Sick of my family hating Reggin

[youhavenoidea]

It's not just PB's if that makes you feel better. Some folks say stuff like that about anything bigger than a Chi.

I had more than one person get scared and all but run away from Slade. When he was 12-16 weeks old!

I mean, seriously, people look like tools when they overexaggeratingly run away like that. First of all, RELAX, he's leashed, and clearly under control, second of all, he's possibly the cutest PUPPY ever! Not that I'm biased or anything. LOL

And I'm totally not one of those people who lets my dog invade people's space either. It's like they're offended we exist, and are using the same sidewalk as them.

To those people, I say "Eff you, and I can't wait to see your asses when he weighs 70 lbs".

 

[SmexyPibble]

Possibly?
Yeesh. Some Slade-momma you are!

Slade, you ARE the cutest puppy EVER!



Beat THAT!

 

[Bahamutt99]

Persevere, grasshopper. You'll either prove them wrong through your actions over time, or you'll outlive them because they shortened their lifespans by being too worried about things.

 

[youhavenoidea]

Possibly?
Yeesh. Some Slade-momma you are!

Slade, you ARE the cutest puppy EVER!



Beat THAT!

LMAO, well I didn't want to be a huge braggart! LOL

 

[Chewbecca]

See, I know the right thing to tell you for how to handle your family, and then...well, then there is the thing that I actually WOULD do.

I have no problems being confrontational when it comes to defending someone I love, so I would have walked in the room and confronted ALL of them on what they were saying. And I'd have laid the guilt pretty thick about how dare they talk about my dog and me like we're not even there, and they could have at least waited to talk about me behind my back until I wasn't there.
And if they don't accept my dog, they don't accept me because he's part of my family.

And I would have walked out.


But, that's me. And I'm sure there are reasons as to why it might be uncomfortable saying stuff like that to them.

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

Along with what Chewbecca posted above, one certainly realizes that the choice of certain breeds brings with it prejudice.

"pit bulls", Rottweilers, often Dobes, Akitas, sometimes GSDs. All these breeds carry a certain amount of stigma to the GP. They are feared by many people. Ignorance is a contributor to this of course.

So some things to do include:

EDUCATE people, kindly if possible
TRAIN YOUR DOG. There is no better deterrent to this kind of thinking than to have a well socialized well trained friendly dog as an example.

DRESS YOUR DOG. hats, t-shirts, cute outfits. This, more than ANYTHING ELSE, I have found, puts people at ease and makes your dog less threatening to them.

And finally, step back and look at the situation, and your dog, objectively, and try to honestly figure out if your family DOES have any valid concerns.

JMO on the subject.

 

[shadowfacedanes]

When Shelby (my last dane) died, I called my parents because I was grief stricken and I thought they should know/might care.

My Dad says "Well, I hope you've learned your lesson. There's just no sense in having a dog that big".

Like, WTF? Little dogs don't die?

My parents own little dogs and have never understood my loving the giants. They have a little yorkie and whenever I take Hannah over, they think she's going to kill the yorkie.

You'd think after 15 years of owning danes, they'd know better by now, but I don't even really try anymore.

I hope you can change your families opinions, but if not, the fault lies with THEM. Not you, not Reggin.

 

[Renee750il]

I hate how people are so closed minded *hugs* Reggin is a great dog, you're a great owner. Your daughter has one of the greatest protectors and friends that a child could have. Maybe they need to see Mia's video.

Absolutely.

 

[Barb04]

I do love pitties too. I heard a woman say the other day that she didn't trust them because they eat little children. I tried to get her to change her mind, but some people are closed minded.

 

[JennSLK]

I know how you feal. My dad and I didnt talk for 2 weeks when I got my first pit foster.

He also laid into me about Jazz. In time he changed. He now lays into people for saying she's mean and she sits on the front seet of his truck when he takes her somewere

My mom was a bit leary of her untill she was 7 months old. At that time she placed her self between my mom and some guy in a alley when they were out for a walk.

Hopefully in time things get better for you

 

[Squishy22]

It is sad. But you have to see that some people truly believe what they see and hear from the media.

