Pittie Pix: Ezra Caldwell

Photographer Ezra Caldwell takes beautiful images of his white pit-mix, Putney. Some are action shots, others at rest, all of them are beautiful and show the elegance and sweetness of the breed.
Check out more photos here. Photos are available for purchase on Etsy.
Enjoy!

No "Bones" about it...

NBC's Bones' creator and author of the best-selling "Bones" series, Kathy Reichs, has a prejudice against Pit bulls. As a faithful watcher of her show and a loyal reader of her book series (I've now read about half of them), I've started to pick up on some distrubing trends. I love her series and her books, but this is yet another example of the pit bull stereotype being propagated without any basis and without really adding much to the story. It is unclear how much experience Reichs has with pit bulls, but based on the way she describes them, I doubt she has much.

Whenever Reichs refers to a strong, threatening or menacing character, she says he looks like a pit bull. I'd say it happens at least once-three times per novel.

Recently, while reading Fatal Voyage, I came across this scene:

A tow-truck has just picked Dr. Temperence Brennan up and she is entering the shop with her dog, Boyd, a chow-mix, who is described simply as "protective" when growling at the pit. (FYI- a breed that also may have some difficulties getting adopted because of its bad breeding practices that have led to some aggressive tenancies- read more)

"The flesh on Boyd's snout compressed against his gums. His body tensed. The growl deepened [...] Bowman met us with a length of rope. 'Had this in back,' he said. 'Flush can be peevish.' ... Crossing the lot, I stepped through the door and circled Flush. An ear twitched, but he didn't look up. Maybe pit bulls are calm because they are secure in the belief that they can kill anyone or anything that provokes them. I hoped Boyd would keep quiet and keep him distance [...] Boyd was straining at his collar, every fiber focused on the pit bull. Flush was either sleeping or playing possum, waiting for the chow to approach."

Sarcastically, she adds... "The garage had the usual tasteful garage appointments. A calendar ... a cigarette machine [...] Three kitchen chairs. A pit bull."

This fine art photo is for sale by Etsy photographer Andra Lara for $25, click here.

So so many things about this passage disappoint me as a pit bull owner, who knows that my dogs are not different from other breeds (particularly Chows), and neither of whom would be as well behaved as Flush is described. (Winnie would attack Tempe with wiggles and jump on her waist, and Bruno would bark and wag, alerting everyone of the stranger present.)

Nothing in the passage about Flush was menacing, and yet, because he is a pit bull, something is conveyed to the reading audience, that she or Boyd are in danger. Even while laying sweetly, he is somehow described as suspicious... playing possum perhaps.

I seriously recommend Kathy Reich's books, they are intriguing, scientific, have great character development, and get me through me 3 hours of commuting each day, but hope that perhaps with a well-written letter (and a picture of my sweet pit bulls) I can convince her to stop referring to them so negatively in her best-selling books.

Pit Bull Art: Gone to the dogs...

Randy Grim with Stray Rescue of St. Louis has been trying to rescue and revitalize the breed through his art. His message is very clear in the various pieces on display now in the Saint Louis University Museum of Art. Some of the pieces were even created by pit bulls themselves (with paws, tails and teeth.)

This art is very inspiring to pit bull lovers because it shows how many creative ways there are to spread the message about this down-trodden mis-understood breed. Words and pictures, blogs and articles, advertisements and public appearences- all help change minds. The more people hear and see both the sad side of the pit bulls' plight as well as the happy side of family life with a pit bull- the more homes these brave animals can have.

I love seeing new and interesting ways to affect peoples' consciences about these dogs and I love what Mr. Grim was able to do with his art.

Read more here.

Animal Farm Foundation Posters

Thanks to Animal Farm Foundation to reminding us all not to group pit bulls together-- they are all different and unique, all of them when through different experiences and have different reactions to other dogs and people.

One way I'd like to generalize however, is to assume that they all like love- they all are capable of receiving and enjoying human love and companionship- no matter what they have been through.

