Ok, here is the back ground. This lady keeps emailing me and even contacted me about my dear hard of hearing Nala last year. At that time she had three female Pit Bulls and wanted one more. She does not have a fenced yard and believes in the 'natural' recall. They do have Pit Bull experience and live on 45 acres. This year she is inquiring about my male Pit Bulls. I do not have a Pit Bull that I feel comfortable placing in a home with no fenced yard with two other female Pit Bulls. I feel she has just been lucky that nothing bad has ever happened. So here are just a few of our correspondants.
Thank you again for even using up your time with responding to me.
Yes, another dog being able to be around kids is very important since I am THE coordinator for our DOG TALES program. The dog has to be able to handle kids of all ages in a public library situation and also be able to adjust to the high pitched whines, chipmunk squeals, and the wobbling bodies tipping over towards them. I am VERY protective of Patches...........she is not a Golden Retriever....and I certainly have been a bit curt with some second through 4th graders when I have felt their body language was not communicating with Patches.
I have made kids lie down, be relaxed think about sleeping, and then I have dropped things on them. They are always startled! I tell them that is how a dog can feel, so if they cannot see the dog's eyes, then the dog cannot see them, so do not disturb until both the dog and then the dog's human have said OK.
Obviously I cannot do a petting demo on this kids at school, but I have pointed out to them that maybe the way they want to touch a dog is not the way a dog wants to be touched......................they really think about this stuff!
I have had some of the best questions ever asked about dogs from 4th graders!
This fenced yard stuff........I would never be able to have a dog that needed one. They are not livestock.
I am 58 years old and have had over 33 dogs in my life and have lived with them in at least 12 different homes. Golden Retrievers, Labs, Springer Spaniels, English Spaniels, Kerry Blue Terriers, Standard Poodles, Corgis, pound mutts, Blue Heelers, Basenjis, Rat Terriers, Bassest Hound, more pound mutts, Jack Russell, Am Staffs, "Pits," and I know I am missing somebody...........
And, the star of the group was Tamarack...a huge Malamute that we inherited from an acid/pot smoking brother-in-law from the Haight Ashbury in SF, CA, and we have never had a fenced yard. We could NOT chase our dogs away...maybe fire works?
We have always farmed and have always lived with our dogs. Our dogs have always lived with us. So why would they leave? And, we have always been so fortunate to have acreage!
What do you mean about adding in a male with our two females? We use to have three females, all Pits, and no one ever left. Do you think males are more apt to roam?