A Brutally Honest Post About Pit Bulls

When it comes to information online about pit bulls, it seems like there are 2 groups: 1 that says all pit bulls are vicious and need to be destroyed and another that says pit bulls are cuddly misunderstood animals. I'm hoping that this serves to be a more balanced opinion on them.

I'm not an animal expert and my views are just from my personal experience with them.

I did not have a positive first experience with pit bulls. When I was a teenager, there was one behind a chain link fence on a thick chain that snarled at everyone walking past in the parking lot of my doctor's office. That one dog made me avoid pit bulls whenever I could. I had agreed with BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) and agreed with killing all pit bulls.

That all changed when one dog taught me that not all are vicious. I was in the process of moving and my new roommate had a black and white pit bull that ran loose while I was touring the house. This dog wagged her tail and acted friendly, so I took a chance and petted her. The dog responded by wagging her tail and licking my hand. This one dog helped me change my mind on the breed.

Because of this pit bull, I learned they're not all vicious, except when they're trained to be and I became opposed to BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) I began to look at the breed in a whole new light. I realized that they're not all bad and that there are good ones out there too. This experience led me to search online and read stories about pit bulls actually saving people.

This and many other positive encounters with pit bulls has made me realize that they're not bad dogs if they're socialized and trained properly. They have the ability to be loving, friendly pets. My thoughts became that pit bulls aren't for everyone, but with the right owners, they can be excellent pets.

Fast forward to today. Yet again I moved, but this time inherited 2 pit bulls: a little pocket pit named Lightning Bug and a bully pit named Thunder Farts. These were the youngest dogs of the breed I've ever encountered and I've been working with them for almost 3 weeks.

Pit bulls are short haired furry assholes. I hate to be this brutally honest, but it's the truth. These 2 have managed to do the following: Shred trash all over the room, pull sheets off my bed, hog the bed, jump on my son and give him kisses, jump into a pond and track dirt all through the house, eat through the walls, and constantly escape. I leave the room for 2 minutes and when I come back, they act like I was gone for 2 months.

I've tried to train these 2. So far, all I've managed to successfully do is get them to come when they're called and they sorta stay. They also no longer make messes in the house (thanks to an established bathroom schedule), which means less messes to clean up. Currently, I'm working on having them master the Stay command, so far with mixed results. It's still a work in progress.

Climbing into bed is a workout and a half with pit bulls. They love getting directly into my path when I climb into bed, attempting to push me off the bed. I have to push them back, then I have to push them away when I give my son his medicine twice a day. These dogs are really fond of getting into the middle of everything.

In conclusion, I think that while pit bulls aren't for everyone, for those who have the time, energy, strength, and patience, they make great pets