It’s becoming more and more common for violent dogs to be labeled “monsters” and “naturally aggressive”. It’s even more common for certain breeds to receive blame and be labeled the characteristic “bad dog”.
Breeds like Pitbulls, Dobermans, Chows, Mastiffs, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Huskies, and many others take the most backlash for incidents involving injuries and deaths of both people and other dogs.
It’s now widespread thought that these dogs are bad from the get go.
That it’s their natural tendency to be nasty, and they can’t help it. It’s inevitable.
They are ticking time bombs waiting to go off and create havoc. That one-day, out of the blue, they will snap at someone and reveal their true colors.
They are born bad.
And this thinking is absolutely wrong.
Yes, dog breeds have been bred for specific jobs, like hunting, guarding, and protecting. It’s what they were basically designed for.
But there is no such thing as a bad dog. You know why?
Because dogs are what we make them.
Humans created dogs, and humans raise dogs. We are responsible for them. We show them what to do and what not to do. We sculpt them into what they are. People who did not take the time to be good owners make bad dogs bad.
Bad people make bad dogs.
Somewhere along the way, this “bad dog” was mistreated and misguided. Cruelty to animals will only breed cruelty as a response. If you hurt an animal, or back them into a corner, it’s more than likely they will fight back. To protect themselves.
It’s instinct.
And if dogs feel that they need this violent demeanor to survive, then that is what they will keep.
It will become how their brain is wired. And unfortunately, that re-wiring can be directed at people.
It’s hard not to hate an animal that injures a person or another pet. It’s brutal. But we cannot condemn entire breeds for the difficult and ingrained actions of one dog. We cannot condemn an entire species when we are the ones that created them. We are the ones that domesticated them.
We cannot hate certain dogs for their violent behavior, which was taught to them by a bad person in the first place.
And we cannot lose sight of how valuable our dogs and other animals are to us. If we can crack down on animal abuse and neglect and dog fighting rings, then there will never be a need to call a dog “bad” again.
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