[ygohome]

What are people's opinions of boxers, boston terriers, and english bulldogs at dog parks?



Personally I hate all dog parks and think they are the worst thing ever, but I am curious if people would apply the same unwritten rule to the above 'softened' bully breeds.

I have an English Bulldog. I don't like taking him to the dog parks just because theres so many unknown dogs (not to mention the owners). A dog could be sick or with a bad temperment and youd never know it till its too late

My dog does fine with his neighbor hood dog buddies. But last time I went to a dog park another owner came up to bullitt and was petting him very roughly (shaking his head back and forth with both his hands). I told him Bullitt doesn't like it when you do that, but the guy thought he knew better. "Good Boy! Good Boy! You love this dont you!" Next thing you know Bullitt decides to set the guy straight.

...in a quick instant Bullitt snapped at the mans hand once and then again a second time very quickly and held on for a second or two. The guys hand was a mess (the meat of his palm and back hand tissue). The guy was in shock and bleeding pretty good and when he finished his little muffled screaming bit he said, "thats okay, my fault" and quickly began running off towards his dog. I said, "yep, he doesn't like rough handling". Bullitt was on his leesh by the way. We took off towards the car after that and havn't been back in years. He has his own family of local buddies to hang with.

 

[bryand]

The comment that a pit bull may not start a fight but it will certainly finish it hit home with me. I have had my pit bull for about a year after adopting her from the humane society. I let her off leash in dog parks a few times when I first got her, and for the most part it was uneventful, but I had a few cases where dogs got aggressive with her, and she was on top of them before I even knew what was happening. I decided never to let her off leash again after this happened a second time. No dogs were hurt, but their owners were terrified and it gave my dog a bad reputation (is it our fault that their dogs are weak?).

This weekend while walking her I met a guy with a Doberman. He told me that his last dog had been a pit bull and that it had killed another dog about five years ago. Nothing happened to him at the time because there were lots of witnesses that the other dog started the fight. The pit bull certainly finished it.

In the present climate, it won't matter which dog starts the fight. If the pit bull finishes it, it will be put to death and the owner charged.

 

[sjburns]

I take April and Jack to an enclosure for dogs at a nearby park. There are always lots of kids there because of the sports fields and playground, and I want them to be socialized with kids. I always walk them before taking them into the enclosure and always wait for the enclosure to be empty. If someone else comes up, I ask them to wait while I leash my dogs so we can leave.

What I really hate is those people that let their dogs come running up to the enclosure already off the leash. One Saturday morning, an I-Don't-Know-What dog came up with noone anywhere near it while we were waiting to go in. It was growling and snarling through the fence at the dogs (3) already in the enclosure, then it was trying to pick a fight with mine. Of course, Jack nipped his nose and he ran back to the fence to start trouble over there.

Finally, a little old lady comes walking up with a leash in her hand and opens the gate for the dog. Of course, the dogs in the enclosure all started fighting with him because of what he was doing through the fence. When the dust settled, the dog wasn't terribly hurt because the other dog owners were already on alert and were quick to control their dogs, more or less. But, the lady was really upset and left with him right away.

Just think how upset she would have been if she had walked up to her dog laying on the ground half dead because another dog had gotten a hold of him while he was loose outside the enclosure. A LOT could have happened in the amount of time it took for her to get to the enclosure.

 

[jbyrdslady]

Dog parks

I take Carter to our local dog park at least 4 days out of the week. He goes there to play and be social. When I go back I will take pictures of the variety of dogs that he is with.

 

[lovebeingme76]

Ok since you quoted me I will reply......

Lets just say you are 30 yards from your dog, I'm not even sure what kind of Bull-breed you own, but lets just suppose. Now along comes Mr. attitude mutt and starts trouble with your dog. Unless your a world class Olympic sprinter (which I'm guesssing your not) it will take you at least 6-8 seconds just to realize what's happening and get to your animal. In that length of time most any AB or APBT would kill a small dog or seriously injure anything else.

First off, 30 yards would take all of 5 seconds to get to. Yeah that is a long time and much damage can happen.

