog wasn't used to children under 5, and 3. The dog was taught to bite during play. So, long story short, he had to put the dog down for his own stupidity.
And so I think my brother should go play in traffic.

Otherwise, Pits are very loving and sweet dogs, a bit on the protective side so you need to introduce them to animals early on in life to ensure that neither the dog, nor said animal, are injured.
>> Anonymous
>>246876
Any kid who's old enough to ask for a diaper change or go get the fresh diapers and change himself is old enough to be potty trained. That's irrelevant to the situation, though. I'm just saying. That mom sounds like a negligent fucker.
>> Anonymous
>>246885
Dude, there's this chick named Ronni Katz who used to live in Franklin Park, NJ. Her kid Caitlin wore diapers until she was six years old. Nothing was wrong with the kid, the mom was just lazy and really didn't care beyond the child support payments. Now they're in Texas living with a former Navy pedophile.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
My pit. She is deathly afraid of any animal that isn't her. She literally trembles in their presence.

Dogs? She can get along with them, but it depends. Usually she hates them. Any other type of animal and - if she had tear ducts - she'd be bawling like a little bitch out of fear.
>> Anonymous
>>246906
A fearful attack dog is a safe attack dog, amirite?