Enjoy their new poster-campaign:

Save Our Breed

I hate the fact that a dog born as a pit bull has been born into a life of prejudice, fear, and abuse. People are so scared of Bruno- which makes him scared of them. He lives his life in fear of people because he knows they can and have hurt him. We have recently stopped allowing him to sleep in the bed with us (he is a big boy now)- but he still sits by the bed and whimpers for human contact- to snuggle under the covers and keep us warm.

These dogs have so much loyalty, bravery, love and forgiveness for humans that they should be heroes- they have the potential other breeds may not to do search and rescue, bomb sniffing, to save people, to comfort people, to change lives. They have a spark of life and a gift of strength and loyalty that a lot of breeds lack. Unfortunately, they are also the most likely breed of dog to endure animal abuse and the number one breed killed in animal shelters.

This first video is hard to watch but it really helps show how abused this breed really is- how these dogs didn't ask to be born scary and used for sport- they were born soft and cuddly like any dog. They deserve so much more from the people that bring them into this world.

Pit-bull ownership is not easy- having a dog that looks anything like pitty means you often can't rent an apartment (more on this later) or get home-owners' insurance or can't even live in certain jurisdictions- see the varying and ridiculous definitions here. (When else does a "I know it when I see it" description really hold up legally?)

But it is worth it-I would never abandon my dogs so that I could live in a specific place- they are a part of my family now and all I want for them is to be accepted enough that they don't have to be scared of strangers.



Looking forward to this Documentary:

Update on Cookie & Lady and and theirPups

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I told you all about Lady, the pregnant Pittie that Animal Care and Control slated to be put to sleep? It turns out she would have been put down just nine days before her puppies were born.

Now she has a great foster home, has a new name (Maggie), and has delivered her pups. She was saved by Waggin Train Rescue and gave birth to 9 puppies. (That's a total of 10 lives saved!) If you are interested in adopting when the puppies and Mom are ready, fill out an application here.

Here is a video of Lady being a super "mouths-on" mommy :)


UPDATE:
Guess what!? In that same entry- I told you about Cookie, another pregnant mom to be put to sleep.
Well Cookie was also rescued (By Forgotten Friends of Long Island) and gave birth to her puppies as well. :)

"That's a Mean Mean Doggie!"

It appears that human beings are conditioned from an early age to be afraid of dogs that look like this:

No matter how sweet or gentle they might be.

This morning, as my boyfriend and I were walking Winnie and Bruno, the elevator we were in stopped on the way down, and a mother and her 2 year old little girl were about to get in.

The mother hesitated, and politely said she would wait - I wasn't offended because I wouldn't put my child in an elevator with two unknown big dogs either- but what surprised me was what the little girl said: "That's a mean mean doggie!" Even more surprising to me was that the Mother didn't appologize.

I guess children are taught from an early age from their parents and society what dogs to stay away from-- even though that girl would have only been attacked by slobbers all over her face if she had come into the elevator.

Sponsor Your Best Friend

If you are maxed out on space and time (like us) and can't possibly own or foster another dog, but desperately want to help more animals in need, you can sponsor an animal!

Best Friends Animal Society Sanctuary in Utah has over 1,700 animals on any given day and 244 animals that need sponsorship, each with a unique story and personality, needing constant care, attention, food, shelter, medical care, and love.

Of these 244 animals, 110 are dogs and 22 are dogs from the Vick estate in Virginia. Other dogs are survivors of Hurricane Katrina, animal abuse cases and abandonment. They are all so equally deserving of the resources that Best Friends can give them, but of all the dogs, the dog I'd most like to take home and spend time with was Squeaker.

Here is Squeaker's story & description:

"Squeaker is such a sweet, shy girl who lacks a little confidence. She gets really shy around new people and is very submissive when being handled. The caregivers are working with her to help build confidence and start prepping her for Canine Good Citizen classes.

She spends a lot of time over at Dogtown in the laundry room where it is quiet and she can rest, although, she does like to watch all the people zoom down the hallways. Sometimes when she is really happy she will get the zoomies and loves to run around around and gets so excited! She is also a big cuddle-bug. She likes to come and lay her head on her favorite caregiver's shoulder. She is such a cute girl!

