LAB/PITBULL MIX HELP PLEASE

This is Miss Molly.  She was a day away from being put to sleep because she is a lab/pit.  Her owner had to move and couldn't take her.  Molly has been a true asset to our family.  Great foot warmer in our cold northeast winters.  Don't let the "pit" scare you.  They are great dogs too.  Good luck in your decision.  Just wanted to share our story. 

I actually have a staffie/lab mix. She is awesome, but I can tell you two negative things from experience:
 
1.  High dominance drive and stubborn.  It took a lot of time and training to get our dog to admit that she was not the pack alpha.
2.  Unbelievable pain tolerance and independent.  This makes training a challenge. Positive reinforcement is not as effective as with other dogs, because this dog doesn't value treats/praise as much as other dogs.  On the flip side, correction has to be exceedlingy firm even to register--other dogs probably couldn't handle the levels of correction neccesary just to get this dog's attention.

We spent loads of time in obedience class and home training with ours, and now she is an ACK Canine Good Citizen, outstanding watchdog, and near-perfect pet.  We can leave her at home alone for hours and not have to worry about anything.  We can leave the baby, the baby's toys, newspapers, shoes, anything we want on the floor and she won't touch it.  She doesn't jump. she rarely barks, she limits herself to the "okay" couch as far as furniture goes.  But it took a LOT of time to get her to this point.
 
Summary:  if the dog you are thinking of adopting is anything like our pitt/lab, then you have to watch out for the negatives--which are large--and the amount of work--which probably exceeds that required for just about any other dog.  The upside is a near-perfect, rock reliable pet.

ORIGINAL: WWJNGD

I actually have a staffie/lab mix. She is awesome, but I can tell you two negative things from experience:

1.  High dominance drive and stubborn.  It took a lot of time and training to get our dog to admit that she was not the pack alpha.
2.  Unbelievable pain tolerance and independent.  This makes training a challenge. Positive reinforcement is not as effective as with other dogs, because this dog doesn't value treats/praise as much as other dogs.  On the flip side, correction has to be exceedlingy firm even to register--other dogs probably couldn't handle the levels of correction neccesary just to get this dog's attention.

We spent loads of time in obedience class and home training with ours, and now she is an ACK Canine Good Citizen, outstanding watchdog, and near-perfect pet.  We can leave her at home alone for hours and not have to worry about anything.  We can leave the baby, the baby's toys, newspapers, shoes, anything we want on the floor and she won't touch it.  She doesn't jump. she rarely barks, she limits herself to the "okay" couch as far as furniture goes.  But it took a LOT of time to get her to this point.

Summary:  if the dog you are thinking of adopting is anything like our pitt/lab, then you have to watch out for the negatives--which are large--and the amount of work--which probably exceeds that required for just about any other dog.  The upside is a near-perfect, rock reliable pet.

This is totally based on experience and Im sure varies on a case by case basis, but from my experience, pit bulls are always eager to please. My dog was easily treat and +R trained. It didn't take much to train him other than treats and praise, especially because of their eager to please nature.

my dogs are also highly motivated by *food*.  i found basic obedience very easy to train; it's the "tough stuff" for every dog that was harder:  recall, reactivity....  i do find that they are both very easily distracted, even when there is food available, and under no circumstances can they be trusted off leash anywhere other than a fenced area (with an 8 foot fence[]) or in wwiiiiiddddeeeee open country.   in the city- never.  too much to do/smell/chase, and i just don't believe that i'm as interesting as the squirrel in the tree across 4 lanes of speeding traffic.......

Honestly, I think if YOU feel weird about pit bulls, you should not have one. Or if you think everyone you ever meet is going to judge a pit by his breed, don't get one.
 
My sister has a pit bull and never takes him anywhere because she's so worried that people will be scared of him. He's this super duper sweet boy, wouldn't hurt a fly, and she won't walk him because she doesn't want the neighbors to see him, she won't take him to the dog park, because she just "knows" pits aren't allowed there (I've proven this isn't true to her several times..she doesn't believe me, she's sure someone will say something to her), she won't take him to the beach because she's sure people will be scared of him, etc. That is WRONG, IMO. She should be taking him EVERYWHERE so people know pit bulls aren't bad, lus so he doesn't BECOME bad.
 
So yeah, if you have reservations about pit bulls as a whole, definitely educate yourself about them before you get one (even a mix), or else don't get one.
 
Just my opinion.

Wonderful posts.
I agree with Chelsea, if you're looking to adopt ANY dog with pit in them, educate yourself on the breed first. Yes, they tend to have high prey-drives, but I've considered other dogs for the future and I cannot see myself owning anything but a pit bull. I say this because I trust my current pit mix SO MUCH with my children, I cannot see trusting any other breed so much with my children.

But it is very important that you educate yourself. Don't be worried about other people being afraid of your dog. Once you get your dog you should show the world how wonderful your dog IS. But, be warned, these dogs DO have a tendancy to be dog aggressive and I would NOT advise ANYONE to take a pit bull or pit mix to a dog park. Pit bulls don't belong at dog parks. EVER, IMO.

Good luck!

But, be warned, these dogs DO have a tendancy to be dog aggressive and I would NOT advise ANYONE to take a pit bull or pit mix to a dog park. Pit bulls don't belong at dog parks. EVER, IMO.

That comports with my experience.  My pitt mix plays too rough with other dogs to be allowed to run free off a leash in a dog park.  She does great on a leash, because she knows no playing with other dogs is allowed on leash.  But off the leash -- I would know she was playing, but I doubt the other dogs' owners would see it that way, or appreciate it.

