[snislarne]

Ace seriously scares the crap out of people and im not sure why. The reactions i get when i walk him are a lot different than the reactions i got when i walked my two old apbts (r.i.p) I wonder if it's because of his size? My two old apbts were 60lbs and 50lbs medium sized dogs of healthy weight, dogs that looked like real APBTS (though its unknown as both animals came from the shelter) Now Ace is fat, he has hypothyroidism and we're working on it, hes around 80lbs. The reactions i got from walking my two old dogs were the usual
"is that a pit bull?"
"does it bite?"
"is it mean" type things

But yesterday i was walking Ace and someone RAN AWAY from him like sprinted off, and i was completely dumbfounded. And when people ask if he bites and i say" no he's a really good dog" i still get "Well hold on tight to the leash" "im not sure he looks pretty mean/aggressive/viscous"

"why would you own a dog like that, that thing wants to eat people"

Now i thought i was getting off easy with Ace, as i figured he looks a lot more dopey than my two former apbts and i figured people would warm up to him easier but that simply is not the case. Ace really frightens people, and i can't help but wonder what it is about him thats different from my two former apbts. Why the reactions to him are so much different.

[ketNavatutt]

Yeah that honestly would piss me off LOL!
I dont really get those kinds of remarks from people, when I have Cleo...
Except one time, this lady literally turned around and grabbed her boyfriends arm (im guessing it was her bf anyway)
She made him walk on the side closest to Cleo.....
She was hiding behind his arm the whole time she was around Cleo!
And she looked like a f*cking idiot doing it!...pissed me off..

[PekHyvac]

That's a bunch of BS. My area is pretty APBT savvy so I don't get that a lot, but I know it would make me mad. I did have someone ask if my dogs were aggressive once and I educated them on bully breeds a little and they seemed to understand. A lot of people have pit bull type dogs around here so its not a big thing to see someone walking one down the street. I guess the only thing you can do is educate and ignore. Show them what a good boy he is! I think it must be the size that makes people more fearful. Most people think APBTs are suppose to be a monster of a dog when really the breed standard calls for 30-65 pounds. People are very surprised when I tell them that as well as when I tell them they are terriers lol. Sorry about the luck wish you well!

[Hlennisal]

I occasionally get the same reaction from my little 45-pound mix! And with his big ears and long nose (he's half EBT) he looks more like a Disney character than a "tough dog".

The funniest was when a gentleman in a wheelchair and his five-year-old son had stopped to pet and coo over Twinkie. Some dude walking down the street FREEZES twenty feet away and hollers over, "You got a hold on that dog?"



...Um, yeah, as you can see with how he's reacting to the kid and the guy in the wheelchair, he's clearly a vicious beastie. He'll be over to rip your legs off as soon as he's done mauling them. Sheesh.

[ketNavatutt]

I occasionally get the same reaction from my little 45-pound mix! And with his big ears and long nose (he's half EBT) he looks more like a Disney character than a "tough dog".

The funniest was when a gentleman in a wheelchair and his five-year-old son had stopped to pet and coo over Twinkie. Some dude walking down the street FREEZES twenty feet away and hollers over, "You got a hold on that dog?"



...Um, yeah, as you can see with how he's reacting to the kid and the guy in the wheelchair, he's clearly a vicious beastie. He'll be over to rip your legs off as soon as he's done mauling them. Sheesh.

LOL, some people..

[Gremlinn]

She was hiding behind his arm the whole time she was around Cleo! And she looked like a f*cking idiot doing it!...pissed me off..

You know it does bother me when stuff like that happens but not so much as it used to. Somewhere along the line I realized there are a lot of other people out there that see us cruising along with our dogs, see someone act like the woman you described and reach the same conclusion about her as you did, that she looks like an idiot.

I tend to talk to those people, the other ones I try to ignore.

[GrileVege]

This face scares people:


I don't think there's any changing some people's minds. Lily and I are currently in a CGC class, and we're going to start therapy training. Next year we'll try to get our TT done (can't do it until she's 18 months). That's really the best way to change people's minds IMO.

