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Wow.. Well to Caden’s mom: I enjoy the dog park with my pit. We are lucky to have this area in a massive conservancy with ponds, trails, and open fields as opposed to a fenced block of grass in the middle of a concrete jungle. We go there as a treat and not as routine. It takes continual training to prepare for this adventure. During our routine walks, anytime another dog or person passes us, I have her sit. She has to remain calm or she will be corrected. If she persists, then she must lay down. Usually when strangers see my control over her, they are less likely to be fearful and allow their dog to say hello (it also sparks conversation and the awareness spreads). This prepares her to remain submissive to every dog and person alike. When we get to the dog park, before we go inside, we walk around the entrance until she is calm then we proceed inside leashed. I enforce the same procedure as my routine walks as this ensures not only my control (especially in an environment she is not use to) but also the other dog owners will relax. I will often make conversation with the other owners at this time and try to get a feel of their dogs behavior and introduce them to my pit. It helps when I bring my 7 year old daughter with me. People see her with my pit and sometimes their opinion changes! Only when she is completely calm and seems to just ignore the other dogs and when the other owners are comfortable, is when I remove her leash. I also bring a favorite toy or some treats to reinforce her behavior and as a distraction if I see the other dogs are getting rowdy. Although I have never seen aggressive behavior with my dog, I am fully aware of what she is capable of. Every 15 minutes or so of running and playing I will have her come and sit next to me for a minute. Once she is calm again, it’s back to playtime. This isn’t meant to be punishment or a timeout so she is rewarded with praise when she behaves. I live in one of the top five most dangerous cities in the US and pit bull fighting remains an issue. The ability to spread the knowledge in my area is rewarding. Where else can you go with your pit bull to show others how gentle, intelligent, and agile they are? Everyone knows my dog in my neighborhood so the knowledge would have stopped with them. Good luck to you, and I hope you know that this is a great activity for pits or any breed for the physical and mental challenges.
my pit loves the dog park and when we go and noone there he looks sad and only will be there for like 5 min and want to leave
HI
We just rescued a boxer pit mix so I am new and want to do the right thing from the start. He is 11 weeks old and is cute now but is already showing some strong behaviors. He barks at me when he wants what I have and back my other boxer up already. He is also chomping a bit with his mouth. Any suggestions on what to do when he barks directly at me and when he snaps?
ThanksFelicia, depending on the situation there are several things you can start doing. If you are playing with him…stand up and walk away, play stops immediately. You can place him a crate away from everyone until he calms. When u say he is chomping with his mouth. Are you referring to air bites? Some pitties do this. You have to become the leader of the pack. Always supervise dogs when together. Exercise, socialize. Did you do a two week shut down when you got your 2nd dog? Check out http://www.pbrc.net on multi dog homes, NFL as well as crate n rotate. Congrats on your new pup. Good Luck
Star616 you are an ideal pitbull owner. That is exactly how I raised my dog and why I know she’s safe at a dog park. Good for you.
I am so happy that you have a pit bull and are such a wonderful advocate for the breed. I am also so thankful that you have created an ambassador for our cause!
Wow, If people are going to say APBT’s aren’t allowed in dog parks, then neither are Chow Chows, German Shepards, Dobermans, Rottweilers or Cocker Spaniels.
Since this post is titled Dog Park Drama, I’ll share a few stories about my dog park experiences. Most of the time bad situations in dog parks are due to the owners fault, not the dogs.
I worked as a Animal Care Technician and a Euthanasia Technician for three years. I have fostered tons of dogs, and have extensive experience with pit bulls. So what I am saying is I am no dummy when it comes to dogs. There have been several times where I have witnessed fights at our local dog park, and this is for the people who are saying APBT’s don’t belong at dog parks.
The first one, a black lab got a little bit rough with a pointer mix, and it turned into a full fledged fight. There were three pits playing in the park at the time. All three of them ran back to their owners when the other two dogs started fighting.
Second, a CHIHUAHUA attacked a terrier mix. Once again, there were pits and pit mixes in the park. Most of them were scared to death of the situation.
Third, a Chow Chow latched on to a woman’s arm when she stepped too close to it’s owners baby.
My point here is that there will always be drama in dog parks, no matter what type of dogs are there. But making blanketed statements such as no APBT’s is completely ignorant. And I am using “ignorant” in the true sense of the word. I.E. not knowing what you are talking about. Obviously if you have a dog that is dog aggressive, fence aggressive, unsocialized or has a history of abuse. It’s probably not the best idea to be taking it to a dog park and letting it run loose. Whether it is a lab, husky, cocker spaniel or pitbull.
That is an obnoxious thing to say. My Samson loves the dog park and everyone who meets him there loves him and compliments on how well behaved he is compared to all the other dogs. If you are having trouble with your dog at the park, you may want to do a little training with him first. There are plenty of great training tips on this website.
So true I have a 6 month old pit bull and a 4yr old greyhound mix. A miniature schnauzer @ my apartment lunged and tried to attack my pit, of course she ran and hid behind my legs.Lol
So what you’re saying is you shouldn’t socialize your Pit? That makes no sense. Decisions like yours are exactly how Pit’s become unsocial and aggressive. I agree that they are working dogs and need to be in a routine, but you are contributing to the discrimination of the breed. I know from experience that socializing your Pit, especially in dog parks, is an opportunity to change someone’s mind about the breed. I am aware that it is my responsibility to ensure my dog is behaved and respectful of other dogs/people in the parks but that goes for all owners of every type of breed. I know you mean well but you’re definitely contributing to the fear of the breed.
ok my post may get lost in all this good threads but the important thing to remmeber is that you shouldn’t take your dog to the dog park to tire him/her out they should be tired when they get there. If more people did this there would be less problems in the dog park as well unless you know one hundred percent that you will never have a bite issue with you dog he should be on leash around other dogs
I’m new to this site an not a trainer nor an expert quite the opposite I cAme here to learn to train my pits and to get tips I’ve done alot of reading and research of these dogs and The dog park deal that was actually one of the first things I read not to do with a pit waste take a pit to a dog park no mAtter how well trained blah blah but I give you guys props for having such well behaved pit that can go there and have a good experience there that’s awesome I wont ever take mine there for they need more training and as I probably need it more the. They do lol but I socialized mine at a young age but now they stay at home and just play with each other supervised of course but I take em for car rides and walks and things and I keep em away from strange dogs just so I don’t have to worry about any issues thats my personal choice and I might get chastised for it and that’s okay I’m a novice and Ionia it but I wanna learn more before go wondering into the dark as so do my dogs
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