Grrrrr..... I Hate Stupid People.

[luvofallhorses]

I love Pheonix and screw what everyone says about him. Just smile and keep walking. I don't the OP is in the wrong, I would have done the same thing.

[Asiel]

I guess that would make me stupid too because I'm deathly afraid of Pits. Not because I've ever had a bad experience myself but because of the media and how some little kids were badly mauled by one. I'm also very unstable on my feet so I know I would never stand a chance against one. Do I hate them? No, of course not, I love all dogs. But I would be just as afraid to pass next to one as that elderly lady was, I probably wouldn't ask the question she did but I would wait till the dog was gone before passing.
I have large breed dogs myself that many people fear because they don't know my dogs, am I offended? Not at all, If someone shows fear regardless of the circumstance I reassure them and move my dogs away from them.

[luvofallhorses]

I don't know why you guys are defending the older lady. Everyone does that with pit bulls these days and it makes me sad. I would be upset too. Maybe the lady isn't "stupid" I would call her uneducated but still I would never ask if a dog would bite me. She could have went a different way and not be so rude.

I love pit bulls. What if it was your dog the person was afraid of? Maybe you could live in her shoes for a minute and see how upset she was. I am sick of breed discrimination and I doubt that is the first and only lady to say that to her wonderful dogs. To KNOW them is to LOVE them.

[Freedom]

People who don't know dogs can be tough to deal with.

I "think" I know something about dogs. I never go near a dog I don't know unless I ask first. No, I don't ask, "will it bite me." I DO ask if the dog is friendly, may I pet it' or "is it OK to pass or would you prefer I go around" or some such.

Not knowing much about dogs, she may just not have known the proper way to ask what she was trying to determine.

I also agree with Catlady711 --
- unknown dog
- older person
- camo jacket
- HUGE collar, leash and choke chain


Don't take it personally. Folks often ask me, "do they bite?" If I am in a mood, I reply "only from the ankles down."
LOVE Karen's suggestion!

[luvofallhorses]

He only has a huge collar because pit bulls necks are thick.

[carole]

I think you are being a tad over sensitive but then aren't we all when it comes to our beloved pets.
I would not call the lady stupid either, but perhaps she should have thought before she spoke, she could have said something like oh what a cute dog, is he friendly to strangers? i think it is all about the approach really, so i get why you felt annoyed.

Although i have to say down under the ONLY reports i have ever seen about dog attacks have mostly been pit bulls, so i think the Media has a big responsibility here in how they are portrayed, it makes people even myself wary of them.

[Twisterdog]

I totally agree with Catlady 711.

My mother, who is 80 years old, would have been terrified of walking past your dog as well. She is by no means stupid. She is old, frail and raised in a different generation.

Many, many times I have seen posts here about how frustrating and potentially dangerous it is when people approach our dogs without asking. So this lady asks and she's "stupid"?

I understand how angry the "pit bull" comment made you. I've been told the same thing many times with foster, rescue and shelter bully breeds in tow. But, honestly, all you did was alienate her further, not only toward the breed, but now to the breed's owners as well.

IMO, it would have been FAR better if you would have said something like, "Actually, most pit bulls are very sweet, they just get a bad rap from the press. He's very nice, and won't hurt you at all. His name is Phoenix. Would you like to pet him?" You always catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. The goal is to educate and inform, not embarass and alienate.

[MonicanHonda]

My mother is terrified of "mean" looking dogs. She knows they won't attack, but they still scare her. She always thinks they know that she's afraid of them and will attack just her. hehehe. So I can see where people who are afraid come from. Sometimes it's not because they're uneducated or stupid... it's just because they are AFRAID!!! If people owned spiders... I would FLIP out if people brought them to a store!!!! LOL!!!! Ewww... creepy little nasty things.

I get lots of things about dalmatians also... oh they're just stupid dogs... or I even get that dalmatians are aggressive. They quickly learn differently when I show them Delta or Honda's tricks or when they meet them... they find out how loveable they are.

I have to say that the media has put a stigma on these dogs, and while I know these dogs can be total sweethearts... it's usually not the case where I come from. I always feel the need to show how sweet these dogs are and always welcome them with open arms, but there will always be that nagging in the back of my head. If someone says "Oh no, here comes a pit bull" at the dog park I am always the first one to pet it. I always allow my dogs to play with pit bulls.

What I would figure, is that if you had him in public, then obviously he's not vicious. BTW, his coat is adorable!!!!!! I love it!

[*LabLoverKEB*]

I totally agree with Catlady 711.

IMO, it would have been FAR better if you would have said something like, "Actually, most pit bulls are very sweet, they just get a bad rap from the press. He's very nice, and won't hurt you at all. His name is Phoenix. Would you like to pet him?" You always catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. The goal is to educate and inform, not embarass and alienate.

Couldn't agree more.
My mom isn't that fond if pitties- doesn't make her 'stupid'.
As most know, Pit Bulls can be fabulous dogs- IF they are raised in the right environment, and with the right person. As you stated, not all pit bulls are bad. But, unfortunately, they also have the potential to be aggressive when given the right opportunity. This is due to bad breeding and training.