However, I can guarantee my dog would roll. I have seen it far too often. She is absolutely positively submissive to other dogs. I required that of her. Yeah that could cause some issues with another vicious dog attacking her but like I said I pay attention to my dog and others. It isn't hard to see who the problem makers are going to be at a dog park.

Most dogs are not going to attack if a dog is submissive to them. But yes if Lucy was truly attacked I have no idea how she would react. If some dog managed to attack her then that is a failure on my part.

I guess I am some miracle worker or something with my dog. When I got Lucy, I did a lot of socialization. During socialization, any dominant or aggressive behavior was corrected. She learned from a very young age that dominant behavior was not acceptable with any dog or human. She is submissive.

But I guess you guys are correct because she could just snap and attack another dog. Just like I hear about all the APBTs I see on TV. Maybe the BSL is correct. :roll:

I am not going to argue this anymore but I am glad all the bulldog owners believe fully that their dogs can't be trained and socialized in a way that allows them to be around other dogs.

My girl APBT Bella was the most submissive dog I'd ever met. She was adopted at 8 weeks and socailized like crazy, she went to obedience classes, and was always taught to not be dominent EVER. I trusted her COMPLETELY! She was the sweetest, most laid back dog....UNTIL.....she was attacked by another dog. You cannot predict how another dog will react, you DO NOT know how your dog will react when attacked. In my case, this other dog attacked Bella, and she did not bite back.....she laid down and whined/cried and the other dog would NOT LET GO! The other dogs intent was to kill Bella. Nothing I did could stop what was happening......I kicked, I punched, I screamed, I dragged the attacking dog by her hind legs, I tried to talk calmly (like that was gonna work...)... I called 911 for christs sake!!! It was horrible, and it changed my dog forever. She is no longer the sweet trusting girl I brought up....I just can't see taking the risk of allowing her to be brutalized again by another dog just so she can "have fun" at a dog park.

 

[Cookies Mom]

Ok since you quoted me I will reply......

Lets just say you are 30 yards from your dog, I'm not even sure what kind of Bull-breed you own, but lets just suppose. Now along comes Mr. attitude mutt and starts trouble with your dog. Unless your a world class Olympic sprinter (which I'm guesssing your not) it will take you at least 6-8 seconds just to realize what's happening and get to your animal. In that length of time most any AB or APBT would kill a small dog or seriously injure anything else.

First off, 30 yards would take all of 5 seconds to get to. Yeah that is a long time and much damage can happen.

However, I can guarantee my dog would roll. I have seen it far too often. She is absolutely positively submissive to other dogs. I required that of her. Yeah that could cause some issues with another vicious dog attacking her but like I said I pay attention to my dog and others. It isn't hard to see who the problem makers are going to be at a dog park.

Most dogs are not going to attack if a dog is submissive to them. But yes if Lucy was truly attacked I have no idea how she would react. If some dog managed to attack her then that is a failure on my part.

I guess I am some miracle worker or something with my dog. When I got Lucy, I did a lot of socialization. During socialization, any dominant or aggressive behavior was corrected. She learned from a very young age that dominant behavior was not acceptable with any dog or human. She is submissive.

But I guess you guys are correct because she could just snap and attack another dog. Just like I hear about all the APBTs I see on TV. Maybe the BSL is correct. :roll:

I am not going to argue this anymore but I am glad all the bulldog owners believe fully that their dogs can't be trained and socialized in a way that allows them to be around other dogs.

now let me just tell you my little story,CC was socialized with other dogs when she was a pup, she liked them all. about two mo. ago a mutt bit her in the face, just missing her eye, grant you it wasn't in a dog park, she was on a leash(she never goes anywhere without one).when she was bit, she didn't yelp didn't growl just snapped onto that mutt's muzzle! I literly had to pull her moth of of the other dog! now she can't be near any other dog. but dog aggression is compleatly different then people aggression, the only people she is aggressive towards is people that are high on crack, don't know why she's llike that, but hey thats not a bad thing in my book.