Squeaker is one of the dogs rescued from the property of former NFL quarterback, Michael Vick. She is so happy to be safe and loved now. She has a million dollar smile and she is looking forward to a bright and wonderful future.

Won't you be apart of Squeaker's journey to confidence and success? Be her sponsor today!"

I am now sponsoring Squeaker with a small donation every month and look forward to hearing about her progress.

If you would like to sponsor an animal, click here.

Best Friends is an model for every shelter in the country and a wonderful place to visit- I am eager to plan a visit, myself, and maybe even get to meet Squeaker. While there, visitors can volunteer and even take some animals for sleep-over visits.

Operation Pit

The ASPCA's Operation Pit offers FREE wellness care to healthy Pit Bulls 3 months - 6 years.

Every Tuesday and Thursday by appointment
Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital
424 East 92nd Street (between 1st Ave. and York St.)
New York, NY
Call (877) 900-PITS

This is a fantastic program because it offers free spay and neuter and free microchipping/vaccinations to spayed and neutered pit bulls. They even recieve a free bandana and doggy tank top :) For many pit owners in New York City, these procedures are taken care of by the shelter that the dog came from. (Shelter dogs in New York must be spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped.) But for owners who buy their dogs from the internet or a neighbor whose dog had a litter, may never get these important procedures done. Hopefully this will help reduce the pit bull population in NYC.

Find the Pittie!

20 dog breeds are commonly confused with pit bull terriers. Can you figure out which one is the pittie in this group? I got half way through before I found him. Pittie Quiz! (take it here)
(Thanks to Dont be a Pit Bully for the link!)

When people assume all these dogs are the same breed, actions by so many dogs are grouped together making Pitties seem more dangerous than they are.

Fear of Little Boys

Bruno is terribly affraid of little boys-- and naturally, they are terribly afraid of him. I hate to think that he was abused by a child, but he only reacts to little boys of a certain age. His fear is not of children in general, which means its not their size or noise level or energy level, but the appearence of little boys. I feel out of my league in training him to not respond so negatively to them because I don't even know what he has been through.

We are not sure what to do, because now that Bruno has gotten more comfortable in our neighborhood and home and gotten better from his accident, he is showing much more aggression towards kids. In a neighborhood full of families and children, what could be worse?

It is a frightful thing because we don't want to scare children of course, and we don't want people to be afraid of Bruno-who we know to be a sweet and gentle dog. We don't want our landlord to even have to ask us to leave because Bruno is scaring the families. We want to advance the breeds reputation, not hurt it.

The ASPCA  has a great resource for all kinds of behavioral problems, including an entire page on Fear of Children. The ASPCA of course advises avoiding children, which is impossible for us where we live now. If unavoidable, they recommend a muzzel. The problem with this is that it makes him look scary, which is the last thing I want, but of course I understand that ultimately a muzzeled dog is less scary than a barking, lungeing dog.

The ASPCA also advises using the "U-Turn" technique, which actually works well for us outside (We see children coming and we either turn around or stop and make Bruno sit and pay attention to us for a treat.) But this is impossible inside. Near and among the elevators is actually where he is the most aggressive because of the surprise of children when the doors open. The surprise seems to be the worst part of it and the hardest thing to work around, which is why I am seriously considering a muzzel.

Muzzels, however, don't fix the problem but only cover it up. The ASPCA recommends psychological treatment called Desensitization and Counterconditioning (DSCC) and seeking the help of experts.

I am hoping that over the next few weeks the muzzel combined with the U-Turn and treats will be enough to help Bruno, because he is after all a very reslient dog who learns quickly.

The other thing that worries me is that breed profiles and specialists sometimes say that when pit bulls demonstrate any agression to humans and esspecially towards children, they may need be put to sleep, because they are not demonstrating typical or desireable breed temperment.

(See this Rescue Site- "Note: A pit bull that shows unprovoked human aggression, especially with children, is NOT typical of the breed and is showing very poor temperament. Such a dog should be thoroughly evaluated by a trainer or behaviorist experienced in the breed for a final determination of their temperament and recommendation on how to proceed.")

