Give the pit bulls a chance

To many dog lovers, donating to animal shelter is one of the best things that people can do to help our beloved canines.

Our big donations, as well as the spare change that we donate to some shelters, is being used to give animals food, possibly water, grooming, exercise equipment, toys and treats. It is also being used to pay vets, as well as dog trainers and other workers, and it is being used to pay for other things such as bedding, rescue missions...

And to kill pit bulls as soon as they arrive. Yes. You read that correctly. You may not believe it, but some of the so-called most dog-loving, animal-friendly people in the world are killing pit bulls solely because of their breed.

Pit bulls are one of the most misunderstood dogs in the world. Because of their "aggressive", "tough" and strong looks, and their trainability, pit bulls seem to attract the wrong crowd. People who want a big, tough dog to "improve" their own image get these dogs and then either do not train or socialise them properly or intentionally train them to be aggressive in order to make themselves look even tougher.

However, when a pit bull is trained, socialised and, to some extent, bred correctly, they can become very loyal, loving and affectionate dogs. In fact, did you know that pit bulls have worked as therapy dogs, search-and-rescue dogs, assistance dogs and even TV stars before? Petey, from "The Little Rascals", was a pit bull type. Do you really think that the parents of the kids that starred in the TV show would really want their children to be working alongside a dangerous, vicious dog?

In fact, even acts of heroism by pit bulls who have had little or even no special training are not unheard of. Angel the pit bull defended a mother and her child, saving them from a man who threatened them with a weapon. Weela the pit bull saved 30 people, 29 dogs, 13 horses and a cat from a flood and/or its aftermath. In fact, if you look up about this on the web, you will find dozens of other hero dog stories about pit bulls. I think that, rather than just killing pit bulls as soon as they arrive, you should at least give these dogs a chance first.

Next time a pit bull comes into your shelter, I urge you to actually pluck up the courage to go up and actually meet the dog and take them, on a leash, over to see other dogs before you make quick judgements about them based on their breed/type and urge you to do this. I promise that, unless, of course, the dog in question is obviously aggressive, you will not regret doing this...