Nanny dog...or not
Parents who worry about a pit bull tearing into their child's flesh would shudder at the thought of a Staffordshire bull terrier being called a "Nanny Dog".
But that's how some aficionados have referred to the breed, according to a website called The Truth About Pit Bulls.
The Nanny Dog rebranding is designed to show how good these dogs were around children in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The Truth About Dogs claims that the term has been milked by 21st-century pit-bull owners to promote greater acceptance of the breed.
This information came under a headline stating: "From 2004 to 2010 59 US children were killed by the family's, babysitter's, neighbor's or friend's pit bull."
In 2013, a pit-bull advocacy group called Bad Rap said that it didn't support referring to these canines as Nanny Dogs. For that, The Truth About Pit Bulls site offered thanks.
But others still use the term, regardless of the number of kids who've been killed or maimed by the breed.
Comments
16 Comments
cindy
Jan 22, 2015 at 11:39am
Not!
Lily
Jan 22, 2015 at 11:56am
I think you need to provide facts on which breeds are most likely to harm a child - and then also incorporate that it's almost always the "animal" at the other "end of the training leash" to blame. Some stats on how many of these dogs have recently (historically) saved their "children" would be nice as well. NOTE - I am not the owner of a dog of this breen, however, I feel your piece is quite one-sided, and therefore, irresponsible. Having had a family member and several friends have this breed with not a Single incident tells me enough. A dog is a dog is a dog. Any dog can bite People really have to "uneducate" themselves on some of the myths that have been perpetuated about this breed.
Beatriz
Jan 22, 2015 at 3:02pm
I grew up around dogs and today I have a 9 years old golden retriever and 2 cats, I cant imagine living without animals, that's how rewarding their unconditional love is too me and there is nothing I wouldn't do for our pets. In my walks with dogs I learned there are certain breeds I should be aware of either because they are too territorial o plainly aggressive: German Shepard , Pit Bull, Rottweilers, and little white dogs , of course not all these dogs individually are aggressive but in my experience more likely to be , I would not have any of those breeds close to dog or a child. Three summers ago I was in a park once and to my shock these pit bull runs around without a leash , I was sitting with my dog (back then I lived by the mountains and used to go in hikes and carry bear repellant in my knapsack ) long story short I didn't like the energy of the pit bull he was walking like he owned the park I got my spray ready 10 minutes or so later out of nowhere he attacked a small dog, it was a carnage I was deeply disturbed and so was my dog, but it wasn't out of nowhere he was looking for a pray and found it in that small dog. Ever since I cross the street when I see a pit bull and I wonder what kind of person "needs" a dog known for snapping .
Disgusted
Jan 22, 2015 at 5:54pm
Here's what I know of pitbull 'defenders'.
As a breed, their most marked trait: delusion.
Thomas McCartney
Jan 22, 2015 at 10:54pm
God Bless these souls through eternity and may there killers be dammed for eternity.!
http://voicesofthevictims.org/victims-stories/media/2014-canine-attack-v...
This is the truth of the Pit bull type dog's Genetic reality and outcome: We the people “WON’T BACK DOWN”
http://voicesofthevictims.org/victims-stories/media/wontbackdown-psa/ ***********************************************************************************************Wednesday, January 7, 2015
2014 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs Most of the Expected, Longtime Killing Culprits
http://blog.dogsbite.org/2015/01/2014-fatal-dog-attack-breed-identificat...
Bite Statistics to Sink Your Teeth Into
January 06, 2015
http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/Stories/2015/JAN06/bite.html
Thomas McCartney
Jan 22, 2015 at 10:55pm
About 31,400 dogs attacked about 61,500 other animals in the U.S. in 2013, killing 43,500 and seriously injuring 18,100.
The animals killed included about 12,000 dogs, 8,000 cats, 6,000 hooved animals, and 17,000 other small domestic animals, primarily poultry.
The seriously injured included about 12,400 dogs, 4,000 cats, and 1,700 hooved animals. Few small mammals and poultry survived reported dog attacks.