And now that incident with your uncle, it is small things that can make big waves.. that's exactly what is happening with all the BSL enablers. It is your job as a pit owner to cancel out any situation that might go "bad" to not only protect your dog, but also protect the breed.

I may not be the most pit bull savvy person and I have SOOOO much catching up to do... but I know, that with my dog, I always, always have to think one step ahead. One more: what could go wrong here and what could go wrong there? And then I try to cancel everything out that might go wrong so I don't put T-Bone in the situation of having to be faulted for being "just" a dog because of her breed. It might sound paranoid, I am sure to a degree it can be considered that, but it is what needs to be done. One more incident could mean one more person thinking pits are evil and that one person, with that one vote could mean the suffering for dogs in my city, county, or state.

While I do not understand close-minded people, you (generally speaking) need to take proactive steps, take CGC classes, for example to try to convince people about the good nature of your dog. Don't set your dog up for failure, even though he is not acting bad and "just" being a dog.

I agree with you completely. The very reason why I am so paranoid taking Reggin anywhere. He doesnt particularly like other dogs, and if he were to hurt another dog if a fight were to happen, he would be at fault. Just taking him for a walk or out to the river is quite stressful.

Our next door neighbor lets their small dog loose. She likes to tease reggin when he is out on his line. I have to be out there to scare the dog away. In fact, I need to call AC because that dog bit my fiance yesterday.

 

[Squishy22]

The one thing I cannot wait for is to see how my family reacts after years of owning reggin with no problems. No aggression. No bites. No dead Madison.

My family has met reggin, but thats just not good enough.

 

[Tankstar]

People buy in to much to what they read in the media. My family was the same way about most dog breeds. Toy poodles and collies were only the good breeds ITO.

But since I have started dragging family (My grandparents and mom) to the dog park with me on random occasions, they have seen first hand that pitbulls, GSDS, rotties, dobes and any other "nad dog" breed is actually all hype and with a well trained loving owner these dogs are awsome petsd and members of society.

Try taking him to get his CGC and start training him for it, with a title like that they my start to belive. make himt he best to his potential and make them see first hand he is a great dog and no baby killer that we all belive he is.

people are to quick to jusge. I would have said omthing to them, but thats me. And Im sure I would have upset them a ton, but no one talks bad about my family member I love.

 

[ttwillow]

You stated you knew getting into this breed there would be haters, but not in your own family? Your family has the most opportunities for interactions with your dog, more than the general public.

If you isolate yourself from family gatherings you are missing out on opportunities to have your dog be a good ambassador for pitties. You are also missing out on personal growth. lrarning how to deal with your anger and hurt feelings and communicating effectively with others.

Are you hiding the fact that you have a dog from your landlord?

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

IMO the best defense is a great offense.

This is why I say:

TRAIN your dog. Make him flawless in public. Ignore negative attitudes and comments. Teach your dog to carry, buy him hats, teach him a couple of cute tricks.

Then get OUT THERE and make an impression! Most of the time if you have a dog who will carry, you can get by with going in MANY places.

Banks. Home Improvement stores. We go to Sherwin Williams, the local building supply place, banks (several of them), the place where I get my tires rotated and oil changed.

We hit every festival or celebration that happens nearby. We go to my vet's OFTEN to carry around the basket and hand out treats.

People simply cannot continue to foster negative attitudes towards a particular dog if you do these things, in my experience.

So don't let their attitudes tick you off. Let them motivate you!!

 

[pedro]

Don't take it personally! A lot of people are uncomfortable, especially around big dogs that have "bad" stigma. I have a Boxer and I'm still trying to get my sister in law to trust my dog around her 2 year old daughter... yes, its been two years and we are slowly working towards that goal!

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

more :spam:

 

[Boemy]

Really? You can take dogs into banks?

 

[bubbatd]

Before there weren't any laws , back in 1948 my Point and I always walked to town ....about 4 miles , I knew nothing about training , except that your dog was to walk on your left , stop when you did and to stay if asked . I'd put him on leach when we went into a store and I never took him into a food store . He'd wait outside for me . Yes , it was a small town , safe and I was only 15 so didn't know better ! The innocent years .