 

[i love remy]

the only people she is aggressive towards is people that are high on crack

:shock:

 

[yungster]

I think I remember that story. Or else someone else posted a story about their dog growling at a crackhead on the sidewalk. I vaguely remember something about it..because it got everyone talking about how dogs can sense when someone is "off."

 

[vaughndyer1]

Re: I don't completely agree

Personaly I believe bull breeds bring stability to the table especially at dog parks. The unstability comes from herding or hype dogs that don't get the proper exercise prior to coming to a dog park.

Although this is mostly true, bullys are usually more stable IMO, who do you think is going to win the fight when the little yappy jack russel starts with a bully? And who do you think will be blamed for whatever happens regardless of who started it? The bully of course. Especially if it is or looks like a pit. The bully would be put down in many places. My AB girl is a very happy stable dog and I'm sure she will remain this way. But I think its playing with fire to allow your dog off leash in a dog park. Its in their blood to be aggressive to other dogs. Some may think "My dog would never hurt another dog. He has never showed any signs of it". It only takes one time. I value my dogs life more than her being able to run free with strange dogs.

I absolutely agree! I would never risk my dogs at a DOG PARK without a leash . It only takes one signal or move to trigger a dog and then let the fights begin!!!My dog may not start the fight but it is not in their blood to back down either. Just wouldnt risk it I love them too much for that!!!

 

[Tyger9791]

Honey was a good pup. we took her to the dog park when she was a puppy to play with our neighborhood dogs. we were cautious, whenever someone came in that we didnt know or we just werent sure about we'd take her out.
well one day we were at the park and this guy came in with his male bull dog. he didnt come in through the gate, he just tossed his dog OVER the fence so we werent prepared. we didnt have time to even get Honey. He bolted straight for her and attacked her. he pinned her up against the fence. it took 5 people to get the bull off of her.

we found out that the male was a stud. and his owner had tried to breed him with another female but it was unsuccessful...because his dog nearly KILLED the female! so he brings this dog to the park?!?
anyway, Honey wasnt hurt too badly, mostly just superficial cuts and scrapes, fortunately. but she doesnt like other adult dogs besides ours. she's fine around puppies though. and she gets defensive when other dogs approach her, she immediately will raise the hair on her back and sometimes even growl. she used to be submissive. now she's the alpha. because of that, we cant foster other females. and we will only foster male puppies under a year old. so they wont challenge her.

 

[420puffer]

So true. Great informative message. I do not allow my dog to play with any other dog unsupervised. I brought my dog as a pup thinking it was good to socialize him with other dogs since he was young and did not show any dog aggression. But that was a mistake. Never trust a APBT not to fight. Besides that, there are irresponsible owners there. A rott got jealous because its owner was petting my dog and the rott charged aggressively at my dog (pit mix). My dog was only 7 months at that time & did not back down. Luckily the rott was just putting up a front and backed off. I had my dog leashed at that time because I was leaving. Never again will I take that risk by going to a dog park or beach. The whole time, the owner of the rott stood there & had no control over her dog

 

[Philly'sMom]

My dog phil goes nuts at dog parks, too many people and dogs around...he wears himself out!

 

[valleygrls98]

I have taken my pit bull to the dog park everyday for the last three years and never had an incedent. I think it is good to be couscious but I think that all dogs are diffrent. In fact I have seen several bloody fights two of wich involved labs and one of which was between two jack russles. you never know !!

 

[PitBullRoyalty]

Maybe the BSL is correct. :roll:

Take that back..
:x

BSL is in no way "correct". It is a stupid law that is punishing all the decent pit owners for things that a couple bad apples have done.

About dog parks.. I take my little girl to a small dog run and have seen MANY pits playing together in the large dog run. It is dangerous. Playdates are fine.. having your dog play with one or two other (large) dogs in the park is OK. But if there are like 20 dogs running around DO NOT let your dog go in there!

There is no way anyone can control that situation.

