The State of the American Dog

[WilliamPitt]

The State of the American Dog
The most ubiquitous dog in the U. S. - the dog in whose face we see our collective reflection—is now the pit bull. Which makes it curious that we as a culture kill as many as three thousand of them per day.
By Tom Junod
Esquire

June 14 2014

It was night, and we—my daughter and I—were walking our dog. His name was, and is, Dexter. He was, and is, a pit bull. We had just gotten him. We'd had him for four days. An ambulance came slowly and silently up the street, its light whirling. It stopped in front of a house, and we watched an emergency technician climb out. Then a woman began shouting, "Watch out—he doesn't like other dogs!" I looked away from the house being visited by the ambulance to the house next door. The woman who had shouted the warning was standing in the doorway; her dog, at full tilt, was already halfway across her lawn, its teeth bared, its eyes as big as eggs. It was a cocker spaniel, a breed well known for its aggressiveness toward both dogs and humans. And it was heading for my pit bull.

I stepped between Dexter and the dog charging him. I was used to this—I had just lost a pit bull whom I'd had for eleven years and whom I'd frequently had to protect. I'd had success dissuading dogs from attacking him by posturing and by unleashing torrents of unhinged obscenity. Despite my daughter's presence, I tried both on the cocker spaniel. But he went right past me, seemingly right through me. I tried to kick him but missed, and when I turned around, he was already on Dexter's neck.

It was not a good idea. The cocker spaniel weighed about thirty pounds. Dexter weighed sixty, with a head scaled to a dog twice his size. The length of Dexter's slender body, indeed, was just a suspension bridge between the edifices of his head and his hind legs. I looked, and the cocker spaniel was biting Dexter's neck; I looked again and Dexter was gripping the cocker spaniel's. I told my daughter to run to the house where the woman had opened her door to look at the ambulance and mistakenly let her dog outside. Then I tried to save the cocker spaniel's life so that I could save Dexter's.

(snip)

This is a story about an American dog: my dog, Dexter. And because Dexter is a pit bull, this is also a story about the American dog, because pit bulls have changed the way Americans think about dogs in general. Reviled, pit bulls have become representative. There is no other dog that figures as often in the national narrative—no other dog as vilified on the evening news, no other dog as defended on television programs, no other dog as mythologized by both its enemies and its advocates, no other dog as discriminated against, no other dog as wantonly bred, no other dog as frequently abused, no other dog as promiscuously abandoned, no other dog as likely to end up in an animal shelter, no other dog as likely to be rescued, no other dog as likely to be killed. In a way, the pit bull has become the only American dog, because it is the only American dog that has become an American metaphor—and the only American dog that people bother to name. When a cocker spaniel bites, it does so as a member of its species; it is never anything but a dog. When a pit bull bites, it does so as a member of its breed. A pit bull is never anything but a pit bull.

The rest: http://www.esquire.com/features/american-dog-0814?click=smart&kw=ist&src=smart&mag=ESQ&link=http://www.esquire.com/features/american-dog-0814

[Zorra]

1. Yep, exactly. A pit bull is never anything but a pit bull.

That's why I greatly prefer most any other breed of dog over a pit bull.

[get the red out]

2. I am only going to say a little

I am grateful every day for my spunky little Border Collie mix. She needs a lot of exercise, a job to do, sometimes enjoys the sound of her own voice, wants to herd other dogs, and is terrified of loud noises. Most dog mixes and pure breeds have those who like their characteristics and those who don't and it is completely allowable to discuss the pros and cons of each. One type of dog can inspire death threats over such discussion, and unless one is fully prepared to lose good friends in the world of dog lovers, you had better tread very carefully with every word. I'm not saying I "hate" any breed/land-race/type of dog on Earth, I love dogs so much I literally couldn't say that; but I hate it when there are things that just cannot be discussed.

I've said too much, I'll go back to my agility trials and dealing with canine noise phobias now; I'm comfortable with that.

[Zorra]

4. I love dogs, and the breed of dog I choose for a friend is based

on the general characteristics the breed of dog was bred for. One of these characteristics is a high intelligence level, another is temperament, and another is the type of symbiotic activity with people that the dog has been bred for.

My dogs and I have always worked together as a partnership based on trust and mutual respect. I have had 6 dogs that grew to adulthood in my life. None of them ever injured another dog or attacked or bit a person.

All of them were great friends, and were also that rare phenomenon ~ sensible, productive, reliable, no drama family members.

Having a dog breed that was bred for biting and blood sports never seemed like a good idea to me.

[get the red out]

5. I have to agree for my husband and I

We wanted such a dog as well, and found one.

I think what the article graced over is the horrific over-breeding of Pit Bull type dogs. They are the least likely dogs to be neutered of any other breed or mix. People who want to be nice rescue people don't seem to approach this, but this is what is sending dogs to their deaths more than the fact that a lot of folks aren't fond of them.

[herding cats]

3. That was a great article about who we are, and where our responsibilities lie.

Not just in relation to pit bulls, either. Which may not have been the author's objective, or at least not their main objective, but it is what I'm walking away with standing out in my mind most of all.

[greatlaurel]

6. Well written article, shocked such an insightful ariticle was written by Mr. Junod.

Thanks for the link. Pit bulls really are just dogs. Each dog has their own personality, even within breeds there is a huge variablity of personalities. We have a purebred yellow lab from a reputable breeder and she was properly socialized as a pup. She has never been mistreated in any way. She is sweet as an angel with the family, but is a drooling, vicious monster to anyone with whom she is not familiar. We are very isolated, so we do not have to worry about her being a threat to anyone. Because we live in a small community, we are known as the people with that "crazy" dog. Word gets around.

The article cleverly highlights the problem of having a culture where everything and everyone is disposable. Possessions, pets, family members who become inconvenient are disposable. Women, who are not attractive, are disposable by our culture. Migrant children running for their lives are disposable. American school children are disposable so the corporations can make more money. Employees are disposable. Whole classes of Americans and even entire communities are deemed disposable.

Pit Bulls are symptoms and victims of our failing culture.