Changing Perceptions One Paw at a Time

First, a disclaimer:  I love my husband, and one of the things that first attracted me to him was that he was a huge animal lover and didn't think I was crazy for having 4 cats. We've added a 5th since being together.

So, despite this admirable trait, it has always bugged me that he makes negative comments about pitbulls. 

Oh yeah, I have read all of the news stories that make these dogs out to be Jaws on land, but having worked in animal shelters for 8 years, I just don't buy into the hype.  Have I encountered some nasty pitbulls? Of COURSE!  Honestly, though, I think I've met more mean Chihuahuas than mean pitbulls.  And my apologies to all of the Chihuahua lovers out there!

So I was curious to see my husband's reaction this past Sunday when we went to a cookout at my friend Sarah's house.  Sarah, by the way, has 3 dogs, all pittie mixes, and an 8-month-old daughter.

Sure enough, my son loved the dogs, and the dogs loved him.  We weren't there longer than 10 minutes before he had gotten kisses from the dogs and used them to pull himself up.  As we all enjoyed the beautiful afternoon, I was so happy my husband was there to witness for himself the sweetness these dogs possess.

The reality is that any dog can bite, which means that any dog could do serious harm to a child.  As a parent, it is my job to be responsible for both my child's safety and my dogs.  This means I have to constantly supervise them.  This means making sure I ask a dog owner if their dog is friendly before I let my child approach. This means that when my dogs have rawhides, the baby is in bed asleep.  And this means keeping my own dogs locked up when friend's kids come to visit, because, unlike Sarah's dogs, my little Lhasa Apso isn't so fond of strange children.

My husband might not be ready yet to go out and adopt a pittie yet, but I'll keep working on him. And in the meantime, I'm glad other people out there give them a chance as the family pet and wish more would.  They definitely deserve it!


***Thanks Sarah for the pictures of your doggies with your beautiful little girl!