The Pit Bull Placebo by Karen Delise

Author:Karen Delise [Delise, Karen]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Tags: Dogs
Publisher: Dogwise Publisher
Published: 2012-11-19T22:00:00+00:00

Since the German Shepherd breed was involved in far more severe/fatal attacks than the Doberman, reason would have it that the Doberman should have been upstaged as most vicious breed by the German Shepherd during these two decades. However, image and reality are not dependent on each other. The German Shepherd had both a real-life and fiction-based image rooted in positive functions, which the Doberman breed was sorely lacking.

The Doberman Pinscher had no visible redeeming qualities to most people and so the image of viciousness could easily be maintained. Additionally, the German Shepherd did not have wild theories or outrageous claims about brain size, unpredictability and other myths associated with the Doberman.

Another very important factor occurring during the 1970s afforded much damage control to aggressive attacks involving German Shepherds. Despite increased incidence of aggression with certain breeds (specifically Great Danes, St. Bernards and German Shepherds) during this period, medical professionals (both human and canine specialists), humane society personnel and animal control officers were giving serious consideration to the forces behind what they perceived to be a growing dog bite problem.

After a series of very severe attacks in the early 1970s, a group of experts addressed the issue of the “rising epidemic of dog bites in major American cities.” This was based on the fact that dog bites rose in New York City from 27,000 reported bites in 1965 to 38,000 reported dog bites in 1972. The opinion was that the increased number of dog bites was related to inner city ghetto growth, as low-income families acquired dogs they could not properly care for, while others obtained large guard dogs to protect against burglary and vandalism. The only reference to breed was the mention of a trend for families to switch from smaller pet dogs to the larger guard dog breeds, such as the German Shepherd and Great Dane.1

In 1977, a young boy in Atco, New Jersey was severely attacked by his grandmother’s German Shepherd. The dog ripped off part of the crown of his head, severed his ear from the ear canal and mangled his mouth. The parents despaired at the numerous operations that would be required to reshape the boy’s mouth to return it to some normalcy. The plastic surgeon involved in this case commented publicly about the increase in severe dog bites seen in the hospitals in Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia, stating “35 youngsters in one summer (1977) is way out of line.” Also recounted was an incident of another young boy severely disfigured by his neighbor’s Labrador Retriever mix and Great Dane. The surgeon commented on the deforming injuries inflicted on children by family pets “which had never shown signs of being vicious before.”2

The experts consulted for this article (plastic surgeons and veterinarians) discussed the epidemic as being the result of the acquisition of guard dogs by inexperienced owners, the indiscriminate breeding of dogs and the inability of owners to properly care for or control their dogs.

Throughout the 1970s dog attacks were viewed as a multi-faceted

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