Statistics on Dog Bites/Children:
"Studies of dog bite injuries have reported that:

• The median age of patients bitten was 15 years, with children, especially boys aged 5 to 9 years, having the highest incidence rate
• The majority of dog attacks (61%) happen at home or in a familiar place. 
• The vast majority of biting dogs (77%) belong to the victim's family or a friend. "

Interestingly, although Pitbulls and Rottweilers account for more than half of dog-bite-deaths, they do not account for the same ammount of dog BITES. This means that Pit Bulls are plagued with the quality of being able to cause much more damage than other dogs. (For example, while Pomeranians may bite people just as much as Pit Bulls or even more, they rarely kill. Also, only 1% of bite-deaths occured while the dog was restrained and off the owners' property. (Read more here)) Pit Bulls are powerful and are extremely tenacious. We as pit bull owners need to remember that while they may be no meaner or fierer than other dogs, they are capable of much more damage when they do react- (why else would they be used to fighting?) and that is why I am taking Bruno's recent behavior so seriously.

Strangely, Bruno is extremely dog friendly and would never hurt a dog. He also snuggles with us on our bed and loves to lick our faces and gingerly accepts treats and shows no aggression to adults. After how much he has survived, I know that he is going to have a happy life, but I worry about 1) keeping him --because we plan on having children in the next 3-5 years, and 2) giving him up for adoption, because someone might not understand his unique needs and he could end up in the shelter again.

I love pit bulls and I welcome their good and bad qualities. Most of all, I want other people to love them as much as I do. I want to be a good owner who understands my dog's feelings and limitations. Hearing people say they are afraid of my pit bulls is the hardest thing for me to hear, so I need to to everything I can to help Bruno. If anyone has any advice or has dealt with a similar problem, please let me know.

What? Excuse you... I am not a pit bull!

Sadly, despite their sweetness, Pit mixes have trouble getting adopted everywhere. The result has been resorting to different names for pit mixes looking for homes.

The no-kill-Shelter where I will begin volunteering on Saturday has a lot of trouble adopting out dogs the moment they label them with "Pit-mix" on their website. Our pit-rotteiler-bulldog-chow-terrier mix, Winnie, came from Animal Haven and was labeled a Lab/Shepherd Mix.

We completely understand the need to do this- and I have watched the Animal Haven website so much that I have seen dogs go from "Pit Mix" to "Shepherd Mix" in an attempt to get them homes.

For example:

Notice that not one of these dogs is labeled a pit-mix. I know that Cha Cha, whose puppies have all found homes, has been at the Shelter for months (more than 3?), which is extremely rare for Animal Haven, which usually places dogs within a matter of a 2-3 weeks. The team has tried everything with these three dogs, such as changing their pirctures and giving them cute sweaters, to get them some attention. Luckily, they won't be put down just because of their size and pit-bull characteristics; if a home is not found in a certain length of time, they will go to another rescue group with more expertise. Cha Cha gets lots of attention from volunteers and is given as much stimuation as possible while she waits.

I have found that Animal Haven is more willing to label a dog a "pit-mix" when it is a small puppy because people are much less afraid of a baby. Although I have a feeling that once they grow up, if they are still at the shelter, their breeds might change to something like a "lab mix" or a "boxer mix" perhaps. See below:

Is this ethical? Well it has been done at a lot of shelters and even the DNA testing we have used don't even have a category for Pit-bulls. I guess they figure that they don't want to sell someone a $80 DNA test just to have them find out something they didn't want to know. Insted they tell you that your dog is a "American Staffordshire Terrier," which a lot of groups have tried to encourage lately.

The frustrating thing to me is that while some groups actively avoid the word "pit," Animal Care and Control seems to embrace it. Even when a dog doesn't even look much like a pit bull, it is a "pit mix." 90% of the dogs are pit mixes, and I'm sure they could come up with some creative names that might help save their lives. This is especially important because AC&C allows you to put in a "pure-bred request" so that if a Golden Retriever for example happens to come in, they will let you know. Adding that a dog might be a "Boxer Mix" would bring in all of the boxer-people just to look, which is all these sweet dogs really need to get adopted.

