FanNation - The Republic of Sport

The disgraced Atlanta Falcons quarterback tested positive for marijuana earlier this month, a violation of the conditions of his release as he awaits sentencing in federal court on a dogfighting charge that already jeopardizes his freedom and career. Now, he's incurred the ire of the judge who could sentence him to up to five years in prison in the dogfighting case. On the day of Vick's guilty plea, U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson warned that he wouldn't be amused by any additional trouble. Hudson, who will sentence Vick on Dec. 10, on Wednesday ordered him confined to his Virginia home between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. with electronic monitoring. He also must submit to random drug testing. Except from SI article He was told not to by the judge......

Vee Vee So since other people do wrong, that makes it ok for Vick??? Please, thats some twisted logic.....I hope u are not a parent and teaching your child to avoid accountability..... djroxalot | 09/25/07

Get educated before u rant about something u dont know.....

Like most terriers, pit bulls are extremely tenacious and stubborn. They easily become highly aroused and, when in such an agitated state, often have little control over their behavior if they have not been taught to inhibit their impulses. Hence, pit bulls have a reputation for being more ???mouthy??? and bite harder in play than other breeds. They are also relatively impervious to pain. The Pit Bull???s Bad Reputation Sadly, pit bulls have acquired a reputation as unpredictable, dangerous, and vicious. Their intimidating appearance has made them attractive to the wrong sorts of owner???people who are looking for a macho dog and end up encouraging aggressive behavior. In order to meet the growing demand for pit bulls, unscrupulous and uncaring breeders are producing puppies without maintaining the breed???s typical reliability with people. In fact, pit bulls are now notorious for redirecting aggression from a dog to any person who attempts to break up a fight. It is a shame what has happened to this loyal and affectionate breed. Having said all that, we must tell you that a well-bred, well-socialized, and well-trained pit bull is one of the most delightful, intelligent, and gentle dogs imaginable. Some of the most famous dogs in American history were pit bulls: Stubby, the most decorated United States war dog; Petey, the beloved mascot from Little Rascals, and Helen Keller???s faithful companion. Additionally, many pit bulls were featured in well-known advertising campaigns, such as Buster Brown shoes and Levis. The majority of pit bulls are still ambassadors for their breed, serving as loving companions, family members, and therapy dogs, working in search and rescue, narcotics and explosives detection, and police and sentry duty. Unfortunately, we often hear more about the exceptions than the rule. What Pit Bulls Need If you have, or are thinking of adopting, a pit bull, please ensure that you can provide the following: - Plenty of early socialization with dogs and with people, beginning as young as seven weeks of age and continuing into adulthood. - Training, starting with Puppy Kindergarten and progressing through Basic and Advanced Obedience. We highly recommend continued guidance throughout the dog???s life. - Neutering or spaying--there are already too many pit bulls and not enough homes for them. - Lots of daily exercise! Pit bulls are high-energy athletes! - Honest and constant attention to the behavior of the dog. Questionable behavior can never be excused, and must be addressed immediately through training/retraining, and/or management

Breed Characteristics of Pit Bulls Pit bulls were genetically selected for their fighting prowess. What does this mean? What it doesn???t mean is that pit bulls can???t be around other dogs or that they are unpredictably aggressive, or that they will fight to the death. What it does mean is that pit bulls can easily be encouraged to be aggressive toward other dogs or, to put it another way, it takes less to arouse a pit bull than many other breeds to be aggressive toward other dogs. It may help to understand how dogs learn to get along with other. Puppies of all breeds need to be socialized with other dogs in order to learn how to interact, how to play, and how to communicate with them. This early socialization acts to ???inoculate??? the puppy against future unpleasant experiences. Suppose the puppy is playing with another dog and the play escalates into a fight. Most well socialized puppies will bounce back after a fight and still want to play. Pit bull puppies need more than the average amount of socializing with other dogs--to ensure that they enjoy the company of dogs and to modify their natural play behavior, which is often rougher than that of other breeds. Even with extra socialization, a little squabble between friends could spark a pit bull to be testy with dogs???simply because the pit bull is genetically predisposed to react aggressively to dogs. Dogfights between dogs of ???average??? breeds are usually ???ritualized.??? The objective is for one dog to walk away the victor with little or no bloodshed. The participants engage in plenty of preliminary behavior designed to intimidate their opponent, such as facial expressions, posturing, circling, growling, and snarling. Bites delivered during a fight are typically inhibited--the point is to cause pain, but not necessarily to inflict serious injuries. Pit bulls, however, have been selected to behave quite differently during fights. They rarely give any warning that they are about to act aggressively (some people call them ???stone-faced???), and they seldom back down against an opponent. They are more often involved in fights that end in injury, suggesting that a pit bull???s aggression more closely resembles predatory behavior. Even though pit bulls were bred to fight with each other, breeders took pride in producing dogs who were trustworthy and friendly to people. Handlers had to be in the pits with the dogs during fights, sometimes having to pull them apart to end a fight. Any dog who redirected their aggression to a person was culled. These ???early??? pit bulls typically lived in their owner???s homes and actually earned the nickname of ???nursemaid???s dog??? because they were so reliable with young children.