Saturday, April 23, 2011

Great Moments in pit bull history - Sept 2008

This would be the height of irony were it not so predictably infuriating. Members of Seattle pit bull lobby pressure group FABB attended the grand opening of a pet store in Phinney Ridge Washington, to pass out pro-pit bull propaganda and "educate" people about pit bulls. At least one of the activists brought his gripping dog to the event, which was not a smart move. The pit bull happened to spot a docile yellow Lab in the crowd and violently attacked him, clamping his jaws around the Lab's neck to choke him to death. It took several of the group to pry the mutant off of the Lab, and but for their intervention the Lab would now be dead.

The owners of the Lab, named Sam, recount the incident:  "After minutes (which seemed like hours) of watching our dog scream while their pit bull held Sam’s neck in his jaws, while no one, not even the dog's owner was able to release him, finally somehow he was freed. We immediately took Sam to a quiet place nearby, where he stood shaking uncontrollably for nearly 1/2 hour, with a racing heartbeat. " The vet afterwards found puncture wounds on Sam's neck. Sam's owner was not reimbursed for the Vet bills BTW. 

The local media report is here

For some reason the article linked above includes a carefully staged shot of a pit bull under a blanket, with a toy placed near it's head - obviously intended to make the creature appear cute and harmless, but as the crowd at the pet store opening were so graphically reminded, pit bulls are unpredictable, violent and aggressive. 

The disturbing part of the story is the this: while pit bulls continue to cause the most injuries in Seattle, FABB continues it's activities - spreading misinformation about pit bulls, and intimidating victims. In the aftermath of the incident, the following was reported:

A group working to ban potentially dangerous dogs from Seattle has abruptly canceled plans to submit a citizen initiative after receiving threatening e-mails from pit-bull enthusiasts, group members say. "You should be publicly executed for your actions against our beloved pets," one e-mail reads. "You all ought to be neutered," says another.


So, the pit bull activists get a pass - how can that be? Is it really down to the law of the jungle in Seattle now? Whoever yells the loudest, and is most willing to resort to violence and intimidation wins the argument, is that it? Does anybody think it's getting better? 

Further info on the above incident from


  1. Nowakowska backed that point, noting that the dog, which is a mixed-breed, is very gentle. Pit bulls

    1. Yes, it's true that pit bulls very often are gentle - until they aren't. And that is the problem in a nutshell.


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