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Target1911 wrote:I had walked out to the truck, opened the passenger door, placed my pistol in the door pocket. As usual I made one more scan of the area around me before I get in the truck. ALL CLEAR. I get in and with one foot still on the ground I reach to close the door. As I reach for the door I scan again.....

What prevented you from getting in the vehicle and closing the door?

- Jim

A swift kick to the side will make just about any dog run away...and save you any legal trouble.

#1 From the way the OP sounds I would say he was on property he owns or controls.

#2 This is an unknown animal from a strong powerful breed often known to be abused to make them more aggressive.

#3 The animal approached him unnoticed so the OP may not have been completely aware of the situation, the animal was stalking him, or both.

I don't know about most of the posters here but if an animal gets that close to me undetected something is wrong. I have seen dogs that approach you acting friendly and then attack you. I have had wounds from a dog attack and a gun shot and personally I believe the gunshot is not as painful, and often not as severe, as a bad dog bite.

Pit Bulls have a bad rep for a darn good reason. YES there are some good ones out there too, BUT they are naturally aggressive and are very well known to attack for no apparent reason.

If you are approached by someone with a ski mask on, what will you do???
I will atleast get a FIRM GRIP and the sircumstanceswill dictate what I do from there.
TO ME**** a Pit that has approached me without me knowing is that man in the ski mask. However...the pit was to close to get a grip then ask questions. I had to be prepared immediatly. I prepared myself by drawing my weapon first. Remember the 21' rule???? That applies to ANY critter, 2 or 4 legs. I only had about 3' to react. Therefore, if the dog was aggressive, I had my defense ready. Had I not, that dog could have closed the distace and done a LOT of damage before I had a chance to defend myself.

Have you ever seen someones side, skin and meat, peeled from front to back from a dog attack? I promise you, it is not pretty. That was done by THEIR family PET. Her skin was peeled back like a banana and you could literaly see her rib bones.

I am sorry you dont see it the way I do. Furthermore, I dont expect you to. But understand this, EVERYONE reacts different to each situation. Just because you dont do things the way I would doesnt make it wrong and Visa-Versa. I handled it the way I felt SAFE. Noone got hurt or in trouble. I would do it the same way I did if it happened again today.

Dog behavior, especially aggression, is often misunderstood. I myself find their psychology and pack heirarchy fascinating.

When it comes to dealing with extremely confident or aggressive breeds (commonly seen in pits, shepherds, rotts, dobes, etc...), you will find that just about any dog can be subdued with nothing more than an assertive voice and clear body language.

If a dog approaches you with it's tail high or wagging, it means the dog is not afraid of you and curious, nothing else. If you make it plain that you want to be left alone (i.e. plant your feet, look it square in the eyes, and yell "NO" while pointing away), they will usually listen. If the dog considers you a threat at any time, then it will either attack or leave. Only a very small number will attack when given this choice. I have been approached by hundreds of strays over the years, mostly while walking my shepherd (which usually encourages the mutt to head straight for us), and have never required anything except a good pair of lungs and planted body to send it the opposite direction. Same thing goes for controlling my dogs; if they start going after something I don't want them to have (i.e. kids, food, wild animals, etc...) my voice will stop them in their tracks.

The above works when dealing with single or sometimes a small number of dogs. However if you find yourself in the middle of an angry pack, that's a different situation. You will either have to establish yourself as the dominant being in short order, or you will be attacked by all of them. In any case, running away from dogs usually just makes things worse, as it encourages one of their most primal instincts - prey drive.

I'm not saying you shouldn't fear unknown dogs, quite the opposite in fact. But if you know how they think and how they interact with other species, you shouldn't ever have to shoot one just for approaching.

AFJailor wrote:One day at work a buddy and myself responded to a call of a "angry pitbull" wandering around base housing. We arrived on scene to find this little 6 month old puppy wandering around starving and digging through peoples trash. We bought it a whopper from burger king and then drove him to the SPCA. Now, the SPCA kills strays off after 4 days if no one picks them up and since pitbulls suffer under the "angry dog" stereotype they are illegal within city limits.(the AirBase isnt within city limits.) So on the third day my buddy went and adopted the Pit and it has been the most loyal and protective dog you could ever want. Oh and he still chows down on whoppers.

Good for him! I wish more people were willing to rescue perfectly good animals, many of which are killed simply because of a bad reputation, instead of mindlessly paying out the wazoo for pet store "purebreds" that usually end up being inbred and dysfunctional.

Target1911 wrote:Pit Bulls have a bad rep for a darn good reason. YES there are some good ones out there too, BUT they are naturally aggressive and are very well known to attack for no apparent reason.

Absolutely untrue. Pits are not aggressive towards people. Fighting breeds are dog-aggressive, but any aggression towards humans is not allowed, for obvious reasons: they can't turn on their handlers in the ring. Pits focus their aggression only on other dogs, and tend to be very loving towards people, especially children.

Just for the record, I do not own, nor have I ever owned, any pit breed, and I consider dog fighting to be cruel and despicable. However, I have met hundreds of the various pit breeds, and have yet to encounter one that was a threat to people. Mutts? Yes, absolutely, there are many people-aggressive mutts, but they're not pits.

