aggressive dogs

[shootthebandit]

i was thinking about this, i often see people with aggressive breeds such as rottweilers (sp?). im my opinion such dogs should only be used as guard dogs or as a pet if the owner can properly train and control it. i certainly wouldnt share my house with a dangerous animal.
im not saying all dogs of these breeds are like that but they need someone who can train and handle them

in my opinion people with these dogs are just showing off. these type of owners with dogs like that are a bad combination

what do you think, should people be allowed such dogs to raise their ego at the expense of other people's safety

 

[smearyllama]

You have a point.
Rottweilers, German Shepherds, and other such dogs are magnificent animals, but the way people decide "I'm gonna get this dog to show off how cool I am" and then leave it in the yard on its own is stupid.

 

[Verp]

Saying that a Rottweiler needs an owner who can train and handle them is kind of mundane, isn't it? I mean, that's what ALL dogs need and should have, invariably! If a person cannot properly train or handle a dog, they have no business having one whether it's a molosser breed or a lapdog.

Furthermore, most dogs that are of enough size and mass to kill a person are potentially dangerous. Some dogs are more dangerous than others and the same applies to different breeds, certainly, but I urge you to not be fazed by the reputation and looks of a dog. That's what establishes them as desirable to the wrong kinds of people in the first place. That's what establishes certain dog breeds as more newsworthy than others when they maul and/or kill a person, which makes the reputation even worse.

At least don't buy everything they say in the news. They often throw numbers around about many different breeds and how they rank in various things but these numbers often come from very unreliable sources. Check the source before spreading it as fact -- see how the numbers have been produced.

I've noticed over the years that there's always one or a few trendy dog breeds to hate and they occasionally change -- when I was very little, it was German Shepherds, in my country at least. Yet, nowadays people would laugh at my face if I told them that German Shepherds are devil dogs that should be put down. A few years ago people here were hysteric about Bullmastiffs and most recently it was Rottweilers again after some time of rest from the hysteria machine.

It gets even more interesting when you observe that when you cross the nearest border, the dog breeds that are the most trendy to hate there tend to differ from what's currently on your country's menu.

 

[RatRace123]

Eh, regardless of dog breed they should all get proper training and attention, if people buy one just to show off then they probably shouldn't get one at all.
Getting one as a security system is perfectly reasonable, but still it needs training and attention, otherwise you just have a violent set of teeth and claws in your front yard.

 

[Swaki]

oh hells yeah, i used to live on a farm (i still cant forgive my mother for suddenly deciding that we needed to live on a farm) and a guy living down the road had two very aggressive and very big dogs, they where an actual health hazard for my sister and i, but if you do get attacked you should look straight at the dog and then yell as loud as you can, it worked for us, they tried charging us 3 times but after that i guess we had proved dominance or whatever, and mind you we where 10 and 11 and both very scrawny, so it should definitely work for you, if not and it does bite you, punch it on the nose, a dogs nose is the equivalent of a mans testicles, or at least that's what we where told back then, running does nothing as most dogs will easily outrun you.

is it any wonder that i moved back to the city at 15, or that i really, really hate dogs.

 

[Bakuryukun]

Breed is never the problem, Owners are always the problem.

 

[TeeBs]

I don't know why but every German Shepard I have seen have been really sweet dogs, a little frightened sometimes but never hostile.

I've always owned simple non threatening dogs such as Dachshunds and Golden Retrievers so I don't really have any experience on the matter.

 

[Kwaren]

I have a german shepard and she is sweet to everyone except other dogs.

 

[suicide samurai]

Breed is never the problem, Owners are always the problem.

This is easily disputed.

Dogs have been engineered to be a certain way--sheperding, hounding, hunting, defense, companionship, show.

Some dogs make better hunting dogs, while others are best herding sheep. Some have been bred to fight and kill, such as Mastiffs, which were used for wolf-hunting.

I will agree that owners are the problem, however.

Think of dogs as if they are cars. One can race a Corvette, but not a Kia. Many times, inexperienced drivers don't know what the hell they're doing. They're much safer with a Kia than a Corvette, and I've seen this same action in dog owners.

Edit: grammer.

 

[Blueruler182]

I do deliveries for a living, and let me tell you what I've learned about dogs in this career. I see a few every night, and they all want to say hi, no matter the breed. Wanna know the aggressive ones? The ones in the bad parts of town, with the bad owners. The most lovable dog I have ever met has been a rotty. Hell, I don't think I've actually met a rotty that wasn't a great dog. I have seen lil dogs in a bad part of town who are downright satanic. The same can be said about any animal, including people. Whoever raises them is the reason they are what they are, it's nothing about breed, and it's got very little to do with training. Hell, a regular at my job has one of the scariest looking part-wolf breeds out there and he is just adorable.

 

[Athol]

Saying that a Rottweiler needs an owner who can train and handle them is kind of mundane, isn't it? I mean, that's what ALL dogs need and should have, invariably! If a person cannot properly train or handle a dog, they have no business having one whether it's a molosser breed or a lapdog.

Furthermore, most dogs that are of enough size and mass to kill a person are potentially dangerous. Some dogs are more dangerous than others and the same applies to different breeds, certainly, but I urge you to not be fazed by the reputation and looks of a dog. That's what establishes them as desirable to the wrong kinds of people in the first place. That's what establishes certain dog breeds as more newsworthy than others when they maul and/or kill a person, which makes the reputation even worse.