[ketNavatutt]

Aww..what a pretty girl...
And thats really great LilianaLove! Good luck to the both of you

[fluoxet]

Its probably because Ace is a larger dog than the others you had. I have seen plenty of prejudice about the breed, but I have also seen people freak and head the other way for non-Pit Bull dogs that are large.

There was once a nice lil old lady walking her Dogue De Bordeaux in the city park. This woman had to be 70 and maybe weighed 100lbs. I was dancing in place waiting for the hubby to take our dog from me so I could go over and ask to pet the Dogue while I saw people literally running away from where she was standing. WTF? If that big ole beastie isn't eating the lil old lady walking him I am pretty sure its safe to walk by her. People are wusses.

[Buyingtime]

I have had people cross the street when they see us walking.. but no one has ever really said much to me....
of course my wife says they are going across the street to avoid me, not the dog... must be afraid of my overalls and boonie hat...or is the fanny pack.

[fluoxet]

Aww, Obed! If it counts for anything, plain speaking "grumpy" older men with a sense of humor and dogs are my favorite people! I have a few friends that were in their 20's and 30's before I was born and I tell them all the time that I am sad they don't make men like them anymore.

[heilyprollecyspor]

I wouldn't be pissed i'd be glad! I got Trina at the shelter when there were lots of break ins on our street. Our schanauzer wasn't cutting it so I wanted a bigger dog with a bigger bark I would be glad if someone were afraid of Trina... but she's only 40lbs so people just say how pretty she is. maybe when she's older

[Overlord]

Every walk that I take my dogs on I will have at least one person either cross the street or cross someones yard to avoid me. So what I have been doing to show how stupid they are is sit my dog down and get them to shake a paw LOL.

[syncFisee]

I have had people cross the street when they see us walking.. but no one has ever really said much to me....
of course my wife says they are going across the street to avoid me, not the dog... must be afraid of my overalls and boonie hat...or is the fanny pack.

I think it's the fanny pack! I would love to say "It's not the dog you should be afraid of, it's me".

[WUlcN1Rz]

Heh yea never fails, everyday on our walk someone will cross over when they see us getting close. or Turn and go to the closest side road and "fast walk" away. hehe

Took out my male last halloween and gave him the cape and he was SUPER DOG!!! BO!! lol but it was sad the only person who came and pet him (at least 1-2thousand people in my old neighborhood on halloween since it was nicer and all the kids go there) the only one to stop and pet my dog was the lady with her 6wk old pomerinan mix... parents were draging there kids across the street. lol

[G8whlTAe]

Honestly I'd be happy, with all the crazy ass people out there nowadays it's good they keep their distance.

[erelvenewmeva]

You know people have said things about Zoey because they assume she is a pit bull but as she has gotten older, the boxer is much more obvious, so I find I hear less of "is that a pit bull?" type questions.

Now my foster Daisy is fits the stereotypical "pit bull mix" description and she walks like a dream on a leash with a flat collar and right beside me, and yesterday I had a lady cross the road. I had my iPod on, so I didn't say anything, but when I got home I told my husband that I wonder if it was because she was just giving me free reign of the sidewalk or if she was afraid of Daisy. If not for the iPod I might have asked the question, just to see.

My neighbors all think I am the crazy dog lady these days though - I walk my two (one at a time) and I had 2 fosters for 2 weeks, so I was doing 4 laps every day, each time with a different dog. One guy asked, one lady knows I foster, and the bitch with the poodle off leash just snatches her dog up and glares. Everyone else just waves and smiles

[snislarne]

I think i'll be getting a dog costume for Ace, and dress him up as a disney character on walks...I hate to dress him up but it may make people see him in a different light.

[enrisaabsotte]

...or is the fanny pack.

It's the fanny pack, I'm telling you. Just don't trust people who wear them


Costumes are a good way of getting people to not be afraid for some reason... When my old girl was wearing either just a bandana or get pink jacket, people flocked to her. something bright and goofy... Like a jester's ruffle.

[Narus63]

When I walked BoBo in the park, people would move way off the sidewalk to get away from him. He was 28" tall, 110lbs and walked like a big cat. He instilled fear but was a sweet boy. After four years I still grieve for him.