Keeping a bullseye on the Pitbull

I got a frantic call from a neighbor one day. She got my number from the salon I go to. Her friend had seen me with Bud at the salon, and advised her to ask me for help. The problem was that her husband had brought home a Pitbull, and her kids told her that those dogs kill and eat children. Yes, the Pitbulls’ reputation has really suffered. I did not blame the woman, I assured her that these dogs are good if you train them. But for a 60-year-old woman like her who has problems with her energetic Labs, it is indeed inadvisable. She had put the puppy up for sale instead.

Bud is our Pitbull, a star wherever he goes, people just love to pet him, amazed at how well-behaved he is, how lovely and clean his coat is. And the one blue eye, one hazel eye never fail to wow them. He knows how to behave in a restaurant, he will just lie under the table. He never growls or attempts to bite when he is being held or petted by people, or even when we hit him for misbehaving. (Yes, he does! He sometimes grabs the toys of Michiko, our new puppy). People are awed by the size of his head, and all of his 76-pound frame. He has never peed inside our house or any building or even in our car, from the time we toilet-trained him. Once he controlled his pee from the Carmona exit until we reached The Fort. He kept looking at me, then at the road, then me again, which made me wonder. I asked him, "Bud, you want to wee-wee?" He gave me a smile, nodded and licked me. I told him, "sorry," and that he had to wait, and he did. He was in a frenzy when we took him out, and it took him two minutes to finish. Poor Bud!

Pitbull is not a specific breed, but it is actually a type of dog, where some breeds belong. These are the American Staffordshire Terrier, the American Pitbull Terrier, the English Bull Terrier, and all other mixes. They are called Pitbulls because they were used to bait bulls and then later, used for pit-fighting. These breeds are illegal in some counties and states in the US, and in Europe as well, due to highly publicized incidents where these breeds have attacked children and adults. These are sad tragic events that the owners are held accountable for. Once a friend had remarked to me, what kind of people would own a Pitbull, not knowing my sister and I have two.

Before we decided to get our first Pitbull, we researched on different breeds, as other prospective owners should before deciding on a breed. It’s not an oh-they’re-so-cute affair here. There are dogs good for condominium living, while some need a lot of space. Owning a dog is a big responsibility. Another life is entrusted to you, so it’s not for everyone. If you want companionship with less hassle, get a cat.

So what kind of people owned Pitbulls? Well, blind Helen Keller had a Pitbull. And would you believe, former US Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt both had one. So do Madonna, Serena Williams, Marc Jacobs of Louis Vuitton, Tom Ford of Gucci, Alexander McQueen (the British still loved them!), Fred Astaire, Barbara Eden, Mel Brooks, Humphrey Bogart, Mary Tyler Moore, Jan Michael Vincent, Linda Blair, Alicia Silverstone, Pink, Brad Pitt, Rosie Perez, and the famous trainer of Lassie, Bill Berloni, who said his breeds of choice to train are the pitbulls.

This is not an endorsement of the breed. We chose a Pitbull based on its characteristics, not because our designer-idols have them. After having a good one, you’ll find other dogs boring.

What are Pitbulls anyway and why did we decide that we wanted one ? Filipinos are very familiar with these dogs because of the many documentaries on them. Even the security guards, the magbobote know what they look like. These dogs are described as medium-sized dogs with short coat (that’s what we wanted), with big squarish head, and a deep broad chest. They are uberloyal, affectionate, athletic, agile, and very intelligent. They are known for their courage, bravery, and loyalty to their owners that they will do anything for them, which is their pitfall.

Our first pitbull was a red-nosed American PitBull Terrier bitch whom we called Autumn. She was a joy to us, a source of constant amazement. She had a vocabulary of nearly a hundred words, and charmed everyone she met. Once, a famous singer came to our house for a fitting, her husband told us that our dog was a drama queen. We do not know what transpired between them while my sister Mimi fitted his wife in the next room. Autumn was from a fighting line but our cats could slap her any day she bothered them.

Pit bulls came from fierce big Bulldogs and mastiffs from England in the 1700s. They were the only dogs courageous enough to go inside the ring and face the bull, bite him and tire him till he falls. When this sport was outlawed in the 1800s, the lower and middle classes thought of another use for these dogs. They experimented and bred the big Bulldog/Mastiffs with terriers, but the ideal characteristics still had to be there, namely: courage, strength, tenacity, agility, human friendly but animal aggressive. This sport was eventually banned as well, due to the cruelty and violence to the dogs, inside and outside the pits. Many owners who lost their bets took it out on the poor dogs. Some owners even torture their dogs who refuse to fight.

The breeds were brought to the US by immigrants, and during that time the Pitbulls enjoyed good reputation. Sgt. Stubby, a Pitbull of unknown descent, was the most decorated war dog in American history. Weela, owned by the Watkins family, is probably the superstar of all dogs, having rescued 30 people, 29 dogs, a cat, and 13 horses on different occasions. She had hauled sacks of feeds for some animals stranded on an island over a period of a month, saving the animals from hunger and death. Another Pitbull, Popsicle, is the star drug-sniffing dog at the Mexican border of Hidalgo, Texas, having bungled a record smuggle attempt of 3,075 pounds of cocaine.

I am not saying that these dogs are angels. On the contrary, these dogs are not for everyone. They need a lot of attention, as in not ideal to be left in the house alone. They will really bug you for attention and love whether you like it or not. They are athletic and powerful, which means they need a lot of exercise and playing with them can get rough because they do not know how powerful they are. Mimi and I have a lot of bruises from bumping into them. And unknown to many, Pitbulls do not make good guard dogs unless you train them to be because they do not bark that much. Autumn was afraid of the dark and needed to be accompanied when she went out to pee at night. She also thought that she was the family’s PR, welcoming and flirting with anyone who came to visit. They are also highly hierarchical, and will test and dominate you if you do not show them who’s the boss. Lastly, Pitbulls have to be socialized early, two months preferably, so that they will not be animal aggressive.

Many Pitbull owners have approached me, whenever they see us with Bud. I do likewise when I see an owner with a Pit. We feel a kinship, this love of a stigmatized dog. We will often compare notes, on how their kids ride the Pit as a horse, and how they know to be gentle with small humans.

Yes, there are many people like us who do not believe in Breed Specific Legislation that bans certain breeds. People still own Pitbulls and fight for their right to existence, their right not to be in the pit. These are good dogs. It’s the people who make them bad.

If you think that these dogs were bred to fight so they need to fight, why don’t you go into the pit and fight for your life too?