Pit bulls inflicted 99% of the total fatal attacks on other animals (43,000); 96% of the fatal attacks on other dogs (11,520); 95% of the fatal attacks on livestock (5,700) and on small mammals and poultry (16,150); and 94% of the fatal attacks on cats (11,280).
About 30,000 pit bulls were involved in attacks on other animals, many of them killing multiple other animals.
There are about 3.2 million pit bulls in the U.S. at any given time, according to the annual Animal24-7 surveys of dogs offered for sale or adoption via online classified ads.
Thus in 2013 about one pit bull in 107 killed or seriously injured another animal, compared with about one dog in 50,000 of other breeds.
Nationally, fatal and disfiguring attacks by dogs from shelters and rescues have exploded from zero in the first 90 years of the 20th century to 80 since 2010, including 58 by pit bulls, along with 22 fatal & disfiguring attacks by other shelter dogs, mostly Rottweilers & bull mastiffs.
Altogether, 33 U.S. shelter dogs have participated in killing people since 2010, including 24 pit bulls, seven bull mastiffs, and two Rottweilers.
The only dogs rehomed from U.S. shelters to kill anyone before 2000 were two wolf hybrids, rehomed in 1988 and 1989, respectively.
Thomas McCartney
Jan 22, 2015 at 10:56pm
In North America, from 1982-2013, Pit Bull breeds and mixes have seriously attacked 2,990 humans that resulted in 1,777 maimings and 275 deaths.
The bullmastiff is a Pit bull type dog with the same genetic makeup and danger of a pit bull.
The Bullmastiff was a cross of 40% Old English Bulldog or pit bull type dog and 60% English Mastiff
In North America, from 1982-2013, Bullmastiffs have been responsible for 105 serious attacks on humans, resulting in 61 maimings and 15 deaths.
In North America from 1982-2013, Rottweilers were responsible for 514 attacks on humans, resulting in 81 deaths.
Rottweiler mixes were responsible for 30 attacks on humans, resulting in 4 deaths
Jan Smith
Jan 23, 2015 at 4:13am
This 'nanny dog' myth was started by statements made by two people. Mrs. Lilian Rant, President, Staffordshire Bull Terrier Club of America, magazine editor said they are referred to as a nursemaid dog in an interview published in the New York Times in 1971.
Second in 1987 Toronto Star article where Breeder Kathy Thomas, president of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier Association said “In England, our Staffies were called the nanny-dog”. No sources, citations or evidence just two biased people heavily invested in trying to change the image of Pit Bulls made these statements and started this whole myth.
Indeed some dogfighters did photograph their pit bulls with their children, to help advertise the sale of their cull dogs as pets, but that hardly means pit bulls were safe pets. One of the most notorious of these gents, professional dogfighter John P. Colby, of Newburyport, Massachusetts, produced his first pit bull litter in 1889. The Boston Globe on December 29, 1906 reported that police shot one of his dogs, who mauled a boy while a girl escaped. On February 2, 1909 the Globe described how one of Colby’s dogs killed Colby’s two-year-old nephew, Bert Colby Leadbetter.
Jan Smith
Jan 23, 2015 at 4:23am
The pit bull fans often refer to pit bull 'Petey' of the 'Our Gang' movies about American slums in the early 20th century. They say that shows pit bulls were considered children's companions back then. If you look at the movies, you see that Petey's main job was to attack people and other dogs. He wasn't portrayed as a nice dog, but as a vicious one.
These pit fans also mix up movies with reality. In fact, about 12 different pit bulls played Petey. Two of them were put down because they were too aggressive off camera. On camera, their owner-trainer was always within a few feet of the pit bulls, just behind the camera, giving the pit bull commands and ready to intervene if it rampaged on set.
The pit bull fans probably believe Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck really saved the Earth from an incoming huge comet too.
Dava
Jan 23, 2015 at 10:10am
Three Americans have been killed in 2015 by pit breed dogs: an 87 year old man, an 18 month old toddler, and yesterday a 7 year old boy. 100% of the pit bulls were the families' own pet pit bulls.