Dogs scare me. I have become gradually more and more comfortable with canines since we adopted a dog ourselves. Revy (though he was a pain in the ass as a puppy) has turned out to be well behaved, loving, and gentle. At two and a half years old, he has become the perfect family pet. Most of the dogs I meet day-to-day have been friendly and joyful.
Yesterday while walking Revy on the river channel, we were attacked by a pitt bull. We have just recently started letting Revy run off leash at this location, and he was running to and fro, in and out of the water, and greeting all the dogs he came across. When he greeted a pitt bull, Kent called him back (as usual), and he turned to come to us. The pitt bull tore out of its owner's grasp on the leash and bolted after Revy, latching on to his throat and locking down.
Kent immediately rushed to the dogs and pried the pitt bull's jaws apart with his bare hands. He freed Revy, but it immediately re-locked onto Revy's chest! Again, Kent reached into its mouth and forced its jaws apart. This time Revy escaped. Kent had the presence of mind to stay and get some personal information from the owner. (After a few words exchanged) they civilly discussed the breed, the origin and history, and the needs and dangers of the animal. As it happens the owner had recently taken charge of the 9 year old dog as a rehabilitation attempt by Hug-a-bull. He had little experience or training with dogs and was ineffectual in attempting to intervene in the incident.
The upshot: Kent's hand has deep cuts from the teeth as he wrenched them open. He went to hospital where it was treated and dressed, and he needs a course of antibiotics. There is nerve damage in one finger, and he may never regain feeling in the extremity. Revy has puncture wounds in the neck and chest. Our vet was closed over the weekend and I had to take him to the emergency vet in Summerland. He needed drainage and pain management immediately and will be treated by our own vet as soon as they open on Monday.
The fallout: We have been in contact with Hug-a-bull about their rescue animal. We have made a police report about the incident. We are waiting to see what, if any, lasting physical damage has occurred. We have requested that the dog be euthanized due to its unpredictable, dangerous behaviour. This is not something we are in the habit of advocating, but this episode has brought new light to the matter.
I have always been an animal lover. Though shy of dogs, I have not been in agreement of blaming or banning particular breeds, nor have I relished the thought of euthanizing animals. However, having witnessed this dog's immediate, intense, and committed viciousness, I may have had a change of heart. I do not see how we can in good conscience allow a dangerous animal to walk among us in the community. What if it had attacked a child? What if Kent had not been present or had not known how to diffuse the lock-bite of a pitt bull? I agree that the unpredictable nature and killer instinct of this breed is unfortunate and not a result of the dogs being "evil", but a result of human intervention over countless generations breeding, abusing, and training the animals to be aggressive killers. That fault lies with the type of person who enjoys the "sport" of fighting dogs or the thrill of keeping dangerous attack animals. That said, though it's unfortunate for the rest of the breed, I fear by their very nature that we cannot completely trust them as pets and members of our community. Yes, there are good, kind, gentle pitt bulls. Yes, there are aggressive and dangerous dogs of other breeds too. But because this breed has been systematically and historically bred for the kill, I do not believe I will ever be comfortable spending time with them.
Now what about the human problem? It has been humans who strategically honed this breed as above, and humans who have abused and used the dogs. If we ban pitt bulls, wouldn't those same humans just choose another breed and do the same over time?
