5
I saw that back leg twitching. I'm still not sure if dogs smile but if they do, Billie did. I was starting...to like this animal. We were pretty slow that afternoon and Marie had to run some errands and I stayed with the dogs and my biggest regret that day was not getting somebody to take a photo because by 5:00 pm, out in the sandlot, a 70 lb. pit bull that once called the ghetto home, was sitting on my lap...napping. So yea, would this one positive interaction with a pit change my views on them? Well, it certainly helped. And lead me to do some research I may otherwise not have done. We hear a lot of fugly stories about this breed and...That’s not a bad thing, necessarily. Let's be honest, as wonderful a dog as they may be, they still maybe need a little less prodding than say, a Chihuahua to do damage. But it certainly is the upbringing and the owner deserving either the credit or the blame for his or her dog's actions. In my opinion, blame should possibly include prosecution in some cases but this is a happy column right now and we'll get into that kind of thing another day.
That day with Billie inspired me to pay more attention to the other, positive, stories that came out about pit bulls and rotts. This past May, a pit bull prevented a woman and her 12 year old son from a home invasion in Oklahoma City. A couple months before I met Billie, a charming pit named Bo alerted his neighbor's daughter to a stray dog trapped in a nearby canal, getting overpowered by water, and in serious danger of drowning. The doggie's life was saved. So, you think, these dogs help their owners and other dogs...big deal? Well, a few months before that, a guy walking his pit bull Cobain (awesome name by the way!) was led by the frantic animal's nose and keen suspicion to an elderly woman who'd fallen in a ditch and was out of view of passing cars. She as well, was saved. There are articles like this all over the internet - one just has to set aside his or her preconceived bias and pay attention to them. So I just had a new niece baby born into the family - am I ready to have a neighborhood pit terrier babysit her? Not exactly. I still think this breed needs to be treated with the same type of care and responsibility as a loaded gun. I don't mean for that line to upset anyone or connotate violence - I just mean that part of the breed's attraction is its protective nature and that's a wonderful, positive thing. Maybe they do need a little more TLC than a compact little pug and...So what? Those who adopt pits should know that and as a society we need to hold them accountable to give that puppy all the love, training, affection and nurturing it deserves.
Jeremy Derifield
Photo: Billie-girl
A little about me:
My name is Jeremy. I am a cat owner, a male one at that, and those credentials immediately make me suspect. I get it. For what it's worth, I do really like the little varmint and though the sentiments are rarely reciprocated, I still keep her around and treat her like, if not a princess...we'll try to give this a masculine context - I treat her like a blue chip college football recruit. Basically, like Texas A&M treats Johnny Manziel, I just give her anything she wants. Three or more consecutive meows and I drop whatever I am doing and run, usually, to the kitchen. I expect no thanks and that's a good thing because I am not getting any. People do ask me - WHY would you tolerate that, when dogs love unconditionally, dogs show gratitude, dogs remember who the heck you even are when you return back to the house? I wish I had answers. Perhaps in the coming months you can help me reach them. In the meantime, the cat wants me to open a window and turn on some AC/DC (her favorite) so I can't talk right now I'm sorry!