Quote:
Originally posted by honeychile
I'm sure that many people have wonderful, fun, loving pitbulls, too - but that's not what they were bred to be. I told my story only because if Shiloh could turn on someone, so could any other of the protection dogs. It's the same as having a gun in the house - it's there to protect you, but that doesn't mean it can't be used against you, too. You learn how to cut the odds, but you're never 100% positive...
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Just about any dog can turn at just about any time, it's not just about "protection dogs."
One of the first instincts of a dog is for prtoection of self and then protection of owner, regardless of breed. If that species of dog feels that they might be in harm or their owner might be in harm, they'll attack. Now what triggers this, I'm not sure because dogs have different degrees of understanding.
But dogs can be trained to feel certain degrees of comfort and they have to be trained properly. The dog my parents have right now is a German Shepherd/Huskie mix. He's a monster of a dog and he weighs like 130 lbs. Yet, he was trained from day one to be gentle and caring. He's never even snarled, not at another person or at another dog. Hell, he even whines and jumps near the closest person when he hears thunder.
In your story, the Dobermans run the ranch, regardless of their training in obedience and agility, they have a different sense of protection because of that area. If they were trained cue words that you guys knew what to or not to say, well that's part of the problem right there. If there are actions that dogs are trained to do and you know when or when not to say them, it's in their training.
In any event, this simply is not fair - this pitbull ban in Denver that is. There is no true justification for it.