Too bad every dog can't get a DNA test to help show their genetic diversity. Too bad people are so focused on breed and so un-focused on heart.

pit-MIX

The great thing about pitbulls it their genetic diversity. People don't realize it but most dog breeds look 95% alike (think of all the Golden Retrievers or yellow Labs you have ever seen.) But since Pit Bulls have been allowed to breed at a faster rate and make up a large portion of the stray population, pit mixes can be not only extremely genetically healthy but so interesting to own. Think about it, pit mixes can be any color, any size, but they all have that loving wiggeling charm and loyalty about them.

We had our dog Winnie tested when we first got her; (see image below) it said that she was 25% Staffordshire terrier and some parts Toy Fox Terrir, Bulldog, Chowchow and Rottwieler. Not sure how much I trust it, but we're pretty sure she's a Pitador/Labrabull, at least she looks/acts that way. I found out recently that she came all alone with a rescue from Georgia to Animal Haven in Soho (I have all along thought that she was part of a litter rescued from a puppy mill in Missouri).

I had assumed Bruno was all pitty, not knowing what a 100% pit bull would even look like, I came across a Brindle-colored Great Dane on the web and decided that Bruno HAS to be part dane-- I see it mostly in the coloring, the dark black leathery lips and the giant head and long neck, but see for yourselves. Do you agree?

The Truth about Pit Bulls

Thanks to http://truthaboutpitbulls.blogspot.com/ for this video. It captures the way I feel about my Winnie- who falls asleep and wakes up as close to me as possible :)

The glass IS half full

When I started this blog, I thought about all the ways I could show what is happening to Pit bulls in the US-- how we bring them in to this world, abuse them, and take them out of it. The pain that many dogs face at the hands of their owners is not something I could turn my back to.

But so many organizations have made it their goal to educate and reach people about this injustice. I decided to focus more on a "glass -half- full" approach.

Over the next few months I will be learning as much as I can about the New York City shelter system and posting these adoptable beauties in hopes that they will melt some hearts.

I'll start by sharing a few dogs with you who desperately need their forever homes. All the dogs I have posted are dogs that have been said to have good temperments and sweet dispositions.

This is Spot, she is just a baby who had babies of her own. She was found emaciated in the Bronx. To learn more about this darling, click here.

 

This darling girl, Alexia, was found as a stray on the West side- Click here to learn more.

This is Sarah, who has been at Animal Haven (a no kill shelter) for a while, which is confusing considering how adorable this little girl is. Click here for more.

Welcome!

Hello and Welcome to my blog to help save American Pitt Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, and mixes from Euthanasia in the New York Metropolitan area.

Estimates are that 59% of dogs euthanized in the United States each year are Pitbulls or pit mixes. That comes to about 100,000 dogs killed every year.

Bias about this breeds agressiveness and BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) have kept these loyal and loving dogs from finding homes.

A study by the Center for Interaction of Animals and Society in 2008 found that certain breeds did score highly for agressiveness towards other animals and humans, speciaically Chihuahuas and Daschunds, and that Pit Bulls were only found to be slightly more agreesive than other breeds towards other dogs.

Any breed can be dog-agressive. Agressiveness towards other dogs should not preclude adoption, and doesn't. Only human-agressive dogs are euthanized, and as long as owners are responsible with their animals, dogs that show bad behaviors around other dogs can and should find loving one-pet homes.

There are hundreds of Pitt-specific resue groups, awareness groups, and even tv-shows to prove that this breed has won its way into the hearts of many humans and animals alike. Pit -mix owners know that the bias is unfounded and that the gentleness and loyalty of this enthusiastic breed is often used against it to encourage it to fight.

The pain and punishment this breed endures through the over-breeding, dog fighting, and euthanization is through no fault of its own. American society should reflect love and care for all people and animals that come into this world, especially if their plight is our own fault.

Please join me in my adventue to learn more about this breed and what can be done to save the lives of pitt-mixes in New York City shelters. Even if you are wary about this breed, it is an adventure worth taking. Who knows? Like me, you might find yourself waking up to kisses and tail wags from an adoring creature that cuddles up to you each night.