Just out of curiosity, why do you call this dog a "pit bull"? Can you identify a pit? I've seen "pit bull attacks" attributed to everything from boxers to golden retrievers. I urge everyone to take this test:

http://www.understand-a-bull.com/Findth ... ll_v3.html

However...the pit was to close to get a grip then ask questions.

Excuse me if I recall your story incorrectly, but... I think you said you'd put your pistol in the door pocket of your truck, had one foot inside, and were just about to draw your other foot in and close the door. You then opened the door, retrieved your pistol, yelled at the dog, and pursued him to the end of the driveway while evaluating whether you could take a shot.

I had to be prepared immediatly. I prepared myself by drawing my weapon first. Remember the 21' rule???? That applies to ANY critter, 2 or 4 legs.

Dude. Seriously. You weren't prepared for immediate action. You put your pistol in the door pocket. Like someone else asked, "Why didn't you just shut the door?" Seriously: why didn't you? Did you let your "issues" with dogs override your good judgement about when you should or shouldn't draw your gun?

For the record, the "21' rule" (more properly, the Tueller Drill) does not apply to 4-legged critters.

I mentioned previously Longtooth's "charging dog" drill. I suggest you practice it; search the forum for specifics.

I only had about 3' to react. Therefore, if the dog was aggressive, I had my defense ready. Had I not, that dog could have closed the distace and done a LOT of damage before I had a chance to defend myself.

Quit kidding yourself. A dog 3' away who intends you harm, especially when you have no idea he's there, will do harm far quicker than you could react, especially if you have to retrieve a pistol from a door pocket first.

To respond fairly, I'm going to quote everything you say here, and then make my point afterwards:

Have you ever seen someones side, skin and meat, peeled from front to back from a dog attack? I promise you, it is not pretty. That was done by THEIR family PET. Her skin was peeled back like a banana and you could literaly see her rib bones.

I am sorry you dont see it the way I do. Furthermore, I dont expect you to. But understand this, EVERYONE reacts different to each situation. Just because you dont do things the way I would doesnt make it wrong and Visa-Versa. I handled it the way I felt SAFE. Noone got hurt or in trouble. I would do it the same way I did if it happened again today.

You have a fear of dogs based on specific memories from your early years. My late ex-mother-in-law had similar fears from her childhood. For decades before concealed carry was legal, she toted a .32 S&W Long revolver in her purse or car console everywhere she went. You fear dogs; she feared black men. The visceral reaction was the same. I can't begin to tell you how worried I always was that she would be loading her purchases in her car after shopping, and shoot an innocent man who happened to ask for directions or the time of day while having an excessive degree of melanin.

Your "pit who came within 3' before I saw him" could easily be her "black man who stepped out of a car in the next parking spot". Regardless of intent, you both perceived (inaccurately) a dangerous animal who was an immediate threat; you both based that perception blindly without an actual threat.

I'm glad you didn't shoot the dog; I'm glad she didn't shoot any panhandlers.

Absolutely untrue. Pits are not aggressive towards people

Do you have TV??? Have you not ever seen the many cases where a Pit jumped through a WINDOW and attacked someone just walkin down the sidewalk? I HAVE....How about all of the other cases where a Pit busted though a fence and attacked someone walkin down the side walk. What about all of the other UNPREVOKED attacks? It happens all to often. More than you will ever admit.

but any aggression towards humans is not allowed,

That is just amusing to me that someone would think that. Get real.

Pits focus their aggression only on other dogs, and tend to be very loving towards people, especially children.

One again...get real. That sounds like a real sheep talking.

Just out of curiosity, why do you call this dog a "pit bull"?

It is called a Pit Bull Terrier. There is also the American Bulldog which is very simular but bigger.

"pit bull attacks" attributed to everything from boxers to golden retrievers. I urge everyone to take this test:

Walking out on a limb there dont ya think. Be carefull, The further out ya go the thinner they get. Golden Retriever attacks !?!? That would be so rare that I bet you cant even find a report of one of those on the internet. And if you do find one, I bet that wouldnt have been called a "pitbull attack"

Excuse me if I recall your story incorrectly, but... I think you said you'd put your pistol in the door pocket of your truck, had one foot inside, and were just about to draw your other foot in and close the door. You then opened the door, retrieved your pistol, yelled at the dog, and pursued him to the end of the driveway while evaluating whether you could take a shot.

You did.......I quote myself

I reach to close the door

. I did not re-open the door.
Yes my pistol was in my door pocket and it is VERY easy to get to.
You should re-read my post.... The dog ran to the end of the drive....I stayed where i was.
There were other things that were keeping me from entering my truck. To keep the story short, I did not describe EVERY DETAIL.

You have a fear of dogs based on specific memories from your early years

Did I say when all of these attacks happen? Are you sure that I took the time tell about ALL of my run-ins with dogs????
The last time I was bitten was about 2yrs ago. Another time was about 3yrs before that. The girl that was peeled like a banana? 4yrs ago.

And just for the record....I HAVE shot a charging dog. NO its not as easy as if he was standing still but it can be done.

I am about done with this now. I am getting the feeling that you are now just reaching for something to flame about. The bottom line is....You see it your way (you were not there) and I see it my way. I feel comfortable with my reactions. As I said before, I would do things the same way I did if it was to happen again.

This thread has gone as far as it can go.