 

[Yemi]

My girl APBT Bella was the most submissive dog I'd ever met. She was adopted at 8 weeks and socailized like crazy, she went to obedience classes, and was always taught to not be dominent EVER. I trusted her COMPLETELY! She was the sweetest, most laid back dog....UNTIL.....she was attacked by another dog. You cannot predict how another dog will react, you DO NOT know how your dog will react when attacked. In my case, this other dog attacked Bella, and she did not bite back.....she laid down and whined/cried and the other dog would NOT LET GO! The other dogs intent was to kill Bella. Nothing I did could stop what was happening......I kicked, I punched, I screamed, I dragged the attacking dog by her hind legs, I tried to talk calmly (like that was gonna work...)... I called 911 for christs sake!!! It was horrible, and it changed my dog forever. She is no longer the sweet trusting girl I brought up....I just can't see taking the risk of allowing her to be brutalized again by another dog just so she can "have fun" at a dog park.

OMG that must have been awful, obviously for your dog, but it must have been terrifying for you. I don't know what I would do if Yemi was attacked like that. I was nearly crying reading that, it must have been so horrible not being able to help your dog.

 

[jazz]

Ok, I have owned many dogs ( i work at the local SPCA in montreal) and i have seen what bull types can do.. but i also seen what Akita's, german sheppards, labs, goldens, heck even a poodle can do.

it don't matter if you're dog is from any breed, if you're dog a stupid dog and thinks he owns the world, then just keep him at home.

Dog parks are great place..............For dogs. not for ppl.
Ppl are stupid, ppl think they know best... let you dog decide, if she acts up. then she's not ment to play in the dog park when doggie X is in there.

hell, if you put 20 different type of ppl in a closed space and they are good manered ppl, there's bound to have scuffles.

And im sorry, but i don't believe in the killer gene in dogs. If you think they have it because of there past history.. just look at the human history.
were monsters compared to these 4 legged bundle of wrinkly goodness.

that's my 2 canadian cents

so thats like 1.3 american cents hehehehe

 

[Francis]

Other breeds

I have noticed, not through statistics, but through observation, a severe increase in aggression in Labs and Golden Retrievers. I think to single out our breeds is unfortunate, but necessary in order to protect both our dogs and our rights. We just need to be smart, and keep our dogs on a leash unless we're in a safe place with dogs that our dog either knows, or has been properly introduced/socialized.

 

[BamBam's Dad]

I prefer "playdates" to dog parks.

 

[Chrisnjen]

Aside from the various parasites and microbes that like to attach themselves to your dog at any given dog park, taking a bully breed into one, imho, is just asking for trouble. From personal experience, once they decide to go at it, you're not going to stop them.

I had Maddi for almost a year, took her places with me, let her play freely with other dogs, etc. I was in the same mindset as the rest of the "oh my dog would never do that" types.

Yeah...right. One night at my parents', their female got a little testy when Maddi went near my dad. My parents' dog (Sadie) curled her lip and made one little agressive move - didn't bite, didn't even snap - toward Maddi and that was all it took. My dad was right next to them and I was only on the other side of the living room. It took Maddi about 3 seconds to rip an 8 inch gash, clear down into the fat and muscle tissue, across Sadie's back - and Maddi wasn't even thinking about stoping there. We literally had to pull them apart (which is not the right way to do it, in hindsight - always carry a break stick). If we both hadn't been standing right there, Sadie would have been dead, absolutely no question. It took about 80 stitches to put Sadie back together. It was horrible. I have never - EVER - trusted Maddi around another dog after that, with the exception of Chance.

Even then, Maddi (AB) and Chance (APBT) have gotten into it twice - once was a small scuffle over food, once was a medium dustup over a toy. I am 6'3" about 250, former paratrooper and in pretty good shape. The second time, I could BARELY get them separated, and I got bit in the process. Once these dogs make up their minds to fight, whatever control you think you might have over them is absolutely laughable, and you are a fool if you think otherwise.

 

[Cookies Mom]

Aside from the various parasites and microbes that like to attach themselves to your dog at any given dog park, taking a bully breed into one, imho, is just asking for trouble. From personal experience, once they decide to go at it, you're not going to stop them.

Once these dogs make up their minds to fight, whatever control you think you might have over them is absolutely laughable, and you are a fool if you think otherwise.

I agree