That woman was just uneducated about the breed.

[apbtmom76]

I love Pheonix and screw what everyone says about him. Just smile and keep walking. I don't the OP is in the wrong, I would have done the same thing.

And he loves his Krista I guess if people knew me they would know I was being tame with the whole situation, lol

I guess that would make me stupid too because I'm deathly afraid of Pits. Not because I've ever had a bad experience myself but because of the media and how some little kids were badly mauled by one. I'm also very unstable on my feet so I know I would never stand a chance against one. Do I hate them? No, of course not, I love all dogs. But I would be just as afraid to pass next to one as that elderly lady was, I probably wouldn't ask the question she did but I would wait till the dog was gone before passing.
I have large breed dogs myself that many people fear because they don't know my dogs, am I offended? Not at all, If someone shows fear regardless of the circumstance I reassure them and move my dogs away from them.

So you hav never thought to educate yourself about the breed, you would rather remain one of the people we fight with BSL, who think that our breed should be banned for what they are, a breed? Well I too am a bit unsteady on my feet as I have a few back problems, Phoenix is with me to be my dog of all trades, lol, he helps me do a lot of things.

I don't know why you guys are defending the older lady. Everyone does that with pit bulls these days and it makes me sad. I would be upset too. Maybe the lady isn't "stupid" I would call her uneducated but still I would never ask if a dog would bite me. She could have went a different way and not be so rude.

I love pit bulls. What if it was your dog the person was afraid of? Maybe you could live in her shoes for a minute and see how upset she was. I am sick of breed discrimination and I doubt that is the first and only lady to say that to her wonderful dogs. To KNOW them is to LOVE them.

is all I will say to that, tahnks Krista, I do try so very ahrd to be a responsible owner and show people the GOOD side of this wonderful breed, I change minds, my crew makes sure of that

[apbtmom76]

People who don't know dogs can be tough to deal with.

I "think" I know something about dogs. I never go near a dog I don't know unless I ask first. No, I don't ask, "will it bite me." I DO ask if the dog is friendly, may I pet it' or "is it OK to pass or would you prefer I go around" or some such.

Not knowing much about dogs, she may just not have known the proper way to ask what she was trying to determine.

I also agree with Catlady711 --
- unknown dog
- older person
- camo jacket
- HUGE collar, leash and choke chain


Don't take it personally. Folks often ask me, "do they bite?" If I am in a mood, I reply "only from the ankles down."
LOVE Karen's suggestion!

Ok so seems he, Phoenix, is being stereotyped for his collar that he has on, Penny, Phoebe and Orion all wear a 1 1/2" collar and Penny has one of tose bully harnesses, does that make her mean, oh yeah she is an epileptic and a certified therapy dog. Phoenix does weight pull and the collar goes with his weight pull harness and lead, and is embroidered with his name on it with ALL of his tags on it.

He only has a huge collar because pit bulls necks are thick.

hahaha this is Neener we are talking about, the dog who pulls 3,300 lbs.

[Alysser]

I don't know why you guys are defending the older lady. Everyone does that with pit bulls these days and it makes me sad. I would be upset too. Maybe the lady isn't "stupid" I would call her uneducated but still I would never ask if a dog would bite me. She could have went a different way and not be so rude.

I love pit bulls. What if it was your dog the person was afraid of? Maybe you could live in her shoes for a minute and see how upset she was. I am sick of breed discrimination and I doubt that is the first and only lady to say that to her wonderful dogs. To KNOW them is to LOVE them.

I think it's a matter of educating rather then turning people off to the breed more. If she had not made the comment, and rather educated the women on Pitbulls a little bit and showed her a nice pitty maybe the women would have changed her mind on the subject. Instead, saying a comment may have turned her off more. While I hate breed discrimination, I don't by any means agree this lady was being "stupid". A better phrase for it would have been ignorant or close-minded, but not "stupid". You never know what kind of experience she could have had with dogs in the past, and honestly, walking into Lowe's a dog would be the last thing I'd expect to see. I've never seen a dog in that store before

Mikey is seen as a pitbull to quite a few people, I've gotten it maybe like 3 times - people asking if he's a pit. There's one guy who walks with his kid around the neighborhood and when he sees me and Mikey he goes across the street. I thought that was kinda weird..but I don't know. Maybe the little girl's afraid of dogs or maybe just more ignorance about someone thinking he's a pit and being scared.

[Scooter's Mom]

I am sick of breed discrimination

You're sick of breed discrimination, while I am sick of people discrimination.

I agree that the older lady probably just didn't know if the dog was mean or not and would have asked the same question of ANY dog.

[luvofallhorses]

You guys this is such a way to welcome a member who I consider a good friend. She was just VENTING - that's not against the rules here and you all drove her away. NOT FAIR!

[chocolatepuppy]

a lady about 50 maybe 55 to 60 years of age

Actually, I don't think this is considered old, not by me anyways.