What do you consider a pitbull breed ambassador?

Hello Board:
On September 30th, I am doing a segment for a workshop seminar on Dogfighting strategies, solutions and Officer safety. The workshop is being sponsored by the Animal Fighting Coalition I am a member of. My part in the workshop is to speak about the work I do with rescue dogs I pull from municipal shelters that were going to be euthanized and then work with them and train them to become "pitbull breed ambassadors". I would love to hear peoples ideas to use for my speech. (As I have not yet prepared it and need ideas) :lol Anyway, here is the question for the board:
What are peoples thoughts on what they consider a pitbull breed ambassador? :mrgreen:
THANKS FOR THE HELP

 

I think its fairly simple be responsible and show the true nature of the breed. I'm not sure what you can work into your speech but...

Dogs like your therapy dogs are great and dogs that visit schools to help children with disabilities learn better and feel more confident. Taking your well behaved, friendly dog out in public. Showing that they are not killer is always great. Always being responsible with them. Participating in activities is being a breed ambassador because your dog is out in public and people can see them not being mean and being good at something that doesn't involve aggression. Like dog shows, agility, weight pulls things like that. A lot of times at shows local people show up that don't own bulldogs and get to see and meet them and some get a changed opinion. They aren't all sure what to expect from a breed portrayed as evil then they meet these wonderful dogs.

I consider some one who portrays there dog in good and proper light, who is responsible and does positive activities with them to be a good breed ambassador. One who also takes time to educate others on the breed positive/negative and takes the time and care of being responsible with their dogs and helping others to understand the truth about the breed and not the medias lies.

 

A Pit Bull Ambassador begins with responsible owners. That applies with all breeds but with PitBulls their behahvior is always under the microscope of public scrutiny.

1. Socialize your PitBull. Make him/her a social butterfly.

2. Train your PitBull. Make sure he/she knows the basics in obedience. A well-mannered PitBull makes a good impression.

3. Keep your PitBull leashed and under control in public. You don't want him/her to infringe on other people's fun at the park and leap in the middle of their picnic or jump all over people they come to meet in public.

4. License your PitBull. Make sure he/she is up to date on their vaccinations.

5. Spay and neuter your PitBull.

6. Pick up and dispose of your dog's waste.

7. Join a dog club and talk to other PitBull owners to stay informed and to develop a support system of dedicated PitBull owners.

8. Never leave your PitBull unsupervised with other animals or children. Many highly publicized attacks involve children who knew the dog in question.

9. Educate yourself. Being an owner of a PitBull comes with a little added responsibility. Don't forget where they came from. As your PitBull matures, it's likely to become more dog aggressive. Be realistic and recognize your PitBull's limits. Just because your PitBull played with other dogs as a puppy, as the dog matures, will become less tolerable of other dogs.

10. Introduce your PitBull to your neighbors. Show them how well behaved and well mannered your PitBull is. Educate them on the good qualities of the breed. Once you change the opinion of just one person, they in turn relay their knowlege to someone else.

 

Your post was very well layed out and I agree with most of what was said.

But

Having an intact dog shouldn't be a problem IMO. I never really thought about being a "breed ambassador" but when I look at it, I really am being an ambassador when I talk to people about my great dogs and answer all their questions and show them how real Pit Bulls act. I don't consider myself NOT a breed ambassador because I have intact dogs or a bad Pit Bull owner.



Spay and neuter your Pet bull I could agree with. As well as any other dogs in your home and other pets too (cats), ect.

 

You can add to this: Unless your dog is a top show animal or you're qualified in breeding the breed, spay and neuter.

The majority of people who own PitBulls are like myself and looking for a good companion dog.

 

:mrgreen:
Thank you! The idea's are starting to come together. I appreciate everyone's help!!!
If anyone has any other ideas please keep them flowing. (I believe just about everything about ambassadorship was already covered though)
:y_the_best:

 

Depends on whether you're talking about dog pit bull ambasadors, or people pit bull ambassadors :lol:

In a dog, a rock solid temperament is super important, especially if you plan to have the dog out in the public eye (not sure if you're just asking about good pit bulls in general, or about using pit bulls to educate people as to what the breed is). Over the top dog aggression (dogs that scream when they see other dogs, or focus on them and forget about all else, not just dogs who'll scrap if put in a bad situation and allowed to do so) IMO aren't really the best cantidates for educating the public, as many have a hard time (even when told the difference) differentiating completely between dog and human aggression, and besides, it can be unerving to see a dog carrying on everytime it sees another dog and not be able to be settled down. Dog aggression sure is part of the breed, and you don't want to hide that, but you also don't want to scare people by using dogs that are at the higher end of the scale as far as dog aggression goes.

A dog that's going to be used to demonstrate to the public should be absolutely bombproof, they should be able to handle going from "city life" to standing in the middle of nowhere without so much as a hitch. Part of this comes from socialization and exposure, but likewise, much is genetics.

For people, nothing irks me more than people who bring their pit bulls out into public, then shun people who ask them questions about them, or want to know about the breed. It doesn't give the best impression of the breed's owners, and does nothing to help the breed. If you don't like talking to people (I don't, though it's easier for me to talk about dogs than some other things), fine, but don't be rude. People seem to think it doesn't matter how they act, but when more and more cities have/are considering BSL, EVERY chance the public gets to see the breed and their owners in a positive light matters.

It also annoys me to hear people go on about the breed's fighting history when talking to people unfamiliar to the breed. Yes, that had a play in why they are such people-stable dogs, BUT most people are not going to be able to get past the fight that they maimed/killed other dogs. They'll picture these dogs on their own pet, or argue that a dog that could kill another dog surely could do the same to a person. Keep it short, to the point, and simple. Your dog has a wonderful temperament, yes! No need to go into the past unless someone inquires.

I will say that the dogs themselves, just by being what they are with people, do far more good in 5 minutes than I could do in an hour of talking. People believe what they see, and they can't deny they're seeing a friendly dog when it's piled in their lap and slurping their eyelids :lol: