Kim_MacMillan
Posted : 8/16/2011 7:25:08 AM
While it sounds like the Pitty and owners definitely have a lot of red flags, that may have you be on alert for awhile, on the other hand it sounds like Gibby has his own issues too!
Of course Gibby lately has grown up and decided he needs to protect our house so runs barking at the door with every sound he hears. I have to be very very careful because my outside door doesn't close by itself very good all the time..and we never got into the habit of making sure its closed good. Hard to break that now, but Gibby could natually push the door open anyway unless its locked which it never is.
I guess the only thing we can do is NEVER let Gibby out without being leashed...but I can't get my DH to go along with that...he keeps running him out quickly.
Gibby will come back........won't run away........but I know he would run to that dog....
If this were to ever happen, please keep in mind that any altercation would at that point be your dog's (ie your) fault. That is not to sound mean, but if she is walking her own dog - on leash - down the sidewalk and your own dog takes off to them - off leash - , then regardless of the aggression in the Pitty, it would still be your fault for not having your dog contained. The only unfair part about the situation is that the Pitbull *may* be blamed because of it's breed, even though it was the leashed one at the time, when in reality it could be ANY breed walking that is DA, And that wouldn't be very fair, but unfortunately that is what would happen.
The only reason I say that is I have a huge pet peeve from working with DA dogs, when people let their "friendly" dogs (who aren't always that friendly, but often quite rude) run loose or charge to the sidewalk to "say hi" and then blame the responsible owners with the DA dogs for trying to do the right thing by keeping control of their dog!
The best you can do to make sure that you are being responsible, and keeping everyone safe, is to keep your own dog leashed and contained on your property so that he cannot reach the road and passersby. And to make sure that your door is securely shut - hard habit to break, sure, but again a necessity if you want to keep your dog safe. It's sooooo easy to preach "that dog is aggressive!!", but if it ends up being YOUR dog who causes the fight, because it pushes through a door and barrels outside, or because it runs up to them off-leash, then it doesn't much matter, does it? LOL.
I know it can be hard to have a dog-aggressive dog in your neighbourhood. It takes some getting used to, and you do have to be more cautious. Being more cautious, though, starts with making sure that you have done everything for your own dog and house to ensure the best possible outcomes.