At least don't buy everything they say in the news. They often throw numbers around about many different breeds and how they rank in various things but these numbers often come from very unreliable sources. Check the source before spreading it as fact -- see how the numbers have been produced.

I've noticed over the years that there's always one or a few trendy dog breeds to hate and they occasionally change -- when I was very little, it was German Shepherds, in my country at least. Yet, nowadays people would laugh at my face if I told them that German Shepherds are devil dogs that should be put down. A few years ago people here were hysteric about Bullmastiffs and most recently it was Rottweilers again after some time of rest from the hysteria machine.

It gets even more interesting when you observe that when you cross the nearest border, the dog breeds that are the most trendy to hate there tend to differ from what's currently on your country's menu.

Thank you, thats pretty much what I wanted to say, but Im far to lazy to type that much

The dogs Ive had the most problem with, are the little "pocket rats" that are popular with old people. Vicious, untrained little monsters that try to bit you in the back of the leg when you're not looking...not all of them mind you, but alot of the ones I've met.

 

[emeraldrafael]

To raise their ego? no.

as loving pets or guard dogs? why not.

My uncle has a doberman. Its red, doesnt have its ears clipped and is like a baby really. My granddad had six german shepards gorwing up, each loving and good with kids (at least he said so). If they can be trained right, I dont see why not. They can be good dogs if you train them right.

 

[snide_cake]

Most times if a dog is brought up properly with correct training and respect, it will be a good dog, regardless of its breed or size. Such instances of a dog snapping and biting without cause are rare.

There are the exceptions to this rule though.

My parents brought two puppies home - they were both female, Dobermann cross German Shepherd. They were raised in the same manner, and yet one was a 'fear biter'. This meant that yes, she would bite out of pure fear. She got it in her head one day to leap over the 6 ft gate and attack another dog across the street.

Thankfully neither animal was hurt, but we decided to put our dog down.

Her sister grew up to be a gentle, well-trained dog who is now 15 years old and has never drawn blood or bitten out of malice.

I myself now have two large dogs - one Labrador Retriever and one Great Dane.

There is no doubt in my mind that these dogs would defend me should I feel threatened. But there is also no doubt in my mind that these dogs are well-trained, well-behaved animals who don't have a hint of malice or fear in their make-up.

It's all about respect and training. You can't own a dog if you are going to ignore the fact that it's a descendant of a vicious pack animal.

No amount of obedience training is going to dilute its instincts.

 

[Simskiller]

When I move out and actually get a house I'm going to get a Rottweiler and make him a big soppy puppy like my current clingy golden retriever (I have two one is waaaay to clingy the other still likes to be petted but is more distant.)

I basically want to make an oxymoron out of my dog and not have people fear rotties as they're cute.

 

[heavy-metal-ink]

People often get dogs (staffies, German Shepherds, mastiffs etc.) to make them look hard, Housing estates over here in Britain are infested with them and they make the rest of us normal dog owners look bad.
In my own experience (owned German Shepherds all my life, had many friends with staffies, pitbulls and other 'dangerous' dogs that were completely harmless because they were trained to shy away from humans - to the point where my girlfriends dog was almost kicked to death by some little shits that lived down the street from her, it basically laid there and let them do it because it had been trained not to react) Its the owner that makes the dog vicious, and most of them do it on purpose sadly.

 

[M Rotter]

I think its a combination of people and the dog's physiology that creates those stigmas about certain breeds. I mean rottweilers, pitt bulls, german shepherds and the like are powerful dogs, so they were used for guard dogs and canine units in the police force, but not because they were vicious dogs to begin with, but because their physiology suited those occupations. Over time, they were bred meaner to be more useful, so there are mean streaks in that breed but the way to overcome that is picking the dog carefully (like looking at the temperaments of the parents etc.) and training bad behaviors out of a dog. Sure some dogs are untrainable after a certain point, but taken early, any dog can be trained any way you like.

So i think the real question is, if an owner is going to train their dog to be mean, why should they allowed to own pets? Especially training dogs with the ability to do serious harm.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

Eh, regardless of dog breed they should all get proper training and attention, if people buy one just to show off then they probably shouldn't get one at all.
Getting one as a security system is perfectly reasonable, but still it needs training and attention, otherwise you just have a violent set of teeth and claws in your front yard.

A violent set of teeth and claws is an incredible security system though, even if it tends to have IFF troubles.

 

[Me55enger]

Breed is never the problem, Owners are always the problem.

I disagree.

If aggression of a breed isn't a factor, why are German Shepard's and Rottweilers preferred as guard dogs?

Breed is definitely a problem. but is saying that, I agree that owners are always (always) the problems. Here in the UK we're getting more and more news reports of folks getting mauled to death by what is, 7 times out of 10, Stafford bull terriers.

There is a problem when the dog would beat the owner in an IQ test. and in the UK, that's not hard.

 

[Samuel Cook]

I think you should apply for a license to own a dog, where they give you a day course on how to give basic training, how to treat it, and such. They should also have a look at your house, to make sure it's safe for a dog.

 

[Bernzz]

Some people have no idea about animals. Really grinds my gears.

A rottweiler is only aggressive if it is brought up in a certain way. If it's brought up as a loved family pet, that's what it'll be. If it's raised as a guard dog, that's what it'll be.

If any dog is raised to be gentle, they will be. Saying people should only have them as guard dogs and not as pets is ignorant. A rottweiler may have a natural tendency towards aggression, at least more than a different breed of dog, but doesn't change a thing. It's all how they're brought up.