[Janegael]

Hi,

My husband and I run a small rescue and took in a puppy. He appear to be purebred pit and knowing the area he came from is probably from fighting stock. He is only 4-5 weeks old and in the last week I've had to literally pry him loose from our little Shih tzu/Schnauzer's ear and from our other Shih tzu's tail where he was basically water skiing around the kitchen. He can barely toddle but heads straight for your pants leg, latches on and proceeds to have a tug of war. We are discouraging this behavior and find it worrisome.

We are NOT pit savy by any means although we have more than a couple right now. We are still learning about the breed. We don't know if this little bugger is displaying early aggression, or if this is a normal way for male pit pups to play.

Any thoughs on his behavior would be appreciated.

Peace,
Jane and the Hole in the Wall Gang

 

[Janegael]

Whew... Thanks for the reassurance!!!

I've never met such a young pit and didn't know what to expect. That he most likely comes from fighters had me a bit worried as I was afraid he might have more aggression/prey drive... than a pup from a show line. He's supposed to be six weeks old tomorrow but his eyes are still blue and he still toddles. I think they under estimated his age, or maybe I'm comparing him to the litter of Shih tzu/schnauzer pups we just had and they mature faster being small dogs.

He's probably just being a male terrier. I've heard of people dragging Jack Russels around on their cuff before. He is sweet when you pick him up but will chew on you, I think he really misses not having been able to nurse long enough. I tried to give him a bit of chicken last night and he rammed his nose into my palm and sucked on it.

The other dogs are taking him down a peg. We have two mothers, the world greatest auntie, a grouchy old bitch who wouldn't harm a pup but doesn't like them at all and Uncle Alex, a hugh German shepherd who sounds as if he will eat puppies up but tollerates their antics more than most. When the pup gets sassy he gets put in his place. We have two Plott hound/pit pups who are 4.5 months old and they play too roughly with him if I don't watch them. When he's feeling put upon he heads for the Shih tzu family who have a longer fuse, although I did find Lei Tzu, the mom, in the back room sitting at the back of the farthest crate. I guess she figured he wouldn't find her there. LOL

Gracelyn...I'm SO sorry to hear about your bite. Could they reattach your finger?? I was bitten badly enough when our pointer/hound and German shepherd decided to kill each other. I thought having my finger split open was bad enough -- I can't imagine this. I'm afraid of pit bulls too -- well strange ones anyway. But then it's good to be leery of any strange large dog. The ones I really avoid are the Chihuahuas. They bite like pirhana and are too fast to stop.

I read an article the other day and found out for the first time that pits can be excellent SAR dogs. I know they are smart, but it never occurred to me that they would be used for this. Maybe if more of them get out there the breed can start having a different reputation.

My avitar is Gloria a young pit we adopted several months ago. When she was only about four months old she was beaten so badly by the woman who owned her that it has fused her jaw and caused extensive and permanent brain damage. She was to be a fighter and I guess it didn't work out so the woman tried to kill her. Then she was dragging her through the street in Manhattan of all places to sell as a bait dog. She was bought by an angel for $50 and rehabilitated as much as is possible. She's from fighting stock and is very sweet and loving, so I guess I shouldn't worry about this pup so much. Poor little guy doesn't even have a name yet. Have to think of something.

Peace,
Jane and the Hole in the Wall Gang
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