We have a lab/pit/ maybe-someting-else-we-don;t-know what-your-basic-mutt
and and adopted her when she was 5 months old. Great dog, smartest dog we've ever
had, loves everyone , human or canine.   I have read that  a lot of the problems with
pitbulls comes with males who have not been altered. Ours is a female and fixed, so
there's that to consider.
Pam

I agree Rebecca. No pit bull should ever be brought to a dog park.  Believe me, I am tempted all the time, but I never do.
 
The problems are many, first of all, for any dog, the parks are not the cleanest place for them to play.
 
Additionally, in terms of pits, even if your dog is not DA (which if it is, it absolutely should not be there) if another dog starts with your dog, your dog will defend itself, and it is inevitable that regardless of the situation, the pit bull will be blamed.  This will help to further tarnish the reputation of pit bulls, which we all know doesn't need to be done. 
 
There are plenty of other ways to safely socialize your dog... especially through supervised play with a  dog that yours gets along with, that is the proper size, etc.  Otherwise, some pits aren't going to be able to play with other dogs, and thats the bottom line. 
 
Your dog can also be socialized through group obedience courses, etc.

I had a pitt/ lab mix... just wanted to let you know pitts are suseptable to lymphoma and so is any pitt mix check the back of your dogs legs just above the knee back and the neck. if you feel a lump get it to your vet asap to be sure! I know this seems like its out of the blue but I loved my lab pitt mix very much and wish she was still with us. with early detection you can have your pet around longer!

Pit bulls and labrador retrievers are both excellent breeds and they are totally gentle.  I would go for it if I were you!  The only thing I would be worried about though as far as pit bulls go, is the fact that other people may not accept him.  Not that you should care what others think, but some people may go as far as calling the police or something like that, only because you have a totally sweet, harmless pit bull/lab mix.

I first want to say that I know almost nothing about pitbulls. I adopted a dog about a year and a half ago from a pound. I was told the dog was a boxer when I adopted it. Now I believe he is a pitbull. I was looking for a beagle mix, but when I met this dog (Rocky Dog) I fell in love. I took my kids to meet him at the pound a number of different times and we took him for walks and the more we got to know him the more sure I was that he was a great fit for my family. Since the adoption he has became the perfect family addition. He is fantastic with all of my children (daughter 2.5 y, sons 10 and 11years). (He has never had a single accident in my house and only drops wast in tall grass near the woods. He almost never barks and has been friendly with most all people and dogs. He has barked and growled at 2 strangers that approched our car uninvited.) He was a little nervous when we brought him home and seemed afraid of sticks. I think he may have been hit before with a stick, but he has over come that fear now. He is so very affectionate that he loves to lay on the floor with my kids and even wraps his legs around them as they all sleep. He wants constant affection and loves to sit in our laps. It was only this past week when I realized that he may actually be a pitbull mix of some sort. I was at a park for a festival where there where many many dogs. I saw a dog that looked like my dog so I ask the owner about the breed. I had never been sure about Rocky Dogs breed because the technitions at the Vets office had been so vegg about it when I ask. They had said maby pitbull but I of course did not want to hear that and they said "we'll say boxer, beagle, hound" So when the owner of that dog at the park told me his dog was a pitbull-greatdane mix, it all sort of clicked. I remembered how many people who had seen pitbulls had told me that he looked like a pitbull and I had responded that he was a boxer mixed with some hound or beagle. So the point that I wanted to make was that I would have never adopted my dog if I had known he was a pitbull because my childrens safety is the most important aspect we considered when choosing a pet. And without personal knowlege about the bread I would have considered only the horror stories and legends. Now however after living with Rocky Dog for a almost 2 years and spending time with my cousins Pitbull. I would be looking for a pit mix if I was to look for another dog. Hope this helps, - get as much info as you can and please let me know how it turns out for you. :)

this post is over 2 years old...

alieliza

I agree Rebecca. No pit bull should ever be brought to a dog park.  Believe me, I am tempted all the time, but I never do.
 
The problems are many, first of all, for any dog, the parks are not the cleanest place for them to play.
 
Additionally, in terms of pits, even if your dog is not DA (which if it is, it absolutely should not be there) if another dog starts with your dog, your dog will defend itself, and it is inevitable that regardless of the situation, the pit bull will be blamed.  This will help to further tarnish the reputation of pit bulls, which we all know doesn't need to be done.

 

 ITA. Also something to consider if your pit bull is not DA is that IME at the doggy daycare, wild "free-for-all" type play with a bunch of strange dogs may actually bring out DA tendencies. There were multiple Pit Bull and very Pit Bull-y mixes that were approved for daycare, had never shown dog aggression and did really well at first. But as time went on (sometimes weeks, sometimes months), the play tended to get rougher and rougher until it turned into fighting and showing signs of DA elsewhere. I suspect in some of these dogs, had they not been exposed to the daycare environment they my have gon their whole life without showing DA. The daycare dogs of all breeds had a strong tendency to develop on lead DA when out and about, I think because most were poorly trained and unable to deal with the frustration of seeing other dogs in a different environment. With breeds that are very prone to DA, I simply wouldn't a take chance on daycares or dog parks.

http://www.pbrc.net/socializing.html

 http://www.badrap.org/rescue/dogpark.cfm

badrap

if you can handle what people might think, and you're not worried about being evicted, i say; FORGET THE "BREED", go with your heart.

 

I totally agree!!  I have 2 pits and they are, without a doubt, the best dogs that I have ever owned!  They are so loving and they want to make you happy.  They are super great with Madison and she loves them!